Geothermal power

Geothermal power generation.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• geothermal
• power
• plant
• generation
• 地熱發電

[davepamn]

How many MWs will geothermal produce by 2020 in the US?

[cplai]

@davepamn Geothermal power generation can be controversial. Some operations triggered earthquakes. Pumping water into the ground to produce steam is like adding lubricants to the tectonic plates. It may be a good thing to do by releasing the stress. Would you rather to have a daily 1.0 earthquake or a 8.0 in thirty years? Until the earthquakes controversy is settled, it is hard to guess what will be done.

[urzaspath1234]

im only 16 correct me if im wrong but how does earth stay warm lava comes out and forms new land mass right? so how does it fill back up is the surface were on today going to be covered by lava and then be the "inner layer"

[cplai]

@urzaspath1234 It all depends how the heat energy distribute. When hot lava comes to the surface to become land where does the heat energy go? Some radiate as infrared and shoot straight up into the atmosphere. When there is no cloud cover, some heat escape to outer space. Some hot lava touch water and generate steam, water vapor become clouds and share the energy with the local weather systems. In theory the core of Earth would cool down a tiny bit whenever lava ooze out.

[cplai]

@urzaspath1234 What happened in Japan two days ago was kinda related to the layers you are talking about. Some of the old land mass were pushed back to the center of the Earth and when rocks melt, they turn back into lava again. When gravity of the Sun and Moon pull on the earth's ocean, the energy turns into powerful tidal waves. The same will happen to the lava though less obviously. LIke when you knead a piece of dough for hours, the dough will warm up. "Kneading" lava keeps Earth warm too.

[MrFilipe1980]

Won`t we be killing the centre of the earth slowly as well ?

We already killing the surface so why not kill the inside as well . I am not being negative I am in favour of renewable energy but if we are going to do this we need to know really well if is worth it.

Will it be another greedy company running this type of drilling? And you know that after a while they will send us the bill :)

Just thinking...

[cplai]

@MrFilipe1980 Strictly speaking, this is alternative energy, but NOT renewable energy. The heat loss in the core of the earth can never be recovered, hence NOT renewable. Some of these projects had to be stopped because of the Earthquakes resulted when the water was pumped into the cracks. The water/steam acts as lubricants that accelerated the movement of the earth crust. It really depends on where the water sipped into. So the earthquakes do not occur at all Geothermal site.

[davepamn]

How often does the steam field disspate? What happens if the field strength reduces?

[Sohave]

@Sohave Self corection!!! I went on a little research and came by an article featuring Professor Chris Marone claming that the original heat and frictional heat is only acounting for about 10% the major heat resource is the decaying radioactive elements. Howewer in some billions of years the core and crust will cool of and solitify but that will presumably hapen after the sun has burned out.

[Sohave]

@cplai There are three main sources of heat in the deep earth: (1) heat from when the planet formed and accreted, which has not yet been lost; (2) frictional heating, caused by denser core material sinking to the center of the planet; and (3) heat from the decay of radioactive elements. So yes most of it will never be replaced. but you can also say that the sun is not renewable since it will also some day burn out. the interesting thing is the time horison. Which I do not know.

[RedSandStudios]

@LeetKillaDethKrew Good point ;) If only we could make gravity power plants

[LeetKillaDethKrew]

the sun is not renewable energy! when it runs out of fuel in 1.5 billion years, what will you do then? huh?? yeah, I thought so.