Roger Hanson is an artist. But while others are using paint and pastels, Hanson prefers a geothermal heating system, lots of water and a complex computer program he created himself to build ice sculptures larger than his house.

While this year’s sculpture, at 65 feet tall and 85 feet long, is by far Hanson’s biggest, he’s been perfecting his sculpting skills since 2007. Each year the design has changed from a 16-foot castle with two levels the first year to this year’s monolith, with multiple tiers and a natural texture created by a series of water sprayers.

Such a massive structure doesn’t simply go up overnight, however. This year Hanson set up supporting poles in November, and continued to grow layer upon layer in the following weeks. He will now leave the structure and let it melt through April.

So, how does he do it? Hanson uses a geothermal heating system that is able to take groundwater at a temperature of 47 degrees, preheat his home, then use the rejected water at a temperature of 37 degrees to make his sculptures.

To ensure that the water doesn’t freeze before hitting the sculpture, it is dripped through the lines before being released by special nozzles. Hanson was even able to create a computer program that adjusts the sprayers according to the current temperature and air direction.

Appropriately dubbed Hanson’s Winter Water Wonder, Roger Hanson has received high praise for his artistry. It’s certainly impressive.

Head over to Inhabitat for a full slide show and more pictures!

In 2009 the Iceland Deep Drilling Project was in full swing, digging deep into the ground to test the energy potential of extremely hot water under high pressure (known as supercritical water). Then, 7,000 feet into the 15,000 feet dig, they hit magma, forcing them to abandon the project as they knew it.

It was there, smack dab in the middle of this “failed project,” that scientists realized the energy that magma housed all on its own—enough to power a staggering 25,000-30,000 homes.

The Icelandic community already uses a massive amount of energy from their geothermal wells to power homes (they cover nearly all of their home heating needs and one-third of their electric needs), but magma could provide nearly five times the energy they have access to now.

While the Iceland Deep Drilling Project may not have been carried out according to plan, it led to a discovery far greater than these scientists could have hoped for. And that’s something worth celebrating.

Photo Credit: Patrick Hoesly via Flickr CC

In an effort to make the state more attractive for potential developers, four bills have recently been introduced to the state Legislature under Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter.

The bills would get rid of restrictions on the size of geothermal leases, while also reducing the 10-percent royalty fees that developers have been forced to pay in the past.

There is currently 2 million acres of land available for use by geothermal plants—all of which are endowment acres given to the state in 1890.

The majority of that land is in the southeast part of the state, which has an impressive amount of geothermal energy potential. In fact, if the state were to use the land, they would be ranked third in geothermal production—behind only California and Nevada.

While geothermal energy currently contributes less than 1 percent of domestic energy nationwide, it has the capacity for much, much more.

How much? According to the Interior Department, by 2025 geothermal energy on federal lands could power 10 million homes across the country.

If outdated laws can be remedied to support this potential, geothermal could actually become competitive with solar and wind energy. Here’s to hoping that happens.

Photo Credit: ThinkGeoEnergy via Flickr CC

Geothermal energy in the United States has reached its golden anniversary. 50 years ago, construction began on America’s first commercial-scale geothermal power plant just north of San Francisco. It was named The Geysers and has grown over the years from a single 11-megawatt power plant to a complex of 22 individual plants drawing energy from 350 wells and providing more than 1.5 gigawatts of renewable electricity to Californians. The Geysers is the largest geothermal power plant in the world.

In fact, over the 50 years since the birth of geothermal, the United States has grown to be the world leader in geothermal production, led by California where more than 40 plants are in operation and provide 5 percent of the state’s electricity.

Geothermal in the United States

Currently, reports the Geothermal Energy Association, the U.S. has over 3 gigawatts of installed geothermal capacity. This energy comes from 77 power plants spread out over nine states. Seven new plants were brought online in 2009, and 188 projects in 15 states are being considered or under development — projects that would add up to another 8 gigawatts of capacity. Geothermal power has seen fairly steady growth since its inception in 1960, but is certainly enjoying the current rush to renewable energy and may just be entering its prime at the age of 50.

