The term "geothermal" is of Greek origin, meaning warm internal earth heat (literal meaning). The heat sources were already used for bathing in the Paleolithic age, while the oldest known bath is i. e. It was built in the 3rd century in China. Later, the Romans used geothermal energy for both heating and medical and recreational purposes. Once the antique Roman spa towns used the thermal springs directly through the pipeline network. The Romans used the thermal water to treat the eyes and skin diseases, while in Pompeii they used to heat the buildings.
In New Zealand, the first Polynesian settlers who lived independently of European influence for a thousand years, until the 18th century, used the steam of the heat sources in cooking, and the thermal water was used for bathing, washing and healing. The use of thermal waters in heating and medicine in the modern world has once again become topical.
In the 19th century, with the advancement of technology, the exploration and exploration of underground thermal resources became possible. In Tuscany, natural geothermal energy was used to process boron and ammonium compounds. Here, geothermal fluids were the most important boron sources, while thermal energy was ancillary.
Electricity production was started in 1904 by the work of Prince Piero Ginori Conti, and in 1913, 250 kW of electrical power was available at the Larderello power plant. The current capacity of the Larderell power plant complex exceeds 400 MW and I want to increase it to 880 MW with the help of a development program.
Secondly, the Wairakei region in New Zealand was developed in the early 1950s after the "Geyser Field" in Northern California, where production began in 1960. In the world, the latter area is being developed most today, with a capacity of 2800 MW.
In France since 1960, more than 200,000 homes have been heated using thermal water. Italy and Iceland lie on the volcanic ridge of the most volcanic two European countries, the Central Atlantic, yet the main geothermal nations are grouped along the Pacific border. Japan, the Philippines and Mexico are working on the development of current technology.
In the meantime, plans have been made for the direct use of geothermal heat in district heating and agriculture. In this area, Japan, China, the successor states of the former Soviet Union, Hungary are the most important producers. New technologies have been developed in France and other Western European countries. Geothermal energy is cheap, reliable, sustainable, and environmentally friendly, but in most of human history it was only available near tectonic fractures. However, thanks to technological advances, the potential for geothermal energy use has increased significantly, especially for applications such as heating homes.
Today, geothermal energy is used in many areas:
- Heating of greenhouses in agriculture
- Heating of apartments and housing estates
- Electricity production