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Geological Survey

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  • Piper Navaho aircraft

    Flights to image 3D geology in Illinois, Kentucky and Indiana

    Oct 3, 2019 12:45 pm

    Scientists with the Illinois State Geological Survey are partnering with the U.S. Geological Survey and the Geological Surveys of Kentucky and Indiana to image geology using airborne geophysical technology as part of the USGS Earth Mapping Resource Initiative.

  • Timothy Larson with children in Malawi

    Finding water in Malawi

    Oct 10, 2018 2:00 pm

    Geophysicist Timothy Larson was part of a project through Geoscientists Without Borders to drill water wells in Malawi.  

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    Earth MRI funds critical minerals projects in Illinois

    Oct 1, 2020 10:15 am

    The U.S. Geological Survey and the Association of American State Geologists will provide $106,978 in funding for critical minerals projects in Illinois. As part of this effort, the Illinois State Geological Survey will perform geochemical analyses for regions all over Illinois and adjoining states. 

  • aerial view of silos

    DOE funds ISGS work on carbon storage

    May 1, 2020 11:15 am
  • rendering of the proposed innovative power plant

    DOE awards $25 million to PRI for design of innovative power plant

    Nov 11, 2020 12:45 pm

    The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded $25 million to a three-year project led by the Prairie Research Institute that will design a next-generation power plant in Springfield, Illinois. The innovative plant design combines multiple techniques to both reduce emissions and capture and re-use carbon dioxide.

  • Diagram of the biphasic carbon dioxide absorption technology

    DOE award received to develop and scale up carbon capture technology

    May 7, 2018 2:15 pm

    A biphasic CO2 absorption (BiCAP) technology developed at the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) has been selected for development and bench-scale testing by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as a transformation technology for post-combustion carbon capture.

  • Piotr Szocinski crouches in the back of a truck to load soil samples

    Digging into soil data helps inform green infrastructure design

    Mar 11, 2022 8:45 am

    PRI geologists were part of a multidisciplinary research project aimed at helping Illinois communities add green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) to their strategies to prevent local flooding. Pilot projects focused on Calumet City and Midlothian. 

  • Decades of mapping data builds highest resolution of earthquake risk yet

    Jul 10, 2017 4:00 pm
  • four people stand at the Illinois Basin Decatur Project injection well

    Data from landmark Illinois Basin carbon storage project are now available

    Mar 10, 2022 8:30 am

    The first-of-its-kind Illinois Basin – Decatur Project (IBDP), which concluded in 2021 after successfully demonstrating the safe geologic storage of carbon dioxide, is releasing data sets in two easily accessible locations.

  • Jo Daviess County alfalfa crop pattern in 2012

    Database reveals locations of sinkholes, crevices, and mines in Jo Daviess County

    May 18, 2023 8:45 am

    A new database compiling information from a decade of Prairie Research Institute (PRI) studies on the unique geology and hydrology of Jo Daviess County is designed to help residents and officials understand the karst features of the land where they live and to better protect their water supply from surface contamination.

  • ISTC and ISWS Director Kevin OBrien with University of Illinois System President Timothy Killeen at City, Water, Light, and Power in Springfield, Illinois.

    Carbon capture collaborations lead clean energy drive

    Jun 30, 2020 8:00 am

    The Prairie Research Institute — is leading a drive to implement CO2 removal strategies, an essential step to a clean-energy future. 

  • man at injection well site

    Carbon capture and storage project with ADM concludes

    May 19, 2021 2:15 pm

    On May 19, 2021, ADM and the University of Illinois announced the successful completion of the Illinois Basin - Decatur Project, a carbon capture and storage project designed to evaluate and test the technology at commercial scale.

  • Buying a home in Illinois? You'll need PRI for that.

    Feb 6, 2020 1:00 pm

    For every Illinois home sold, the Prairie Research Institute provides data needed for banks, title companies, insurance companies, and consumers to make informed decisions about home ownership. 

  • helicopter to do HTEM measurements

    Beneath the Surface: Charting the Mahomet Aquifer for Water Security

    Mar 6, 2024 7:15 am

    Cutting-edge investigations will result in the most accurate maps of the Mahomet Aquifer to date

  • SkyTEM helicopter

    A helicopter above Champaign County will explore an aquifer below ground

    Nov 10, 2022 10:45 am

    Beginning on Nov. 19 and extending for a few weeks, Champaign County citizens will spot a curiosity flying in the sky above: a helicopter towing a large coil frame hanging from long cables. Helicopter flights are part of an Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) project to map and better understand the Mahomet aquifer within the county.

  • Drilling for the geothermal exchange system at the U of I campus

    A geothermal exchange system on the U of I campus proves its benefits

    Aug 24, 2022 8:00 am

    Last year, a multidisciplinary team of scientists and engineers helped build a geothermal exchange system to heat and cool a new building at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I), saving electrical usage and marking another step in the quest for a carbon-neutral campus. This type of heating and cooling system is also used successfully in homes, businesses, and industry, according to Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) scientist Andrew Stumpf.