Geothermal Power Generation

Dr. Ron DiPippo is a world authority and consultant on Geothermal Power Plants. He is Chancellor Professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering, former Associate Dean of Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (UMD), a visiting Research Professor and Visiting Lecturer at Brown University in Providence, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), as well as a visiting lecturer at the School for Renewable Energy Science at the University of Akureyri, Iceland. Luis Carlos Gutiérrez-Negrín is the Executive Director of the consulting company Geocónsul, SA de CV, Secretary of the CeMIE-Geo, AC, and member of the BoD of the National Institute for Electricity and Clean Energies (INEEL). He has served on the BoDs of the former GRC (now Geothermal Rising), the International Geothermal Association (IGA), and as President of the Mexican Geothermal Association. He is an Editor-in-Chief of Springer’s open-journal Geothermal Energy Science – Society – Technology and has authored/co-authored 198 peer-reviewed papers and informal communications, as well as two book chapters.Andrew Chiasson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Dayton and is a licensed Professional Engineer in the US and Canada. He conducts research and teaches courses in the areas of Geothermal Energy, Solar Energy, Heat Transfer, Thermodynamics, and Energy Efficient Buildings. His research on geothermal energy and energy-efficient buildings has resulted in over 45 scientific publications, one book, and three book chapters.

"Throughout the book, color photographs and diagrams are used to convey the nature of geothermal resources and a physical sense of different power plant designs, including dry steam, single-, double-, and triple-flash, to a variety of binary and hybrid plants. Extensive reference lists and bibliographies accompany each chapter for further in-depth reading and research.... Geothermal Power Generation: Developments and Innovation, Second Edition, includes 958 pages of first-rate geothermal information emphasizing advanced energy technologies. The exceptionally well-organized text is backed by a 30-page index.... Geothermal developers will find the book useful, as well.... The chapters are well-illustrated with helpful maps, photos, and figures. About 75 percent of the illustrations are in color, which I enjoyed." — Susan F. Hodgson (Geothermal expert, author) and Carlo Cariaga (Geochemist, Editor-in-Chief), ThinkGeoEnergy, February 2025

• 1. Introduction to geothermal power generationPART ONE: RESOURCE EXPLORATION, CHRACTERIZATION AND EVALUATION2. Geology of geothermal resources3. Geophysics and resource conceptual models in geothermal exploration and development4. Application of geochemistry to resource assessment and geothermal development projects5. Geothermal well drilling6. Characterization, evaluation, and interpretation of well data7. Reservoir modeling and simulation for geothermal resource characterization and evaluationPART TWO: ENERGY CONVERSION SYSTEMS8. Elements of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer applied to geothermal energy conversion systems9. Elements of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer applied to geothermal energy conversion systems10. Flash steam geothermal energy conversion systems: Single-, double-, and triple-flash and combined-cycle plants11. Direct steam geothermal energy conversion systems: Dry steam and superheated steam plants12. Total flow and other systems involving two-phase expansion – I.K. Smith, City University13. Binary geothermal energy conversion systems: Basic Rankine, dual–pressure, dual–fluid cycles, and feed-heating cycles14. Combined and hybrid geothermal power systems15. Hot Dry Rock: Enhanced geothermal systems and advanced geothermal developmentsPART THREE: DESIGN AND ECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS16. Waste heat rejection methods in geothermal power generation17. Silica scale control in geothermal plants—historical perspective and current technology18. Environmental benefits and challenges associated with geothermal power generation19. Project permitting, finance, and economics for geothermal power generation20. Mineral recovery from geothermal brinesPART FOUR: CASE STUDIES21. Larderello: 100 years of geothermal power plant evolution in Italy22. Fifty-five years of commercial power generation at The Geysers geothermal field, California: The lessons learned23. Indonesia: Vast geothermal potential, modest but growing exploitation24. Philippines: Antecedents and perspectives of the third largest geothermal power market25. Geothermal power generation in Central America and the Caribbean26. Geothermal power plants at high altitude: the Chilean experience27. Cerro Prieto, Mexico: A large water-dominant field in operation since 197328. Kenya: The most successful geothermal development in Africa29. Soultz-sous-Forêts, and Rittershofen, France: Two pioneer EGS developmentsAPPENDIX: Worldwide State of Geothermal Power Plant Development