While California leads in existing geothermal production, Nevada is the state leader in new geothermal projects, with 3 gigawatts under production all by itself. Other western states are not far behind. Utah quadrupled its geothermal output last year, New Mexico tripled, Idaho doubled and Oregon reported a 50-percent increase. Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas all reported their first commercial geothermal projects earlier this year. Other states with geothermal projects in the works are Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Washington and Wyoming.

Not surprisingly, the geothermal energy industry grew by 26 percent in 2009, according to the GEA, no doubt aided by roughly $800 million in investments in the same year. Furthermore, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the U.S. Department of Energy have estimated that 100 GW of geothermal power could be produced by 2050, which would make the energy source’s 90th birthday party quite a celebration.

Geothermal also produces electricity at a rate much cheaper than other renewables, due in large part to its ability to operate much like a conventional power plant does.

Ups and Downs of Geothermal

Geothermal’s main advantage over other renewable resources is its ability to provide 24/7 baseload power, avoiding the intermittency and complicated storage problems plaguing wind and solar power. The only problem for geothermal is caused (and fixed) by plant operations. If not operated wisely, a geothermal well can run dry. It is possible for a power plant to use up water faster than the Earth’s vast ecosystem can replenish it. Water is extracted from (or injected into) heated rock beneath the Earth and used to spin a steam turbine on its surface, creating electricity.

In response to this issue, closed loop systems have been developed that exchange heat with the “molten” water and then pump back down through a return well. In the case of Geysers, geothermal’s celebrated golden child, well operators pump in treated wastewater from urban centers to replenish the wells — another avenue to ensuring that geothermal remains a renewable resource.

Photo Credit: Richard C Norman via Flickr

Yet most of the hype surrounding renewable energy goes to solar and wind power. To focus too heavily on these excellent but intermittent resources would be a major mistake, especially when a valuable, baseload power source is waiting in the wings. Geothermal energy deserves more hype in the race to clean up our skies, hype which I plan to give it right now.

Geothermal Potential

Within roughly six miles of the earth’s crust there is 50,000 times more geothermal energy than exists in all the oil and gas reserves in the world. So, the geothermal conundrum is not a matter of available resources – it’s a matter of getting to it. Geothermal energy works best in areas with high seismic activity, which aids in breaking up the super-heated layer of rock and allows heated water and steam to travel toward the surface. Many of these areas are already using a good amount of that energy. California houses some 40 geothermal plants, accounting for 5 percent of the state’s energy needs. Iceland, which has some of the best geothermal potential in the world, already gets more than 90 percent of its energy from geothermal power.

Yet geothermal power is available everywhere. So called “milder” resources are prevalent throughout the United States, and new technologies like Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) are drilling deeper than ever before. Like solar and wind power, geothermal power stands on the brink of greatness, yet seems to get less attention.

This is especially worrisome because many energy companies and politicians are looking to “clean coal” and nuclear energy to solve the 24/7 power problems of mainstream renewables. They see these questionable alternatives as our only chance to clean our energy grid in the short term, rather than waiting for renewable technologies to advance.

Geothermal Investment

That’s not to say there hasn’t been a recent trend towards geothermal, despite the hype that solar and wind projects receive. A joint report by MIT and the Department of Energy estimate that more than 100 gigawatts of geothermal power could be produced by 2050. In response, the feds and private investors, including $10 million from Google, have begun investing more heavily. Some $800 million was invested in geothermal energy projects in 2009. The Department of the Interior opened up 190 million acres of public land to geothermal projects, a move that alone could triple geothermal output by 2015 at least.

Geothermal Growth

According to the Geothermal Energy Association, more than 3,152 megawatts of geothermal power are online now, nearly 83 percent of which comes out of California. Other Western states, including Nevada, Oregon, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Hawaii, Wyoming and Alaska, are using but a pittance of their geothermal potential. Hawaii, for example, with all its seismic and volcanic activity, houses just one completed geothermal power plant.

