why cant we use the natural heat and pressure from a volcano to produce energy? or do we already?

Answer 1

We cant use it for

- The amount of energy coming out is unpredictable and any such harnessing tool will not work under such doubts

- You never know when a volcano is going to erupt

- However, we are using that energy indirectly in the form of GEOTHERMAL energy usages

Answer 2

we do. geothermal energy. people see these as different to volcanoes however they are actually the same (kind of). they may not form a classic 'cone' shaped mountain but they still are and do the same things. yellowstone national park in america is famous for its geisers, iceland for its hot springs. these are two of the largest volcanoes on earth (in fact yellowstone is bigger then all the mountain volcanoes put together). underneath these are huge magma shafts stretching down the to earths mantle. these provide enormous heat and energy. the science of producing workable energy from this can be difficult but also productive. mostly from heat and not from pressure. to use the pressure we would have to release and manage that pressure and it would be highly risky.
just to let you know how much energy we are talking about here.
sumbawa island in indonesia has a volcanoe called tambora. this erupted in 1815. it was the biggest volcanic eruption in ten thousand years and produced the same energy as sixty thousand hiroshima bombs (150 times the size of mount st helens). it killed hundreds of thousands with its blast and ensuing tsnuamis. this actually caused england (the other side of the world) to have frost all year round and the skies were blackened from ash all year round.
now if yellowstone suffered the same fate it would be over 3,500 times bigger and would definately result in the extinction of the world as we know it. if we could harness even the slightest of that power (ie 1% for 1year) we would have enough energy to run the whole of north and south america for 2 decades!
interestingly enough yellowstone does errupt (on a big scale) quite frequently. every 600,000 years. the last time it blew? 630,000 years ago.... seems we are all a little overdue!

Answer 3

You don't use it from the volcano directly, but rather from the source of the volcano's heat, i.e. the magma below the Earth.

Geothermal power stations in volcanic areas do this. Have a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geothermal_power for more info.

Answer 4

It is being used with some volcanos which are active but have not had a record of violent eruptions. This combo is hard to come by, and more typically, power is generated from hot water deposits in the vicinity of volcanos. I believe Iceland obtains virtually all its power from this source, and parts of New Zealand, too.

Answer 5

Volcanoes are usually too unreliable and too unstable for any permanent power station to be installed close. By the time there is enough heat to offer a potential, there is also too much heat for the construction crew to get that close, the ground may be unstable and shake because of tremors, and the air may be filled with noxious gasses.

Answer 6

We do it's called geothermal energy. You use the heat to turn water in pipes to steam.

Answer 7

up in alaska at chena hot springs they have installed a geo thermal generator that uses hot water to heat glycol to steam and that drives a turbon pretty neat think green it can be done

Answer 8

Iceland has been heating its houses with this stuff for years.

Answer 9

a star for your question steve, and thumbs up for yer answerers

Answer 10

Too volatile, too unpredictable, and too hot to handle.