Geothermal energy is considered one of the most advantageous of all due to its high energy efficiency and because it can be installed almost anywhere in the world if it meets certain requirements. In addition, it is considered a renewable, sustainable energy that cares for the environment.
Thanks to these aspects, countries such as the United States and England are considered to be the pioneers in energy baskets and are rapidly promoting it to become one of the main sources of electricity in their jurisdictions. If you want to know all the advantages and disadvantages of geothermal energy, click here.
Geothermal energy is the one that is produced due to the calorific power that is generated from the center of the earth and can be used to produce electricity. In this article we show you the geothermal energy characteristics more important.
Geothermal energy characteristics
Its main source is the core of the earth
The geothermal energy It is the one that comes from the interior of the crust and in fact its main heat source is the earth core. This type of energy takes advantage of all the calorific power of the nucleus with the aim of producing electricity and heating systems.
The core of the earth is at a temperature that even exceeds 5000 ° C, this heat energy expands outward and even reaches the surface. Engineers and scientists have succeeded in creating technology capable of harnessing this calorific power to create electrical power and heating systems.
It is a renewable, sustainable and inexhaustible energy
One of the most important characteristics of geothermal energy is that it is considered as a renewable and inexhaustible energy because it depends directly on the energy and calorific power that is generated in the center of the earth.
Therefore, it can be used 365 days and all hours of the day. It can be considered that this is the main advantage over other renewable energies (solar and wind) since these are not available all hours of the day and even depend on environmental or climatic factors.
It is an energy that cares for the environment
Although geothermal drilling deep within the crust can release certain gases such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane, and ammonia, not much of these gases are released.
In addition, during the entire life of the project, it does not generate greenhouse gases into the environment as the burning of hydrocarbons, gasoline, coal and natural gas do.
Therefore, geothermal energy is considered as a clean energy that cares for the environment, it also plays a very important role in the economy of the countries. If you want to know the benefits of geothermal energy, click here.
Used for heating and cooling
One of the most interesting features of geothermal energy is that it can be directly used to manufacture heating and cooling systems for homes and industries, especially those located far from large cities.
It is used to generate efficient electricity
The most important application of geothermal energy is to be able to produce efficient and constant electricity for homes and industries.
To generate electrical energy, what is done is to use the calorific power in the depth of the crust to generate water vapor, the same one that moves large turbines that generate electricity. The water is injected through pipes towards the depth, it evaporates and also rises through pipes, in this rise it moves the turbines.
It is installed only in special and restricted places
One of the main characteristics of geothermal energy is that it can only be installed in certain special places located by geological engineers and renewable energy engineers.
Geologists know that the most suitable geothermal energy is the one that is generated near or in active volcanic centers. In other words, this energy is best produced around volcanoes.
The best way to find these active volcanic centers is through geological studies and because they are expressed as hot springs. The hot springs are thanks to active volcanic activity.
Therefore the geothermal energy infrastructure is installed close to these heat centers.
It has high energy efficiency
Geothermal energy is often compared to its peer the energy generated by natural gas. Although burning natural gas is currently more efficient, geothermal energy generates only one sixth of CO2 into the environment, making it more environmentally friendly.
Also, an average geothermal power plant can produce 35GW and up to 2TW of power easily.
Another characteristic is that geothermal heat pump systems use between a 25% and 50% less electricity than conventional heating or cooling systems, and with their flexible design they can be adjusted to different situations, requiring less space for hardware compared to conventional systems.
Has high installation costs
This feature is one of the biggest problems facing geothermal power installation. To be able to do it, first of all, it is necessary to hire experts in the subject such as geologists, after finding the right area, it must be covered with high drilling prices to reach the adequate heat isohyet.
Finally, the entire structure is needed to generate electricity, this can easily range from USD 10,000 to USD 100,000 depending on the objective you have.
Therefore, unlike solar and wind energy, which are much easier to install and less expensive, geothermal energy does require a more considerable investment.
It has low maintenance costs
Although their installation costs are usually quite high, their maintenance costs are not so high since the average geothermal power plant has an average life of 18 to 23 years.
The largest producer of geothermal energy is the United States
Although geothermal energy can be applied in almost all countries, the truth is that currently only 20 countries are pioneers, and in fact the United States is the largest producer of geothermal energy in the world.
The United States is home to the world’s largest geothermal energy field known as “The Geysers” in California, the field spans 117 square kilometers and is made up of 22 power plants, with an installed capacity of more than 1.5 GW.