Research on geothermal power generation from oil wells planned for North Dakota
Oil wells in North Dakota (source: flickr/ Tim Evanson, creative commons)
Alexander Richter
18 Jan 2016
A new test project by the University of North Dakota funded in parts by the U.S. Department of Energy plans to generate geothermal power from hot water from oil wells.
Researchers at the University of North Dakota (UND) in the U.S. are working on a test project at Rhame, near Bowman in the southwestern part of North Dakota.
They are developing a special binary power plant system that plans to create steam from water pumped out of oil wells and turn a turbine for power generation.
In an article in local news, Will Gosnold a geologist with UND said, “It actually boils at 60-degrees [we assume he is talking about centigrades]. So we can use the heat in the water that comes up with the oil. We heat that fluid and it flashes into steam and drives a turbine.”
The project is a test project with the plan to prove and develop a commercial application of this technology.
With the high up-front cost of these project, it requires long-term thinking and investment. The U.S. Department of Energy is interested in utilising geothermal heat from oil wells and is partly funding the project.
The project is expected to formally be dedicated this spring.
Source: Valley News Live
