Storage capacity in hot dry rock reservoirs

Patent · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1997

OSTI ID:871219

Brown, Donald W ^[1]

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1. Los Alamos, NM

A method of extracting thermal energy, in a cyclic manner, from geologic strata which may be termed hot dry rock. A reservoir comprised of hot fractured rock is established and water or other liquid is passed through the reservoir. The water is heated by the hot rock, recovered from the reservoir, cooled by extraction of heat by means of heat exchange apparatus on the surface, and then re-injected into the reservoir to be heated again. Water is added to the reservoir by means of an injection well and recovered from the reservoir by means of a production well. Water is continuously provided to the reservoir and continuously withdrawn from the reservoir at two different flow rates, a base rate and a peak rate. Increasing water flow from the base rate to the peak rate is accomplished by rapidly decreasing backpressure at the outlet of the production well in order to meet periodic needs for amounts of thermal energy greater than a baseload amount, such as to generate additional electric power to meet peak demands. The rate of flow of water provided to the hot dry rock reservoir is maintained at a value effective to prevent depletion of the liquid

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• Assignee: Regents of University of California (Alameda, CA)
• Patent Number(s): US 5685362
• OSTI ID: 871219
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/165/60/166/
accomplished
added
additional
amount
amounts
apparatus
backpressure
base
baseload
capacity
comprised
continuously
continuously withdrawn
cooled
cyclic
cyclic manner
decreasing
demands
depletion
dry
dry rock
effective
electric
electric power
energy
established
exchange
extracting
extraction
flow
flow rate
flow rates
fractured
fractured rock
generate
geologic
heat
heat exchange
heated
hot
hot dry
increasing
injection
liquid
maintained
manner
means
meet
method
outlet
passed
peak
peak demand
periodic
power
prevent
production
provided
rapidly
rate
rates
re-injected
recovered
reservoir
reservoirs
rock
storage
storage capacity
strata
surface
termed
thermal
thermal energy
value
water
water flow
withdrawn