RENEWABLE ENERGY
Energy generated from resources that are naturally replenished (in a time scale meaningful to humans)
Examples: Wind, Hydro power, Solar power, Tidal power, Geothermal (heat from the planet), Biomass,
traditional (burning wood) and new (biofuels).
Wind
Wind power is: The generation of electricity or power from wind
Wind power includes: Turbines to make electricity, Wind pumps for pumping water, Wind sails to propel
ship.
Generator is used to convert kinetic energy into electrical energy
Wind turbines are grouped together to form “group farms”
Supplying energy to cities
Benefits: Challenges:
1. Cheap Completely clean Nearly inexhaustible 1. Intermittent
2. Available in remote and poor areas Possibility 2. Ecological impacts
of distributed generation 3. Kills birds
3. Can be high-tech or low-tech 4. Uses large areas of land
5. May degrade area’s scenic resources
6. Controversy over visual impact of wind farms
Solar
Solar Power is the generation of electricity from sunlight. Produced either through solar panels,
or through concentrating solar power. Predictable intermittent. The fastest growing form of
renewable energy
Process of Concentrated Solar Power
Heliostats (Mirrors) reflects sunlight on receiver (heat exchanger)
Fluid with molten salt goes to the receiver absorbing heat raising its temperature from 500 to
1000 Fahrenheit.
(Molten Salts are energy absorbing material and can work at various temperature ranges in a
liquid state)
The fluid descends back and into the Thermal Storage Tank where energy is stored as high
temperature molten salts until electricity is needed.
When needed, the molten salt is pumped to the steam generator and simultaneously water is
pumped from Water Storage Tank to the steam generator as well generating steam.
(Once the hot salts are used to make steam, the cold salts are driven back to the Cold Storage
tankers and up towards the receiver)
Steam is used to run the turbine and the a highly efficient energy is used to produce electricity.
(Steam is later condensed to water that is sent back to Water Storage Tank)
Benefits: Challenges:
1. With the exception of solar cell production 1. Some technologies are still in development
(uses metals and chemicals), it is clean 2. Sophisticated skills and huge finances
Inexhaustible 3. may be required Need for integration with
2. Available in remote and poor areas current systems
3. Possibility of distributed generation
4. Can be high-tech or low-tech
BIOMASS AND BIOFUELS
Energy recovered from biomass-organic matter. Energy from biomass is the oldest fuel used by humans.
Includes: firewood, cattle dung, peat, Firewood, Organic wastes- cattle dung, Crops grown to be
converted into liquid fuels.
Process
Non Plants accumulated Carbon from CO2 they intake. As they die the Carbon content in the ground
Sustainable increases. Over millions of years high Carbon content results in production of coal, gas and oil.
How we warm our house?
We extract coal that is sent to the houses. Fuel is then burnt providing heat and increasing levels
of CO2 in the atmosphere.
Biomass Alternative
Plants accumulated Carbon from CO2 they intake. The Plants are harvested and their wood is
Sustainable used in the houses. The burning of wood results in CO2 in the air. And the cycle continues.
Instead of houses, the wood can be used in industries to supply electricity to households.
Benefits: Challenges:
1. Create no net carbon emissions 1. Indoor air quality
2. Relatively non-toxic in production 2. The ‘food or fuel’ debate Deforestation
3. Impact on water resources-for livestock and
biofuel production process
GEOTHERMAL
The underground water in contact with hot spot gets heated into steam at high pressure. By drilling
holes into hot spots the steam coming out can be used to rotate turbines of generators to produce
electricity.
Process
Water in the underground reservoirs is heated by the magma itself.
The pipes are set thousands of meters down. The pressure created results in the hot water
going up the pipes.
As it travels up to the surface the pressure reduces turning hot water into some steam.
It goes through a separator where pressure is reduced. Most of the fluid turns into a steam The
remaining fluid is set to low pressures to produce low pressure steam.
All steams are then sent to the turbine turning the shaft attached to the generator.
Electricity is produced and sent to the transformers where voltage is increased and supplied to
the households.
BENEFITS CHALLENGES
1. Requires no fuel and so is environmentally 1. High capital costs
sustainable 2. Can trigger earthquakes if improperly located
2. Direct heating can use very simple Considerable thermal pollution from hot
technologies wastewaters
3. Highly scalable 3. May be saline or highly corrosive
4. On-site noise, emissions of gas and
disturbance of lan
Tidal power
A form of hydro power that converts the energy of tides into useable electricity (Not widely used, but
holds great potential)
When strong wind blows over the sea it produces huge waves. These can be used to rotate the turbines
of generators to produce electricity
Benefits Challenges
1. No greenhouse gas emissions 1. Environmental impacts include fish mortality
2. Potential sites include most coastal areas 2. Intermittency
3. Predictably intermittent 3. High infrastructure costs
Key Points (Summary)
Renewable energy includes:
o Wind: has issues with intermittency but is inexhaustible, completely clean and can be low-tech
o Solar: is gaining market share more quickly than other renewable, is inexhaustible, but has
ecological impacts associated with production of the cells.
o Biomass: has produced the ‘food or fuel’ debate but is accessible to many of the world’s poorest
people.
o Geothermal: is sustainable but has high capital startup costs.
o Tidal: is predictable intermittent, but may have environmental costs.
Potential benefits: Potential challenges:
1. Reduced carbon emissions 1. Ecological damage
2. Reduced air pollution 2. High financial costs of start-up
3. Local sustainability 3. Need to develop new skills and technologies
4. Diversified economy Complexity: no single renewable is the silver
bullet Intermittency
POLICIES TO PROMOTE RENEWABLE ENERGY
o Feed-in law [producers guaranteed sale to electric network].
o Renewable portfolio standards (RPS)/ renewable obligations or quota [a % of generation sold or
capacity installed is provided by renewable energy - United States, Canada, India, Australia,
China, Italy, Japan, Poland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
o Capital investment subsidies
o Tax incentives Mandates for incorporating solar hot water into new construction.
Integrated, Sustainable Energy Management
No single energy source can provide all the energy required. Range of options that vary from region to
region will have to be employed
o Fossil fuels
o Alternative, renewable sources
o Nuclear