Technology:

Alloy has Potential for Electronics in Geothermal Wells (Science Codex)

An alloy that may improve high-temperature electronics in oil and geothermal wells was really a solution in search of a problem.

Sandia National Laboratories researcher 
Tom Crenshaw (Courtesy Sandia National 
Laboratories/Norman Johnson)

Sandia National Laboratories first investigated the gold-silver-germanium alloy about 15 years ago as a possible bonding material in a new neutron tube product. But a design change forced Sandia to shelve the material, said Paul Vianco, who has worked in soldering and brazing technology at Sandia for 26 years.

Then a few years ago, researchers working on other projects with applications inside a well, referred to as downhole, asked Sandia's geothermal group to develop electronics to monitor well conditions in field operations. Circuit boards placed downhole in oil and geothermal wells must withstand high temperatures and pressures, excessive vibrations and other extreme environments.

The gold-silver-germanium alloy is suitable for those conditions, Vianco said.

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