Geochemical characterization of geothermal spring waters occurring in southern part of Gujarat and West Coast Geothermal Province of Maharashtra, India

Abstract

Geothermal waters are extensively useful for various purposes such as societal benefits, irrigation, industrial and domestic consumptions. However, its physicochemical characterization is very important before using it for any rationale. The main objective of this paper is to identify the hydrochemistry of geothermal water which is placed in the southern part of Gujarat such as Unai hot springs and Saputara geothermal springs, and West Coast Geothermal Province (WCGP) like the Tural-Rajwadi group of hot springs. The standard methods were used to carry out the analysis of geothermal water. Piper, Stiff, Gibbs, Ternary, Schoeller, Extended Durov, Wilcox, and Spatial distribution diagrams were plotted to categorize water samples in facies. The geochemistry of groundwater is influenced by the presence of most important ions such as Na⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺, Cl⁻, HCO₃⁻, and SO₄²⁻. Weathering of some rocks leads to the deposition of these ions in water. The geothermal spring of Unai contains a high TDS concentration of around 1000 mg/l thus it cannot be used for drinking purposes, but it can be utilized for domestic, balneology, and industrial purposes. However, after desalination, this water can be utilized for drinking purposes. In Tural-Rajwadi hot springs, TDS concentration was > 900 mg/l and pH varies from 7 to 8, hence it can be used for domestic and industrial purposes. The temperature range of the Tural-Rajwadi geothermal hot spring is 55–65 °C which is very useful for milk pasteurization, industrial operations, balneology facilities like greenhouses and aquaculture ponds, and domestic purposes.