Volcano Drilling in Iceland Opens Door to Volcano-Powered Electricity

“We could drill into the enormous heat from volcanoes to harness its energy for electricity,” a report from a geothermal borehole projected dubbed the Icelandic Deep Drilling Project (IDDP) stated.

According to the report, IDDP has been drilling shafts reaching up to 5000 m in attempt to harness the massive heat energy from the volcanic bedrocks deep into the surface of Iceland. However, as luck would have it, a pocket of magma was unexpectedly struck in 2009 after reaching only 2100 m in their borehole at Krafla in the northeast of Iceland.

The scientists measured high temperatures ranging from 900-1000 degrees Fahrenheit (over 450 degrees Celsius), compared to only 60-80 degrees Celsius from conventional geothermal energy sources.

Volcanic Geothermal Energy Potential

Unlike conventional geothermal energy which utilizes steam from natural sources such a geysers or drawing water from the super-hot depths of the Earth, volcanic geothermal energy utilizes heat from “supercritical water.”

Scientists have found that energy from supercritical water is much higher compared to that from conventional geothermal heat. Supercritical water is formed when water and molten rock meet, and the extreme heat and pressure transforms the state of water where it’s neither liquid nor gas.

According to researchers, volcanic geothermal energy could create up to 10 times more power output compared to conventional geothermal energy.

The heat from magma was found to be capable of generating about 36 MW of electrical power, which is considerably modest compared to the 660 MW generated from coal-fired power plants and more than half of current output from Krafla plant’s, which is 60 MW.

Future Alternative Energy Source

While the volcano drilling project on the Krafla plant has had its fair share of setbacks that limited harnessing of energy to full potential, IDDP in collaboration with other energy companies in Iceland are working towards making their next drilling operations much easier and more successful.

Research is expected to continue through 2018 in attempt to explore the full potential of volcanic thermal energy, especially as an alternative energy source.

According to Wilfred Elders, a geology professor at the University of California, the success of the drilling was amazing, to say the least. "This could possibly lead to a revolution in the energy efficiency of high-temperature geothermal projects in the near future.” he further added.

By drilling deeper boreholes, the IDDP are sure to harness more volcano energy in the future. The company, together with other energy companies in Iceland, has made a substantial investment to further investigate the underlying potential of these boreholes.

Hopefully, massive production of volcano-powered electricity will be made into a reality in the near future, especially considering that non-renewable energy sources are diminishing day by day.