The sharp increase in funding, as well as the more than 6 GW of new geothermal projects currently under development, should not be downplayed. But just about everyone involved in the geothermal industry agrees that more can be done. Geothermal faces many of the same problems as other renewables as it struggles to compete with fossil fuels, transmission issues, cost of technology, etc., but offers some unique benefits, led by round-the-clock baseload power generation. Geothermal also requires relatively small surface area compared to its competitors, as plants must sprawl only downward rather than across the landscape to find more energy.

Giving geothermal energy more hype is not about competing with solar or wind power. It’s about using our full complement of renewable resources to combat climate change. Indeed, many of the same policy steps that would almost certainly skyrocket wind and solar (i.e. feed-in tariffs, a national renewable electricity standard and domestic manufacturing) would equally benefit geothermal. And while I know much is already being done, a little more recognition and public awareness can certainly help.

In recent years, solar power has become a household term; most of us have at least a fair idea of how it works and its ultimate potential for providing clean energy and economy. Right alongside it and just emerging from the shadows is geothermal power – the sidekick that actually does more work and produces more energy at present. While we reach high for outer space and even space solar power, let’s not forget the energy boiling beneath our feet.

Photo Credit:arnitr & lydurs

Erupting volcanoes are an example of magma exploding through chambers connected to this molten layer, usually by way of seismic activity. So it stands to reason that areas with high volcanic or seismic activity have the highest geothermal resources. Yet geothermal energy is everywhere. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, the amount of heat within 33,000 feet of the earth’s surface contains 50,000 times more energy than all the oil and gas resources in the world.

Is Geothermal Energy Renewable?

Geothermal power is not inherently a renewable resource; a geothermal resource can be depleted. However, proper plant management can transform geothermal power into a renewable resource. The key is to avoid removing more super heated water than can be replenished by natural processes or through re-injection of used water resources.

New geothermal power plants are much more efficient than their predecessors, as plant operators have learned over the years of their depletion of geothermal resources. The nation’s largest plant in a region of northern California known as Geysers is a good example of what can happen if a resource isn’t cared for. That plant was producing 2,000 megawatts of electricity at its peak, but because of over-aggressive production, depleted much of its resource and now produces roughly 850 megawatts.

Ground-Source Heat Pumps for Residential Use

On a smaller scale, geothermal power is used by thousands of homes across America for heating and cooling. These systems take advantage of the consistent temperatures in the very top layer of the earth’s crust, but below the frost line. At about 5-10 feet deep, the temperature of the earth’s surfaces stays consistent at about 50 degrees year round, even in cold northern climates.

In the summer, ground source heat pumps send warm indoor air through a network of pipes or tubes buried in the yard. The air cools as it passes through the underground tubing and is recirculated into the home as air conditioning.

In the winter, the heat pumps act as a go-between for the home and the conventional heating system. The geothermal system sends cold outside air through the warmer tubes underground before passing it on to the conventional heater as pre-heated air.

According to the EPA, ground source heat pumps are as much as 72 percent more efficient than electric heating and air conditioning, which is important as geothermal heat pumps are catching on fastest in rural areas, where natural gas lines do not reach and residents must use electric heating.

How to Find Geothermal Energy

In actuality, volcanoes and high geothermal resources are both symptoms of the same natural phenomena: plate tectonics. Geothermal resources are best where heat has an easy path to the surface. The easiest paths lie along plate edges, especially around active volcanoes. The Pacific Rim, running through California, Oregon and up to Alaska, is a prime example.

Along these areas, water seeps into the hot rock naturally, heats up and is expelled as steam. There is energy in that steam, energy which has been harvested for many decades. Geysers such as Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park or any hot springs you may have visited are examples of geothermal power in its natural state.

How to Collect Geothermal Energy

Geothermal is considered a renewable resource because it derives from an unending heat source (similar to solar energy but from inner space rather than outer space), and involves water which is replenished by rainfall. At their simplest, geothermal power plants simply tap into hydrothermal convection systems, or that steam rising from the earth’s crust.

There are, in fact, three ways to harvest geothermal resources at present.

Collection Method #1 – Dry Steam System

The first is the simplest: capture the steam naturally emitting from the earth and use it to drive a turbine to create electricity. Called a dry steam system, these plants drill a hole into the heated rock. Then, a vacuum is formed to draw the steam naturally created near the surface through the turbine to create power. The excess steam passes through a condenser, where it reconstitutes as water and is sent back into the ground.

