GTC energy mine
The GTC has an unique wick design (hence the name GeoThermal Candle aka GTC) that allows efficiency gains in heat gain up to 15.000 times higher than existing geothermal systems.
This allows the GTC to provide much higher energy output for the same capital invested and thus the fastest payback methodes for geothermal energy.
The efficiency and longevity have been calculated by Tractebel, the engineering company of Engie. The optimal configuration can output 20 Gw thermal power during at least 27 years.
Thermal energy is energy in the form of heat. Geothermal means we use heat energy out of the deeper layers of the earth. The deeper we dig, the more energy becomes available. This heat can be used to create electricity and to provide city heating, to create drinking water or to remove CO2 from the air.
Using geothermal energy has two big challenges. First, we need to collect heat fast enough at the deeper layers of the earth. Secondly, we need to be able to transport the heat energy fast enough to the earth’s surface.
The geothermal candle (GTC) overcomes both challenges. At the bottom of a 6 km deep pipe, passive heat conductivity of the surrounding soil is augmented, to improve the efficiency of geothermal heat collection.
To speed up energy transport, heatpipe technology can be used to transport heat energy to the surface at the fastest possible rates. There are no moving parts, as no moving fluids outside the pipe. It’s designed to work forever.
A GTC energy mine is geothermal energy production system. It does not pollute the environment and it neutralizes CO2 from the air. A GTC can produce:
- electricity, replacing the need to burn fossil fuels for power
- clean oil, replacing current dirty oil at the same price as at the pump
- heat, which can replace gas to heat our homes at the same cost of gas
Unlike wind and solar, GTC technology is land efficient and produces energy with the lowest land-to-energy density, even lower than nuclear power.
It is up to 15.000 times more efficient at capturing heat from the earth than existing geothermal systems and keeps working up to 1000 times longer.
A GTC energy mine produces 20 MW of thermal energy for a minimum of 27 years at 8.000 hours a year, with an electric production capacity of 2,5 MW. This equals a windmill with a 7,5 MW production capacity at 8 hours average a day.
At such efficiencies, the payback period of the system is 4 years per pilot project, when paid back with the sale of heat or electricity. Output longevity was calculated by Tractebel, the subsidiary engineering company of ENGIE.
A 20 x 20 grid of GTC’s can effectively replace one nuclear plant. As this technology is very energy dense, it requires about as much space as a nuclear plant, but 99% of the installation is underground, and thus invisible.
To power a country such as Belgium and it’s 11 million inhabitants with geothermal energy - incl. heating, electricity and transport - we would need about 3.000 GTC’s. To power the world, we would need 10.000.000 GTC’s.
Power purchase agreements
A power purchase agreement defines how consumed energy is measured and at what price the energy is payed.
In a building a landlord shares the cost of the energy over all rented space. This means he doesnt care what the cost of energy is, nor does he care how much energy losses occur in the building.
With a power purchase agreement,
the energy is measured at the point where it enters the rented space. Any losses are to be payed by the landlord, so he will be interested in making any energy transport as efficient as possible.
Additionally the power purchase agreement allows the landlord to invest in renewable energy on building level. He can add solar panels and inject this power in his building electrical grid. Since he can deliver the energy without transport costs, the payback period of these installations will be come very short.
The power purchase agreements create a legal framework to provide landlords with the tools and motivation to make their buildings much more energy efficient.
If you are a tenant, ask for energy settlement through a PPA.
If you are a landlord, provide your tenant through the PPA. If it turns out that the income is lower than the costs, invest in new building systems or add renewable energy to the energy you provide to the tenants.
Power purchase agreements (PPA) can be used for electricity, heating and cooling grids.
PPA's define
power purchase formules (PPF) to calcule the cost for each type of energy. The averages prices of energy determined by government controlling entities are the basis for each power purchase formule.
PPF Heating
: Measured heat consumption / 95% * average gas price
PPF Cooling: Measured cooling consumption / sSEER 4 * average electricity price
PPF Electricity: Measured electrical consumption * average electricity price
sSEER = system Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio.
A sSEER value of 4 is optimistic for most buildings since this included all systems to get the energy to the rented spaces, like circulationpumps, insulated pipes, ... .
To compare, a daikin heatpump can provide a SEER of up to 5, but it has to be installed directly in the space to achieve this. Once the power of a circulation pump is added, this efficiency cant be reached any more when the whole system is taken into account.
If governments want to push for change on building energy consumption
, they should enforce PPA's with a minimum-value of 4. This will result in businessplans for renewables for more than 90% of all buildings.