GEOTHERMAL ENERGY CONVERSION
INTODUCTION
✓ Our earth was a burning planet billions of years ago, Still earth core temperature is above 5000 C.
✓ Geothermal energy is the energy contained as heat in the earth’s interior.
✓ Geothermal energy is energy extracted from the heat stored in the earth.
✓ Geothermal energy is derived from within the earth's tectonic activity that occurred since the
planet was created. It also comes from solar thermal absorbed by the earth's surface.
✓ Geothermal energy is heat within the earth. The word geothermal comes from the Greek words
geo (earth) and thermal (heat).
✓ Geothermal energy is a renewable energy source because heat is continuously produced inside
the earth.
✓ People use geothermal heat for bathing, to heat buildings, and to generate electricity.
✓ Geothermal energy is thermal energy generated and stored in the Earth. Thermal energy is the
energy that determines the temperature of matter.
✓ The geothermal energy of the Earth's crust originates from the original formation of the planet
(20%) and from radioactive decay of minerals (80%).
✓ The earth’s inner core is 1500 mile wide & it is believed to just hot as the sun’s surface
✓ Geothermal Energy is clean and sustainable.
✓ Resources of geothermal energy range from the shallow ground to hot water and hot rock found a
few miles beneath the Earth's surface, and down even deeper to the extremely high temperatures of
molten rock called magma.
Earth’s radius is approximately 6370 km and it can
be divided into three zones
• Crust (7 km under ocean, 20-65 km under
the continent)
• Mantle (2900 km , lies under the crust)
• Core (center, 4000oC and 3.6 million bars)
Main Components of a GeothermalPower Plant
Components: Separator Heat Exchanger Injection Well
Steam Turbine Condenser Generator Production Well
Production Well Steam Turbine
• Source of steam
• Depth 3 km to 10 km • Specially designed steam turbine are used
• Similar to production well of an oil rig for geothermal power plants
• Wells may be located as far as 10 km to 14 • Steam can be corrosive due to many non
km from power plant condensable gases e.g. Hydrogen sulphide
• Steam can be moist or dry, Moist steam • To protect rotor blades and nozzles from
corrosion special coatings and materials
passes through separator are used
• Water or brine is reinjected through injection •The generation and transmission side of
well geothermal power plants is similar to
conventional power plants
Condenser Injection Well
• Steam condensed at a vacuum at the turbine • The excess condensate and the brine from
exit the separator returns back to the
• Most plants use direct contact condensers underground thermal reservoir,
that uses water itself as the cooling media. • Reinjection wells are located in
appropriate places
• Some reservoirs can give outputs for years
without reinjection
Separator
• Steam contains non condensable gases including Hydrogen sulphide
• Separator are used for the purpose to remove these gases
• 2 phase and 3 phase separators are used according to requirement Separators are vertically
horizontally designed
How It Works
■ Large holes have to be dug into the earth until a geothermal hotspot is found.
■ Pipes are inserted inside these holes through which water is sent and steam output is
obtained.
■ The production involves two process
1. Converting Geothermal energy into Mechanical energy
2. Converting Mechanical Energy into Electrical Energy
■ The success of the energy production depends on the temperature of the plant which
depends on the temperature of the rocks in earth.
■ The water is sent through the injection well and reaches the rocks and then hot water
comes from the production well.
■ Due to the high pressure when it reaches the topmost of the earth surface it is converted
into steam.
■ The separator is the place where steam that comes from the earth is made clean by
removing the brine and dirt so that they do not damage the turbine blades.
■ The high pressure and low pressure steam runs the turbine.
■ The generator is coupled with turbine to produce electricity.
■ The condenser is a phase changer where the steam output of the turbine is given to the
condenser and gets converted to hot water.
■ This hot water is then sent to the cooling tower where it loses it heat and then sent to the
geothermal reservoir for further production of steam.
There are three different types of Geothermal power plants system
■ Dry Steam Power Plants
■ Flash / Steam Plants
■ Binary cycle power plant
Dry Steam Power Plant
A power plant where steam is released from the
pressure of a deep reservoir, through a rock
catcher, and then past the power generator
turbines.
• “Dry” steam extracted from natural reservoir
o 180-225 ºC
o 4-8 MPa
• Steam is used to drive a turbo-generator
• Steam is condensed and pumped back into
the ground
• Can achieve 1 kWh per 6.5 kg of steam
• A 55 MW plant requires 100 kg/s of steam
Flash or Steam plants
A power plant where water is pumped under great
pressure to the surface. When it surfaces, the
pressure is reduced and as a result some of the
water changes to steam. This creates a blast of
steam. The water is then returned to the earth to
be heated up by geothermal rocks again.