The well used to extract super-heated water from the earth is called a production well, while the pump used to return condensed or excess fluid is called an injection well.

Collection Method #2 – Flash Steam Power Plant

The second system is called a Flash Steam power plant. If water within the rock is at a high enough temperature, it is pumped to the surface as water, where it is depressurized, or “flashed,” into steam to drive the turbine. This video describes how geothermal works from the vantage point of a flash steam plant. This modern plant uses three different stages of depressurization to extract as much steam as possible from the extracted geothermal fluid.

Collection Method #3 – Binary (Closed-Loop) System

Here is where the future of geothermal power lies. In this Binary or closed-loop system, the water from within the rocks never sees the light of day. It is heated within the crust and pumped up to the surface through a heat exchanger, where it passes its heat onto a second fluid. This fluid will have a lower boiling point than water and is therefore easier to create steam with, thus making the entire process more efficient. Once the water has cooled by transferring its heat, it is recycled back into the ground.

The binary system solves a key problem for geothermal power. Open-loop geothermal plants emit some toxic substances, such as sulphur dioxide, that naturally exist in the water and rocks deep in the earth’s crust. Steam that is lost as waste heat contains these particles. However, a closed-loop system takes care of that. Everything pumped up to the surface goes directly back down.

Hot Dry Rock

In some areas, the rocks are plenty hot enough, but water doesn’t flow through them and back to the surface. So scientists came up with a method of “wetting” down these rocks to increase the geothermal potential. In a Hot Dry Rock scenario, rocks are broken up by pumping super high-pressure water into them. Then, cool water is circulated through the broken rocks, where it can be heated and used to create steam in one of the three methods described above.

Engineered Geothermal Systems (EGS)

Geothermal energy is everywhere, but it’s easier to get to in some places than others. The United States is a world leader in geothermal energy, although it makes up a very small percent of our energy consumption, but most of our potential is in the West and Southwest, where seismic activity is prevalent.

Moving eastward from the western coast, geothermal resources tend to decrease, despite a few pockets here and there around southeast Texas and the Northeast. New technology, however, is challenging the idea that geothermal resources aren’t available in less seismically active regions. The hot internal rocks are there – they’re just harder to get to.

So engineers have come up with Engineered Geothermal Systems. These systems simply drill deeper holes to create geothermal resources where they otherwise may not exist. These holes are typically a mile or more deep. Once the hole is drilled, water is circulated through it to create steam for a binary geothermal plant.

EGS is a fairly new technology, but is getting attention from both public and private investors. Drilling a hole a mile or two into the earth’s crust is not a simple task, and it’s bound to wear down a few drill bits. One solution has been to abandon conventional steel drill bits for super-heated water.

Photo Credits: TreeHugger, About, & Gorp

Photo Credit: NIOSH

Engineer Rafael Rodriguez and colleague Maria Belarmina Diaz developed a way to estimate the amount of heat a tunnel may provide. Their goal is to make use of low-intensity geothermal energy from the internal heat of the earth.

Advantages of mine shaft boilers:

• Predictable energy production levels
• Reduction of CO2 emissions
• Not vulnerable to changes in climate, unlike solar and wind power
• Doesn’t pollute the environment
• Profitable over the long term
• Doesn’t require new development on big sites

Testing and research needs to be conducted at mines that are still in use but are on the verge of being abandoned. Once a mine is abandoned, access is cut off. However, while still active, they have easy access to the tunnels and can easily gather data about ventilation and the rock properties. They can even program the closure of some sections to use them for geothermal energy production. It’s possible to work with closed mines, but it’s not as easy to make modifications, gather data, and make improvements.

Using a two-kilometer (6,561 ft.) mine shaft, the study evaluates the temperature of the rocks 500 meters below the surface, which are 86 degrees Fahrenheit. They’re considering forcing water through tubes at 45 degrees that would return 54 degree-water for local towns to use.

As more research unfolds, you’ll know about it here.

