Thursday, December 8, 2016

Canada: Research Into Generating Geothermal Energy from Oil & Gas Wells

U Of C students consider geothermal energy and other scenarios for Alberta’s energy future (JWN)

University of Calgary
Imagine using geothermal heat from oil and gas wells to offset the burning of natural gas for domestic and commercial space heating. 

That is a concept Rachel Scharein and her fellow fourth-year classmates investigated as part of a University of Calgary project course in sustainable energy, environment and economy.

“You could either use actual fluid that is coming out of the well itself, or you could actually pump a fluid down into the well — ethylene glycol is what we were looking at,” the 27-year-old mechanical engineering student told the Daily Oil Bulletin.

“You have a piping system that will distribute it to the homes, and then through a heat exchanger you would use it to heat up the homes.”