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Sources of alternative energy essay
How alternative sources of energy be harnessed
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Many people today are spending quantities of money for the electric bill without knowing that their hurting their wallet and their environment. It harms the environment because the fuel you receive in your electric bill is called traditional, which is made of fossil fuels. These fossil fuels create pollution in the air affecting our ozone layer. A solution for this problem would be to leave the traditional fuel and enter to the new world of alternative energy.
My alternative energy is wind energy which is caused by wind turbines or windmills. The windmill has been used for many years in history. Windmills, according to AE Wind Turbines, are used to generate electricity from the kinetic power of the wind. According to Trufts Now, depending on the speed of the windmill, it affects the production of electricity from the windmill. The article claims that if a windmill rotates slowly, then it produces less power, but if the wind speed doubles, then the windmill will produce eight times more power than in normal conditions. The windmills contain two main two main kind of wind generators, the vertical and horizontal axis.
There are three main fossil fuels in the world: coal, natural gas, and oil. These fossil fuels helped create one of the oldest traditional fuel named Hydroelectric Power. According to USGS, in 2006 the US had about 7% of total power produced by hydroelectric plants. A hydroelectric power is used to turn a turbine, which then turns a metal shaft in an electric generator, which it produces energy. A hydroelectric plant uses falling water to turn a turbine. The hydroelectric theory is to build a dam on a large river that has a large drop in elevation in which it stores lots of water behind it reservoir. The shaft of turbine goes up into the generator, which produces the power. Hydroelectric plants are more efficient at providing for peak power demands during short periods, and a way of doing this is by using “pumped storage”, which reuses the same water more than once. This traditional fuel may not use as much of fossil fuels, but it does release many greenhouse gases.
As for many things, the windmill has its advantages and disadvantages in producing energy. If you have a windmill an advantage would be that the wind is free, so no worry expenses, and with modern technology it can be captured efficiently. But the disadvantage would be that the strength of the wind is not constant and your electricity would vary, which means that the windmills do not produce the same amount of electricity all the time.
Instilling this new way of energy usage into off-grid communities will inevitably increase the state of living for those in cities and other well-populated areas. The change to renewable energy sources could drastically lower the pollutants currently being dispersed into the atmosphere by coal mines and other harmful power options, increasing the supply of renewable energy would allow us to replace carbon-intensive energy sources and significantly reduce U.S. global warming emissions. a 25 percent by 2025 national renewable electricity standard would lower power plant CO2 emissions 277 million metric tons annually by 2025—the equivalent of the annual output from 70 typical (600 MW) new coal plants (“Benefits of Renewable Energy Use”). Electricity production accounts for more than one-third of U.S. global warming emissions, with the majority generated by coal-fired power plants.
There is physics involved in these wind turbines as they change wind into mechanical energy and then into electricity. The energy produced depends on the volume of the air, the density, and the wind speed. The mass per unit time is the mass times the density times the wind speed or m = mass, p = density, A = area, and v = wind speed; m = pAV. Because the function of the wind turbine is to transform the wind’s kinetic energy into electricity the equation for kinetic energy is needed; KE = ½ mv2 or kinetic energy equals one half the mass times the velocity squared. Then, using substitution, the power in the wind depends on the density of the air, area swept out by rotors, and the cube of the velocity or ½ pAV3. Using Betz’ law the theoretical energy model for extracting 59% of the energy is power = 16/27(½ pAV3) .
These include the history of windmills and their role concerning the survival in the immense plains that range from east of the Rocky Mountains to the Mississippi River. The rise of the economic condition of those living around the wind farms along with the surge of investments from energy companies. Finally, the promising data relating to the amount of energy produced, and the consequences they will have on the environment. In the later and longer part of the article, the possible negative results or wind farms are brought up. Primarily, the points against wind farms have to do with the conservation of wildlife. This is separated into two sections, the first addresses the dangers wind turbines present to birds, the other on the dangers presented to bats.
The first type of renewable energy is hydroelectric energy or well known as hydropower. In greek word, hydro means water and thus hydroelectric energy refers to electricity generated using flowing water at high velocity. Lutgens and Tarbuck (1992, p. 163) stated that “running water is of great importance to people as we depend upon rivers for energy, travel and irrigation”. Continuous availability of water in universe made water to be the main source of hydroelectric energy. Water has been widely utilized by mankind since the beginning of civilization and wate...
