What Is Geothermal Energy?

Geothermal energy comes from the heat within the earth. The word "geothermal"
comes from the Greek words geo, meaning earth," and therme,meaning "heat."
People around the world use geothermal energy to produce electricity, to heat
buildings and greenhouses, and for other purposes.
The earth's core lies almost 4,000 miles beneath the earth's surface. The
double-layered core is made up of very hot molten iron surrounding a solid iron
center. Estimates of the temperature of the core range from 5,000 to 11,000
degrees Fahrenheit (F). Heat is continuously produced within the earth by the
slow decay of radioactive particles that is natural in all rocks.
Surrounding the earth's core is the mantle, thought to be partly rock and partly
magma. The mantle is about 1,800 miles thick. The outermost layer of the earth,
the insulating crust, is not one continuous sheet of rock, like the shell of an egg,
but is broken into pieces called plates. These slabs of continents and ocean floor
drift apart and push against each other at the rate of about one inch per year in a
process called continental drift.
Magma (molten rock) may come quite close to the surface where the crust has
been thinned, faulted, or fractured by plate tectonics. When this near-surface
heat is transferred to water, a usable form of geother- energy is created.
Geothermal energy is called a renewable energy source because the water is
replenished by rainfall, and the heat is continuously produced by the earth.

History of Geothermal Energy
Many ancient peoples, including the Romans, Chinese, and Native Americans,
used hot mineral springs for bathing, cooking, and heating. Water from hot
springs is now used world-wide in spas, for heating buildings, and for agricultural
and industrial uses. Many people believe hot mineral springs have natural
healing powers.
Using geothermal energy to produce electricity is a relatively new industry. It was
initiated by a group of Italians who built an electric generator at Lardarello in
1904. Their generator was powered by the natural steam erupting from the earth.
The first attempt to develop geothermal power in the United States came in 1922
at The Geysers steam field in northern California. The project failed because the
pipes and turbines of the day could not stand up to the abrasion and corrosion of
the particles and impurities that were in the steam. Later, a small but successful
hydrothermal plant opened at the Geysers in 1960. Today 28 plants are
operating there.
Electricity is now produced from geothermal energy in 21 countries, including the
United States.

Where Is Geothermal Energy Found?
What does geothermal energy look like? Some visible features of geothermal
energy are volcanoes, hot springs, geysers, and fumaroles. But you cannot see
most geothermal energy. Usually geothermal energy is deep underground. There
may be no clues above ground to what exists below ground.
Geologists use many methods to find geothermal resources. They may study
aerial photographs and geological maps. They may analyze the chemistry of
local water sources and the concentration of metals in the soil. They may
measure variations in gravity and magnetic fields. Yet the only way they can be
sure there is a geothermal resource is by drilling wells to measure underground
temperatures.
The earth is a hotbed of geothermal energy. 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 known as the "Ring of Fire." The Ring of Fire rims the Pacific
Ocean and is bounded by Japan, the Philippines, the Aleutian Islands, North
America, Central America, and South America.

Today's Geothermal Energy
There are four main kinds of geothermal resources: hydrothermal, geopressured,
hot dry rock, and magma. Today hydrothermal resources are the only kind in
wide use. The other three resources are still in the infant stages of development.
Hydrothermal resources have the common ingredients of water (hydro) and
heat (thermal). These geothermal reservoirs of steam or hot water occur naturally
where magma comes close enough to the surface to heat ground water trapped
in fractured or porous rocks, or where water circulates at great depth along faults.
Hydrothermal resources are used for different energy purposes depending on
their temperature and how deep they are.
Low Temperature: "Direct Use" or Heating
When the temperature of a hydrothermal resource is around 50F and up, it can
be used directly in spas or to heat buildings, grow crops, warm fish ponds, or for
other uses. Hydrothermal resources suitable for heating occur throughout the
United States and in almost every country in the world. Most of the people in
Iceland and over 500,000 people in France use geothermal heat for their public
buildings, schools, and homes. In the United States, geothermal heat pumps are
used in 45 states to heat and cool homes and buildings. Idaho, Oregon, Nevada,
and some other states use geothermal energy to heat entire districts.
Heat from geothermal resources is also used to dry ceramics, lumber,
vegetables, and other products.
High Temperature: Producing Electricity
Most power plants need steam to generate electricity. The steam rotates a
turbine that activates a generator, which produces electricity. Many power plants
still use fossil fuels to boil water for steam. Geothermal power plants, however,
use steam produced from reservoirs of hot water found a couple of miles or more
below the Earth's surface.
When the temperature of a hydrothermal resource is around 220F and up, it can
be used to generate electricity. Most electricity-producing geothermal resources
have temperatures from 300 to 700F, but geothermal reservoirs can reach nearly
1,000F.
Two main types of hydrothermal resources are used to generate electricity:
dry steam (vapor-dominated) reservoirs, and
hot water (liquid-dominated) reservoirs.
Dry steam reservoirs are rare but highly efficient at producing electricity. The
Geysers in California is the largest and best known dry steam reservoir. Here,
steam is obtained by drilling wells from 7,000 to 10,000 feet deep. In a dry steam
reservoir, the natural steam is piped directly from a geothermal well to power a
turbine generator. The spent steam (condensed water) can be used in the plant's
cooling system and injected back into the reservoir to maintain water and
pressure levels.
Hot water geothermal reservoirs are the most common type. In a liquid-
dominated reservoir, the hot water has not vaporized into steam because the
reservoir is saturated with water and is under pressure. To generate electricity,
the hot water is piped from geothermal wells to one or more separators where
the pressure is lowered and the water flashes into steam. The steam then
propels a turbine generator to produce electricity. The steam is cooled and
condensed and either used in the plant's cooling system or injected back into the
geothermal reservoir.
A binary cycle power plant is used when the water in a hot water reservoir is not
hot enough to flash into steam. Instead, the lower-temperature hot water is used
to heat a fluid that expands when warmed. The turbine is powered from the
expanded, pressurized fluid. Afterwards, the fluid is cooled and recycled to be
heated over and over again.

