ASSESSMENT OF HIGH-TEMPERATURE GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES IN HYDROTHERMAL CONVECTION SYSTEMS IN THE UNITED STATES.

The amount of thermal energy in high-temperature geothermal systems (>150 degree C) in the United States has been calculated by estimating the temperature, area, and thickness of each identified system. These data, along with a general model for recoverability of geothermal energy and a calculation that takes account of the conversion of thermal energy to electricity, yield a resource estimate of 23,000 MWe for 30 years. The undiscovered component was estimated based on multipliers of the identified resource as either 72,000 or 127,000 MWe for 30 years depending on the model chosen for the distribution of undiscovered energy as a function of temperature.