The potential to improve air quality by increasing the use of deep geothermal energy

Increasing the use of geothermal energy may be one of the tools bringing us closer to achieving the European Commission’s objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030. Air quality improvement plays a strategic role in achieving sustainable energy development. Both European and national legislation in this field is particularly comprehensive and effective, establishing rules for monitoring and preventing air pollution in order to avoid adverse effects on human health and the environment. Unfortunately, the effective air pollutions monitoring network currently in place in Poland, with 156 monitoring stations, mainly concerns agglomerations and cities with over 100,000 inhabitants. The lack of information on the state of pollution in smaller towns is a significant limitation in terms of research aimed at assessing the effects of corrective measures taken, such as the possible transformation of district heating systems based on RES, including the use of deep geothermal energy. This paper proposes some solutions which allow the effective estimation of air conditions in locations not covered by environmental monitoring, in the context of the potential to develop geothermal resources in the rich geothermal province of Central Poland

Efficient mixture model for clustering of sparse high dimensional binary data

Clustering is one of the fundamental tools for preliminary analysis of data. While most of the clustering methods are designed for continuous data, sparse high-dimensional binary representations became very popular in various domains such as text mining or cheminformatics. The application of classical clustering tools to this type of data usually proves to be very inefficient, both in terms of computational complexity as well as in terms of the utility of the results. In this paper we propose a mixture model, SparseMix, for clustering of sparse high dimensional binary data, which connects model-based with centroid-based clustering. Every group is described by a representative and a probability distribution modeling dispersion from this representative. In contrast to classical mixture models based on the EM algorithm, SparseMix: is specially designed for the processing of sparse data; can be efficiently realized by an on-line Hartigan optimization algorithm; describes every cluster by the most representative vector. We have performed extensive experimental studies on various types of data, which confirmed that SparseMix builds partitions with a higher compatibility with reference grouping than related methods. Moreover, constructed representatives often better reveal the internal structure of data

Involvement of pattern recognition receptors in the induction of cytokines and reactive oxygen intermediates production by human monocytes/macrophages stimulated with tumour cells

Background: Some ligands of pattern recognitionm receptors (PRR) are present on tumour cells. The role of PRR in signalling for cytokine and reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) production by monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages (MDM) stimulated with tumour cells was studied. Materials and Methods: Monocytes/MDM were pretreated with PRR ligands or anti-PRR monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and stimulated with tumour cells. Cytokine secretion was measured by enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) and ROI production by luminol-dependent chemiluminescence (CL). Results: The ligands of scavenger receptor A (SR-A): (fucoidan, polyguanylic acid (polyG) and modified low density lipoproteins (LDL)) and B (SR-B) (native and modified LDL, phosphatidylserine (PdS)) and of mannose receptor (MR) (mannan), induced tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF) and ROI (except LDL) release by monocytes. Production of TNF and interleukin-10 (IL-10) by MDM was stimulated by SR-A ligands and mannan. Tumour cell-induced TNF and IL-10 production by monocytes, but not MDM, was diminished by fucoidan and polyG, while ROI release was reduced by MR and SR-A ligands. Supplementation of tumour cells with modified LDL and PdS enhanced their stimulatory capacity. TNF and ROI release by tumour cells-stimulated monocytes was inhibited by anti-CD36 and anti-MR (clone PAM-1) mAbs. Conclusion: SR and MR may be involved to different extents in the induction of cytokines and ROI production by monocytes, but not MDM, stimulated with tumour cells

Ból i cierpienie. Materiały konferencyjne

Ze wstępu: "Coroczne spotkania lekarzy w klasztorze Sióstr Duehaczek, czyli poprawnie Sióstr Kanoniczck Ducha Świętego przy kościele Św. Tomasza w Krakowie przy ulicy Szpitalnej, w tradycyjnym dla tego zakonu terminie - tj. w drugą niedzielę po święcie Trzech Króli - przekształciły się w 1994 roku w sympozja naukowe, poświęcone stałemu tematowi: „Ból i cierpienie”. W tym roku spotkaliśmy się w dniach 17 i 18 stycznia 2004, tradycyjnie już, w Domu Towarzystwa Lekarskiego Krakowskiego przy ulicy Radziwiłłowskiej 4. W skład Komitetu Organizacyjnego Konferencji, wzorem lat ubiegłych weszli: prof, dr hab. med. Andrzej Środka, Kierownik Katedry Historii Medycyny CM UJ, prof, dr hab. med. Janusz Andres, Kierownik Katedry Anestezjologii i Intensywnej Terapii CM UJ, dr hab. med. Zdzisław Gajda, prof. UJ, Przewodniczący Stowarzyszenia Absolwentów Wydziałów Medycznych UJ, dr med. Alicja Macheta, Przewodnicząca Podkarpackiego Oddziału Towarzystwa Anestezjologii i Intensywnej Terapii, dr Maria Dorota Schmidt-Pospuła, Przewodnicząca Krakowskiego Towarzystwa Miłośników Historii Medycyny."(...

