this post was submitted on 19 Jul 2023
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'Breakthrough' geothermal tech produces 3.5 megawatts of carbon-free power | Engadget (www.engadget.com)
submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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An energy company called Fervo says it has achieved a breakthrough in geothermal technology.

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[–] 4am 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

So, it’s fracking?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

@4am Sorta, but not really.

Geothermal energy production involves the extraction of hot water or steam from underground reservoirs. This water or steam is then used to drive turbines that generate electricity. No oil is extracted, just hot water or steam.

https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/4/2021/12/geothermal-00eef72.jpg?quality=90&resize=700,457

The article states:

For a natural geothermal system to produce electricity, it needs a combination of heat, fluid and rock permeability, as Bloomberg notes. In many areas, the rock has the required levels of heat, but not enough permeability for fluid to flow through it.

An EGS creates this permeability artificially by drilling deep underground and injecting fluid to create fractures in the rock. That approach can vastly increase the number of potential sites for a geothermal power plant.

Basically, they are creating extra cracks to assist with waterflow.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Fracking is a technique of creating extra cracks in rock using pressurized fluid. They are fracking to increase permeability.