Geothermal Heating

Many in the Geothermal Heating Industry are talking about Binary Cycle Power Plants? This article will help you understand this important topic.

One of the most anticipated uses of geothermal power is the generation of electricity from the superheated steam that is used in these plants. The United States has more geothermal power than any other country, though Iceland and other European countries have a far higher market penetration than in the States. This hotbed of electrical generation is serving as the backdrop for the refinement of the next generation of geothermal power in the form of Binary Cycle plants.

Currently the largest facilities in operation use a method called "dry steam" where superheated steam is vented to the surface and used to directly turn the turbine that then generates the power. The used stem is then cooled and sent back down or re-injected as a condensate. This method has been in use since the early part of the 20th century.

Since most of the power generation in the United States occurs in California, it should be no surprise that most of the dry stem plants are also operating in California. In addition to the superheated dry steam that is most commonly used, some systems use actual water heated above 360F (180C) to run what is called a Flash Chamber. Here, the water is sprayed into a tank with much lower pressure, causing it to vaporize upon contact.

By way of comparison, the Binary Cycle method of power uses a closed chamber that operates much like the Flash system, except that a lower temperature water can be used since the actual flashing is being done by a closed loop that contains a fluid with a flash evaporation point much lower than that of water. This liquid can be flashed and re-condensed countless times, since it's not lost to the environment. Therefore, there are no emissions to speak of and a much greater variety of geothermal sources can be used.

It seems that binary cycle will be the preferred style in new geothermal power plant construction, especially since this allows a great many sites that were once deemed to cool for use in power generation to be utilized. It is thought that with the use of such plants, the generation of geothermal power in the United States could double or even triple, as long as there is investment in construction, as seems to be the case.

In areas that are not geologically active, this innovation is not nearly as important as it is in the active areas of western North America. Active areas that might have not been hot enough in the past now have the potential to become world leaders in geothermal energy production.

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