U. plans study on geothermal power plants

Some University of Utah scientists are hoping to use naturally occurring underground heat to create a power source for the next generation.

Researchers on Tuesday announced plans to conduct a five-year, $10.2 million study aimed at boosting the productivity of geothermal power plants and making them feasible nationwide.

Scientists will inject cool, pressurized water into a "dry" geothermal well to create an underground network of cracks in hot rock and use the heat to generate electricity, Joe Moore, geologist at the university's Energy & Geoscience Institute, told the Deseret News.

If successful, the project could produce non-carbon-emitting baseload power for decades, he said.

"These active geothermal systems (are typically) very, very long-lived … from tens to hundreds of thousands of years," Moore said.

Moore, who will head the research effort at U.S. Geothermal Inc.'s Raft River power plant in southeast Idaho, said most geothermal power in the United States is produced west of the Rocky Mountains, where hot rocks are found closest to the surface.

"New methods have to be developed to use the heat in these rocks to produce geothermal power," Moore said in a news release announcing the project.

"There's incredible potential in Utah and other states for geothermal development," he added. "Engineered geothermal systems (in which water is injected to enhance natural cracks in the rock) could provide a means of developing these resources much faster."

Under an agreement with the University of Utah, the U.S. Department of Energy will pay almost $7.4 million of the project's cost, while the university will provide $1.1 million through the Office of the Vice President for Research.

An additional $1.7 million will be provided by project partners U.S. Geothermal Inc. of Boise and Apex HiPoint LLC of Littleton, Colo.

Moore said the Department of Energy conducted geothermal research for three decades at the Raft River site, located 11 miles from Interstate 84 in southeast Idaho halfway between Boise and Salt Lake City.

Raft River is now a U.S. Geothermal power plant producing 10.5 to 11.5 megawatts of electricity – enough for roughly 10,000 homes. The power is sold to Idaho Power Co.

Some estimate the site may be capable of producing 110 megawatts of power, the release stated.