• Steam with water extracted from ground
• Pressure of mixture drops at surface and more
water “flashes”to steam
• Steam separated from water
• Steam drives a turbine
• Turbine drives an electric generator
• Generate between 5 and 100 MW
• Use 6 to 9 tonnes of steam per
hour
Binary cycle power plant
A power plant where warm geothermal water is
pumped to the surface and passed through a heat
exchanger that contains a special fluid that boils
the water. The heat from the water makes this
secondary fluid flash into vapor. The newly
created vapor spins the turbines, while the cooled
steam is injected back into the earth.
• Low temps – 100o and 150oC
• Use heat to vaporize organic liquid
E.g., iso-butane, iso-pentane
• Use vapor to drive turbine
Causes vapor to condense
Recycle continuously
• Typically 7 to 12 % efficient
• 0.1 – 40 MW units common
Advantages of Geothermal Energy
■ No chance of contamination from solid discharge.
■ Geothermal fluids contain less harmful greenhouse gases.
■ No Nitrogen Oxide and Sulfur Dioxide. Less acid rain.
■ Noise is minimum.
■ Low risks of water contamination and low air pollution
■ Seismicity due to EGS operation is minor and not definite
■ Requires relatively less land.
■ Less environmental alterations and adverse effects.
■ Produces more power per surface acre compared to nuclear and coal
■ always available. ...
■ Doesn't require large spaces. ...
■ Silent energy. ...
■ It creates record numbers of jobs. ...
■ Provides more energy for the same nominal power. ...
■ Allows double recycling. ...
■ The plants are long-lasting, safe and reliable. ...
■ Requires very little maintenance.
Disadvantages of Geothermal Energy
■ Taller cooling towers are needed to contain the waste heat.
■ Noise does occur during initial construction and drilling.
■ Geothermal energy has high initial capital costs. ...
■ May release harmful gases. ...
■ Suited to a particular region. ...
■ Geothermal heat pumps have to be powered. ...
■ Geothermal sites may experience a dry spell. ...
■ Sustainability issues. ...
■ Can cause surface instability. ...
■ Extremely high temperatures required.
■ Environmental Concerns about Greenhouse Emissions. ...
■ Possibility of Depletion of Geothermal Sources. ...
■ High Investment Costs for Geothermal System. ...
■ Land Requirements for Geothermal System to Be Installed.
Geothermal plants in world
Geothermal electricity generation is currently used in 26 countries, while geothermal heating is in use
in 70 countries. As of 2019, worldwide geothermal power capacity amounts to 15.4 gigawatts (GW), of
which 23.86 percent or 3.68 GW are installed in the United States.
• United States – 3,714 MW
➢ THE GEYSERS GEOTHERMAL COMPLEX, USA
This large complex, located about 100km north of San Francisco, California, is made up of 18 power
plants, offering an active production capacity of 900MW.
It’s huge, spread across 45 square miles, and generates enough energy to power almost 1 million homes.
➢ CALENERGY GENERATION’S SALTON SEA GEOTHERMAL PLANTS, USA
Ten geothermal plants clustered together comprise this large plant, located in southern California.
With a total output of 340MW, this series of plants makes up the fifth largest geothermal energy producer
on Earth. Experts say this area has more geothermal potential than any other in the United States, and the
plant is actually helping combat soil erosion and the spread of toxic levels of salt across the region.
• Indonesia – 2,133 MW
➢ WAYANG WINDU GEOTHERMAL POWER PLANT, INDONESIA
The ninth largest plant is also located in Indonesia, in the province of West Java.
It is operated by a subsidiary of Star Energy, and was designed and constructed by Aecom, Sumitomo
Corporation, & Fuji Electric.
It has an output capacity of 227 MW, but spans a larger area than the Darajat station.
Altogether, the geothermal field at Wyang Windu covers 40sq. km.
➢ DARAJAT POWER STATION, INDONESIA
The tenth largest geothermal plant in the world is located in the Pasirwangi District of Garut in Indonesia.
It is comprised of three plants that were created separately between 1994 and 2007.
This plant has a capacity of 259MW, which produces about 50% more power than the Sir Adam Beck
pump generating hydroelectric station at Niagara Falls.
Indonesia has a particularly active volcanic geology, and geothermal is increasingly popular in all corners
of the country.
• Philippines – 1,918 MW
➢ MALITBOG GEOTHERMAL POWER STATION, PHILIPPINES
With an output capacity of 232.5MW, this power station in the Philippines is the eighth largest in the
world.
This plant is owned by the Energy Development Corporation and it supplies Luzon island with energy.
It has been operating since 199, and has an expected lifespan of at least 30 more years.
It is actually the largest single roof geothermal power plant in the world, and is situated in an area that
many people would call paradise.
➢ TIWI GEOTHERMAL COMPLEX, PHILIPPINES
More than ¼ of the Philippines’ power comes from geothermal plants.
