Unlocking geothermal at the terawatt scale using novel millimeter wave drilling systems

Carlos Araque

Quaise

Thursday, February 17, 2022

1:00pm

Virtual

PSFC Seminars

Abstract: The energy transition represents a multigenerational opportunity to re-invent our global energy system; decarbonization is a key requirement and it gets a lot of press; power density is another key requirement and it doesn't get much attention; without carbon-free and power-dense energy sources, the energy transition becomes unsustainable over the long term. in this talk, I will introduce millimeter wave drilling and its potential to enable deeper and faster access to ubiquitous and power-dense geothermal heat; I will highlight some of the remaining scientific and engineering challenges for successful deployment of this technology at scale.

Bio: Carlos Araque is the Chief Executive Officer of Quaise Energy, a company developing millimeter wave drilling systems for deep geothermal heat access. Prior to starting Quaise, Carlos worked for 15 years in the oil and gas industry developing subsurface technologies for Schlumberger. Quaise is based on groundbreaking research at the PSFC led by Dr. Paul Woskov.