GEOGRAPHY PROJECT
NAME: Aritra Dey
CLASS: 10
SECTION: A1
ROLL NUMBER:
B/206/2011
PROJECT TOPIC:
Energy Resources
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
What are energy resources?
Energy resources are the sources of power and electricity that is required in
practically every sphere of our life both in domestic and commercial sectors.
Availability of energy resources is a vital requirement in the economic growth and
progress of any nation, especially in this age of intense mechanisation and
digitalisation.
There are two sources of energy-
i) Conventional Energy sources – These sources, traditionally, have been in use
for a long time and even today, they are being used in mass quantities to facilitate
our need of power as well as in many other fields. Although they are very
exhaustible, expensive and cause pollution, these sources are still the primary
means to obtain power for us. They include fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum and
natural gas with hydroelectric power being the only eco-friendly conventional source
of energy.
ii) Non-conventional energy sources – These sources are being put in use more
and more recently to replace fossil fuels as our primary source of power as well as to
reduce environmental degradation. They are renewable, inexhaustible and cheaper.
These include solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy and biogas.
CHAPTER 2: CONVENTIONAL ENERGY RESOURCES
ADVANTAGES-
1. Fossil fuels are energy rich resources that combust easily and release a good
amount of energy when burned. They practically support all the heavy energy,
along with hydropower, that is generated to meet both our commercial and
domestic energy requirements and also provide the fuel that powers various
transport vehicles.
2. Although there is a cost to raw material in the case of fossil fuels, the high
calorific value produced by them leads to a relatively low cost per unit of
electricity. Also, hydropower is one of the cheapest sources of electricity.
3. Coal, petroleum, natural gas and running water are reliable energy resources
and the power generated from them is consistent. Importantly, they can be
stored and used on demand that goes a long way in preventing wastage.
4. These fossil fuels can also be transported from place to place easily with the
help of roads, railways and waterways. Power generated from these
conventional sources can also be transmitted and therefore, be linked up to
power grids.
DISADVANTAGES-
1. Non-renewable energy can be dangerous and cause respiratory problems to
humans because of sources like fossil fuels emitting poisonous gases such as
carbon monoxide.
2. This type of energy, with the exception of hydropower, is exhaustible, and is
rapidly depleting natural resources that take very long periods of time to form.
3. Although they have a high calorific value, transportation cost of fossil fuels
can be very high. Apart from that, the raw material cost is also very high.
CHAPTER 3: EXAMPLES OF CONVENTIONAL ENERGY
RESOURCES
COAL
Uses-
1. Used in steel industries for smelting iron ore in blast furnaces.
2. The by-products of coal i.e., benzol, ammonia, gas, naphtha, phenol tar and
sulphur have multiple uses.
ADVANTAGES-
1. Coal, traditionally has been used for heating and as cooking fuel in the domestic
sector.
2. It forms basic raw materials for production of cement, chemicals, dyes and many
such products.
DISADVANTAGES-
1. Burning of coal is a major source of air pollution and greenhouse gas
emission.
2. Coal is not a sustainable source of energy as it takes millions of years to form.
Thus, we may be using it faster than it can replenish itself.
DISTRIBUTION-
Korba (Chhattisgarh), Rangunj (West Bengal), Rampur (Chhattisgarh), Talcher
(Odisha)
PETROLEUM
Uses-
1. Petroleum is used as a source of power and fuel for automobiles, locomotives,
planes and ships.
2. Used for generation of thermal power.
ADVANTAGES-
1. Petroleum is very easy to extract
2. Petroleum is a high-density fuel.
DISADVANTAGES-
1. Being a non-renewable source, it is finite in quantity.
2. Combustion of petroleum contribute dangerous gases to the environment .
DISTRIBUTION-
Digboi (Assam), Lunej (Gujrat), Kalol (Gujrat), Dhokla (Gujrat)
CHAPTER 4: NON-CONVENTIONAL ENERGY RESOURCES
ADVANTAGES-
1. Non-conventional energy resources, are all clean energy resources that are
eco-friendly, reduce our carbon footprint and do not emit greenhouse gases
that pollute the environment.
2. They are based on natural resources and waste resources that are free to use.
Thus, they are economically beneficial.
3. The natural resources such as the sun, wind, tides and geothermal energy are
all flow resources that are inexhaustible and hence can provide a sustainable
source of energy for all time.
4. Sources such as nuclear energy are extraordinarily energy-efficient with 1 ton
of uranium producing more energy than 3 million tons of coal.
DISADVANTAGES-
1. They are inconsistent, a number of these need the weather, climate and
environment to cooperate with them to harness energy.
2. Setting up solar panels, wind turbines, dams, biogas plants, nuclear plants and
geothermal factories requires a huge amount of funding.
3. A lot of non- conventional energy isn’t commercially viable. Non-conventional
energy sources that are location-specific have very limited accessibility.
Landlocked states can't have ocean energy sources available.
4. Non-conventional energy sources are sometimes responsible for harming
wildlife. Wind energy farms are notorious for harming species of birds, bats
and insects with windmill blades. Certain solar energy farms create intense hot
zones in the atmosphere which harm passing birds and insects.
CHAPTER 5: EXAMPLE OF NON-CONVENTIONAL ENERGY
RESOURCES
SOLAR ENERGY
Uses-
1. It is used as heat for making hot water, heating buildings and cooking.
2. Generates electricity through solar cells and heat engines.
Generation-
Energy can be harnessed directly from the sun, even in cloudy weather. Solar energy
is used worldwide and is increasingly popular for generating electricity or heating
and desalinating water. It is generated in two main ways-
Photovoltaics (PV), also called solar cells, are electronic devices that convert
sunlight directly into electricity.
Concentrated solar power (CSP), uses mirrors to concentrate solar rays.
These rays heat fluid, which creates steam to drive a turbine and generate
electricity. CSP is used to generate electricity in large-scale power plants.
DISTRIBUTION-
Karnataka, Rajasthan, Gujrat, Maharashtra
WIND ENERGY
Uses-
1. Generates electricity through wind turbines.
2. To use it for transportation with vehicles like sail boats
Generation-
Wind power generation means getting the electrical energy by converting wind
energy into rotating energy of the blades and converting that rotating energy into
electrical energy by the generator. Wind energy increases with the cube of the wind
speed, therefore Wind Turbines should be installed in the higher wind speed area.
DISTRIBUTION-
Tamil Nadu, Gujrat, Maharashtra, Karnataka
CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION
Two decades having already passed in the twenty-first century, it is evident to us that
energy consumption will be one aspect of our livelihood that we would have to be on
the look out for. Fossil fuels such as coal and petroleum that humanity has been
dependent upon are rapidly depleting to the point that it would not be farfetched to
say that they might get exhausted completely sooner than later if we do not take
actions now. Though it is very late, we still have a chance of preserving our natural
resources. We have to start using non-conventional sources of energy soon as they
are very eco-friendly. For example, something like nuclear energy can satisfy all our
needs better than any fossil fuel ever could. Also, natural resource depletion is not
the only problem we are having as of now. The burning of fossil fuels is leading to
great amounts of pollution. In our city, Kolkata, recently it was speculated that all the
pollution in our air can reduce a person’s life span by nearly 9 years! Our
government has set up some wind energy farms and nuclear plants but it definitely
still does not give it as much recognition as it should. I feel it is high time for us to
balance our energy consumption and be more eco-friendly with the generation of
electricity so that our children and generations that would come after them can see a
better tomorrow.