The Different Types of Renewable Energy
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCTOBER 25, 2011
Renewable energy is energy that is produced by nature, is clean and will never run out.Examples of it are solar,wind,hydro and biomass.Now, we will explain how these energy sources work
Solar
Solar energy is energy that is produced by the sun.The light and heat of the sun has been harnessed by humans since Ancient times using a range of ever-changing technologies. The primary uses for solar energy are for heating ,cooking and producing electricity.Solar energy along with secondary solar powered renewable energy sources like wind and hydro account for most of the renewable energy produced.
Solar energy produces electricity in two ways, Concentrated Solar Power systems and Photovoltaic cells. CSP systems use lenses or mirrors and tracking beams to focus a large area of sunlight in a large beam. Photovoltaic cells harness the energy and convert the sunlight into electricity.
Pros
Wind
Wind energy is the conversion of wind into a useful form of energy such as using wind turbines for electricity or sails for propelling a ship.
To create wind power, like I said before, turbines are used to harness the energy.When there is wind, the turbine will power a generator to create electricity. The total amount of economically extractable power available from the wind is considerably more than present human power use from all sources. Wind power, as an alternative to fossil fuels, is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, and produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, and the cost per unit of energy produced is similar to the cost for new coal and natural gas installations.
Pros
The internal composition of a wind turbine
Hydropower
Hydropower is energy harnessed from the force or energy of running water.To create electricity,usually we use the energy of water that goes through a dam a dam which moves into a vertical tube called a penstock to power a turbine that powers a generator that produces electricity.There are also "run-of-river" hydroelectric plants that divert water into a channel parallel to the river.They have no reservoir and are subject to seasonal river flow.However,the dam system is more common than the run-of-river one.
Pros
Cons
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCTOBER 25, 2011
Renewable energy is energy that is produced by nature, is clean and will never run out.Examples of it are solar,wind,hydro and biomass.Now, we will explain how these energy sources work
Solar
Solar energy is energy that is produced by the sun.The light and heat of the sun has been harnessed by humans since Ancient times using a range of ever-changing technologies. The primary uses for solar energy are for heating ,cooking and producing electricity.Solar energy along with secondary solar powered renewable energy sources like wind and hydro account for most of the renewable energy produced.
Solar energy produces electricity in two ways, Concentrated Solar Power systems and Photovoltaic cells. CSP systems use lenses or mirrors and tracking beams to focus a large area of sunlight in a large beam. Photovoltaic cells harness the energy and convert the sunlight into electricity.
Pros
- In the long run, it's a free source of electrcity
- Will never run out as long as the sun is shining
- Can be used in remote areas where installing power lines is costly or impossible
- Very clean energy
- Expensive to install
- It's not always sunny
- Use lots of space
Wind
Wind energy is the conversion of wind into a useful form of energy such as using wind turbines for electricity or sails for propelling a ship.
To create wind power, like I said before, turbines are used to harness the energy.When there is wind, the turbine will power a generator to create electricity. The total amount of economically extractable power available from the wind is considerably more than present human power use from all sources. Wind power, as an alternative to fossil fuels, is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, and produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, and the cost per unit of energy produced is similar to the cost for new coal and natural gas installations.
Pros
- Clean source of energy
- Renewable
- Expensive
- Use lots of space
- Noisy
- Winds are inconsistent
- Often,birds who attempt to fly between turbines have been hit and killed
- Looks ugly
The internal composition of a wind turbine
Hydropower
Hydropower is energy harnessed from the force or energy of running water.To create electricity,usually we use the energy of water that goes through a dam a dam which moves into a vertical tube called a penstock to power a turbine that powers a generator that produces electricity.There are also "run-of-river" hydroelectric plants that divert water into a channel parallel to the river.They have no reservoir and are subject to seasonal river flow.However,the dam system is more common than the run-of-river one.
Pros
- No pollution
- Dams can store rain water or water directly from the river itself. Then, in case of a drought, the dam will still have a relatively constant supply of water.
- Fairly cheap source of power
- Reliable
- Produces lots of electricity
- Renewable,as long as there's water,it will produce electricity
Cons
- Reservoirs can flood land and destroy eco-systems
- Fish won't be able to get through that body of water
- Studies show that the plant decay caused downstream of major dams produces as many greenhouse gasses as more conventional methods of producing electricity.
Cross-Section of a Hydroelectric Dam (Taken From Wikipedia)