Prepared by: Eng.

Wais Ahmad
Contents

• The Geothermal Resource

• Geothermal Energy Technology
• Environmental Impacts of Geothermal Energy
• Geothermal Heat Pumps
• Tidal and Ocean Energy
 The Geothermal Resource
• Geothermal energy is heat energy from the earth—Geo (earth)
+ thermal (heat). Geothermal resources are reservoirs of hot
water that exist or are humanmade at varying temperatures and
depths below the earth's surface.
Energy to the Earth
• The power output or luminosity of the Sun is 3.8 x 1026 W, this is the
total amount of energy released from the Sun every second.
• The Sun's energy is radiated outwards in all directions, consequently
the Earth receives only a small fraction of this energy.
The Geothermal Resource
• the geothermal energy flow supplies only about 0.025% of the energy
arriving at Earth’s surface; nearly all the rest is from the Sun.
• Averaged over the entire planet, that 0.025% amounts to about
0.087 watts per square meter or 87 milliwatts per square meter
(mW/m2).
Geothermal Energy
Technology

• Geothermal
technology extracts the
heat found within the
subsurface of the earth,
which can be used
directly for heating and
cooling, or converted into
electricity.
 Electric Power Generation
• Geothermal power plants use steam to
produce electricity. The steam comes from
reservoirs of hot water found a few miles or
more below the earth's surface.

• The steam rotates a turbine that activates a

generator, which produces electricity.
Lets go Deep & Basic
Digging in a Hole in Earth
• Under this Bolder
Cover lies one of
earth’s most
ambitious projects.
• A hole barely wide
enough to squeeze
your head into.
• This is the deepest
hole ever dug on
earth.
 The Kola Superdeep Borehole
• A 12 km deep hole in the ground.
• It took two decades to drill.
• Drilling this deep into the earth is
not done often, and for good reason.
• We simply do not have the
technologies to do it quickly.
• If we succeed, it could help humans
transition to renewable technologies
without building new power plants.
Fission in Earth

• Deep within the earth fission

reactions generate immense
quantities of heat.
• Fission in the form of
radioactive decay occurs in
the Earth's interior,
especially in the mantle and
crust, but not as a sustained
chain reaction in the core.
 Fission in Earth

• The Earth’s core is 6000 degrees

Celsius.
• And just 0.1 Percent of the
planet’s heat content could
supply all out energy needs for 2
million years.
• However, accessing that heat is
not easy.
Example of Iceland
• Some countries, like Iceland, have it lucky with that geothermal
energy reaching close to the surface.
• So close that geysers of boiling water erupt the ground.
Geothermal is Rare
• Areas like this are rare, which is why geothermal energy accounts for
a tiny fraction of the world’s energy supply.
Fission in Earth
• We have a safe fission reactor under our feet, but we simply can’t
access it easily.
 Temperature & Depth

• The deeper you go,

the hotter it gets.
• With temperatures
increasing roughly
30 degrees per
kilometer.
• The hotter the
temperature, the
more energy we can
extract.
Supercritical Steam
• Especially if we can create supercritical steam.
• Steam turns into supercritical steam when it reaches a temperature of
roughly 374 degrees Celsius and a pressure of 22 mega pascals.
Problem Reaching Supercritical Steam
• Supercritical steam has some special characteristic that make it highly
efficient at driving a steam turbine.

• The problem is, reaching the depths where supercritical steam can be
created is basically impossible in most locations with current drilling
techniques.

• Because the cost of drilling increases exponentially with depth.

Geothermal Power Plant Cost
• Once a geothermal power plant is up and running, its operating costs
are very low.
• But the issue is the capital cost of creating the plant, most of the cost,
around 50%, comes from the drilling process, and that’s for relatively
shallow drilling depths.
 Making Geothermal Power Well

• To create a geothermal power

well you need to drill at least two
bore holes.
• Drilling the two bore holes
necessary for geothermal wells to
a distance of 3 km’s would cost
around 6 million dollars.
Doubling that Bore Hole
• But doubling that bore hole depth to 6 kilometers would cost 27
million dollars.
• Here is why:
• The extreme conditions as you drill deeper makes operations
extremely hostile to the machinery.
Drilling becomes Tougher
• The heat damages drill bits and the rocks become tougher to drill
through too,

• So progress begins to slow and drill bits begin to break more

frequently.

• And replacing the drill bits gets harder the deeper you drill too.

