GeoThermal Energy

Mikel91 · 03-01-2012 11:24PM #1

Hey guys sorry if this is the wrong area to put it.

I'm just curious about GeoThermal energy.

I know there is an established company in Ireland that,well does it but I'm wondering geographically can Ireland actually produce much energy through this means and is it expensive or cost effective.

NotCarrotRidge · 04-01-2012 02:17PM

You have two types of geothermal energy. The most commonly used in Ireland is in-soil heat exchange, which just uses the slightly warmer temperatures in the ground to create heat. It doesn't really have a large-scale application, but is grand for one-off houses.

Borehole geothermal systems can have much larger applications, but they are limited by the actual geothermal gradient, which isn't fantastic here. Here's a link to a study carried out on this a few years ago.

Capt'n Midnight · 23-01-2012 08:07PM

apart from a few "hot spots" it's not much use here for large amounts of energy , other wise you are talking a few degrees unless you drill down a kilometer or two , or five if you want any prospect of boiling water

down deep the heat transfer from the earth's core is only 70mW/m2, so you are harvesting the heat that has built up over a very long time. there is a finite amount of heat that you can recover between the boreholes , which you can use to determine the life time of the system

http://www.seai.ie/Grants/Renewable_Energy_RD_D/Projects_funded_to_date/Geothermal_Energy/

GeoThermal Energy

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