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Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

constructionphysics.substack.com

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Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#71

Post by MisterTea »

sbierwagen wrote: post #55
elil17 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a lot of skepticism about anything I read from constructionphysics.substack.com. I'm a mechanical engineer, not a civil engineer, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but it reads like it's written by someone who does not have a solid understanding of engineering fundamentals. For example, they suggested in their "How to design a house to last for 1,000 years" series that you'd want to build such a house o…

I mean, it would be exposed to the normal conditions any residential construction is exposed to. How often is your house dunked into seawater? 800 years from now something terrible could happen that turns all the rain into sulfuric acid but then all residential buildings everywhere are screwed.

> How often is your house dunked into seawater?

For people hit by hurricane Sandy the answer is at least once.

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#72

Post by MisterTea »

sp332 wrote: post #45
its_ethan wrote: post #2

"If heat could be bled off of the magma chambers, cooling and solidifying them, not only would that stop the volcano from erupting..." Where does the confidence to make this claim come from? I can imagine that the consequence of this might actually just be strengthening the "barrier" the magma has to erupt through, and when it finally builds up enough energy to do that, it'll be stronger in proportion to how strong t…

The linked JPL proposal is exploratory and, while it has a more serious engineering perspective, it does not have "confidence". https://scienceandtechnology.jpl.nasa.gov/sites/default/file... The USGS is very unconvinced. https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/can-we-drill-yellowstone-stop-it-e...

From the USGS article:

> Scientific research has proven again and again that depressurization is one of the factors that drives magma toward the surface to erupt.

The first time I heard of this idea my immediate thought was, "so you want to shove a needle into a massive magma balloon." I know I wouldn't.

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#73

Post by fourseventy »

jdblair wrote: post #22

The article makes the common (and grating) error of conflating power (1.5 gigawatts) and energy (power over time). Put another way, "1.5 gigawatts" does not in any way describe a rate. Do they mean 1.5 gigawatts per hour? or per day? or per year? I'm referring to this section: ...the rate that energy builds below the volcano is only around 1.5 gigawatts - less heat than a typical power plant sheds. Yellowstone curren…

Your physics is all fucked up dude (very grating).

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#74

Post by bradwood »

fahrradflucht wrote: post #67
sbierwagen wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Any allowed geothermal extraction would lower the pressure on the existing geysers and hot springs, altering their behavior and, in many cases, causing them to disappear. Oh no. Saving the lives of ten million people might make a geyser stop working. How awful.

Have you read the whole thing? It says it is not at all clear that this will save lives. It also could cause an eruption.

This is HN. No-one reads the whole thing. Some don't even read the beginning!

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#75

Post by dieselgate »

elil17 wrote: post #36
its_ethan wrote: post #2

"If heat could be bled off of the magma chambers, cooling and solidifying them, not only would that stop the volcano from erupting..." Where does the confidence to make this claim come from? I can imagine that the consequence of this might actually just be strengthening the "barrier" the magma has to erupt through, and when it finally builds up enough energy to do that, it'll be stronger in proportion to how strong t…

I have a lot of skepticism about anything I read from constructionphysics.substack.com. I'm a mechanical engineer, not a civil engineer, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but it reads like it's written by someone who does not have a solid understanding of engineering fundamentals. For example, they suggested in their "How to design a house to last for 1,000 years" series that you'd want to build such a house o…

I trust any engineer who responds with an “it depends..” over someone who has an absolute answer. Stainless would probably do ok but I’d assume stone or fiberglass/FRP would be superior over time out in the elements. But not the best stuff to build a house with.

Oh what about titanium?

Edit: lol oh well even timber structures Can last a millenium if maintained

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#77

Post by _uhtu »

Just so everyone knows, the whole "Yellowstone is a supervolcano that could erupt any minute and cause cataclysmic effects on the planet" is just not true. It was made up for TV "documentaries". Yellowstone does not pose any real threat to society at large. Volcanologists are practically unanimous in that belief. See this video for more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypn3Fe_PLts

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#78

Post by [deleted] »

nonethewiser wrote: post #59
elil17 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a lot of skepticism about anything I read from constructionphysics.substack.com. I'm a mechanical engineer, not a civil engineer, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but it reads like it's written by someone who does not have a solid understanding of engineering fundamentals. For example, they suggested in their "How to design a house to last for 1,000 years" series that you'd want to build such a house o…

> because it "has extremely high corrosion resistance." Isn't this true though? Especially relative to other materials that can corrode? It seems like you're reacting as if he said it _cant_ corrode.

[deleted]

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#79

Post by avodonosov »

dieselgate wrote: post #75
elil17 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a lot of skepticism about anything I read from constructionphysics.substack.com. I'm a mechanical engineer, not a civil engineer, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but it reads like it's written by someone who does not have a solid understanding of engineering fundamentals. For example, they suggested in their "How to design a house to last for 1,000 years" series that you'd want to build such a house o…

I trust any engineer who responds with an “it depends..” over someone who has an absolute answer. Stainless would probably do ok but I’d assume stone or fiberglass/FRP would be superior over time out in the elements. But not the best stuff to build a house with. Oh what about titanium? Edit: lol oh well even timber structures Can last a millenium if maintained

Why not simply use gold?

Re: Could we stop Yellowstone from erupting with a giant geothermal power plant?

#80

Post by MisterTea »

phkahler wrote: post #39

What about drilling (maybe nuking) a hole to create a "small volcano to relieve pressure?

The thing is, think about what are you relieving: magma. It's not gas. It's literally liquid rock being squeezing up a channel pushing against the weight of the earth above it. If the pressure of the earth is greater than the magma it can start to spread horizontally and forms a chamber like a bladder. Then it keeps building pressure lifting the earth until it either bursts or maybe the earth shifts and pressure is relieved or moved elsewhere, or or equalizes and just hangs around. It's like a pimple really. Don't pop it unless you want to clean up after it.
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