Why does Google experiment with hypersonic shells and where does geothermal energy

Founder of HyperSciences, rocket maker Mark Russell shows the layout of a drilling rig with hypersonic shells

In January 2018, Google signed the Space Act Agreement with the NASA Ames Research Center in California. The agreement states: “Google’s research unit is conducting a conceptual study of hypersonic trajectories in ablation modes at high Reynolds numbers” (hypersonic trajectories in high Reynolds number ablation). At the same time, NASA experts "are analyzing the passage of a hypersonic projectile through a dense atmosphere." According to estimates, Google pays for the services of NASA in the amount of $ 99,489 for the seven weeks of the experiment.

Hypersonic is everything that flies at a speed of five or more times faster than the speed of sound. This is usually a super-high-speed aircraft or weapon. Examples include the Boeing X-51 hypersonic cruise missile or the new Russian ballistic missile, which Putin recently described.

But Google is hardly interested in participation in the arms race. Rather, the matter here is different, writes IEEE Spectrum . The publication has learned that researcher Christopher Van Arsdale from Seattle is working on this project, whose profile on LinkedIn states Google Climate and Energy R & D and there is nothing related to aeronautics.

In America, there is one company that is really exploring the use of hypersound for use in alternative energy. This is a startup HyperSciences , also from Seattle. Its main development is an innovative drilling rig, where concrete shells are fired at a speed of 2 kilometers per second before passing the drill. The shell breaks the rock and evaporates with it.



According to the company, this technology accelerates the laying of tunnels 10 times, which opens up opportunities for the use of geothermal energy "everywhere in the world."

Perhaps, the company Google wants to follow the example of Ilona Mask - and also will be engaged in laying underground tunnels. As Musk used to say, if we speed up the speed of laying tunnels by an order of magnitude, then this opens up completely new possibilities. Under the ground there are no traffic jams and traffic lights. Vehicles can move there at supersonic speeds in a safe environment without risking knocking down a pedestrian. And most importantly, this is not a 2D-plane of land tracks, but a full-fledged 3D space available for operation. The transport system can be much more efficient if you remove asphalt, cars and other vehicles from the surface. Leave the earth to the people.

In any case, the acceleration of laying tunnels 10 times will become a very useful invention. Finally, it will be possible to build tunnels for new subway lines in a few weeks, and not in a few months, as it is now. Not to mention the drilling of wells to artesian sources and geothermal energy sources.

If we can effectively drill tunnels several kilometers deep, everyone will have access to an almost inexhaustible source of energy - the warmth of the earth's interior.



On average, temperature increases with depth by 2.5–3 ° C per 100 m, although this indicator is very different in different regions. For example, in the state of Oregon (USA) the gradient is 150 ° С per 1 km, and in South Africa - 6 ° С per 1 km. at a depth of 100 km, the estimated temperatures are around 1300–1500 ° С, at a depth of 400 km - 1600 ° С.

The executive director of HyperSciences admitted that his startup had collaborated with Google, but so far has refused to give details. But there is every reason to believe that Google is really interested in high-speed drilling of tunnels and the prospect of access to geothermal sources.

At least, the parent company Alphabet has long been interested in this area. In July 2017, she registered a subsidiary of Dandelion , which has already started selling home geothermal systems in the state of New York. In these systems, the water is piped to a depth of 150 m, where it is heated or cooled to a stable temperature of 10 ° C, and then rises to the top and is used for heating buildings or cooling equipment.

HyperSciences promises that with its technology you can drill tunnels to a depth of 7 km. Instead of water, silicon pipes are pumped to the depth through pipes, from which thermoelectric generators then remove heat, directly transforming it into electricity.

HyperSciences is also working on HyperBreaker drills for laying conventional transport tunnels using similar technology. In the future, Google and HyperSciences can compete with the Boring Company Ilona Mask, which is going to build tunnels for ultra-fast Hyperloop capsules.