The Power of Research

“The attempt to combine wisdom and power has only rarely been successful and then only for a short while” -- Albert Einstein (German born American Physicist who developed the special and general theories of relativity. Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921. 1879-1955)

This post has nothing to do with desulfurization research … and it has EVERYTHING to do with desulfurization research.

In 2005 MIT-Massachusetts Institute of Technology- produced a fascinating study of the technological and economic feasibility of using thermal energy to produce a significant amount of the energy required by the U.S. The resource potential has no geographic limits. It is available in every part of the planet. The technology, for the most part, is already available. Why don’t we access this energy source now? Because to make it economically competitive with existing energy resources, a relatively small amount of R&D must be funded by government funds in order to make private funding sources comfortable with making the investments necessary to produce geothermal energy.

So how does this affect desulfurization research? It affects it in two ways …
1) To the degree that geothermal research and development is successful, it reduces the price support for conventional fuels
2) The R&D effort in geothermal emphasizes the importance of conducting desulfurization research in the most cost-effective manner possible.

What does that mean, exactly? That means …
A) You need to utilize whatever resources your organization makes available to you, including librarians and other information professionals
B) Lacking such resources, you need to urge your executive management to employ such resources.

Why? Because if you do not have information professionals on your team, you are at a competitive disadvantage to other organizations that do employ such people.

Still not convinced? Browse the following 372 page MIT report …]

The Future of Geothermal Energy: Impact of Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) on the United States in the 21st Century: An assessment by an MIT-led interdisciplinary panel
This report is available on the Internet at: http://geothermal.inel.gov and http://www1.eere.energy.gov/geothermal/egs_technology.html

From the Executive Summary:
“To sum up, based on our technical and economic analysis, a reasonable investment in R&D and a proactive level of deployment in the next 10 years could make EGS a major player in supplying 10% of U.S. base-load electricity by 2050. Further, the analysis shows that the development of new EGS resources will not be limited by the size and location of the resource in the United States, and it will occur at a critical time when grid stabilization with both replacement and new base-load power will be needed. Adding the EGS option to the U.S. portfolio will reduce growth in natural gas consumption and slow the need for adding expensive natural gas facilities to handle imported liquef ied natural gas (LNG).

“Although EGS-produced commercial power currently lacks a demonstration of its capability , this can be realized in the short term with a proven application of R&D support. The potential of EGS in evolving U.S. energy markets is large and warrants a comprehensive research and demonstration effort to move this technology to commercial viability , especially as the country approaches a period when gap between demand for and generation of electricity will most affect the existing system capacity.”

Panel Members
Jefferson W. Tester, Chair H.P. Meissner Professor of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Brian J. Anderson Assistant Professor/Verl Purdy Faculty Fellow of Chemical Engineering, West Virginia University
Anthony S. Batchelor Chairman and Managing Director, GeoScience Limited; Former Director, U.K. Hot Dry Rock Geothermal Project, Camborne School of Mines
David D. Blackwell W.B. Hamilton Professor of Geophysics, Southern Methodist University
Ronald DiPippo Chancellor Professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering/Former Associate Dean of Engineering, University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth
Elisabeth M. Drake Emeritus Associate Director for New Technologies, MIT Energy Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
John Garnish Geothermal and CO2 Sequestration Consultant, Chairman, Soultz-sous-Forets Scientific Advisory Panel
Bill Livesay Drilling Engineering Consultant
Michal C. Moore Senior Fellow, Institute for Sustainable Energy, Environment, and Economy, University of Calgary; Former Chief Economist, National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Kenneth Nichols CEO Emeritus, Barber Nichols Inc.
Susan Petty Principal, Black Mountain Technology – Geothermal project analysis and reservoir engineering
M. Nafi Toksöz Robert R. Shrock Professor of Geophysics/Founder and Former Director, Earth Resources Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Ralph W. Veatch, Jr. President, Software Enterprises Inc. Former supervisor of hydraulic fracturing and well completions, Amoco Production Co.