42 U.S.C. § 17195a

Current through P.L. 118-107 (published on www.congress.gov on 11/21/2024)

Section 17195a - Geothermal heat pumps and direct use research and development

(a) Purposes

The purposes of this section are-

(1) to improve the understanding of related earth sciences, components, processes, and systems used for geothermal heat pumps and the direct use of geothermal energy; and

(2) to increase the energy efficiency, lower the cost, increase the use, and improve and demonstrate the effectiveness of geothermal heat pumps and the direct use of geothermal energy.

(b) Definitions

In this section:

(1) Direct use of geothermal energy

The term "direct use of geothermal energy" means geothermal systems that use water directly or through a heat exchanger to provide-

(A) heating and cooling to buildings, commercial districts, residential communities, and large municipal, or industrial projects; or

(B) heat required for industrial processes, agriculture, aquaculture, and other facilities.

(2) Economically distressed area

The term "economically distressed area" means an area described in section 3161(a) of this title.

(3) Geothermal heat pump

The term "geothermal heat pump" means a system that provides heating and cooling by exchanging heat from shallow geology, groundwater, or surface water using-

(A) a closed loop system, which transfers heat by way of buried or immersed pipes that contain a mix of water and working fluid; or

(B) an open loop system, which circulates ground or surface water directly into the building and returns the water to the same aquifer or surface water source.

(c) Program

(1) In general

The Secretary shall support within the Geothermal Technologies Office a program of research, development, and demonstration for geothermal heat pumps and the direct use of geothermal energy.

(2) Areas

The program under paragraph (1) may include research, development, demonstration, and commercial application of-

(A) geothermal ground loop efficiency improvements, cost reductions, and improved installation and operations methods;

(B) the use of geothermal energy for building-scale energy storage;

(C) the use of geothermal energy as a grid management resource or seasonal energy storage;

(D) geothermal heat pump efficiency improvements;

(E) the use of alternative fluids as a heat exchange medium, such as hot water found in mines and mine shafts, graywater, or other fluids that may improve the economics of geothermal heat pumps;

(F) heating of districts, neighborhoods, communities, large commercial or public buildings, and industrial and manufacturing facilities;

(G) the use of low temperature groundwater for direct use; and

(H) system integration of direct use with geothermal electricity production.

(3) Environmental impacts

In carrying out the program, the Secretary shall identify and mitigate potential environmental impacts in accordance with section 17193(b) of this title.

(d) Financial assistance

(1) In general

The Secretary shall carry out the program established in subsection (c) by making financial assistance available to State, local, and Tribal governments, institutions of higher education, nonprofit entities, National Laboratories, utilities, and for-profit companies.

(2) Priority

In providing financial assistance under this subsection, the Secretary may give priority to proposals that apply to large buildings, commercial districts, and residential communities that are located in economically distressed areas and areas that the Secretary determines to have high economic potential for geothermal district heating based on the report, "Geovision: Harnessing the Heat Beneath our Feet" published by the Department in 2019, or a successor report.

42 U.S.C. § 17195a

Pub. L. 110-140, title VI, §616A, as added Pub. L. 116-260, div. Z, title III, §3002(e)(1), Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2492.

geothermal heat pump

The term "geothermal heat pump" means any heating or air conditioning technology that-(A) uses the ground or ground water as a thermal energy source to heat, or as a thermal energy sink to cool, a building; and(B) meets the requirements of the Energy Star program of the Environmental Protection Agency applicable to geothermal heat pumps on the date of purchase of the technology.

Secretary

the term "Secretary" means- (A) the Secretary of Education for purposes of subtitle A (other than section 3201),(B) the Secretary of Agriculture for purposes of the amendments made by section 3201, and(C) the Secretary of Health and Human Services for purposes of subtitle B,