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| Alain Bonneville, PNNL a GRC Member (left) and Adam Schultz, OSU |
PNNL and Oregon State University researchers will explore the potential of volcanic heat for energy
Two geophysicists noted for their work to harness the underground heat from volcanoes to produce electricity began joint appointments at each other’s institutions in January. The dual appointments enable GRC Member Alain Bonneville, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), and Adam Schultz, Oregon State University, to increase their collaboration on current and proposed projects, including traveling to each other’s institutions to share their insights and mentor students and interns.
A particular focus for the two colleagues is finding the most effective ways to extract underground heat from the Newberry Volcano in central Oregon. Newberry is one of the largest geothermal heat reservoirs in the western United States. A public-private consortium, Newberry Geothermal Energy (NEWGEN), is developing a research observatory on geothermal energy at the volcano, drilling high-temperature wells. The project aims to test more efficient, less costly, and innovative ways to extract underground heat where conventional geothermal power generation isn’t possible. Bonneville, Schultz, and their colleagues have been developing innovative methods that use electromagnetic instrumentation, sensitive gravity meters, measurements of ground deformation, and new computer-aided modeling methods to look under the volcano’s surface.
Two geophysicists noted for their work to harness the underground heat from volcanoes to produce electricity began joint appointments at each other’s institutions in January. The dual appointments enable GRC Member Alain Bonneville, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), and Adam Schultz, Oregon State University, to increase their collaboration on current and proposed projects, including traveling to each other’s institutions to share their insights and mentor students and interns.
A particular focus for the two colleagues is finding the most effective ways to extract underground heat from the Newberry Volcano in central Oregon. Newberry is one of the largest geothermal heat reservoirs in the western United States. A public-private consortium, Newberry Geothermal Energy (NEWGEN), is developing a research observatory on geothermal energy at the volcano, drilling high-temperature wells. The project aims to test more efficient, less costly, and innovative ways to extract underground heat where conventional geothermal power generation isn’t possible. Bonneville, Schultz, and their colleagues have been developing innovative methods that use electromagnetic instrumentation, sensitive gravity meters, measurements of ground deformation, and new computer-aided modeling methods to look under the volcano’s surface.
