How is geothermal energy transported to peoples homes?

Question

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Answer 1

That depends on what type of geothermal energy you are referring to. The earth has two types, one from the earth's core and one from the earth's surface.

The centre of the earth is approximately 4,200 degrees celsius.  Some of this heat is produced from the geological process which helped to form the earth but most of this heat arises from the decay of radioactive isotopes.  The majority of this heat arrives at the surface of the earth at too low a temperature to be used for heating or power generation activities but deep geothermal energy can be used when it arrives at the earth's surface through geological processes such as through fault lines on the earth’s crust (or areas of volcanic activity) or by drilling through the surface to tap into it.

From deep sources it is possible to bring hot water or steam to the surface and use it to drive electicity generating turbines. In some cases the byproduct of steam/hot water is then piped through a district heating scheme to share out the heat to local homes & businesses. In fact, historically, using the hot water in a local area happened centuries before we even discovered electricty!

The second source of heat in the ground is from radiation from the sun.  Solar thermal radiation is absorbed by the surface of the earth each day.  This energy can be regarded as stored energy which stays relatively warm throughout the year. This heat can then be extracted by a ground source heat pump, also known as a geothermal heat pump, and used for space heating and cooling, as well as water heating. They operate on the fact that the earth beneath the surface remains at a constant temperature throughout the year, and that the ground acts as a heat source in winter and a heat sink in summer.

The earth’s surface acts as a huge solar collector, absorbing radiation from the sun. In temperate countries the ground maintains a constant temperature between 11oC and 13oC, several metres below the surface. Geothermal Heat Pumps take advantage of this by transferring the heat stored in the earth or in ground water to buildings in winter and the opposite in summer for cooling. Through compression, heat pumps can take heat at low temperature and release it at a higher temperature so that it may be used again - think of your refrigerator the ice box is cold but the back of the fridge is hot. For every unit of electricity used to operate the heat pump, up to five units of heat are generated. Therefore for every unit of electricity used to pump the heat, 4 to 5 units of heat are produced.

Answer 2

You can read all about geothermal energy here:

http://www.greenstudentu.com/Geothermal_...

Good luck!

Answer 3

generally its via an electric powered water pump.

water of a constant temperature is pumped to the surface and heat is either extracted or added before the water is returned to the ground.

of course the possibility of extracting steam or hot or cold air exists, but when you say geothermal, most people mean water.

everything Castle mentioned is true, but not necessarily practical or will work in every case.  Of course steam from volcanic activity is great, if you can get it.  In Iceland they are able to use this energy source.  here in the US, volcanic steam or "hot" water is virtually non-existant or cost prohibitive to obtain.

radiation from the sun is usually referred to as solar-thermal energy, not geothermal