A number of research workers have investigated two- and three-dimensional natural convective heat flow in porous media containing a single-phase fluid ' 9 2. Results indicate that convective heat flow in geothermal reservoirs can be high with low geothermal gradients within the convection cells. Single-phase convection can occur only in two or three dimensions; however, it is evident that steam and hot water sometimes exist simultaneously in geothermal areas. The large difference in density between steam and hot water provides a driving force that tends to segregate the two phases, making countercurrent vertical one-dimensional fluid flow theoretically possible.

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