6+ Geothermal Energy Examples: Uses And Detailed Facts

by

This article discusses about geothermal energy examples. The geothermal energy is that energy which comes from the heat trapped inside the Earth’s surface.

Water is fed to the places where we know geothermal energy can be extracted. When the water touches the hot spots it becomes steam and hence the pressure starts increasing, due to high pressure the steam comes out with a very high velocity. In this article we will be discussing about the different applications of geothermal energy.

What is geothermal energy?

Geo is a Greek word which means Earth and thermal means energy related to heat.  Hence geothermal is the energy due to the heat trapped inside the surface of Earth. The heat may be trapped inside the rocks and may come out from the cracks and vents on the surface.

The heat comes from the time when Earth was forming and from the radioactive decay of materials over time. The heat is trapped inside the rocks and fluids present in the centre of Earth. The core of Earth is still hot which is the major source of all geothermal energy. Fumarole is a vent or small opening through which the trapped heat comes out of the Earth’s surface.

geothermal energy examples
Image: Geothermal power plant

Image credits : Wikipedia

How is electricity produced using geothermal energy?

Geothermal energy is used in power production. The working fluid simply should be able to rotate the blades of turbine. The turbine then transmits the motion to a generator which will produce the electricity.

When the steam with high velocity comes out from the surface of Earth, it rotates the turbine blades. When the turbine blades rotate, the turbine shaft also starts rotating. This shaft is connected to a generator, generator produces electricity there after.

Advantages of geothermal energy

There are numerous advantages of geothermal energy. The list below shows the advantages of geothermal energy-

  • No burning of fossil fuels is required.
  • Abundant in nature so no fear of it being exhausted by excessive use.
  • Very less harmful gases are produced. Only 1/6th of total carbon dioxide is produced in geothermal plants than in conventional gas fueled power plants.
  • The water can be injected back to the Earth making it renewable source of energy.
  • It uses less water than other conventional power plants.

Geothermal energy uses

There are many uses of geothermal energy other than electricity production. The uses are given in the list below-

  • Space heating– We can use geothermal energy to heat up the rooms in our homes. We shall discuss about how to extract the geothermal energy and put it to use in below sections.
  • Hot springs– Hot springs are naturally heated ponds that we can use to bathe and relax. Many health and wellness experts use hot springs as relaxing centers.
  • Electricity generation– Electricity generation is the most common use of geothermal energy. The geothermal energy can be tapped by pumping water on the hot spots present inside the surface of Earth.
  • Cooking– We can use the heat generated by geothermal energy to heat up a space that can be used for cooking.

Geothermal energy sources

The geothermal energy can come out of the surface of Earth in many ways. The different sources of geothermal energy are given in the section below-

  • Volcano– We must have heard about volcano eruptions. Volcanoes have an opening on the top from where the heat is expelled out. The rocks melt when they come in contact with heat, so a thick liquid called as lava is formed which comes out of the volcano.
  • Geysers– Geysers are naturally heated water systems or fountains which occur as a result of groundwater striking the hot spots. The water comes out from the vents called as fumarole.
  • Lava– Lava does not necessarily come out of volcano, it can come out of fumarole as well. The lava are the rocks that were melted when they came in contact with the heat.
  • Hot springs– Hot springs are naturally heated water ponds which can be used for relaxing purposes and bathing. Many fitness experts suggest people to bathe in naturally occurring hot springs.

Geothermal energy examples

The different examples of geothermal energy is given in the list below-

Geothermal heated homes

The geothermal energy finds its application in heating rooms in our homes. In a common geothermal heating systems the coils are places under the surface of earth that extract heat from the ground.

Geothermal power plants

This is the most common application of geothermal energy. Electricity is generated with the help of high pressure steam, turbine and generator. Water is fed in side the surface of Earth which has hot spots. The water after hitting these spots gets heated up and comes out from the surface of Earth as high energy steam.

Hot springs

Hot springs are naturally heated water ponds. The heat comes from naturally from the hot spots present underneath the surface of Earth.

Geothermal geysers

Geothermal geysers are the result of water from water table coming in contact with the hot spots. The water gets converted into steam rapidly and comes out of the surface of Earth due to high pressure formation.

Green houses

To maintain the temperature inside a green house, a network of coils is used. The coils are places under a lake. The water is added with anti freeze materials. The heat extracted from the water is then used to heat the green house. 

Fumarole

When the water from the groundwater table gets heated it comes out from tiny vents. It can be said that the heat leaks out of the surface via these vents. These vents are called as fumarole. Hence a volcano opening or a hot spring opening are examples of fumarole.  

Spas

The hot springs and fumarole as discussed above are used by health and wellness experts for their customers to relax in the warm water. Our muscles can feel relaxed in naturally heated water. Many families make a trip to such places. This has become a tourist attraction at many places.

Also Read: