Unit-3

Renewable Energy Resources (ROE086)

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY

Introduction:

Deep inside the Earth, at depths near 150 kilometers, the temperature and pressure is
sufficient to melt rock into magma. As it becomes less dense, the magma begins to flow
toward the surface. Once it breaks through the crust it is referred to as lava. Lava is
extremely hot; up to 1,250 °C. Average lava temperatures are about 750°C. A normal
household oven only reaches temperatures near 260°C. This thermal energy could be
harnessed and used to generate electricity or heat homes or businesses. We would have a
domestic, clean, and nearly inexhaustible energy supply. Geothermal energy is a renewable
energy source because the water is replenished by rainfall and the heat is continuously
produced inside the earth. Geothermal energy can be usefully extracted from four different
types of geologic formations. These include hydrothermal, geopressurized, hot dry rock, and
magma.

When magma comes close to the surface it heats ground water found trapped in porous rock
or water running along fractured rock surfaces and faults. Such hydrothermal resources have
two common ingredients: water (hydro) and heat (thermal). Naturally occurring large areas of
hydrothermal resources are called geothermal reservoirs. Geologists use different methods
to look for geothermal reservoirs. Drilling a well and testing the temperature deep
underground is the only way to be sure a geothermal reservoir really exists.

People around the world use geothermal energy to heat their homes and to produce electricity
by digging deep wells and pumping the heated underground water or steam to the surface.
These hydrothermal fluids can be used to directly to heat buildings, greenhouses, and
swimming pools, or can be used to produce steam for electrical power generation. These
power plants typically operate with fluid temperatures greater than 130 °C.

Energy inside the earth:

Geothermal energy is generated in the earth's core, about 4,000 miles below the surface.
Temperatures hotter than the sun's surface are continuously produced inside the earth by the
slow decay of radioactive particles, a process that happens in all rocks. The earth has a
number of different layers

CORE: The core itself has two layers: a solid iron core and an outer core made of very hot
melted rock, called magma.

MANTLE: The mantle which surrounds the core and is about 1,800 miles thick. It is made up
of magma and rock.
CRUST: The crust is the outermost layer of the earth, the land that forms the continents and
ocean floors. It can be three to five miles thick under the oceans and 15 to 35 miles thick on
the continents.

The earth's crust is broken into pieces called plates. Magma comes close to the earth's surface
near the edges of these plates. This is where volcanoes occur. The lava that erupts from
volcanoes is partly magma. Deep underground, the rocks and water absorb the heat from this
magma. The temperature of the rocks and water get hotter and hotter as you go deeper
underground. The most active geothermal resources are usually found along major plate
boundaries where earthquakes and volcanoes are concentrated. Most of the geothermal
activity in the world occurs in an area called the Ring of Fire. This area rims the Pacific
Ocean.

Geo-thermal Energy Manifestation:

 Volcanoes and fumaroles (holes where volcanic gases are released)

 Hot springs
 Geysers.

Uses of Geo-thermal Energy:

Some applications of geothermal energy use the earth's temperatures near the surface, while
others require drilling miles into the earth. The three main uses of geothermal energy are:
1) Direct Use and District Heating Systems which use hot water from springs or
reservoirs near the surface.
 The direct use of hot water as an energy source has been happening since ancient
times. The Romans, Chinese, and Native Americans used hot mineral springs for
bathing, cooking and heating. Today, many hot springs are still used for bathing, and
many people believe the hot, mineral-rich waters have natural healing powers. After
bathing, the most common direct use of geothermal energy is for heating buildings
through district heating systems. Hot water near the earth's surface can be piped
directly into buildings and industries for heat. Examples of other direct uses include:
growing crops, and drying lumber, fruits, and vegetables.
2) Electricity generation
Geothermal power plants use hydrothermal resources which have two common
ingredients: water (hydro) and heat (thermal). Geothermal plants require high
temperature (300 to 700 degrees Fahrenheit) hydrothermal resources that may come
from either dry steam wells or hot water wells. We can use these resources by drilling
wells into the earth and piping the steam or hot water to the surface. Geothermal wells
are one to two miles deep.
There are three basic types of geothermal power plants:
Dry steam plants use steam piped directly from a geothermal reservoir to turn the
generator turbines. The first geothermal power plant was built in 1904 in Tuscany,
Italy at a place where natural steam was erupting from the earth.
Flash steam plants take high-pressure hot water from deep inside the earth and
convert it to steam to drive the generator turbines. When the steam cools, it condenses
to water and is injected back into the ground to be used over and over again. Most
geothermal power plants are flash plants.
Binary Cycle power plants transfer the heat from geothermal hot water to another
liquid. The heat causes the second liquid to turn to steam which is used to drive a
generator turbine.
3) Geothermal heat pumps use stable ground or water temperatures near the earth's
surface to control building temperatures above ground.
While temperatures above ground change a lot from day to day and season to season,
temperatures in the upper 10 feet of the Earth's surface hold nearly constant between
50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. For most areas, this means that soil temperatures are
usually warmer than the air in winter and cooler than the air in summer. Geothermal
heat pumps use the Earth's constant temperatures to heat and cool buildings. They
transfer heat from the ground (or water) into buildings in winter and reverse the
process in the summer.

