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Geothermal
Energy
Basics
Overview
Geothermal energy uses the flow of thermal energy from
beneath the Earth's surface to heat homes and businesses and generate
electricity. Geothermal energy is also used in many industrial and
commercial applications, such as agriculture, fish farming, food dehydration,
gold processing and milk pasteurizing. Geothermal energy has many
advantages over other forms of energy. It is cleaner and more abundant
than fossil fuels. In fact, the thermal energy in the uppermost six miles
of the Earth's crust amounts to 50,000 times the energy of all oil and gas
resources in the world. With advances in technology, geothermal energy is
becoming a more economically viable energy choice for many applications.
In this course, the student will review the document
"Geothermal Energy... Power from the Depths" published by the U.S. Dept. of Energy's
National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
This publication describes the basics of geothermal energy and outlines its
advantages relative to other energy sources. This course is relevant to
engineers who are interested in learning about an alternative energy source that
can potentially reduce the energy costs and emissions of a plant, business or
residence.
The student must take a multiple-choice quiz consisting of
ten questions at the end of
this course to obtain PDH credits.
Specific Knowledge or Skill Attained
This course teaches the following specific knowledge and
skills:
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Merits of geothermal energy relative to other forms of
energy
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Types and geographic locations of different types of
geothermal resources
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Types of geothermal power plants
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Direct uses of geothermal energy
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Heat pump basics
Course
Click on the following PDF attachment and review "Geothermal Energy... Power
from the Depths" prior to taking a quiz for credit:
"Geothermal
Energy...Power from the Depths" (479 KB)
Having Trouble Downloading the PDF File?
Right click on the link. Select "Save Target As..."
Then save on your desktop. To view the file, double click the icon on your
desktop and return to this page to take the quiz.
You may need Acrobat Reader to view this document.
Click on the link below to download a free copy of Acrobat Reader.
To obtain PDH credits for this course, you will need to take a quiz for
credit. Click on the link below.
(To take the quiz,
your web browser must be set to accept cookies. See how to
check your cookie settings.)
 
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