| Abstract |
Early humans probably used geothermal water that occurred in natural pools and hot springs for cooking, bathing and to keep warm. We have archeological evidence that the Indians of the Americas occupied sites around these geothermal resources for over 10,000 years to recuperated from battle and take refuge. Many of their oral legends describe these places and other volcanic phenomena. Recorded history shows uses by Romans, Japanese, Turks, Icelanders, Central Europeans and the Maori of New Zealand for bathing, cooking and space heating. Baths in the Roman Empire, the middle kingdom of the Chinese, and the Turkish baths of the Ottomans were some of the early uses of balneology; where, body health, hygiene and discussions were the social custom of the day. This custom has been extended to geothermal spas in Japan, Germany, Iceland, countries of the former Austro-Hungarian empire, the Americas and New Zealand. Other early uses included the geothermal water at Huaqingchi Hot Spring in China; where, a bathing and treatment facility was built in the Qin Dynasty (over 2,000 years ago), and a hot spring at Ziaotangshan near Beijing used for recreation for about 800 years by the royal family, and other high-ranking officials in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Early industrial applications include chemical extraction from the natural manifestations of steam, pools and mineral deposits in the Larderello region of Italy. Serious industrial activity began only after the discovery of boric acid in the hot pools in 1777. The first attempt at using these minerals was made in 1810, and nine factories were built between 1816 and 1835. A flourishing chemical industry was in operation by the early 1900's. At Chaudes-Aigues in the heart of France, the worldÃs first geothermal district heating system was started in the 14th century and is still going strong. As described above, we know that there have been many countries where geothermal has been used in the past, but most of this utilization has not been documented. However, a recent publication (1999): Stories from a Heated Earth - Our Geothermal Heritage (edited by R. Cataldi, S. Hodgson and J. Lund) describes many of these early uses prior to the industrial revolution. This publication covers more than 25 countries with historical information taken from the works of archaeologists, historians, geographers, anthropologists, scientists and engineers. Thus, we now have in a single reference documenting the early uses of geothermal energy -- from hot spring bathing to the use of geothermal material such as obsidian and tuff, along with the legends and myths associated with fumaroles, hot springs and volcanic eruption. These uses continues today with electric power generation, and space heating and cooling. |