News

Winners for PIVOT Disruptive Research and Development Competition

Winners for PIVOT Disruptive Research and Development Competition Presentation of Jerome Sfeir at PIVOT 2022 (screenshot of presentation)
Alexander Richter 9 Aug 2022

Winners announced for the Disruptive Research and Development Competition at 3rd Annual PIVOT Geothermal Conference with the first and second place awarded $150,000 donated by Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

Project InnerSpace, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focused on expanding geothermal energy globally and host of the PIVOT ‘From Hydrocarbons to Heat’ conference series, an annual week-long virtual geothermal conference that has in its third year become the largest geothermal gathering in the world, announced the winners of its first annual Disruptive Research and Development Competition.  The PIVOT event took place July 25 to 29, 2022.

The first place of the competition was awarded to Jerome Sfeir, Ph.D. candidate at the University of Texas A&M, and only student competitor amongst the four finalists, who will receive a $100,000 grant to pursue his research. The second place prize was awarded to Audrey Schulman, Co-Founder & Co-Executive Director of HEET, who will receive a $50,000 grant to pursue her research. The $150,000 combined prize was generously donated by Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

“There are many bright minds in research institutions who are eager to apply their skills to solving geothermal challenges, and geothermal is vastly underfunded across the board currently. This competition supports critical early stage research that is falling through the cracks in current funding mechanisms,” noted Jamie Beard, Executive Director of Project InnerSpace and organizer of the PIVOT conference series. “Thanks to Tito’s Handmade Vodka for leading the way in helping geothermal reach its full potential – it really embodies the theme of PIVOT2022, which is “All Hands on Deck.”

Sfeir will pursue research to further our understanding of Engineered Geothermal Systems, including novel and emerging concepts such as the use of CO2 as a working fluid in these systems, and Schulman will pursue design and engineering on a system that would help convert natural gas infrastructure to networked geothermal heating systems.

“Energy solutions should not be a problem, as the answer is literally underneath our feet” said Sfeir. “This research competition was an unforgettable experience for a young researcher to compete with professionals at the highest level.”

“HEET is thrilled to use this funding to research how to optimize networked ground source heat pump installations, so they can deliver heating and cooling at a lower price than gas, while allowing gas distribution workers to keep their jobs and benefits,” said Schulman.

The recording of the competition session can be accessed here.

PIVOT is a week-long virtual conference, which brought together over 3,200 leaders from startups, governments, philanthropy, research institutions, nonprofits and advocacy groups, investors and funding entities, and oil and gas, geothermal and other industry players to explore and build the future of geothermal energy. The Disruptive Research and Development Competition was launched this year after a generous donation from Tito’s Handmade Vodka. 

Source: Event release by email