The seventh biggest geothermal plant is located in the Philippine province of Albay.
It comprises three power plants of two units each, and provides a net capacity of 289 MW.
This plant has been operational since 1979, and is among the oldest functional geothermal plants in the
world.
➢ MAKBAN GEOTHERMAL COMPLEX, PHILIPPINES
The fourth largest geothermal plant, with an output capacity of 458 MW, is the Makban Geothermal
Power Complex.
Six plants make up this complex, located in both the Laguna province and Batangas province.
The Philippines possesses an excellent geothermal infrastructure, but would need to increase geothermal
production by a few hundred thousand to meet 100% sustainability.
• Mexico – 962.7 MW
➢ CERRO PRIETO GEOTHERMAL POWER STATION, MEXICO
Located in North Mexico, the Cerro Prieto Geothermal Power Plant is the third largest in the world, with
an output of 720 MW.
This plant, as with every Mexican power plant, is owned by the Comisión Federal de Electricidad.
The plant is built on a somewhat unique point of geology, a spreading fault line in a landlocked area. The
phenomenon is normally found only on the ocean floor.
• Italy – 944 MW
➢ LARDERELLO GEOTHERMAL COMPLEX, ITALY
The second largest plant in the world is the massive Larderello Complex, which is comprised of 34 plants.
The net capacity of this geothermal facility is 769 MW.
The first plant was constructed in 1913, making it the oldest of its kind.
This complex is responsible for 10% of all geothermal energy that is produced worldwide, and is utilized
for almost 27% of the power demands of the region.
• Kenya – 861 MW
• Iceland – 755 MW
• Japan – 603 MW
• Turkey – 1,526 MW – 179 MW added in 2019, with still
• New Zealand – 1,005 MW
A total of 202 MW were added in 2020. Other countries represent an installed power generation capacity
of 1,024 MW, bringing the total installed geothermal power generation capacity at the end of the year
2020 to 15,608 MW. The largest growth by far happened in Turkey, which saw an addition of 168 MW in
capacity.
Scope
Prospects for Technology Improvement, Innovation and Integration
• Geothermal resources can be integrated into all types of electrical power generation systems, from
large, interconnected continental transmission grids to onsite use in small, isolated villages or
autonomous buildings.
• The technology roadmap for Geothermal Heat and Power offers a strategic plan to maximise
deployment of these energy resources by 2050. It projects that 1,400 TWh of electricity per year
could come from geothermal power by 2050, up from 67 TWh at present.
• Since geothermal typically provides base-load electric generation, integration of new power plants
into existing power systems does not present a major challenge. Indeed, in some configurations,
geothermal energy can provide valuable flexibility, such as the ability to increase or decrease
production or startup/shut down as required.
Improvements in Exploration, Drilling and Assessment Technologies
• Once a regional focus area has been selected, availability of improved cost-effective
reconnaissance survey tools to detect as many geothermal indicators as possible is critical in
providing rapid coverage of the geological environment being explored at an appropriate
resolution.
• Special research is needed to improve the rate of penetration when drilling hard rock and to
develop advanced slim-hole technologies, and also in large-diameter drilling through ductile,
creeping or swelling formations.
• Drilling must minimize formation damage that occurs as a result of a complex interaction of the
drilling fluid (chemical, filtrate and particulate) with the reservoir fluid and formation. The
objectives of new-generation geothermal drilling and well construction technologies are to reduce
the cost and increase the useful life of geothermal production facilities through an integrated
effort.
Efficient Production of Geothermal Power, Heat and/or Cooling
Equipment needed to provide heating/cooling and/or electricity from geothermal wells is already available
on the market. However, the efficiency of the different system components can still be improved, and it is
even more important to develop conversion systems that more efficiently utilize energy in the produced
geothermal fluid at competitive costs. It is basically inevitable that more efficient plants (and components)
will have higher investment costs, but the objective would be to ensure that the increased performance
justifies these costs.
Another possibility for an efficient type of geothermal energy production is the use of suitable oil fields.
There are three types of oil and gas wells potentially capable of supplying geothermal energy for power
generation
1. medium- to high-temperature (>120°C or so) producing wells with a sufficient water cut;
2. abandoned wells due to a high water cut;
3. geo-pressured brine with dissolved gas.
Technological and Process Challenges in Enhanced Geothermal Systems
Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) require innovative methods, some of which are also applicable to power
plants and direct-use projects ased on hydrothermal resources.
An Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) is a man-made reservoir, created where there is hot rock but
insufficient or little natural permeability or fluid saturation. In an EGS, fluid is injected into the subsurface
under carefully controlled conditions, which cause pre-existing fractures to re-open, creating permeability.
Increased permeability allows fluid to circulate throughout the now-fractured rock and to transport heat to the
surface where electricity can be generated.