A groundbreaking milestone has just been achieved in the geothermal world. Quaise Energy a bold energy tech startup, is turning heads by drilling through granite—not with traditional bits, but with powerful millimeter-wave energy.
By : Robert Buluma
This disruptive technology could unlock near-unlimited geothermal power deep beneath the Earth’s surface.
đź’ˇ The Power Beneath Our Feet
Beneath the Earth's crust lies a massive source of heat—superhot rock that, if harnessed, could power the planet many times over. The challenge? It's buried miles deep in unforgiving conditions where traditional drill bits melt, wear down, or fail completely. Enter Quaise Energy revolutionary solution: vaporizing rock with directed energy.
⚙️ How It Works
Instead of grinding rock with steel, Quaise uses millimeter-wave energy—essentially high-powered microwaves. These waves are delivered through a special pipe to the rock face, where they instantly melt or vaporize hard materials like granite. A stream of gas flushes away the debris, leaving a smooth, glassy borehole ready for geothermal exploitation.
This hybrid approach combines conventional rotary drilling for shallow depths with wave-powered vaporization for the deeper, tougher layers.
đź› ️ What’s Been Achieved
In recent field tests, the company successfully drilled into granite using this technology, pushing past 30 feet and targeting even deeper depths. The technology has now been integrated into a commercial drilling rig, bringing the science fiction-like idea of vaporizing rock into real-world application.
Next up: full-scale demos aiming to drill hundreds of meters into the Earth and, eventually, thousands of meters to tap into high-enthalpy geothermal zones.
🌍 Why This Is a Game Changer
Accessing deep geothermal energy has always been a costly and technically difficult feat. But this technology promises to change that. By drilling deeper than ever before, Quaise can tap into hotter and more energy-dense zones—regions where water turns into a supercritical fluid, delivering up to ten times the power of traditional geothermal.
This could provide reliable, 24/7 clean energy in almost any location on Earth, no longer limited by tectonic boundaries or volcanic activity. It also opens the door to repurposing old fossil fuel plants by retrofitting them with deep geothermal wells.
🚀 The Road Ahead
Quaise Energy plans to scale up drilling tests in the coming months, preparing for pilot plants that could power entire towns with clean, constant geothermal energy. If successful, this technology could be one of the most transformative breakthroughs in the energy transition.
The dream of limitless clean energy from beneath our feet might just be within reach.
The future is heating up—and this time, it’s a good thing.
Source: Quaise
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