Layout of a geothermal plant:

Brief Description:

To harness energy, large holes have to be dug into the earth until a geothermal hot spot is
found. Pipes are inserted inside these holes through which water is sent and steam output is
obtained. The success of the energy production depends on the temperature of the plant
which depends on the temperature of the rocks in earth.
The water is sent through the injection well and reaches the rocks and then hot water comes
from the production well. The steam that comes out of the mixture might have dissolved
brine and some dust particles. Due to the high pressure when it reaches the topmost of the
earth surface, it is converted in to steam. The separator is the place where steam that comes
from the earth is made clean by removing the brine and dirt so that they don’t damage the
turbine blades. The high pressure and low pressure steam runs the turbine. The generator is
coupled with turbine to produce electricity. The condenser is a phase changer where the
steam output of the turbine is given to the condenser and gets converted to hot water. The hot
water is then sent to the cooling tower where is loses its heat and then sent to the geothermal
reservoir for further production of steam.
Types of Geo-thermal power plants:

1. Direct Dry Steam Plant:

 These were the first type of geothermal power plants to be built. The technology was
first used at Lardarello, Italy, in 1904, and is still very effective for generating
electricity
 Geothermal reservoir containing pure steam is required therefore these plants are
placed at the site of vapour dominated reservoirs where steam production is not
contaminated with liquid
 The plant uses superheated steam produced at 180-350 °C. The steam is accessed by
drilling directly into the underground source and gets clean to remove solid impurities
 The steam is piped through a turbine and generator unit, and then condensed back into
water and injected back into the subsurface reservoir
 Pure dry steam drives turbine
 The emissions from this type of plants consist of excess steam and very small
amounts of sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, and carbon dioxide.
 Efficiency is less than 20% (usually 15 %)
2. Flash Steam Power Plant:

 Commonly used geothermal power plants in operation in the world today

 These are constructed at the places of liquid dominated fields, above 180°C
 Fluid at temperatures greater than 360°F (182°C) is pumped under high
pressure into a tank (flash tank) at the surface held at a much lower pressure
 The hot water from the production well enters a flash tank where the reduced
pressure (the pressure drops instantaneously) causes the water to boil rapidly
or "flash" into vapour
 The force generated by the steam is used to drive turbines and produce
electricity
 If any liquid remains in the tank, it can be flashed again in a second tank
(double flash) to extract even more energy
3. Binary Cycle Power Plant

 Moderate temperature water is used in it (100°C - 180°C)

 hydrothermal fluid from the subsurface reservoir never comes into contact
with the turbine/generator units
 In this two step process, hydrothermal fluid that is not quite hot enough to be
used in a flash steam plant is fed into a heat exchanger
 Here, heat is transferred from the hydrothermal fluid to a “working liquid”
with a lower boiling point than water (usually isobutane or isopentane or
ammonia)
 The working liquid turns into vapourized hydrocarbons that are used to spin
the turbine (by using thermodynamic Rankine cycle)

 The hydrothermal fluid and the working liquid are both contained in “closed
loops” and never come in contact with each another
 The vapor from the working liquid is condensed and the hydrothermal fluid is
returned to the earth
 This cycle can be repeated as quickly as the Earth can reheat the fluid
 Because of closed loop system, nothing is emitted to the atmosphere
 More efficient than flash steam plants
 Usually 7-12% efficient
Merits and Demerits of Geothermal Power Generation

Merits:

1. Geothermal energy is inexhaustible, available all the year around.

2. It is cheaper in cost compared to the energies obtained from other sources.
3. The emission of CO2 and SO2 by geothermal power plants is far less compared with
conventional fossil fuel based power plants. (environmentally friendly)
4. Geothermal power plants do not produce greenhouse gases that can be harmful to
the atmosphere.
5. Due to the fact that geothermal systems only have few movable parts which are
sheltered inside a building, the life span of geothermal heat pump systems is
relatively high.
6. Massive potential – upper estimates show a worldwide potential of 2 terawatts
(TW).

Demerits:

1. There are some minor environmental issues associated with geothermal power.
2. Geothermal power plants can in extreme cases cause earthquakes.
3. Geothermal power is only sustainable (renewable) if the reservoirs are properly
managed.
4. Large areas are needed for exploitation of geothermal energy as much of it is
diffused.
5. Not widespread source of energy. It is only suitable for regions where temperatures
below the earth are quite low and can produce steam over a long period of time.
6. A geothermal power plant usually pumps over three times more thermal energy into
the environment for each unit of electricity produced than does a conventional fossil
power plant. This is called thermal pollution.

Environmental Impact:

Geothermal energy is not completely pollution free energy. The environmental impact
of geothermal energy depends on how it is being used.
 At geothermal site, the air pollution is the major problem because of emission of
poisonous gases such as hydrogen sulphide, ammonia, methane, carbon dioxide
etc.
 The main adverse environmental effects are noise pollution, thermal pollution,
surface disturbance, physical effects (land subsidence) caused by fluid
withdrawal.
 Large quantity of water is required to be injected to get a useful amount of
steam.
 A large volume of flash steam escaping into the atmosphere could cause dense
fog to occur.
 As most of the geothermal plants are located in geologically unstable zones of
the earth’s crust, water reinjection (as highly saline water may be harmful) into
the reservoir causes the seismic activity.
 Geothermal power plants do not burn fuel to generate electricity, so their
emission levels are very low. They release less than 1 percent of the carbon
dioxide emissions of a fossil fuel plant. Geothermal plants use scrubber systems
to clean the air of hydrogen sulfide that is naturally found in the steam and hot
water. Geothermal plants emit 97 percent less acid rain (causing sulfur
compounds) than are emitted by fossil fuel plants.