Get your Geotherm On!

Geothermal Power is harnessing the natural power of the interior of the earth for our advantage. The heat from the inner layers of the earth such as the core and mantel heat underground sources of water, which can be used to turn generators above ground to produce electricity. It’s also extremely efficient to heat and cool buildings. In fact, geothermal heat pumps are the most energy efficient, environmentally clean, and cost effective systems for temperature control according to the EPA.

It is estimated that the northwest has the potential to generate more than 2,600 average megawatts of electricity from geothermal power this is enough energy to meet the annual needs of almost 2 million average homes. Naturally occurring large areas of hydrothermal resources are called geothermal reservoirs.

geothermal energy sometimes finds its way to the surface of the earth in various ways such as:
• Volcanoes and fumaroles (holes where volcanic gases are released)
• Hot springs
• Geysers (like ‘Ol Faithful)
Hot water near the Earth's surface can be piped directly into buildings and industries for heat. This is called a “district heating system”. A district heating system provides heat for 95% of the buildings in Reykjavik, Iceland!In Iceland they use a lot of geothermal power!



So, How does geothermal WORK? : WELL there are different types of geothermal plants. The first one we’ll talk about is

• FLASH TECHNOLOGY: They take high-pressure hot water (water from 300 to 700 degrees Fahrenheit) from deep inside the Earth and convert it to steam to drive the generator turbines above ground. 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 steam plants. One downside of this is that there is a risk of polluting the water.
• DRY STEAM PLANTS: They use steam piped directly from a geothermal reservoir to turn the generator turbines.
• BINARY CYCLE PLANTS: They transfer the heat from geothermal hot water to another liquid. This water is a lower temperature than in Flash Technology. The heat causes the second liquid to turn to steam, which is used to drive a generator turbine.
Geothermal wells are dug one to two miles underground typically.

The top picture is a factory type set up the bottom is a residential set up.

Geothermal Plants are very high in their initial expense, but geothermal plants have reasonable operation and maintenance costs and no fuel costs. Also unlike solar and wind geothermal plants can generate electricity 24/7.

Overall geothermal is still being developed into a realistic option but if there is enough capital to invest in plants in the North West it could definitely compete with fossil fuels and other alternatives in the way of producing a large chunk of America’s energy renewably.

Check out these for more info!:

http://www.powerscorecard.org/tech_detail.cfm?resource_id=3

http://www.rnp.org/RenewTech/tech_geo.html

http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/geothermal-energy-facts-geothermal-energy-pros-and-cons-397739.html

http://www.techstore.ie/Renewable-Energy/Geothermal-Energy-Systems/Interesting-facts-about-Geothermal-Energy.htm

http://renewable-energy-future.com/how-does-it-work/geothermal-power.php

Wholesome Hydro!

Now that we’ve explored the pros and cons of using biomass as an alternative for fuel use let’s talk about good ol’ water. Hydroelectricity is an industry that accounts for about 67% of the renewable energy production in the United States, but only 6% of the total energy production. :[ Hydropower relies on changes in elevation and lots of rain in order to produce significant quantities of electricity.

How does Hydro work? : Well, the movement of water as it flows downstream creates kinetic energy that can be converted into electricity. Lets take a look at the process…

“Currently, facilities in the U.S. can generate enough hydropower to supply electricity to 28 million households, which is equivalent to about 500 million barrels of oil.” Imagine if we were able to increase the number of facilities therefore reducing our dependency on oil greatly. (http://www.epa.gov/RDEE/energy-and-you/affect/hydro.html)

Hydropower has no air quality impacts reducing the number of greenhouse gases emitted but it does take a toll on the fish populations. Though some plants have employed systems that track the fish and they make certain that no harm is done.

There are different types of hydroelectric plants. There are those that function off of natural forces from the current apply the needed pressure (which are least disruptive) known as “run-of-the-river systems” and there are those that create dams to make an elevation difference known as “storage systems”. Wave power and tidal power, which are more predictable than wind and solar are also forms of hydroelectric activity. To learn more about these check out this website! http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=hydropower_home-basics-k.cfm

Overall harnessing the power of the the water our world has so much of is a great way to buff up our renewable energy production!