The University of Utah has a $200 million grant from the US Department of Energy to develop a relatively new type of geothermal energy. The Utah FORGE (Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy) project has drilled two pipes about 1 mile (1.6 km) into the earth and then at a diagonal to about 8,500 feet (2.5 km). Using hydraulic fracturing technology developed by the petroleum industry, it fractured the rock in between the two boreholes so that it is porous. Water can then be pumped down one pipe, through the hot rock, and then back up as hot pressurized water at 400°F that can be used to generate power or for district heating.
The DOE terms these types of applications as “enhanced geothermal” because of the fracturing that is used to connect the two boreholes through hot, dry rock. Beaver County, Utah is a hotbed of geothermal energy with another geothermal plant not far from this one that has tapped into a natural hot spring to supply heated water. The area is very favorable because it has a bed of granite sitting on top of a pocket of magma. There are also mineral rich waters that come up from springs that cannot be consumed by humans – so it is used to generate power instead. It is hoped several hundred gpm can be pumped through to generate power soon. – Steve Terry, DTC HVAC & Refrigeration Instructor
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