Prairie Research Institute

blog posts

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  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.

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  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.

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  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

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  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. 

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  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.

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  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. 

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  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.

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  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.

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  Decades of mapping data builds highest resolution of earthquake risk yet

  Jul 10, 2017 4:00 pm
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  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. 

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  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.

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  DOE awards $17.7 million to PRI for carbon storage site assessment

  May 18, 2023 1:00 pm

  Illinois State Geological Survey at the Prairie Research Institute has received an award of $17.7 Million as part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) effort to support the development of new and expanded large-scale, commercial carbon storage projects with capacities to securely store 50 or more million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂). It is one nine projects for a total investment of $242M from DOE.

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  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.

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  DOE funds ISGS work on carbon storage

  May 1, 2020 11:15 am
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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. 

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  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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  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.

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  Freshwater coastal erosion alters global carbon budget

  Mar 27, 2019 1:30 pm

  Shoreline erosion can transform freshwater wetlands from carbon-storage pools to carbon sources, according to a new study led by Illinois State Geological Survey researchers. 

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  Geological Survey assists state agencies with COVID-19 data

  May 1, 2020 12:00 pm

• Geologic formation could hold clues to melting glacier floodwaters

  Dec 23, 2015 10:45 am
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  Going beyond the surface

  Nov 18, 2020 8:00 am
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  Groundwater experts help industries and nature preserves thrive

  Jul 7, 2022 8:00 am

  ISGS and ISWS began monitoring the intersections between industry and the state-protected nature preserves in 1998, letting science and groundwater testing lead the way. Then-graduate student Randy Locke embarked on what was intended to be a two-year groundwater monitoring project; that project is now in its 24th year and has expanded to 414 dedicated nature preserves across 62,270 acres in Illinois.

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  Illinois researchers receive funding to explore hydrogen storage

  Jul 10, 2024 10:15 am

  bp-International Centre for Advanced Materials recently awarded funding for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers affiliated with the Prairie Research Institute for investigations into subsurface hydrogen storage to accelerate sustainable energy transformation.

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  Initial results show Mt. Simon Sandstone in Macon County is suited to carbon storage

  Feb 26, 2019 11:00 am

  Preliminary results from a stratigraphic characterization well drilled in December 2018 by the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) and collaborators near Mt. Auburn, Illinois, indicate that the Mt. Simon Sandstone at this location has excellent reservoir characteristics for storage of CO₂. The T. R. McMillen #2 well is part of the CarbonSAFE Illinois–Macon County project, which is intended to establish the feasibility of storage of 50 million tonnes or more of CO₂.

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  International testing validates accuracy of Stable Isotope Lab analyses

  May 11, 2021 10:00 am

  The Illinois State Geological Survey’s stable isotope laboratory recently passed a standards proficiency test overseen by the International Atomic Energy Association. 

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  ISGS combines innovation and expertise in carbon storage

  Nov 3, 2020 8:00 am

  For almost 20 years, PRI’s geologists and engineers have been developing methods for the safe capture, storage, and utilization of CO2 from power plants and industrial operations. This has been in response to federal and state laws requiring reductions in CO2 emissions, as this byproduct of power generation has a direct link to atmospheric greenhouse gasses and climate change. 

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  ISGS data inform siting decisions for energy companies in Illinois

  Feb 7, 2022 8:45 am

  Green energy companies seeking sites for windfarm and solar power plant development in Illinois are targeting industrially zoned settings, such as land around active and abandoned coal mines and oil fields. When considering siting decisions, companies can rely on the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) to provide extensive databases and maps on the state’s geologic and mine information to save potential trouble with collapsed land.

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  ISGS drills Christian County well to investigate potential for carbon dioxide storage

  Dec 18, 2018 1:45 pm

  On Dec. 3 the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) completed drilling the T.R. McMillen #2 well in Christian County, Illinois, as part of its CarbonSAFE Illinois program. Preliminary results indicate the Mt. Simon Sandstone at this location is suitable for a commercial-scale CO₂ storage site.

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  ISGS, ISWS install new wells for national groundwater monitoring

  Nov 6, 2018 12:30 pm

  Scientists and staff from the Illinois State Geological Survey and the Illinois State Water Survey  ollaborated with county and local governments in Kane County to install groundwater-monitoring wells in northeast Illinois as part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Ground Water Monitoring Network. 

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  ISGS project will seek valuable elements, minerals from coal and coal waste

  May 20, 2021 3:00 pm

  The Office of Fossil Energy within the U.S. Department of Energy has selected to award nearly $1.5 million to the Illinois State Geological Survey for a project that will evaluate the availability of valuable rare earth elements and critical minerals in coal and coal waste streams in Illinois and nearby states. 

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  ISGS provides high-resolution digital elevation data for all 102 Illinois counties

  Jun 27, 2019 1:00 pm

  For the first time, high-resolution digital elevation data that are essential for planning by local, state, and federal agencies are available online for all Illinois counties.

