MIT developing a plan for clean geothermal power (1 Viewer)

[Dago]

A company aims to power the world for millions of years by digging the deepest holes ever - Interesting Engineering

And it utilizes a nuclear fusion technology.

interestingengineering.com

With any luck we will have a true solution to clean energy in the next decade either with this or fusion. I hope and pray we are truly on the cusp of having a viable solution that overcomes the limitations of solar and wind power

 

[Scorpius the Allfather]

A company aims to power the world for millions of years by digging the deepest holes ever - Interesting Engineering

And it utilizes a nuclear fusion technology.

interestingengineering.com

With any luck we will have a true solution to clean energy in the next decade either with this or fusion. I hope and pray we are truly on the cusp of having a viable solution that overcomes the limitations of solar and wind power

I've seen this episode of Stargate Atlantis and it doesn't end well. Granted it'll work for thousands of years but still, won't end well.

 

[porculator]

We need some of these clean energy moonshots to work or we're screwed. No one is putting forward a serious effort to curb emissions. The EU seemed to be leading the effort but can't even wean itself off of Russian fossil fuels right now

I know Bill Gates isn't the most popular person in the world but he has a "Breakthough Energy Fellows" program where he funds projects like this that seem to have potential.

Fellows Program

Resourcing the best early-stage clean tech innovators

www.breakthroughenergy.org

 

[Eeyore]

The technology will be purchased by the oil companies and it'll never see the light of day in our lifetime.

 

[Swamprat]

It would be really awesome if they could get it to work, but the task they’re facing is tremendously difficult. I wish them well.

 

[UncleTrvlingJim]

things like this are my favorite forms of energy generation -- basically capturing already occuring entropy vs generating entropy to create energy.

 

[porculator]

things like this are my favorite forms of energy generation -- basically capturing already occuring entropy vs generating entropy to create energy.

Yea I mentioned it in the science thread where this article was originally posted (I think) that really all you need for energy is heat. And we sit on a big ball of heat. Just need to tap into it.

Sometimes it seems like the answer is staring us right in the face. But based on the amount of air conditioners I see running in houses with the windows closed when its 60 degrees out, I don't think most people bother to look.

 

[Dago]

It would be really awesome if they could get it to work, but the task they’re facing is tremendously difficult. I wish them well.

While fusion has been in serious discussions for about 4 decades, there have been more advances and strides made in the past 5-10 years than ever before. We are finally getting close to having the technology to make it work.

I have never understood why the government has been willing to invest so much into wind and solar and not fusion.

 

[faceman]

It would be really awesome if they could get it to work, but the task they’re facing is tremendously difficult. I wish them well.

Geothermal energy was my HS science project. The main problem is brine buildup in the pipes. I wish them well also

 

[porculator]

While fusion has been in serious discussions for about 4 decades, there have been more advances and strides made in the past 5-10 years than ever before. We are finally getting close to having the technology to make it work.

I have never understood why the government has been willing to invest so much into wind and solar and not fusion.

Because nuclear sounds scary.

And to some degree, it is. I am 100% on board with the US using as much nuclear power as possible, but if we're doing it for the sake of saving the planet and not just to feel good about ourselves, whatever we do needs to be implemented throughout the world. And the Russian invasion gave me second thoughts about having nuclear all over the world in less stable areas. The first thing they did was take over Chernobyl.

 

[Dago]

Because nuclear sounds scary.

And to some degree, it is. I am 100% on board with the US using as much nuclear power as possible, but if we're doing it for the sake of saving the planet and not just to feel good about ourselves, whatever we do needs to be implemented throughout the world. And the Russian invasion gave me second thoughts about having nuclear all over the world in less stable areas. The first thing they did was take over Chernobyl.

That main danger is from fission reactors, not fusion

And fusion needs to be researched and implemented regardless of what the rest of the world does.

 

[faceman]

That main danger is from fission reactors, not fusion

And fusion needs to be researched and implemented regardless of what the rest of the world does.

I agree fusion is the ultimate answer. That said modern nuclear reactors cannot melt down like cherbobyl. I'd have
no problem living next to one.

Here's why a Chernobyl-style nuclear meltdown can't happen in the United States

That doesn't mean US nuclear power plants are immune — a Fukushima Daiichi-style meltdown could happen.

www.businessinsider.com

 

[Tapxe]

The technology will be purchased by the oil companies and it'll never see the light of day in our lifetime.

Only this tech dovetails nicely with the existing production equipment and would be cheaper than expanding oil exploration to more difficult extraction points. Oil companies have the potential to create a near limitless supply of energy around the globe. They could take over for every nuclear, coal, and NG facility on earth in time. It could even obsolete wind, hydro, and solar. The potential here is so much more than just oil and all they need do is pivot slightly.

 

[baarbogast]

I thought Iceland was all geo-thermal

 

[Tapxe]

I thought Iceland was all geo-thermal

I've read that they are uniquely capable because of the drilling distance being much shorter than most other places.