- The Department of Energy recently agreed on a $74 million funding initiative aimed at 7 pilot projects exploring different methods of harnessing geothermal energy
- Geothermal energy currently generates 3.7 billion kilowatts per annum of electricity in the United States – enough to power 2.5 million homes
- GeoSolar Technologies has been an early mover within the geothermal technology space, using the renewable energy source as the foundation of its revolutionary SmartGreen(TM) Home system
Around 2,900 kilometers (1,800 miles) beneath the Earth’s surface lies the hottest part of our planet – the core. A small portion of the core’s heat, which can rise to over 5,000 degrees Celsius or 9,000 degrees Fahrenheit, is delivered from the friction and gravitational pull which results from the Earth’s creation over 4 billion years ago; however, most of the Earth’s heat is generated through the constant decay of radioactive isotopes, namely postassium-40 and thorium-232. Harnessing the heat generated by the Earth’s core, a process called geothermal energy, is still in its relative infancy; in the United States today, geothermal energy currently generates about 3.7 billion kilowatt hours of electricity per year – enough to power over 2.5 million homes. However, that pales in comparison to more conventional fossil fuels; coal alone accounted for 898 billion kilowatt hours of electricity in the U.S. as of 2021 (https://ibn.fm/Ues2C). That figure may now be poised to change.
In early February 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) announced a funding opportunity of up to $74 million for seven pilot projects which would individually seek to test the efficacy and scalability of enhanced geothermal systems (“EGS”). Forming part of the landmark Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (“BIL”), the pilot projects to use innovative technology and a variety of development techniques to capture the Earth’s abundant heat sources in diverse geologic settings. Moreover, and through this investment, the DOE hopes that research from the findings will prove a justifiable case for the potential for geothermal energy to provide reliable, around-the-clock electricity to tens of millions of homes across the country (https://ibn.fm/rx1SW).
What is unique about geothermal energy, is the basis by which it forms. Recent findings from the University of California Berkeley discovered that the Earth’s core may contain as much as 1,200 parts per million of potassium-40, or just over one tenth of one percent of the core’s entire mass.
“This amount may seem small and is comparable to the concentration of radioactive potassium naturally present in bananas. Combined over the entire mass of the Earth’s core, however, it can be enough to provide one-fifth of the heat given off by the Earth,” stated Kanani Lee, a Ph.D. researcher at UC Berkeley (https://ibn.fm/MyO5M).
As potassium-40 decays, its nucleus changes, emitting enormous amounts of energy and radiation. Heat from the Earth’s core radiates outwards, warming rocks, water, gas and other geological material on the way; studies have shown that the heat dissipated in temperature by approximately 25 Celsius per 1 kilometer of depth (1 degree Fahrenheit per 77 feet). Whilst in some areas of the world such as Iceland, abundant sources of hot, easily accessible underground reservoirs of water make it possible to rely on geothermal sources as a safe, dependable, and inexpensive source of energy, the process to harness geothermal energy in the United States is somewhat different (https://ibn.fm/neDZT).
GeoSolar Technologies (“GST”), a Colorado-based climate technology Company pioneering an approach into clean energy solutions for households, has been an early mover within geothermal energy in the United States. Through the introduction of its proprietary SmartGreen(TM) Home system – an environmentally friendly, renewable energy focused technology designed to harness energy from the Earth and sun to power and purify homes and automobiles without the use of fossil fuels, GeoSolar have looked to tackle the astounding thirty percent of global greenhouse gases generated by households every year.
The heart of the SmartGreen(TM) Home system lays within geothermal ground-based energy beneath the average home. Through a truck-mounted or modular sonic rig, GeoSolar seeks to drill 4–6-inch wells down 300-400 feet below the surface, subsequently inserting high-density polyethylene pipe ground loops that can tap into the unlimited source of geothermal energy available. The ground loops operate the geothermal system function by constantly circulating non-toxic fluid to a high-volume heat/air pump. The heat pump and circulating fluid continuously transfers heat from the home into or out of the ground depending on the season. Moreover, the system can be easily connected to existing air ducts or radiant flooring loops, thereby accounting for all of the home’s heating, cooling and hot water requirements.
Historically, the key barriers towards greater geothermal energy adoption lays within the financial sphere. Geothermal power plant suffers from much higher capital costs (and therefore, slower payback periods) relative to other forms of renewable energy. Moreover, existing techniques for placing wells at traditional hydrothermal sites have been largely unsuccessful, with many wells failing to produce enough to go into use – variables which have detrimentally affected incremental investment within the technology. As a result, the largest geothermal steam electricity plant in the United States, located in California, was built as far back as September 1960 (https://ibn.fm/0KQFz). With its most recent funding endeavors, the DOE hopes to change this paradigm. GeoSolar Technologies for one, stand to benefit from the ongoing shift in the United States’ renewable energy mix.
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.GeoSolarPlus.com.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to GeoSolar Technologies are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/GST
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