Thermal Conduction Heating (TCH) transfers heat to the subsurface through conduction, reaching temperatures as high as 400°C. TRS has completed a full-scale TCH project and is actively working on six TCH projects across the US, China, and Brazil.
TRS started developing the patented FlexHeater Service® in 2014. The FlexHeater TCH technology consists of a stable-resistance wire that provides customizable energy output across the length of the heater. The first FlexHeater project was completed in the United States using 32 heaters, each 60 feet deep. TRS has since developed additional custom heaters designed for longer angled and horizontal borings.
Our current TCH projects in the US will use more than 200 heaters for thermal treatment. One of our US projects at a New Jersey manufacturing facility will implement thermal treatment at depths ranging from 50 to 120 feet below grade, using angled borings installed from inside of a building. The TCE source zone is primarily located below an active facility without drilling or remediation equipment access. The site will operate in three phases with approximately 22,000 feet of TCH heaters.
TCH is expanding our market with thermal treatment options in crystalline bedrock with little water, highly saline environments, and dry sediments. Semi-volatile compounds including PFAS, PCBs, PAHs and dioxins can also be treated with TCH in the vadose zone or above-grade in pile structures with the TRS patent-pending process. TRS is additionally working on two ESTCP PFAS thermal treatment projects for in situ and ex situ applications. TRS strives to provide improved, less costly and robust TCH solutions.
