The work in this thesis was based on analyzing water samples collected from three exploratory boreholes drilled during Project Hotspot. The water samples were analyzed for their chemical properties. The chemical properties of the water samples were used as a basis for further analysis.Geophysical logs, mainly temperature logs, were also analyzed for this project. Temperature logs measure temperature in relation to depth within a borehole.All the analyses were made in order to estimate the geothermal potential of the project areas. The exploratory boreholes were all drilled in different areas and each had unique characteristics. The Mountain Home borehole provided the most promising evidence for future geothermal potential. Geothermal energy is a form of renewable energy and potential production areas are difficult and expensive to locate.

Les études isotopiques couplées avec des informations géothermiques peuvent constituer des outils pertinents pour l’exploration des eaux souterraines en tant que ressources en eau potable ou géothermiques. Ce travail combine les deux approches, isotopes de l’environnement et radioactifs associés à des données de température sur des aquifères profonds, dans l’objectif d’enrichir et d’améliorer la connaissance des mécanismes de recharge (Bassin d’Aquitaine, France) ainsi que des mécanismes de recharge et du potentiel géothermique (Bassin Crétacé de Bohème, République Tchèque).Les isotopes stables (18O, 2H, 13C) utilisés conjointement avec des radioisotopes (14C, 3H) sont utilisés pour estimer l’époque de la recharge ainsi que les conditions climatiques qui prévalaient lors de l’infiltration depuis la fin de Pléistocène jusqu’à nos jours. Définir le type de recharge et les conditions d’écoulement est nécessaire pour parvenir à modéliser de façon satisfaisante et fiable les grands systèmes aquifères profonds. Trois types de recharge ont été définis en Europe - (i) continue, (ii) interrompue lors du dernier maximum glaciaire (LGM) – un troisième type (iii) correspond à des situations particulières de recharge.Les conditions géographiques et climatiques très différentes rencontrées en France et en République Tchèque ont engendrées une importante hétérogénéité des conditions et processus de recharge. Le sud de la France, avec un climat relativement doux depuis les derniers 40 ka BP, n’a pas enregistré d’interruption de la recharge. Le temps de séjour des eaux souterraines en Bohème est estimé à environ 11 ka BP au maximum. Cependant, l’appauvrissement des teneurs en isotopes stables enregistré suggère une recharge liée à la fonte de la calotte glaciaire Nord Européenne après le dernier maximum glaciaire (LGM), autour de 18-20 ka BP. Des investigations sur les isotopes du carbone minéral dissous des eaux souterraines du bassin de Bohème ont montrées d’importantes interactions avec différentes sources de carbone qui ont été identifiées.Pour le site d’étude tchèque, les informations apportées par la géochimie ont été complétées par des données géothermiques afin d’améliorer la connaissance des flux et de la dynamique des eaux souterraines. Plus d’une centaine d’enregistrements diagraphiques de température ont été utilisés pour estimer le gradient géothermique. Plusieurs phénomènes viennent perturber le gradient géothermique de la région. Les flux d’eau souterraine verticaux et les variations lithologiques et topographiques sont à l’origine d’une distribution complexe du flux de chaleur, étant majoritairement conditionné par les écoulements souterraines. Les discontinuités peu profondes et les nombreux pointements volcaniques exercent aussi une influence importante sur l’écoulement souterrain et donc aussi sur le potentiel géothermique du réservoir. Les investigations sur la géothermie ont ainsi fourni des informations fondamentales sur le potentiel géothermique mais aussi sur les conditions d’écoulement des eaux souterraines. La prise en compte de ces informations s’avère nécessaire afin de proposer des modèles mathématiques d’écoulement réalistes. / Isotopic investigations combined with geothermal applications represent powerful tools for the exploration of groundwater potential as a drinking or geothermal resource. This Ph.D. thesis combines both approaches, environmental and radioactive isotopes together with temperature data in deep aquifers, in order to enrich and update the knowledge concerning the aquifer recharge processes in the Aquitaine Basin (France) and the aquifer recharge processes and geothermal potential in the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin (Czech Republic).Stable isotopes (18O, 2H, 13C) combined with radioisotope data (14C, 3H) are used to estimate the recharge timing and climatic conditions prevailing during the infiltration from the Late Pleistocene up to modern time. The character of groundwater recharge and regime are necessary to generate relevant source data for the accurate modelling of complex groundwater systems. Three groups of groundwater recharge types can be distinguished throughout Europe – (i) continuous recharge and (ii) interrupted recharge during Last Glacial Maximum and (iii) a group corresponding to particular recharge conditions.The contrasted geographic and climate conditions at both study sites in France and Czech Republic have entailed a great heterogeneity of the recharge conditions and processes. Southern France, with generally mild climatic conditions during the last 40 ka BP, did not experienced considerable hiatus in groundwater recharge. The residence time of groundwater in the Bohemian aquifers is estimated about 11 ka BP at the maximum but the depletion in the stable isotopes suggests that this groundwater originates in the melting of the north European ice sheets after the Last Glacial Maximum period, i.e. 18-20 ka BP. Further investigations on both stable and radioactive carbon isotopes indicated numerous groundwater interactions within the reservoir that were used to delineate the carbon origin within the Bohemian aquifers.Information on groundwater geochemistry was supplemented in the Czech case study by geothermal data in order to improve our knowledge of groundwater flow and dynamics. More than a hundred of temperature records from well-logging measurements were used to assess the geothermal gradient in the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin which is the most promising heat accumulation within the country. Many phenomena can affect the thermal field in the region. Vertical groundwater flow and variations in the lithology and the topography lead to a complicated areal distribution of the geothermal gradient and the heat flux which is dominantly controlled by groundwater. Shallow tectonic structures and numerous volcanic rocks exercise an influence on groundwater flow and therefore exert a secondary effect on the thermal field. The geothermal investigation provided useful information on the geothermal resources within the region but also represents an important tool for understanding groundwater flow, and for constructing realistic hydrogeological models in such a complex geological, tectonic and geothermal context.

This thesis aims to predict the probable undiscovered geothermal systems through investigation of spatial relation between geothermal occurrences and its surrounding geological phenomenon in Western Anatolia. In this context, four different public data, which are epicenter map, lineament map, Bouger gravity anomaly and magnetic anomaly maps, are utilized. In order to extract the necessary information for each map layer the raw public data is converted to a synthetic data which are directly used in the analysis. Synthetic data employed during the investigation process include Gutenberg-Richter b-value map, distance to lineaments map and distance to major grabens present in the area. Thus, these three layers including directly used magnetic anomaly maps are combined by means of Boolean logic model and Weights of Evidence method (WofE), which are multicriteria decision methods, in a Geographical Information System (GIS) environment. Boolean logic model is based on the simple logic of Boolean operators, while the WofE model depends on the Bayesian probability. Both of the methods use binary maps for their analysis. Thus, the binary map classification is the key point of the analysis. In this study three different binary map classification techniques are applied and thus three output maps were obtained for each of the method. The all resultant maps are evaluated within and among the methods by means of success indices. The findings reveal that the WofE method is better predictor than the Boolean logic model and that the third binarization approach, which is named as optimization procedure in this study, is the best estimator of binary classes due to obtained success indices. Finally, three output maps of each method are combined and the favorable areas in terms of geothermal potential are produced. According to the final maps the potential sites appear to be Aydin, Denizli and Manisa, of which first two have been greatly explored and exploited since today and thus not surprisingly found as potential in the output maps, while Manisa when compared to first two is nearly virgin.