Of the bacterial isolates found in the Arctic that are able to degrade PCBs, none used compounds such as 2-chlorobiphenyl, 3-chlorobiphenyl, camphor, citronellol, cymene, dehydroabietic acid, limonene, methanol, n-hexadecane, pentachlorophenol, phenol, or pinene as primary growth substrates (Master and Mohn 1998).
In the 20th century, demand for electricity led to the consideration of geothermal power as a generating source. Prince Piero Ginori Conti tested the first geothermal power generator on 4 July 1904, at the same Larderello dry steam field where geothermal acid extraction began. It successfully lit four light bulbs. Later, in 1911, the world's first commercial geothermal power plant was built there.
Current Use. Updated by Leslie Blodgett GEA 2014. In the 1920s, geothermal electrical generation in the U. S. began at what would become known the world over as The Geysers geothermal field. The U.S. geothermal industry produces more energy from geothermal plants than any other country.