Economics of Geothermal Energy
Geothermal power plants can produce electricity as cheaply as some
conventional power plants. It costs 4.5 to seven cents per kWh to produce
electricity from hydrothermal systems. In comparison, new coal-fired plants
produce electricity at about four cents per kWh.
Initial construction costs for geothermal power plants are high because
geothermal wells and power plants must be constructed at the same time.
But the cost of producing electricity over time is lower because the price and
availability of the fuel is stable and predictable. The fuel does not have to be
imported or transported to the power plant. The power plant literally sits on top of
its fuel source.
Geothermal power plants are also excellent sources of baseload power.
Baseload power is power that electric utility companies must deliver all day long.
Baseload geothermal plants sell electricity all the time, not only during peakuse
times when the demand for electricity is high.
Until recently, utilities were required to buy the least-cost electricity, without
regard to environmental impacts. Federal and state energy and environmental
agencies are studying ways to give preference to nonpolluting energy sources
such as geothermal energy.

Geothermal Energy and the Environment
Geothermal energy is a renewable energy source that does little damage to the
environment.
Geothermal steam and hot water do contain naturally occurring traces of
hydrogen sulfide (a gas that smells like rotten eggs) and other gases and
chemicals that can be harmful in high concentrations. Geothermal power plants
use "scrubber" systems to clean the air of hydrogen sulfide and the other gases.
Sometimes the gases are converted into marketable products, such as liquid
fertilizer. Newer geothermal power plants can even inject these gases back into
the geothermal wells.
Geothermal power plants do not burn fuels to generate electricity as do fossil fuel
plants. Geothermal power plants release less than one to four percent of the
amount of carbon dioxide (C02) emitted by coal plants.
Emissions of sulfur compounds from motor vehicles and fossil fuel plants are
also major contributors to acid rain. Geothermal power plants, on the other hand,
emit only about one to three percent of the sulfur compounds that coal and oil-
fired power plants do. Well-designed binary cycle power plants have no
emissions at all.
Geothermal power plants are compatible with many environments. They have
been built in deserts, in the middle of crops, and in mountain forests.
Geothermal development is often allowed on federal lands because it does not
significantly harm the environment. Before permission is granted, however,
studies must be made to determine what effect a plant may have on the
environment. Geothermal features in national parks, such as the geysers and
fumaroles in Yellowstone and Lassen National Parks, are protected by law, so
geothermal energy is not tapped in these areas.

Geothermal Electricity Production
Most power plants need steam to generate electricity. The steam rotates a
turbine that activates a generator, which produces electricity. Many power plants
still use fossil fuels to boil water for steam. Geothermal power plants, however,
use steam produced from reservoirs of hot water found a couple of miles or more
below the Earth's surface. There are three types of geothermal power plants:dry
steam, flash steam, and binary cycle.
Dry steam power plants draw from underground resources of steam. The steam
is piped directly from underground wells to the power plant, where it is directed
into a turbine/generator unit.
Flash steam power plants are the most common. They use geothermal reservoirs
of water with temperatures greater than 360F (182C). This very hot water flows
up through wells in the ground under its own pressure. As it flows upward, the
pressure decreases and some of the hot water boils into steam. The steam is
then separated from the water and used to power a turbine/generator. Any
leftover water and condensed steam are injected back into the reservoir, making
this a sustainable resource.
Binary cycle power plants operate on water at lower temperatures of about 225-
360F (107-182C). These plants use the heat from the hot water to boil
a working fluid, usually an organic compound with a low boiling point. The
working fluid is vaporized in a heat exchanger and used to turn a turbine. The
water is then injected back into the ground to be reheated. The water and the
working fluid are kept separated during the whole process, so there are little or
no air emissions.
Small-scale geothermal power plants (under 5 megawatts) have the potential for
widespread application in rural areas, possibly even as distributed energy
resources. Distributed energy resources refer to a variety of small, modular
power-generating technologies that can be combined to improve the operation of
the electricity delivery system.