The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-05-14
HARVESTING A VOLCANO.
Volcanic Steam Generates Electricity
for Light and Power in Tuscany.

Larderello, Italy, has an electric cen
tral station which is one of the most
extraordinary installations in tho
world. Three big turbo-geacrators
supply the townSpcople with electric
itv for Illuminating purposes at
night. During tue day the power is
used TO operate big munition flcto-
rics. And not a pound of coal is
consumed to supply the turbines with
steam, for the steam is piped to the
turbines from q smoking volcano and
the whirriug dvnamos change the
waste energy of nature into electric
! itv ready to furnish light, heat and
/ power TO the towns and villages OF
| Tuscany. Two Of the generating
units have been operated with the vol
| canic heat for nearly Il year with
complete satisfaction and electric
energy for manufacturing and domes-
! tic purposes has practically displaced
coal which is both scarce and expen-
! sivc.
! Prince Gmori Cont was the one to
whom is due the credit of hitching III
, volcanic heat to perform the work oil
the ncighborhood He experimental
with the powerful Jets of steam forced
up through the cracks in the ground
and in 1906 tried to apply the waste
j. cacrgv to steam motor, Afterwards
q strong JET was used to run z small
electric lighting set and enough clce
tricity was generated to light the ho
, rax workings. The schem was i'm
70 proved upon later when holes wer,
bored into The ground and pipe
driven down to tap the source of tn
p steam some 500 or 800 feet below tn
5 surface With bore holes varyin!
from a foot to % inches in size, steam
under q pressure Of from two to fly
atmospheres and with 4 tempcratur
- Of $50 to 1870 degrees Centigrad
enough power was obtained to operat
p. an ordinary steam engine OF 40-horse
power in 1906 Tile mechanical opera
tion Of tho engine was a success, an
0 il ran for several years with volcanI
: steam at practically no expense Tn
r. onl- disadvantage lay in the rapidit
with which the natural salts an
u gases, mixed with the steam, rnste
t awav the working parts OF the el
e CINE.
Not to lac discouraged by this Iii
Is this undesirable feature by piping ii
'r super-heatcd steam to q boiler an
v using il to heat the boiler and gen
-. rate steam which did not contain Il
injurious salts and gases. Using Il
u volcanic steam instead of fuel beneat
an ordinary tubular boiler, he secure
# steam under pressure of two atmo
. phercs which he applied to a stea
turbine connected to an electric sc
&c orator and distributed the. power
&c the city and outlying villages.
g. successful was the scheme that
no extensive plant was planned al
three turboelcctric generating uni
n with capacity Of 5000 kilowat
in were installed. specially construct
ke group of boilers with aluminium flu
n to prevent the corrosive effects Of t
natural steam was erected in conn:
&C. ton with them. and in January, l9l
or the first unit was started. Since tn
ie time all tire units have been III G
~. cratioa and have given entire sat
faction thus proving the success
an tho scheme and opening up new fiC
We for the rs of natural resourc s ma
nj to furnish heat, light and power.
This method of using the interf
w heat of the earth to generate 81,
W. tricitv may be Increased to ma
if hundreds Of thousands Of horsepow
oa and the current already general
lights the cities OF Lc9horn. Floren
y and many Of the smaller towns
ms Tuscany.