• The hole also becomes more unstable as you drill deeper.

What Bore Hole Needs?
• Bore holes need reinforcement with steel pipes and concrete, which
also becomes more difficult and costly at deeper depths.

• If the bore hole does collapse the entire drill stack could be trapped
and require a new hole to be drilled.
Back to Electric Power Generation
Electric Power Generation
• Essential features of a geothermal power plant using steam from a
vapor dominated geothermal resource.
Top Geothermal E-P Countries
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal Energy

• Air and water pollution are two leading environmental issues

associated with geothermal energy technologies.
• Most geothermal power plants require a large amount of water
for cooling or other purposes.
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal Energy
• Geothermal energy, derived from the Earth's internal heat,
offers several environmental advantages compared to fossil
fuels.
• However, it's not completely devoid of environmental impacts.
Here's a breakdown:
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal Energy
• Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Geothermal energy systems produce
minimal greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuels.
• However, there are some emissions associated with the
construction, operation, and maintenance of geothermal power
plants, such as CO2 emissions from drilling and plant construction.
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal Energy
• Land Use: Geothermal power plants require relatively small
amounts of land compared to other renewable energy sources
like wind or solar.
• However, the land used for geothermal energy production may
still have environmental implications, such as habitat disruption
or alteration.
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal
Energy
• Water Usage: Geothermal power plants consume water for
various purposes, including the extraction of heat from
underground reservoirs and power plant operations.
• In areas where water is scarce, this can have significant
environmental implications, especially if it leads to the depletion
of local water resources or affects aquatic ecosystems.
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal
Energy
• Induced Seismicity: The injection and extraction of fluids
during the operation of geothermal reservoirs can induce
seismic activity, though it's usually minor.
• Proper site selection and management practices can mitigate
this risk.
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal
Energy
• Chemical Releases: Some geothermal fluids contain trace
amounts of potentially harmful substances, such as heavy
metals or hydrogen sulfide.
• Proper handling and treatment of these fluids are essential to
prevent environmental contamination.
Environmental Impacts of Geothermal
Energy
• Resource Depletion: Over-extraction of heat from geothermal
reservoirs can lead to depletion and eventual cooling of the
resource.
• Sustainable management practices are crucial to ensure the
long-term viability of geothermal energy production.
Energy from Moon’s Gravity
Tidal and Ocean Energy
• Tidal energy is a renewable energy powered by the natural rise
and fall of ocean tides and currents. Some of these
technologies include turbines and paddles.
• Tidal energy is produced by the surge of ocean waters during
the rise and fall of tides.
The Moon
• The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It orbits at an average distance of
384,400 km (238,900 mi), about 30 times the diameter of Earth.
 Tilt of the Earth
• Today, the Earth's axis is tilted 23.5 degrees from the plane of
its orbit around the sun. But this tilt changes.
• During a cycle that averages about 40,000 years, the tilt of the
axis varies between 22.1 and 24.5 degrees.
• Because this tilt changes,
the seasons as we know them
can become exaggerated.
 Origin Of The Tides
• The Moon’s gravitational attraction decreases with distance, so the part of
the ocean closest to the Moon experiences a stronger gravitational force
than Earth itself does.

Tides result from the variation in

the moon’s gravity with distance
from the moon (arrows).

On an ideal ocean-covered
Earth, there would be two tidal
Bulges on opposite sides of the
planet.
The Tidal Energy Resource

• Tidal energy is a clean, renewable, sustainable resource that is

underutilized and represents significant opportunity to meet
growing global energy needs, both now and in the future.
• Water is hundreds of times denser than air, which makes tidal
energy more powerful than wind.
Locations of Tidal
Ranges

• Locations of some of the

world’s greatest tidal ranges,
with estimated tidal power
generation capacity listed
for some sites.
• Capacity depends not only
on tidal range, but also on
details of the coastline and
potential power-plant sites.
 Harnessing Tidal Energy

• Tidal power has been used for

centuries to grind grain and for
other tasks traditionally
powered by running water.
• Impounding water at high tide
and then letting it turn a water
wheel as it flows out to sea
provides a reliable but
intermittent power source.
 Environmental Impacts Of Tidal Energy

• The traditional approach to harvesting tidal energy requires large dams

at the inlets to bays or estuaries.
• Such dams reduce the overall tidal flow and the water’s salinity, and
they also impede the movement of larger marine organisms.
The End