The efficient harvesting of geothermal energy has long been a topic of fundamental importance to our habitability on Earth. We continue to devote a strong effort in designing and analyzing innovative heat exchangers that can be employed in a variety of geological terrains. These manufactured systems are the so-called Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) that have been studied and implemented over the past thirty years and have been primarily employed in Hot Dry Rock terrains, which are common to many areas of the Earth. In contrast, our interests are focused on Hot Sedimentary Aquifers or Basins, which are also quite common on Earth. We have designed a number of these systems that promise to be highly efficient over long periods of time.
Below is a schematic of the proposed Rad-EGS, a geothermal system installed in a sedimentary aquifer:
