With the development and formation of society, mankind began to look for more modern and at the same time economical ways of generating energy. For this, various stations are being built today, but at the same time, the energy contained in the bowels of the earth is widely used. What is it like? Let's try to figure it out.
Geothermal energy
Already from the name it is clear that it represents the heat of the bowels of the earth. Under the crust is a layer of magma, which is a fiery-liquid silicate melt. According to research, the energy potential of this heat is much higher than the energy of world reserves of natural gas, as well as oil. Magma - lava comes to the surface. Moreover, the greatest activity is observed in those layers of the earth on which the boundaries of tectonic plates are located, as well as where the earth's crust is characterized by subtlety. The geothermal energy of the earth is obtained as follows: the lava and water resources of the planet are in contact, as a result of which the water begins to heat up sharply. This leads to a geyser eruption, the formation of so-called hot lakes and underwater currents. That is, it is precisely those natural phenomena whose properties are actively used as an inexhaustible source of energy.
Artificial Geothermal Springs
The energy contained in the bowels of the earth should be used wisely. For example, there is the idea of creating underground boilers. To do this, you need to drill two wells of sufficient depth, which will be connected at the bottom. That is, it turns out that in almost any corner of the land it is possible to obtain geothermal energy in an industrial way: cold water will be pumped into the formation through one well, and hot water or steam will be extracted through the second well. Artificial heat sources will be beneficial and rational if the heat produced will produce more energy. Steam can be sent to turbogenerators, in which electricity will be generated.
Of course, the heat taken is just a fraction of what is available in the total reserves. But it should be remembered that the deep heat will be constantly replenished due to the processes of radioactive decay, compression of rocks, stratification of the bowels. According to experts, the crust accumulates heat, the total amount of which is 5,000 times greater than the calorific value of all the mineral resources of the earth as a whole. It turns out that the operating time of such artificially created geothermal stations can be unlimited.
Features of sources
Sources that allow you to get geothermal energy, it is almost impossible to use completely. They exist in more than 60 countries of the world, with the most terrestrial volcanoes in the territory of the Pacific volcanic ring of fire. But in practice it turns out that geothermal sources in different regions of the world are completely different in their properties, namely average temperature, mineralization, gas composition, acidity and so on.
Geysers are sources of energy on Earth, the peculiarities of which are that they spew boiling water at certain intervals. After the eruption occurred, the pool becomes free of water, at its bottom you can see the channel, which goes deep into the ground. Geysers as energy sources are used in regions such as Kamchatka, Iceland, New Zealand and North America, and single geysers are also found in some other areas.
Where does the energy come from?
Quite close to the earth's surface is a non-cooling magma. Gases and vapors are released from it, which lift and pass through the cracks. Mixing with groundwater, they cause their heating, they themselves turn into hot water, in which many substances are dissolved. Such water is released to the surface of the earth in the form of various geothermal sources: hot springs, mineral springs, geysers, and so on. According to scientists, the hot bowels of the earth are caves or chambers connected by passages, cracks and channels. They are just filled with groundwater, and very close to them are foci of magma. In this way, the thermal energy of the earth is formed.
Earth's electric field
There is another alternative source of energy in nature, which is distinguished by renewability, environmental friendliness, ease of use. True, so far this source is only being studied and not applied in practice. So, the potential energy of the Earth lies in its electric field. Energy can be obtained in this way on the basis of studying the basic laws of electrostatics and the features of the electric field of the Earth. In fact, our planet in terms of electrical is a spherical capacitor charged to 300,000 volts. Its inner sphere has a negative charge, and the outer one - the ionosphere - is positive. Earth's atmosphere is an insulator. Through it there is a constant flow of ionic and convective currents, which reach a force of many thousands of amperes. However, the potential difference between the plates does not decrease.
This suggests that in nature there is a generator, the role of which is to constantly compensate for the leakage of charges from the capacitor plates. The role of such a generator is the Earth's magnetic field, rotating with our planet in a stream of solar wind. Energy magnetic fields Of the earth can be obtained just by connecting an energy consumer to this generator. To do this, you must install a reliable ground.
Renewable sources
As the population of our planet grows steadily, we need more and more energy to provide the population. The energy contained in the bowels of the earth can be very different. For example, there are renewable sources: wind, solar and water. They are environmentally friendly, and therefore you can use them without fear of harming the environment.
Water energy
This method has been used for many centuries. Today, a huge number of dams and reservoirs have been built, in which water is used to generate electrical energy. The essence of this mechanism is simple: under the influence of the flow of the river, the wheels of the turbines rotate, respectively, the energy of the water turns into electrical energy.
