A note on power plant selection for engineered geothermal systems

Abstract

An initial study has been carried out to determine the most suitable system for recovering power from engineered geothermal systems. When using a binary power plant, account has been taken of the relatively rapid temperature decline of such resources. A simplified idealised analysis shows that the total recoverable power is more or less independent of the type of power plant used but a system that maximises the heat recovery from the brine, in its passage through the primary heat exchanger will yield a much higher initial power output and a much quicker return on the capital invested, than one which is designed to maximise the power plant cycle efficiency.