Winners of the Set! stage of the American-Made Challenge’s Geothermal Manufacturing Prize were announced on March 31, 2021. Multiscale Systems, along with nine other semi-finalists, will now move on to the Make! stage of the prize.

Multiscale Systems’ additively manufactured geothermal solution is for a mechanical metamaterial casing connector.

The Set! stage saw us continue to develop our additively manufactured metamaterial casing connector that will improve the survivability of Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) equipment in the downhole environment.

We explain our connector concept in our Set! stage video submission:

The Prize has four stages:

1. Ready! – Concept development, with competitors demonstrating an impactful solution that incorporates additive manufacturing into a geothermal tool, component, or equipment.
2. Set! – Design of the advanced-manufactured geothermal solution in addition to team and partnership building.
3. Make! – Fabricate a prototype.
4. Geo! – Manufacture of advanced functional prototype with additively manufactured components fully incorporated.

As a Set! winner we’ll share the $1 million cash prize pool and receive technical vouchers that can be redeemed at eligible American-Made Network organizations, national labs, and qualified fabrication facilities within the Network, to further develop out additively manufactured solution.

We’re excited to move on to the Make! stage where we will fabricate our prototype based on our Set! design.

A big thanks to our partners in the American-Made Network who have assisted us in making it this far: WorcLab, The Larta Institute, and Carnegie Mellon University Institute for Energy Innovation.

Read our previous blog on winning the Ready! stage >