Magma Drilling for Renewable Energy – CleanTechnica

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Once upon a time, the humble rock of Iceland lagged behind the pack as one of the poorest countries in Europe; a deprived economy dependent on the costly export of fossil fuels and imported energy sources. It’s hard to fathom when compared to now: it now stands as the 15th richest country in the world per capita, and down are the noxious power plants spewing dystopian plumes of smoke – today, 100% of Iceland’s electricity grid is produced through renewable sources. the resources.

The impetus for this transformation grew during the 1970s, when the global oil crisis made Iceland’s previous reliance on imported fossil fuels unaffordable, prompting a demand for alternatives. In response, geologists turned to abundant natural resources—glacial rivers, waterfalls, and volcanic landscapes offered abundant opportunities for energy extraction. By the early 1980s, almost all energy production had switched to renewable sources. Once thick with smog, the air above its cities is now clean. But Iceland will not be caught resting on its laurels. In fact, she has big ambitions. His next project is somewhere between heroism and villainy: The ominously named Krafla Magma Testbed (KMT) project will enter a volcano’s magma chamber, seeking to use its searing fumes to generate energy on an unprecedented scale. tried before!

Krafla stands as one of the most active volcanic areas in the world, where temperatures rise to 2372°F (1300°C). While the room’s proximity to the surface is advantageous, the biggest challenge (which doesn’t take a scientist to explain) is keeping their equipment from melting into a cartoon pool. Iceland has harnessed the Earth’s heat for a while – geothermal energy requires drilling into underground regions to produce steam from hot water. However, the water in a volcano’s magma chamber is not steam, but rather “supercritical”—water so hot and pressurized that it is somehow neither liquid nor vapor, but a fourth state of matter; something resembling steam.

A magma geothermal plant has the potential to produce at least 10 times the power of a traditional geothermal plant. Located at a relatively shallow depth of only 1 to 2 miles below the surface, Krafla’s magma chamber was accidentally penetrated in 2009 during a geothermal drilling project. To the cautious delight of the crew, they did not immediately encounter a volcanic eruption, proving that drilling into magma can be done safely.

The first (hopefully not accidental) hole is scheduled to be drilled around 2026 and should significantly accelerate our understanding of magma and its properties. If this risky project is successful, the long-term vision includes the potential to observe a volcanic eruption from its source, improve eruption predictions, and even inject fluids into the chamber to manipulate pressure and temperature — essentially allowing mankind to exert control over the natural disturbances of nature. .

The resulting consequences of such innovation can be global. Not only does it have potential for energy exports, but this technology could enable the exploitation of magma reservoirs anywhere in the world, and if this infrastructure can be proven efficient, it could significantly curb our dependence on fossil fuels, helping to combat climate change.

So far, the vast majority of alternative energy types follow fossil fuels in terms of power generation. They can boast greater environmental sustainability, but their production is often limited. However, if geothermal substitutes can gain prominence, this could render less efficient practices obsolete. Who needs wind turbines when you can just stick an industrial needle into a volcano and extract endless energy directly?

Iceland’s veritable abundance of energy cultivates a casual indifference about its use, from heating streets, brewing beer, heating greenhouses and fish farms. It looks like they’re going bananas… and it turns out they are. Iceland (until recently) boasted the largest banana plantation in Europe! Originating in the humid jungles of Southeast Asia, bananas need a hot climate to fully flourish, and yet in a strange cultural twist they are now thriving in a country whose name begins with Ice. Due to rising import costs for various fruits such as strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers and bananas, there are a number of greenhouses in Reykir that use the cheap energy to produce insulated and disease-free products.

In 2024, every house in Iceland is heated with renewable energy. Between 1990 and 2014, geothermal electricity production in Iceland increased by 1700%! Its green energy production per person is approximately 55,000 kWh per person, which becomes significant when compared to the EU average of 6,000 kWh – that’s almost 10 times more!

Many energy-intensive industrial sectors have arisen thanks to these advances. The country is an important producer of aluminium, which plays a key role in its economy, as well as silicon, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and the more traditional fish and fresh meat products. Despite the limitless benefits of green infrastructure, the transition did not happen overnight; it wasn’t even free. Advocates for renewable energy had to educate and convince voters to abandon coal, funding had to be generated by convincing investors, securing government grants and engaging private companies, and bringing in sophisticated engineering to ensure the switch was successful. However, this fearless commitment has paid dividends. Now all that’s left is to convince the rest of the world.

“Twenty-five percent of Europeans live in areas that could benefit from geothermal energy,” says Jack Kiruja, a geothermal analyst with the International Renewable Energy Agency, “but none have been as successful in fully exploiting the resources their geothermal”.

Kiruja points out that Iceland has “clear geothermal regulations, policies that reduce the economic risk of drilling and strong training programs to build technical expertise” and that it is “laser focused on finding ways to exploit its geothermal resources”. where the implication is that many European countries have been unable or unwilling to prioritize this change quickly enough.

Iceland’s pioneering resilience paints an optimistic picture. While it may be given priority over preexisting natural phenomena, its environmental model is a functional and vitalizing triumph—one from which every country should draw inspiration.

This article is guest written by Dannien Sullivan, a writer and marketer for Odyssey World, who is passionate about sharing thought-provoking and insightful articles on the topics of sustainability, clean energy and futurology.