Today, there are a large number of hydroelectric power plants that convert the energy of a water stream into electricity. The peculiarity of this method is that hydropower resources are renewed, respectively, such structures have low cost. That is why, despite the fact that the construction of hydroelectric power plants has been going on for quite some time, and the process itself is very costly, nevertheless, these facilities are significantly superior to power-consuming industries.
Solar energy: modern and promising
Solar energy is obtained with the help of solar panels, but modern technologies allow the use of new methods for this. The world's largest solar power plant is a system built in the California desert. It fully provides energy for 2000 houses. The design works as follows: from the mirrors reflect the sun's rays, which are sent to the central boiler with water. It boils and turns into steam, turning the turbine. She, in turn, is connected to an electric generator. Wind can also be used as the energy that the Earth gives us. The wind inflates the sails, rotates the mills. And now with its help you can create devices that will generate electrical energy. By rotating the blades of a windmill, it drives a turbine shaft, which, in turn, is connected to an electric generator.
Earth's internal energy
It appeared as a result of several processes, the main of which are accretion and radioactivity. According to scientists, the formation of the Earth and its mass took place over several million years, and this happened due to the formation of planetesimals. They stuck together, respectively, the mass of the Earth became more and more. After our planet began to have a modern mass, but was still deprived of the atmosphere, meteor and asteroid bodies fell freely on it. This process is called accretion, and it led to the fact that significant gravitational energy was released. And the larger bodies fell on the planet, the greater the amount of energy released in the bowels of the Earth.
This gravitational differentiation led to the fact that the substances began to stratify: heavy substances simply sank, and light and volatile floated. Differentiation also affected the additional release of gravitational energy.
Atomic Energy
The use of earth energy can occur in different ways. For example, using the construction of nuclear power plants, when thermal energy is released due to the decay of the smallest particles of matter of atoms. The main fuel is uranium, which is contained in the earth's crust. Many believe that this particular method of energy production is the most promising, but its application is fraught with a number of problems. First, uranium emits radiation, which kills all living organisms. Moreover, if this substance gets into the soil or atmosphere, then a real man-made disaster will occur. The sad consequences of the Chernobyl accident we experience today. The danger lies in the fact that radioactive waste can threaten all living things for a very, very long time, whole millennia.
New time - new ideas
Of course, people do not stop there, and every year more and more attempts are made to find new ways to obtain energy. If the heat energy of the earth is obtained quite simply, then some methods are not so simple. For example, as a source of energy, it is quite possible to use biological gas, which is obtained by decaying waste. It can be used for heating homes and heating water.
More and more often, tidal power plants are being built when dams and turbines are installed across the mouths of water bodies, which are driven by tides and ebbs, respectively, which produces electricity.
Burning trash, we get energy
Another method that is already being applied in Japan is the creation of incinerators. Today they were built in England, Italy, Denmark, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the USA, however, only in Japan, these enterprises began to be used not only for their intended purpose, but also for electricity. At local plants, 2/3 of all garbage is burned, while the plants are equipped with steam turbines. Accordingly, they supply heat and electricity to nearby territories. At the same time, it is much more profitable to build such an enterprise than to build a thermal power plant.
More attractive is the prospect of using the heat of the Earth where volcanoes are concentrated. In this case, it will not be necessary to drill the Earth too deeply, since already at a depth of 300-500 meters the temperature will be at least twice as high as the boiling point of water.
There is also such a method of generating electricity as hydrogen energy. Hydrogen - the simplest and lightest chemical element - can be considered an ideal fuel, because it is where there is water. If you burn hydrogen, you can get water, which decomposes into oxygen and hydrogen. The hydrogen flame itself is harmless, that is, there will be no harm to the environment. The peculiarity of this element is that it has a high calorific value.
What in the future?
Of course, the energy of the Earth’s magnetic field, or that which is received at nuclear power plants, cannot fully satisfy all the needs of mankind, which grow every year. However, experts say that there is no reason to worry, because the planet has enough fuel resources. Moreover, more and more new sources are used, environmentally friendly and renewable.
The problem of environmental pollution remains, and it grows catastrophically quickly. The amount of harmful emissions rolls over, respectively, the air we breathe is harmful, water has dangerous impurities, and the soil is gradually depleted. That is why it is so important to timely study the phenomenon of energy in the bowels of the earth in order to look for ways to reduce the need for fossil fuels and make more active use of non-traditional energy sources.