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  ISGS receives $10 million in funding for abandoned mining site research

  Aug 26, 2024 3:00 pm

  The Illinois State Geological Survey at the Prairie Research Institute recently received a $10 million award to inventory abandoned mining sites that could be reclaimed to improve community safety and the environment in Illinois.

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  ISGS receives $720,000 award from DOE for geothermal research

  Oct 23, 2017 2:15 pm

  The Illinois State Geological Survey received a $720,000 grant from the Department of Energy to determine the feasibility of tapping geothermal energy for heating and cooling on the University of Illinois’ Urbana campus.

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  ISGS researcher Joe Devera to participate in natural resources event for 30th year

  Apr 12, 2019 1:15 pm

  Each April in southern Illinois, students in grades K-6 participate in Stewardship Week, an outdoor education event. This year, just like every year for the past 30, Joe Devera, senior paleontologist at the Illinois State Geological Survey, will be back to share his knowledge and love of fossils with inquiring young minds.

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  ISGS retiree develops water resources partnership in Malawi

  Dec 21, 2021 9:15 am

  Tim Larson, a retired geoscientist from the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS), brought his four decades of experience in locating groundwater in Illinois to connect people in four African villages to fresh water.

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  ISGS updates Illinois sinkhole data

  Feb 11, 2021 4:45 pm

  The Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) now provides up-to-date downloadable data about sinkholes for the entire state of Illinois. This replaces the previous ISGS GIS dataset of statewide sinkhole areas, which was published in 1997.

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  "It was a bad day for Peoria County about 450 million years ago."

  Nov 12, 2019 6:00 am
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  Jo Daviess County collaboration tackles water quality

  Dec 10, 2019 12:30 pm

  With its unique geology marked by sinkholes, crevices, and caves, Jo Daviess County is highly susceptible to water contamination. Scientists from the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) and Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS) are using their expertise and collaborating with a local organization to help citizens understand water quality issues and protect their water supplies.

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  Lake Michigan coast to get a complete physical checkup from the air

  Mar 6, 2017 4:15 pm
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  Mahomet Aquifer Protection Task Force issues recommendations

  Jan 9, 2019 4:45 pm

  A task force formed by the Illinois General Assembly to identify gaps in protection of the Mahomet Aquifer has issued its final recommendations. Illinois State Water Survey hydrologist George Roadcap served as a member of the task force, and other Prairie Research Institute scientists provided data and expertise to support the group’s yearlong effort.

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  Microplastic contamination found in common source of groundwater, researchers report

  Jan 25, 2019 1:30 pm
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  Multimillion-dollar project investigates potential CO2 storage at Heidelberg Materials’ cement plant in Mitchell, Indiana

  Feb 22, 2023 3:30 pm

  With $8.9 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Carbon Transport and Storage CarbonSAFE Program, the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS), part of the Prairie Research Institute (PRI), is leading a two-year project to explore the feasibility of safely storing more than 50 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) over 30 years captured from the Heidelberg Materials cement plant in Mitchell, Indiana.

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  National award highlights power of science in sustainable development

  Jul 20, 2016 1:45 pm

• One Million Metric Tons of CO2: A Minute With U. OF I. Geologist Robert Finley

  Jan 9, 2015 1:30 pm

• Patent awarded to ISGS engineers for a novel sorbent process to reduce emissions from coal-fired power plants

  Apr 22, 2016 2:45 pm
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  Petroleum Experts donates software to ISGS

  Jun 25, 2024 5:00 pm

  Petroleum Experts has renewed through December 2024 a grant of the full set of software modules of MOVE and IPM suites to the Illinois State Geological Survey and Department of Earth Science and Environmental Change to use in research and education. This software enhances ISGS capabilities in subsurface interpretation and reservoir simulation.

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  Petroleum Experts renews software grant to ISGS

  Dec 16, 2021 2:15 pm

  Petroleum Experts has renewed through December 2022 a grant of a set of software packages to the Illinois State Geological Survey and Department of Geology to use in research and education. This software enhances the ISGS capabilities in subsurface interpretation. The yearly value of this grant is more than $2.5 million.

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  Prairie Research Institute scientist to serve on White House task force on carbon capture and storage

  Apr 21, 2023 3:30 pm

  Sallie Greenberg, a principal research scientist at the Prairie Research Institute (PRI), has been selected as a member of one of the two new White House Council on Environmental Quality task forces to guide the development of carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS) technologies in the United States. 

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  Preventing Roadblocks: PRI Keeps Illinois on the Straight and Narrow

  Jan 31, 2024 8:00 am

  With the help of Prairie Research Institute scientists, transportation agencies are building Illinois roads in compliance with state and federal regulations, while preserving Illinois’ physical, biological, natural, and cultural resources.

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  PRI geoscientists begin work on $6 million federal investment in geothermal energy

  Nov 29, 2023 2:00 pm

  Geoscientists from the Illinois State Geological Survey have begun geologic and hydrogeologic site characterization work for major federal geothermal energy projects.