Description:
<jats:title>ABSTRACT</jats:title><jats:p>There are many geological situations where moving ground water transfers a significant amount of heat. Yet, while convective heat transfer is a common phenomenon, it is very difficult to treat analytically. In this paper we present a simple model of convective heat transfer in porous materials and a numerical method of solving the model. The model is then applied to three diverse field situations: (1) a thermal anomaly on the Hartville uplift in eastern Wyoming; (2) a fault‐controlled hydrothermal system near Monroe, Utah; and (3) the Luanshya copper mine in the Republic of Zambia. In each case heat transfer by moving ground water is shown to explain the observed thermal anomalies satisfactorily. Our results indicate that in certain situations the effect of ground‐water flow needs to be considered in making local and regional assessments of heat‐flow data. Furthermore, temperature measurements can be very useful in estimating aquifer recharge, particularly when thermal conductivity and structural information are available.</jats:p>