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Lincoln F. Pratson

Gendell Family Professor of Energy and Environment
Earth and Climate Sciences
Box 90328, Durham, NC 27708-0328
9 Circuit Drive, 3119 Grainger Hall, Durham, NC 27708

Overview


Lincoln Pratson is a professor in the Nicholas School of the Environment's Division of Earth & Ocean Sciences. He has been Chair of EOS, Director of the Duke University Energy Hub, Associate Director of the Gendell Center for Engineering, Energy & the Environment at Duke, served on the Executive Committee for the Research Triangle Energy Consortium (https://www.rtec-rtp.org/), and was a co-founder & co-director of the Sustainable Energy Fellowship (http://www.teachenergy.org/). Pratson is a geologist/geophysicist by training. He has consulted for major oil companies and helped co-found an energy service company that provides state-of-the-art gravity data used to explore for offshore oil and gas reserves. Pratson co-leads a research group at Duke on energy systems. The research has been supported by the DOE, DoD and private industry. Working with students, Pratson is conducting research into carbon capture and storage, integrating different forms of energy storage and renewable energy generation into the electricity industry operations, assessing current and future water use in thermo-electric power generation, and evaluating future demand for and supplies of energy resources.

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Gendell Family Professor of Energy and Environment · 2017 - Present Earth and Climate Sciences, Nicholas School of the Environment
Professor of Energy and Environment · 2009 - Present Earth and Climate Sciences, Nicholas School of the Environment

In the News


Published June 16, 2022
Ukraine War’s Supply Chain Impacts Bust Myth of U.S. Energy Independence
Published May 15, 2020
Discovery of Unknown Hydrogen in Mid-Ocean Ridge Points to Hidden Biosphere
Published March 12, 2020
When Piracy Hurts Persian Gulf Traffic, the Pain Goes More to Smaller Countries

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Recent Publications


Repurposing horizontally drilled oil & gas wells for geothermal systems using a coaxial borehole heat exchanger

Journal Article Energy Conversion and Management · January 15, 2026 Former oil/gas wells can be converted into geothermal wells by retrofitting them with a coaxial borehole heat exchanger (CBHE). While previous research has largely focused on direct heating applications for retrofitted vertical oil/gas wells, most onshore ... Full text Cite

Influence of Flash Droughts and High Fuel Prices on Recent Spikes in Grain Barge Rates on the Mississippi River

Journal Article Water Resources Research · July 1, 2025 In 2022, 2023 and 2024, flash droughts in the U.S. Midwest caused the lower Mississippi River to drop to record low levels during corn and soybean harvest season. Grain barges that move the crops downriver to New Orleans for export were forced to reduce th ... Full text Cite

Techno-economic assessment of repurposing oil & gas wells for Enhanced Geothermal Systems: A New Mexico, USA feasibility study

Journal Article Energy Conversion and Management X · October 1, 2024 Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) produce renewable power that can complement variable renewable sources such as wind and solar, but EGS is expensive to deploy due to high cost of drilling geothermal wells. Repurposing abandoned or declining oil and gas we ... Full text Cite
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Recent Grants


Assessing the Impact of Economic Sanctions on Economic Interdependencies between Nations

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Department of Defense · 2021 - 2024

Biogas Utilization in North Carolina Opportunities and Impact Analysis

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Research Triangle Institute International · 2019 - 2023

Assessing the International Risk to National Economies Posed by a Marine Chokepoint Shutdown

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Office of Naval Research · 2017 - 2022

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Education, Training & Certifications


Columbia University · 1993 Ph.D.
Columbia University · 1992 M.Phil.
The University of Rhode Island · 1987 M.S.
Trinity University · 1983 B.S.