Types of Renewable Energy
Hydropower
Hydropower is the largest source of renewable energy. This renewable source of energy provides 10% of the nation’s electricity. As of now, there are 77,000 Megawatts of hydropower, enough to provide 35 million homes with energy. Converting flowing water into usable energy produces hydropower. Most of this water comes from rivers and is released through turbines to produce energy. Although this power source does not release pollution, it can possibly harm fish and wildlife, displace people, and alter the quality of water. Better technology is trying to reduce the loss of aquatic life, but the problem with this technology is that it is highly expensive and takes a long time to build.
Did you know…? Renewable energy technology is improving considerably. Energy prices have dropped; new vehicles with advanced fuel systems and alternative fuels (such as Ethanol) are being introduced and are a way to better technological advancements.
Biomass/Bioenergy
Biomass makes up about 7,000 Megawatts of renewable electricity. Biomass fuels stem from industrial processing, such as forestry and wood products, agriculture and wood products, and construction and transportation. Biomass can replace coal in power plants because it produces less sulfur dioxide than coal.
Mill operations seem to be the main source of biomass energy in the U.S. Europe, on the other hand, draws its main source of bioenergy from urban wood waste. Third world countries make timber their main source of bioenergy.
According from statistics from the International Energy Agency, 11% of the world derives its energy from biomass. Developing countries use about 35%, while the poorest ones use roughly 90%.
One way to convert biomass into usable energy is through gasification—converting biomass to gas and burning it in a gas turbine.
Geothermal Energy
Geothermal energy is capable of producing about 2,800 Megawatts of energy per year, or roughly .2% of the energy in the U.S. Geothermal energy is produced from naturally occurring steam and hot water from under the Earth’s surface. The steam rotates a turbine, which in turn powers an electric generator. Also, hot water can be used to directly heat buildings. The downside to geothermal energy is that land sites are very hard to find and extremely rare. A positive fact is that geothermal energy is very cost effective and reliable.
Wind Energy
Wind energy produces about 2,500 Megawatts of energy, and generates a mere .1% of our electricity. The wind rotates blades around a hub, which is connected to the main shaft. The main shaft spins a generator. The size of turbines is determined by how much energy is needed. Small wind turbines are usually used for homes, farms and ranches. Other ways to use wind energy include grinding grain and pumping water.
Wind is classed in categories of 1 through 7, with 7 being the highest and 1 being the lowest. A good wind source that has a class of 3 or higher is the east coast and along the Appalachian Mountains. North Dakota is an excellent wind source.
The disadvantages of wind energy are that again, the technology is very expensive, the machinery is known to be noisy, birds have been killed by running into the turbines, and the wind might not be present at certain times throughout the year.
Photovoltaics (PV) Cells
PV cells produce electricity from sunlight. Materials used in computer chips are similar to materials used in PV cells. These materials absorb sunlight, which frees the electrons from their atoms and allows them to generate electricity.PV cells are great because they don’t require high maintenance, are very reliable, and don’t produce pollutants.
Although it is better to use renewable energy, we still have to use some type of fossil fuels. We can, however, make the best choices, by using natural gas for water heating and power appliance, which not only is better for the environment, but costs less as well.
The downside to this power resource is that it costs more than other energy sources and tends to work effectively only when the sun is shining.
Some examples of non-renewable sources of energy
A non-renewable resource once depleted can never be renewed or replaced (or may take millions of years to be replenished).- Coal
- Lignite
- Oil
- Natural gas
- Shale oil
- Uranium (Uranium235)
Non-renewable resource
A non-renewable resource is a natural resourcesustain its consumption rate. These resources often exist in a fixed amount, or are consumed much faster than nature can recreate them. Fossil fuel (such as coal, petroleum and natural gas) and nuclear power are examples. In contrast, resources such as timber (when harvested sustainably) or metals (which can be recycled) are considered renewable resources.
Which cannot be produced, re-grown, regenerated, or reused on a scale which can
Fossil fuel
Further information: Oil depletion
Natural resources such as coal, petroleum, oil and natural gas take thousands of years to form naturally and cannot be replaced as fast as they are being consumed. Eventually natural resources will become too costly to harvest and humanity will need to find other sources of energy. At present, the main energy sources used by humans are non-renewable as they are cheap to produce natural resources, called renewable resources, are replaced by natural processes given a reasonable amount of time. Soil, water, forests, plants, and animals are all renewable resources as long as they are properly conserved. Solar, wind, wave, and geothermal energies are based on renewable resources. Renewable resources such as the movement of water (hydropower, including tidal power; ocean surface waves used for wave power), wind (used for wind power), geothermal heat (used for geothermal power); and radiant energy (used for solar power) are practically infinite and cannot be depleted, unlike their non-renewable counterparts, which are likely to run out if not used wisely. Still, these technologies are not fully utilized.[2]
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