Silica Recovery from Geothermal Brines
PI: Devinder Mahajan
Geothermal energy can be harnessed for various applications. One of the major concerns is corrosive properties of geothermal brines. We are investigating the feasibility of extracting high-purity silica from geothermal brines. We are demonstrating that economical co-production of silica, other precious minerals, and chemicals from geothermal mineral rich precipitates (MRPs) and mineral rich brines (MRBs) is feasible. Our approach involves characterization of minerals from brines recovered by a method developed by us. This project is aimed at realizing one of the DOE goals of reducing geothermal power production costs down to 3 - 5 cents/kWh by 2010. (DOE/EERE)