A waste heat recovery system originally used in industrial applications is now going underground. Last year, Electratherm installed its first Green Machine electrical generator powered by waste heat, and has now redirected their technology towards the capture of geothermal energy. The Green Machines' heat and pressure recovery technology uses relatively low heat (200 degrees Fahrenheit) to generate electricity.

Partnered with Gulf Coast Green Energy, Electrotherm will be rolling out Green Machines at two projects, one of which will be powered by heat off geothermal brine, hot water high in saline and heavy metals. Geothermal brine has also been harvested for commercial-grade zinc.

Low heat will be converted through the company's Green Machines, which previously were used to power generators with waste heat off devices as common as boilers or chillers. ElectraTherm has worked in the past with a Texas oil well firm to convert bothersome hot water from its wells into electricity.

The version launched last year at Southern Methodist University was 50 kW, and the technology's scalability has led the company to plan expanding the units to 500 kW, according to Bill Olson, senior vice-president at ElectroTherm. The device has been by the Geothermal Energy Association, the Geothermal Resource Council and Popular Science as a leading innovation.

Earlier this week, $50 million in DOE funding was designated towards geothermal heat pump deployment announced by Energy Secretary Stephen Chu in Fort Wane, Indiana, where he also toured WaterFurnace International, a local geothermal heating and cooling company.

The DOE is also offering funding towards the creation of a national certification and accreditation program for the GHP industry.

Recognition of ground-source heat pump efficiency is growing, reducing electric demand and maintenance costs, when compared to standard air source heat pumps. Efforts towards renewable heating and cooling have been remarkably innovative, such as thermal energy storage from Ice Energy, which can use air conditioners to create ice.