A Project To Estimate The Power Capacity Of Geothermal Power Plants Based On The Enthalpy Of Geothermal Fluid And Plant Design

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Surface phenomena that signal the presence of viable geothermal energy can be found in various locations in Nigeria. None of these locations have been explored extensively to determine the feasibility of sustainable geothermal energy development for electricity generation or direct heating purposes. In this context, the present study aims to provide insight into the energy potential of such development based on the enthalpy estimation of geothermal reservoirs. This particular project was conducted to determine the power output from a geothermal resource given an estimated enthalpy of the geothermal fluid. The process route chosen for this project is the single-flash geothermal power plant because of the temperature (180℃) and unique property of the geothermal fluid (a mixture of hot water and steam that exists as a liquid under high pressure). The Ikogosi warm spring in Ekiti State, Nigeria was chosen as the site location for this power plant. To support food security efforts in Africa, this project proposes the cascading of a hot water stream from the flash tank to serve direct heat purposes in agriculture for food preservation, before re-injection to the reservoir. The flowrate of the geothermal fluid to the flash separator was chosen as 3125 tonnes/hr. The power output from a single well using a single flash geothermal plant was evaluated to be 11.3 MW*. This result was obtained by applying basic thermodynamic principles, including material balance, energy balance, and enthalpy calculations. This particular project is a prelude to a robust model that will accurately determine the power capacity of geothermal power plants based on the enthalpy of geothermal fluid, size of the geothermal resource, and different plant designs. I hope that the knowledge gained from the study will promote best practices in geothermal engineering and emphasize appropriate planning for, and implementation of, geothermal plants.