A better way to remove deeply drilled rock: compressed air. Our millimeter wave drilling process cannot rely on conventional techniques like drilling mud to remove rock cuttings. Drilling mud interferes with our waveguide and the millimeter waves themselves. The solution is to circulate a purge gas, or compressed air, throughout the process. Gases such as nitrogen and argon are ideal to flush downhole, sweeping all the vaporized rock away from the drilling front and up to the surface for removal. The purge gas system allows us to use millimeter wave drilling at unprecedented depths, unlocking deep #geothermal energy to decarbonize civilization within a generation.
How do you overcome the hydrostatic pressure of the water in the rock? That's another function of drilling mud.
What about just air from the atmosphere? Also, what about wellbore stability? And getting stuck in the hole? And well control? And water from aquifers that will undoubtedly fill the wellbore. And having to buy new drill pipe because it corrodes faster with air drilling? What about directional drilling that all relies on mud? Sounds good for burning holes in granite in the garage, but we’re not in the garage.
Additionally, if those frequenicies can ever be used to vaporise silicon based rock, you may have discovered another means to produce electronics grade silicon by turning the silicon in to a pure elemental gas
It is exciting to follow your company as it solves various issues related to this new drilling method. The purging of spalled material seemed to me as a lay person to be the biggest hurdle.
Once you get one working and your making a profit, get a dedicated lab going to see various other frequencies can handle other types of rock
Looks like the sample catchers will need really small mesh gloves 😂
High temperature drilling in a confined volume is inherently a positive pressure process P=nRT/V.
This is so cool 😎
Petroleum Engineering Consultant
2moExciting to see innovative approaches like compressed air and inert gases being explored as alternatives to traditional drilling fluids for ultra-deep geothermal wells. Successfully drilling at these depths is key to unlocking the full potential of geothermal energy and addressing access challenges. That said, I’m curious about how compressed air drilling fluid systems – which tend to lose effectiveness at depths of ~5,000-m (due to HP/HT constraints), will perform at the depths typical of deep geothermal wells? Specifically, how Quaise Energy plans to manage these technical challenges while maintaining efficiency and control? I have been following Quaise Energy for some time now and am a big supporter. If successful, I truly believe that this could be a significant step toward achieving sustainable and equitable energy around the world!