Feasibility study of geothermal utilization of remoteness areas : design and optimization of a small standard power plant

• Main Author: Gonzalez, Emma Baz
• Other Authors: Háskólinn á Akureyri
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: RES. The School for Renewable Energy Science; Renewable energy sources; Meistaraprófsritgerðir; Raforka; Jarðhitarannsóknir; Endurnýjanleg orka; Akureyri; New Zealand
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1946/7750

Verkefnið er unnið í tengslum við Háskóla Íslands og Háskólann á Akureyri More than billion people lack of electricity. Most of these people is poor or lives in remote areas. Geothermal energy is a clean and sustainable alternative to solve this problem. Small geothermal electric power plants are well suited applications to produce cost effective electric power. Geothermal energy not only provides a suitable answer to supply electricity in remote rural areas, also contributes to progress in education, health, agriculture, and rural industry and other income generation activities that could help to reduce poverty. This thesis investigates the feasibility of low-enthalpy geothermal resources for power generation in remote areas of the world which can operate stand-alone with low cost and supply electricity to the population improving their standard of living. There are many remote places that lack of electric power with no near-term potential or access to a central power distribution grid or a grid extension. Having checked that there is no previous study on the relative from distance from a remote region to a electrical power supply, the definition of the new concept “Electrical Remoteness” is needed and is defined in this thesis as a starting point for previous research. This assertion presents the thermoeconomic model of a ORC power plant using dry cooling is created in EES software and a detailed analysis of component configuration and parameters of working fluids is carried out. The small standard geothermal power plant which can work in low-enthalpy remote regions, from tropical and warm places like Central America, Africa, New Zealand and Philippines next to the sea level to places like Mongolia and Himalayan foothills where the temperatures are extremly cold and high elevation. Exergy flow rates of all streams in the system as well as rates of exergy destruction and loss are quantified. And competitive levelized cost compared to other renewable energies.