In the arid expanses of California’s Imperial Valley, where the earth’s heat bubbles to the surface in steaming vents and bubbling mud pots, a quiet revolution is underway. Orkhan Khankishiyev, a researcher at the University of Oklahoma, has uncovered a way to squeeze more energy out of geothermal wells—without drilling a single new hole. His findings, published in *Geothermal Energy* (in English, *Geotermal’naya Energetika*), suggest that a technique borrowed from the oil and gas industry could supercharge geothermal production, turning marginal wells into powerhouses.
Geothermal energy is already a workhorse of renewable power, providing steady, carbon-free electricity. But not all geothermal wells are created equal. Liquid-dominated systems—where hot water and steam coexist underground—often underperform, choked by the weight of dense fluids or the inability to lift them to the surface efficiently. Enter gas lift, a method where gas is injected into the well to lighten the fluid column, boosting flow rates like a straw in a soda bottle. Khankishiyev’s study, based on real-world data from the Brawley Geothermal Field, shows that this approach can deliver dramatic results.
“When we injected just 1 million standard cubic feet per day of gas, we saw liquid production jump from 110 to nearly 200 pounds per second,” Khankishiyev explains. That’s an 80% increase in output—no new drilling required. The energy implications are staggering. Coupled with an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) system to convert heat to electricity, net power generation surged by 118%. For an industry where every incremental improvement counts, that’s the kind of leap that turns a modest operation into a major contributor.
But not all gases are created equal. Methane emerged as the star performer, lifting efficiency by 128% and adding 3.68 megawatts of net electrical power. Nitrogen and air followed closely, each boosting output by around 117%. Carbon dioxide, while effective, came with a catch: it’s corrosive, posing long-term risks to infrastructure. “CO₂ might work in the short term,” Khankishiyev notes, “but the corrosion trade-off could outweigh the benefits.”
The study’s real breakthrough lies in its modeling approach. By combining a steady-state multiphase flow simulator with a surface process model, Khankishiyev’s team captured the thermal and hydraulic dynamics of gas lift in unprecedented detail. They factored in everything from fluid temperature and flow rate to the thermal properties of well materials—variables often glossed over in simpler analyses. The result is a toolkit that operators can use to fine-tune gas lift systems for their specific reservoirs.
For the energy sector, the implications are clear. Gas lift isn’t just a tweak; it’s a game-changer for liquid-dominated geothermal fields, where production often plateaus. With global demand for clean energy rising, every megawatt counts. And in places like Brawley, where the earth’s heat is abundant but underutilized, this technique could unlock untapped potential.
As the world races to decarbonize, innovations like these remind us that sometimes, the best solutions aren’t about building bigger—just smarter.