by David R. Boden, Professor of Geoscience at Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno, Nevada.
Features- Offers a unique focus on geology as related to geothermal energy supplies and operations
- Compares geothermal to conventional and renewable sources and examines the potential advantages and disadvantages of each
- Examines the fundamental geologic elements of geothermal energy such as plate tectonics, heat energy distribution, fluid flow, pore connectivity and fracture transmissivity
- Discusses the environmental impacts of geothermal energy, such as emissions, land use issues, water use, land subsidence and seismicity
- Presents case studies from around the world
Geothermal energy stands out because it can be used as a baseload resource. This book, unlike others, examines the geology related to geothermal applications. Geology dictates (a) how geothermal resources can be found, (b) the nature of the geothermal resource (such as liquid- or vapor-dominated) and (c) how the resource might be developed ultimately (such as flash or binary geothermal plants). The compilation and distillation of geological elements of geothermal systems into a single reference fills a notable gap.