Stan wykorzystania energii geotermalnej w Europie i na świecie w 2020 r.

According to data presented at the World Geothermal Congress 2020+1 and the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC) market report, a significant increase in the use of geothermal energy was recorded worldwide in 2015-2020. The number of countries reporting direct use of geothermal resources (including ground source heat pumps) increased to 88 (34 in Europe), while the number of countries reporting geothermal electricity production to 29 (11 in Europe). The increase in the installed geothermal capacity for direct use in the last 5years was over 50%, reaching approx. 108 GWt (use of thermal energy slightly exceeds ca. 1 EJ/year), wherein ground source heat pumps (GSHP) possess the highest percentage share in the above increase. They are responsible for almost 60% of the energy produced. The world leaders in terms of direct use of geothermal energy, excluding ground source heat pumps, are in the following order: China, Turkey, Japan, Iceland, Hungary, and New Zealand. China, where the installed capacity of GSHP amounted to approx. 26 GWt, holds the scepter of the world leader in this field. Three European countries: Sweden, Germany and Finland, are on the “top five” list in the world in terms of installed capacity at geothermal heat pumps. The total installed capacity of geothermal power plants in the world at the end of 2019 amounted to approx. 16 GWe (approx. 30% increase in 2015-2019), which allowed for the production of approx. 95 TWh/year of electricity. The world leader in terms of generating electricity from geothermal energy is the United States, with an installed capacity of approx. 3.7 GWe. The remaining countries with installed capacity exceeding 1 GWe are: Indonesia, the Philippines, Turkey, Kenya, New Zealand, and Mexico. A growing interest in generating electricity by using binary systems, in particular in Europe has been noticed. In the period 2015-2019, three new binary installations in Croatia, Hungary, and Belgium were put into operation. In 2020, 8 new geothermal power plants were commissioned in Turkey, which provide additional capacity of approx. 165 MWe. In Europe, geothermal electricity is produced in 11 countries, and the installed capacity in 139 power plants has been estimate data round 3.5 GWe. In recent years, in the world, and especially in Europe, a significant increase in interest in the recovery of critical elements (CRMs) from geothermal waters, mainly lithium, has been noticed. The initially identified potential indicates the possibility of covering up to approx. 25% of the EU countries' demand for lithium from geothermal brines by 2030. In many countries, geothermal energy is one of the most promising sources of renewable energy, especially when it comes to environmental and economic considerations. In some countries of the world, geothermal energy is a key element of the economy, guaranteeing energy security and enabling the achievement of the goals of climate neutrality. In other, less developed countries, geothermal energy may constitute the basic source of energy, and sometimes a significant source of national income, conditioning economic development and increasing the country's economic and energy independence

Baza zasobowa wód termalnych na Niżu Polskim - geologiczne i hydrogeologiczne uwarunkowania lokalizacji obszarów perspektywicznych Geothermal water resource base in the Polish Lowlands - geological and hydrogeological conditions of localization of prospective areas /

