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Green boost for Newcastle’s science credentials
Published: 2010-06-29 16:09:58
Newcastle’s prowess as a Science City was further highlighted when scientists at Newcastle University completed the first phase of a giant central heating system that will harness heat from deep underground.
The first hot water was pumped out of the ground on 23 June as part of the landmark project to investigate the potential of geothermal energy as a source of renewable heat.
The twin borehole system is the first of its kind in the UK and will allow warm groundwater – heated by the hot granite rocks hundreds of metres below ground – to be continually cycled through a 1,000m underground heating system.
Project lead Professor Paul Younger, of Newcastle University, says that using a twin set of boreholes solves problems which have hindered other attempts to use deep-seated hot water.
"Once you find hot groundwater then pumping it to the surface through a single borehole isn’t the problem – it’s what you do with the water afterwards that has held back geothermal energy,” he explains.
"Water from such depths is twice as salty as seawater, so unless you happen to be on the coast, you can’t let the spent water simply flow away at surface but cleaning the water is both energy intensive and costly."
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