Oil And Gas Wells Could Be Used To Generate Geothermal Power
- Nov 22, 2011 2:09 PM EST
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Scientists believe that abandoned oil and gas wells could be an untapped source of geothermal energy.
As New Scientist reports, because a significant portion of the cost of geothermal power involves drilling deep down into the Earth's surface to reach areas hot enough to generate power, already available old oil and gas wells could potentially be a great alternative.
Xianbiao Bu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences believes that these wells could easily be retrofitted to circulate water that could make it easy to tap into the geothermal energy. Each well could produce around 54 kilowatts of energy, a number that becomes more significant when you factor in the 2.5 million abandoned wells across the United States.
Image courtesy Clinton Steeds