Tyt. z nagłówka.Bibliogr. s. 523-526.Dostępny również w formie drukowanej.STRESZCZENIE: W profilach geologicznych na Niżu Polskim, w osadach od starszego paleozoiku po dolną kredę, można wyróżnić szereg utworów, których wykształcenie litologiczne wskazuje na możliwości występowania dobrych poziomów zbiornikowych dla wód termalnych. Geologiczne, hydrogeologiczne i termiczne parametry charakteryzujące zbiorniki wód wgłębnych na Niżu Polskim wskazują na możliwości kompleksowego ich wykorzystania zarówno w celach energetycznych, jak i balneoterapeutycznych oraz rekreacyjnych. Szczególnie interesująco pod względem możliwości wykorzystania wód termalnych prezentują się rejony niecek: warszawskiej, mogileńsko-łódzkiej oraz szczecińskiej. Wykorzystanie wód termalnych do celów grzewczych poszczególnych województw i miast centralnej Polski, winno, w pierwszej kolejności, opierać się na zasobach dolnojurajskiego zbiornika hydrogeotermalnego. Identyfikacja warunków geotermalnych skał wieku paleozoicznego stanowi istotne uzupełnienie wiedzy na temat krajowych zasobów energii geotermalnej i wskazuje na nowe możliwości rozwoju geotermii w rejonach leżących poza obszarami występowania ciepłych wód podziemnych formacji mezozoicznych na Niżu Polskim. SŁOWA KLUCZOWE: energia geotermalna, zasoby, atlas zasobów, Niż Polski. ABSTRACT: Within geological sections of the Polish Lowlands, in Early Paleozoic through Early Cretaceous formations, a number of layers can be distinguished, lithological development of which indicates possible occurrence of good geothermal aquifers. Geological, hydrogeological and thermal parameters that characterize aquifers in the Polish Lowlands indicate possibility of complex utilization of geothermal waters, as well for energy production as balneotherapy and recreation. Areas of the Warsaw Trough, Mogilno-Łódź Trough and Szczecin Trough are particularly interesting in terms of thermal water utilization. Utilization of thermal waters for heating purposes in particular voivodships and towns of central Poland should, first of all, be based on the resources of the Lower Jurassic aquifer. Identification of geothermal conditions of Paleozoic formations represents important completion of knowledge of domestic geothermal energy resources and indicate new possibilities of geothermal development in regions outside the areas of hot underground waters in Mesozoic formations of the Polish Lowlands. KEYWORDS: geothermal energy, resources, atlas of resources, Polish Lowlands

Geological conditions of geothermal resource occurrences in Poland

The occurrence of geothermal resources in Poland relates to four main hydrogeothermal provinces: the Polish Lowlands, the Carpathians, the Carpathian Foredeep and the Sudetes, each characterized by different geological conditions. Recognition of Poland's geothermal potential on a regional scale is good, yet, in order to evaluate the capabilities of utilising geothermal waters taking into account specific local conditions, a detailed geological, hydrogeological and thermal analysis is required in each case. Sometimes, the results of this analysis provide new insights into the geological structure and hydrogeological conditions in the region of specific resources, and indicate alternative approaches to resource evaluation. We summarise the geological conditions around geothermal water resources in Poland, and also illustrate local variability in selected hydrogeothermal parameters in the area of Wiśniowa, located in the Outer Carpathians, and in Poddębice, a central part of the Polish Lowlands. Selected examples of the effects of the research carried out in these areas of Wiśniowa and Poddębice show situations where the results of making a borehole can be unpredictable

Subsalt Rotliegend Sediments—A New Challenge for Geothermal Systems in Poland

New seismic data and the completion of the K-1 petroleum exploratory well, located close to the axial zone of the Mogilno-Łódź Trough (Polish Lowlands) delivered new insight into local structural, tectonic, facial and thermal variability of this geological unit. In this paper, the two variants of 3D models (SMV1 and SMV2) of Permian-Mesozoic strata are presented for the salt pillow related Kłecko Anticline, while resources assessment was confined to the Rotliegend Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) type reservoir, that is divided into Playa, Eolian and Fluvial facies-based complexes. Using very conservative assumptions on the methods of the EGS reservoir development, authors assessed that heat in place and technical potential for eolian sandstones are about 386 PJ and ca. 2814 kW, respectively, and for Fluvial 367 PJ and ca. 2850 kW in relation to the volume of 1 km3 at depths of about 5000 m b.s.l. The authors recommend for the further development of the Eolian complex because of its low shale content, influencing the high susceptibility to fracking. The presented research is the first Polish local resources assessment for an EGS reservoir in sedimentary Rotliegend, within thermal anomaly below the salt pillow, which is one of over 100 salt structures mapped in Poland

Research and education activities of KSE WGGiOŚ AGH in the field of geothermal energy in 2019–2021 and further action plans

For many years, geothermal issues have been one of the basic research and teaching activities of the Department of Fossil Fuels of the Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and Environmental Protection of the AGH University of Science and Technology (KSE WGGiOŚ AGH). National and international research projects on the evaluation of the geothermal potential of Poland, innovative technologies for geothermal energy extraction, as well as effective management of water resources and geothermal energy are carried out. In recent years (2019-2021), scientific and research projects such as GeoPLASMA-CE, EnerGizerS, Geotherm, CA18219 Geothermal-DHC, Lajkonik, NiżPIG, concerning the issues of shallow and deep geothermal energy utilization, are implemented. As far as didactic activity is concerned, the AGH is developing Ecological Energy Sources, as well as petroleum geology and geothermal specialization at the Applied Geology. Doctoral theses in the field of geothermics are being carried out. Research works, including projects concerning construction of heat pump prototypes, are carried out in the Centre for Sustainable Development and Energy Conservation of the AGH University of Science and Technology in Miękinia equipped with heat pump test stands. The Centre is currently being expanded