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DOE Geothermal Energy Program

DOE Geothermal Energy Program. John T. Finger Geothermal Research Department Sandia National Laboratories 1

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DOE Geothermal Energy Program

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  1. DOE Geothermal Energy Program John T. Finger Geothermal Research Department Sandia National Laboratories1 1Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a Lockheed Martin Company, for the U. S. Department of Energy under contract DE-ACO4-94AL85000.

  2. World Interest is Heating Up 1. United States: 2850 MWe 2. Philippines: 1909 MWe 3. Italy: 785 MWe 4. Mexico: 755 MWe 5. Japan: 547 MWe World Total: 8500 MW

  3. Direct Use (30-acre Greenhouse, NM) Power Generation (The Geysers, CA) Two Kinds of Geothermal Application

  4. Greater Than 20 MW Less than 20 MW Heat and Power for the 21st Century Installed: Over 2800 MW (electric) Over 500 MW (heat) 60 MWt 102 MWt 28 MWt 200 MWe 69 MWt 40 MWe 51 MWt 30 MWt 2500 MWe 114 MWt 22 MWt 54 MWt 30 MWe

  5. Why a Federal Geothermal Program? • Energy - Balance national energy portfolio • Economics - Capture domestic and international markets • Environment - Limit impacts of power production Mission: To work in partnership with U.S. industry to establish geothermal energy as an economically competitive contributor to the U.S. energy supply.

  6. National Laboratories Core research Exploration EGS Geoscience and Supporting Technologies Innovative subsystems Diagnostics while drilling GeoPowering the West Advanced Plant Systems Geothermal System Drilling Research Energy Systems Research Near-term technology development Field Verification Industry Support Industry Partnerships University Research U.S. Industry Program Structure

  7. Geothermal Program Goals GeoPowering the West Program Goal Technology Double the number of States with geothermal electric power facilities to eight by 2006. Reduce the levelized cost of generating geothermal power to 3-5 cents/kWh by 2007. Supply the electrical power or heat energy needs of 7 million homes and businesses in the United States by 2010. Supply 10%of electricity used in the western states by 2020. Capacity Deployment

  8. GeoPowering the West • Announced January 2000 • Initiative to dramatically increase the use of geothermal energy in the United States • Increase focus on direct use • Technology is increasingly competitive • 300 communities in 10 states with viable resources within 5 miles

  9. Regionally-Based Focus on Priority Areas Leverage Resources and Replicate Results Coordinated Activities Guiding Principles

  10. Why Is Industry Ready Now? • Green Power / Deregulation • Improved Economics • Smaller, Lower-Risk Projects

  11. Major Technical Issues • Reservoir location and characterization • Reservoir enhancement • Fluid treatment in power plants • High-cost drilling and completion

  12. Federally Supported Research • Universities • Industry partnerships • Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) • National Labs

  13. University Programs • Earth and Geosciences Institute - University of Utah • Geothermal Lab - Southern Methodist University • Stanford Geothermal Program • Geo-Heat Center - Oregon Institute of Technology

  14. Industry Partnerships

  15. Small Business Innovation Research • Phase I - 4 projects; $377k funding; high-temperature logging tools and transducers • Phase II - 5 projects; $3.7M funding; expert systems, high-temperature electronics

  16. National Labs • NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) – Power plants • INEEL (Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory) – Reservoir characterization • Sandia National Laboratories – Drilling research

  17. NREL Focus NREL aims to make geothermal power plants, primarily using low- to moderate-temperature resources, operate more efficiently and with less maintenance. This effort includes development of different power-cycle technologies and new materials.

  18. NREL Program Areas • Condensation of mixtures • Heat exchanger linings • Air-cooled condensers • Non-condensable gas removal

  19. INEEL Focus INEEL work in geophysics and geoscience is directed toward improved location and definition of geothermal reservoirs. It is particularly important to understand orientation of and flow patterns through large fracture systems in the reservoir.

  20. INEEL Program Areas • Resource Identification and Assessment • Exploration • Fracture Analysis • Resource Productivity and Sustainability

  21. Sandia Focus • Sandia works to reduce the cost of drilling and completing geothermal wells. This is critical for increasing power on-line, because the well field (production and injection) can represent up to 50% of a power project’s capital cost. • Geothermal drilling is expensive, compared to oil and gas drilling, because the rocks are hot, hard, abrasive, and fractured, and often contain corrosive fluid. The number of geothermal wells drilled each year is small, so there is little incentive for industry to develop geothermal drilling technology.

  22. Sandia Program Areas • Diagnostics-While-Drilling: real-time, high-speed data from downhole • High temperature electronics: better measurements for drilling and reservoir evaluation • Hard-rock drill bits: penetrate faster, last longer • Lost circulation: mitigate or prevent loss of drilling fluid to the formation

  23. Program Accomplishments PDC Bitsreduced drilling costs • Generated > $200m annual sales & economic impact for oil & gas applications • Contributed to savings > $200k/well & world-record performances: ROP > 2,200 ft/hr; Single bit run > 22,000 ft; Cumulative run > 180,000 ft HT Electronics  better measurements for drilling and reservoir evaluation Develop downhole logging and drilling tools that provide reliable, accurate data under geothermal conditions • Silicon-on-Insulator components • Thermal batteries • Complete logging assemblies

  24. Program Accomplishments Slimhole Drillinglower exploration costs • Demonstrated 30-55% savings: • Showed production correlation (Sandia field tests; Well data) Lost Circulation Controlsafe, efficient drilling • Developed monitoring instruments, now commercialized, for mud properties & flow rate: • Mud Density Meter • Rolling Float Meter

  25. Advanced Direct Contact Condensers (FY1999) Improves efficiency of flashed and dry steam power plants by as much as 5% CaP Cement (FY2000) Used in harsh, hostile environments (hypersaline brine, high CO2 content, high acidity, up to 320°C) Program Accomplishments R&D 100 Awards Southeast Geysers Effluent Pipeline • Extends reservoir lifetime by 7 to 10 years, improves output by >50 MW • Jointly funded by industry, State, Federal, and local agencies

  26. Research Needs • Cheaper drilling • Better reservoir exploration and identification • Better reservoir evaluation and management • More efficient power plants for lower temperatures

  27. Geothermal Energy Potential Electric Generation Potential • Top 3 States: • Nevada • California • Utah • Other High Potential • States: • Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Hawaii, New Mexico, Oregon, and Wyoming

  28. Geothermal Basics Geothermal energy uses the Earth’s natural heat for some useful purpose. Because the center of the Earth is so hot, almost any location could provide energy if we drill deep enough, but there are only limited locations where hot rock comes near enough the surface for this to be economical.

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