An American start-up claims it just set a geothermal energy record

Date:
Wed, 19 Jul 2023 14:05:00 +0000

Description:
Fervo Energy's Project Red site can generate 3.5 megawatts of geothermal
power 24/7. Fervo Energy Fervo Energy's Project Red enhanced geothermal
system site could be a promising sign of things to come for clean power. The post An American start-up claims it just set a geothermal energy record appeared first on Popular Science .

FULL STORY ======================================================================
Fervo Energy's Project Red site can generate 3.5 megawatts of geothermal
power 24/7. Fervo Energy

Harnessing the Earths geothermal energy at a commercial scale could be an integral part of societys transition to greener infrastructure, and a Houston-based startup just claimed a major milestone in making that goal a reality. On Tuesday, Fervo Energy confirmed it has successfully completed a 30-day trial run of its Project Red commercial pilot site in northern Nevada. The results could help open the industry at a crucial moment for climate sustainability.

According to the energy companys July 18 announcement , the Project Red site was able to produce 3.5 megawatts of sustained powerenough to fuel approximately 2,600 homesover the industry standard, month-long energy test. Fervo also contends their proof-of-concept sets new records for flow and
power outputs.

Geothermal power is an incredibly attractive green energy source, as it is completely carbon-free and can operate 24/7, unlike solar and wind farms. The US Department of Energy estimates the country sits atop enough geothermal energy to hypothetically power the entire world, but only about 0.4 percent
of the nations energy came from such sources in 2022.

[Related: How heat pumps can help fight global warming .]

That said, geological limitationssuch as the right amounts of heat, water,
and underground permeabilityhave largely restricted harvesting to shallow hydrothermal sources in areas such as Nevadas Great Basin region. Meanwhile, mining operations can destabilize an underground area enough to trigger earthquakes .

An enhanced geothermal system (EGS), however, leverages oil and gas tech to drill much deeper into the Earth to reach energy reservoirs. As Bloomberg notes, engineers and researchers have attempted to make commercial EGS a viable avenue for energy production since the 1970s, and Fervos recent demonstration is the first to be done at such a scale.

Fervos EGS works by vertically drilling deep into geothermal reserves, thus allowing for multiple wells at a single location. Project Reds setup, for example, uses a pair of 7,700 feet deep wells connected by roughly 3,250 feet long horizontal pipes. As Canary Media explains, fluid is then pumped into
the reservoir, where it is heated to as much as 376 degrees Fahrenheit and
fed into turbines to generate electricity. Meanwhile, fiber optic cables installed within the wells provide real-time monitoring of temperature, flow, and performance to best optimize its performance.

A number of roadblocks remain before EGS sites like Fervos can expand their scopemost importantly, reducing costs and meeting regulatory approvals. In 2022, US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced the Enhanced Geothermal Shot , which aims to reduce EGS costs by 90 percent to roughly $45 per megawatt hour by 2035. Regardless of future costs, however, a previously announced partnership with Google will soon begin using Project Reds energy generation to fuel a portion of its data centers near Las Vegas.

The post An American start-up claims it just set a geothermal energy record appeared first on Popular Science . Articles may contain affiliate links
which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made.



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Link to news story:
https://www.popsci.com/technology/fervo-energy-geothermal/


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