East Africa’s Rift Valley spans six countries, from Mozambique to Djibouti. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) have just completed testing for geothermal capacity in the region. Those tests have produced results far beyond expectations.

Geothermal wells able to generate up to 8 MW have been discovered. The Africa Rift Valley Geothermal Development Facility (ARGeo) puts the valley’s potential in the range of 2.5 to 6.5 GW at present technological abilities. So far only Kenya has begun tapping this renewable resource, with a goal of 1200 MW by 2015. That, however, is about to change.

ARGeo, backed by UNEP and the World Bank, will facilitate drilling in the six Rift Valley countries starting early next year. With so much energy available and Africa’s populations in dire need, leaders in the UN and Africa are ready to get drilling.

According to Monique Barbut, chair and CEO of GEF, “The work in the Rift Valley is demonstrating that geothermal is not only technologically viable but cost effective for countries in Africa where there is an overall potential of at least 7000 MW.” Geothermal power is getting more attention and funding the world round as evidence of its potential mounts. Iceland already generates 99% of its electricity needs from geothermal and these new discoveries in Africa only further demonstrate how widespread geothermal power can be.

This move may result in tripling U.S. geothermal production – 5,540 megawatts (MW) of new geothermal power by 2015. Furthermore, according to the U.S. Geological Society, that estimate may actually be too low. The USGS claims that nearly 10,000 MW of power could be generated from the aforementioned lands, with upwards of 30,000 MW possible from still-undiscovered geothermal resources. And that’s not to mention Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) which, USGS posits, could offer another 517,800 MW of power.

Indeed, geothermal is already making strides. In Utah, Raser Technologies recently announced the completion of its 10 MW geothermal plant. That’s just the start for Utah and other western states. Alaska, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington already have 19 pending geothermal leases between them. Add the newly allocated federal lands to that and you can see big things in the works for the geothermal industry.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy

Recently, a combination of government interest and promising new technology has finally caught the attention of big investors. As a result, geothermal is warming up its engines and getting ready to take off.

At last week’s Geothermal Energy Conference & Expo, industry insiders gathered to ponder and celebrate this newfound interest in their field. What geothermal offers, according to Karl Gawell, executive director of the Geothermal Energy Association, is fast, affordable and renewable baseload power. This can easily be achieved, says Gawell, with the rapid advancement of geothermal technologies. In other words, support from government and investors.

Indeed it seems that idea is catching on. One big boost came as a collaborative report from MIT and the Department of Energy which gave geothermal a positive review, claiming that it could provide another 100 gigawatts of power by 2050. That in turn has attracted some major investors. Take, for example, Google who, as part of their RE<C initiative, will invest over $10 million in geothermal energy.

There are two major innovations that are driving the fresh interest in geothermal: low-temperature resources and Engineered Geothermal Systems. Both promise faster production, lower costs, and higher efficiency.

• Low-temperature resources are harnessed by utilizing a fluid with a lower boiling point than water, allowing geothermal plants to gather energy at shallow depths.
• Engineered Geothermal Systems (EGS) involve drilling deep holes into the insulated rock well below the surface. Water is circulated through the bore hole where it heats up and produces steam to drive a turbine on the surface.

EGS are still a bit down the road as far as commercial-grade production. This is due mainly to the obstacle of drilling holes that are at least a mile deep, especially in the Eastern United States. Geothermal companies are working aggressively on this problem. One technique in the works would erase conventional, steel drill bits from the equation and utilize super-heated water instead.

The potential is there for geothermal systems. And now the confidence, followed closely by the money, is there too. This certainly is a very promising time for geothermal. The U.S. already leads the world in geothermal production, although it makes up a very minute portion of our energy consumption. Still we are a largely fossil-fuel based energy grid. But that’s another advantage that geothermal has over other renewables striving for baseload recognition, it has an innate, technical similarity to the oil and gas industry. As one panel member for the MIT/DOE report put it – and I paraphrase – geothermal is a well-connected industry.

Okay, so all-together-now…Drill Baby Drill!

Links:

Technological Innovation Driving Renewed Interest In Geothermal Energy
The Art of Geothermal