Category Archives: Geothermal Energy

Archaeological evidence establishes that the beginning of man’s application of geothermal energy in North America came about more than ten thousand years ago with the settlements of Paleo-Indians at natural geothermal energy springs. The natural geothermal energy springs functioned as a reservoir of geothermal energy for heat and purifying, using their minerals as a source of therapeutic healing.

Although people still soak in shallow pools heated from the Earths core, technologists are creating technologies that will permit us to examine areas more than ten miles beneath the Earth’s surface hunting for geothermal energy. Currently in the United States Geothermal Energy accounts for 0.3 percent of power though experts predict this could rise to as much as 10% by 2050.

Geothermal Energy is heat (thermal) retrieved from the sub terrain depths of the land. The thermal energy held in in the rock of the earth and liquid (that occupies the cracks and pores inside the rock) in the earth’s crust.

Scientific calculations determine that the earth, starting from an entirely molten state, must have cooled off and become entirely solid several thousand years ago without an energy stimulant in addition to that of the sun. It is thought that the elemental source of geothermal energy is radioactive decay occurring deep within the earth (Burkland, 1973).  Read more...

Most people would prefer the common heating and ventilation devices and air conditioning units, merely because most are not familiar with the geothermal heat pump.  The geothermal heat pump is an effective way of heat absorption during the wintertime. These heat pumps or usually called geoexchange devices have been around for almost 70 years. Unknown to most people, but the geothermal heat pump is highly efficient in heat producing and in energy saving. The reason why geothermal heat pumps save more energy and are more efficient than HVAC units is because these heat pumps use the earth heat and convert it into a source of energy.
 
A geothermal heat pump is highly efficient for the coldest winters. These devices can warm a cold room to cooling the temperature during summertime. The reason is because a geothermal heat pump garners heat or absorbs heat from the within the earth where the temperature is always constant unlike that about the ground which varies, which enables it to produce warmer air during winter and cooler air during the summer and without circulating the air like air conditioners. Using the constant temperature allows the geothermal heat pump to produce higher efficiencies from 300 percent to 600 percent efficiency. When comparing these percentages to the normal heating, ventilating or air conditioning devices, would only amount to 175 percent to 250 percent efficiency.
 
Geothermal heat pumps can be enhanced to heat and cool a house depending on the tubes installed. Geothermal heat pumps near bodies of water can act as a heater and a cooler when programmed. Most of these heaters actually release air according to the room temperature.  Read more...

Today we are at such a crossroad that we have to seriously think about our future and about the sustainability of our resources and most importantly the quality of life that we are living and would be leaving for our future generations. This is because our scarce resources are being used indiscriminately and this is nowhere more apparent than in the energy sector. Here we have seen that the indiscriminate and overuse of the fossil fuels have not only started the scarcity, but also has led to environmental pollution and adverse environmental changes like the depletion of the ozone layers. Thus there is an urgent need to tap other resources that are sustainable and at the same time eco-friendly and hence a new term Green Energy has been coined.

At present research is going on tap natural resources like the wind, the sun, the water and even the heat of the core of the earth. These sources are very good sources for Green Energy as they are present in abundance, are sustainable, are renewable and cause very less pollution.  Read more...

Geo-thermal Energy

Recently I visited CSIR Technofest 2010 showcased by Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, New Delhi, at India International Trade Fair in New Delhi, the Capital of India.  In this technofest, I have seen a technology “Geo-thermal Energy” which was developed by NGRI (National Geophysical Research Institute), Hyderabad under the aegis of CSIR, New Delhi, India.

India, I heard the electricity can be generated from water dams i.e. hydro, coal i.e. thermal and air i.e. from sea winds.  I really wondered that there is an energy called geothermal energy i.e. energy from steam/heat or hot water inside the earth.  Electricity can be generated from this steam from hot water’s steam.  Geo (Earth) + thermal (heat) — energy can be and is accessed by drilling water or steam wells in a process similar to drilling for oil.

Geothermal electricity is electricity generated from geothermal energy. Dry steam power plants, flash steam power plants and binary cycle power plants are the technologies are in use as of now.  Geothermal electricity generation is currently used only in 24 countries while geothermal heating is in use in 70 countries.  Read more...

Wasilla, Alaska geothermal options provide a renewable energy source solution for heating your home during the cold Alaska winter. While the weather may be cold, the earth’s core is hot and the heat flows continuously outward a powerful, unified and renewable energy source.

There are several Wasilla, Alaska geothermal options, but as technology has made great progress in recent years, direct use of geothermal energy has become more widespread. Direct geothermal energy comes from geothermal reservoirs. These containers have moderate to low temperature water with temperatures of 68 degrees Fahrenheit to 302 degrees Fahrenheit. This form of Wasilla, Alaska can inform geothermal direct heat for residential, industrial and commercial applications.

Direct use of geothermal energy systems typically consist of three basic components: a manufacturing facility (usually a well) is used to bring the hot water to the surface, a mechanical system with pipes and a heat exchanger and controls to obtain the cooled geothermal fluid supply heat to the space or process and management system, including an injection well or storage pond.

Perhaps the biggest selling point for Wasilla, Alaska is geothermal energy the savings involved. Direct use of geothermal energy, whether used in homes or commercial properties is significantly cheaper than conventional fuels.