more nuclear plants

[seeker_two]

Am I the only guy who wants both more coal-fired and nuke plants?

*waves*

I want coal, nuclear, natural gas, geothermal, wind-power.....heck, I want to put solar panels on the SUN!!!!  I just want cheap power to keep my AC running during the Texas summer... 

[Regolith]

What about geothermal energy? Has it ever been thought of? Is it possible to harness it?

As others have mentioned, its being done.  There are several down where my parents live in Nevada, currently.  The biggest problem with it is that there aren't many places that have the right geology to support it.  You need to have a place with a relatively thin crust or where there is magma intrusion, such on a volcano. A good indicator as to whether or not it will work in an area is if there are hot springs nearby; that generally means there is enough energy near enough to the surface to tap it and use it for energy production.

There is a method, however, which IIRC is called passive geothermal.  Instead of relying on the heat from the earth's core to create steam and make electricity, the passive method depends on the fact that once you go down several dozen feet or so, the soil temperature is a stable 50-60 or so degrees.  You then feed pipes down there and circulate water through them, then use the warmed water to heat or cool your house or building, which cuts down on the amount of energy required to keep the building at a stable, comfortable temperature.

[Firethorn]

There is a method, however, which IIRC is called passive geothermal.  Instead of relying on the heat from the earth's core to create steam and make electricity, the passive method depends on the fact that once you go down several dozen feet or so, the soil temperature is a stable 50-60 or so degrees.  You then feed pipes down there and circulate water through them, then use the warmed water to heat or cool your house or building, which cuts down on the amount of energy required to keep the building at a stable, comfortable temperature.

So it's essentially a heat pump? 

And yes, geothermal is limited in that areas that it can economically be installed are limited.  You'd have to go pretty far down to get enough heat to be useful in ND, for example.  You'd probably hit oil first. 

Manedwolf, I was talking about heating the coal before it entered an already lit grate.

[Manedwolf]

There is a method, however, which IIRC is called passive geothermal.  Instead of relying on the heat from the earth's core to create steam and make electricity, the passive method depends on the fact that once you go down several dozen feet or so, the soil temperature is a stable 50-60 or so degrees.  You then feed pipes down there and circulate water through them, then use the warmed water to heat or cool your house or building, which cuts down on the amount of energy required to keep the building at a stable, comfortable temperature.

So it's essentially a heat pump? 

And yes, geothermal is limited in that areas that it can economically be installed are limited.  You'd have to go pretty far down to get enough heat to be useful in ND, for example.  You'd probably hit oil first. 

Manedwolf, I was talking about heating the coal before it entered an already lit grate.

Yes, it's a heatpump. They're becoming popular here for large facilities and even things like schools.

[Firethorn]

Yes, it's a heatpump. They're becoming popular here for large facilities and even things like schools.

They're installing them left and right up here.  They've figured out that with the electric rates they can get, it's cheaper than even natural gas.  Of course, it's more a method of saving energy than producing it.   Not that I mind at all - conservation is good, but I get irked at the 'conservation is the best source of energy'.  It's not a source!  Yes, making appliances and such take less juice saved us from having to build multiple new power plants - but we're to the point that making them more efficient is often impractical and or not cost efficient. 

One of the things my dad mentioned when he was working for the Heating & Cooling company is that system longevity took a plummet when new energy standards came into effect - parts that used to last decades now often required replacement in five years.  The higher SEER units just didn't last as long, mandating service calls that more than wiped out the electricity savings.