Hydro power is one of many examples of alternative energy source. Hydro power is producing energy by moving
Energy is a daily necessity we take advantage of without fully understanding the consequences of creating it. The electrical energy that we use as consumers comes from power plants that then convert other types of energy to electricity. The most common way this is done is from burning fossil fuels. The only benefits to this method is the low cost and the growing demand for oil, natural gas heating, and other products refined from fossil fuels. The repercussions of this cheap practice is the environmental and physical harm caused by the fumes and other byproducts of using fossil fuels. One main set back of this method is that people may not continue using it forever. Fossil fuels are nonrenewable resources that have come from millions or years
Hydropower, the use of water to power machinery or produce electricity, provides the most renewable energy in the United States, and uses alternating current in most modern plants ("Hydropower…”). Hydropower relies on the water cycle and is a clean fuel source; it doesn’t pollute the environment like plants that burn fossil fuels. It is by far the most efficient way to generate electricity, being half the cost of using nuclear power, two-fifths the cost of using fossil fuels, and a quarter the cost of using natural gas ("Wind and Water…”). Also, hydropower is not subject to market fluctuations of embargos, and the average lifespan of a facility is 100 years. Hydropower also has many non-energy benefits such as water supply, flood control, navigation, irrigation, and recreation. However, it does face many environmental challenges such as impacts to aquatic habitats, aesthetic alterations of landscapes, changes to water quality, and interruptions of marine life ("Hydropower…”).
Each one of us has their own opinion about what wind turbines do and not what they are actually meant for. Wind turbines are meant to be an energy saving method that can be used ...
Hydroelectric Power Plant is when electricity is generated when water in an uphill reservoir flows downhill. The gravitational potential energy of the water changes to kinetic energy of the flowing water which drives the turbines to generate electricity. The efficiency is more than 90%. The environmental impact is Floods large area and affects the ecology of the area, May cause drought downstream if not managed properly, does not cause ai...
The wind is an incredibly valuable renewable energy source and is in the forefront of renewable energy developments. It is used to convert wind energy into energy that can be harnessed and used via a variety of methods, including; wind turbines, windmills, sails and windpumps. For a renewable energy source, however, it is wind turbines that are used to generate electricity (see figure 1). Wind power has been used for this since the end of the nineteenth century, after Professor James Blyth of the Royal College of Science and Technology first attempted it (Boyle, 2012). However, It wasn’t until the 1980s that using wind power technology was sufficient enough to experience a rapid growth of the technology.
Hydroelectricity is a known renewable energy resource that provides substantial benefits for our wealth, our health, and for our global economy. There are five types of renewable energy we can use on a daily basis throughout our lives, but the most widely installed form of renewable energy is hydroelectricity. Hydroelectricity is electricity created by converting the kinetic energy of flowing water. Best thing about this source of energy is that it’s timeless and renewable, which means it will never run out, however we had to figure ways to store this energy. In order for them to harness this energy for other people, they had to build generators that convert all the potential energy of rapid moving water into electrical energy. (http://www.ems.psu.edu/~elsworth/courses/cause2003/finalprojects/vikingpaper.pdf)
Although renewable energy can be expensive to build, it has less environmental damages in comparison to non-renewable energy. Besides the natural resources such as sun, wind, water and hydrogen, we also have geothermal power, and biofuels as renewable sources. First of all, solar energy is the energy produced when the sun heats the solar panel. Thus, when the sun heat the panels, it produces electricity. Solar power produces energy during the day and can storage energy for the night. Solar power does not pollute so much the environment. However, it has high maintenance cost, and it takes a large land space. Secondly, 15% of World electricity comes from wind. In order to have wind energy, it is important to have turbines to get the wind in order to produce electricity. Tall turbines produce more energy. The drawbacks of wind power are that it requires steady wind and its installations may interfere with TVs, cellphones, and other electrical devices. However, it is quickly built and there is no pollution nor noise produced. Third of all, the water falls in the dam can also generate electricity. For instance, 19% of world electricity comes from water. Regardless of the fact that hydroelectric power has low maintenance costs and does not pollute the environment, it can cause earthquakes, and destroy wild rivers. Only 0.3% of world energy
Wind is a form of solar energy. The term wind energy describes the process by which the wind is used to generate electricity or mechanical power. Wind turbines convert mechanical energy from the wind into electrical power. Wind turbines usually have three main parts. There are blades that connect to a central hub, a box behind the blades that contains the generator, and a long stem that connects to the ground. The way how it works is that the wind turns the blades, which spins a shaft that connects to a generator making electricity. After the electricity is produced it is sent through transmission lines to a substation that is sent to business and homes. For the sake of our planet, we must promote a renewable energy economy. Wind power can be a foundation of that sustainable energy future because it provides jobs in states that are building wind turbines, is a renewable energy source, and does not damage our environment. The environment will not be damaged by the pollution, the natural resources will not be used up, and there won’t be generating of hazardous wastes. Welcoming wind energy today will lay the foundation for a healthy tomorrow that will affect everyone in the United States. There are obstacles and challenges that will make it more difficult, but the environmental impact is well worth it to invest more money into wind energy.
With the depletion of fossil fuel resources comes speculations and debates about alternative energy sources. The world, including the Philippines, is practically dependent on a dwindling non-renewable source of energy. Today, experts are debating about and considering three options: Nuclear, Solar, or Wind Energy. Everyone has been accustomed to the bad image of nuclear energy as a result of the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents above all others. The popular belief is that radiation from a nuclear meltdown is very harmful to humans and other living things—which is true—and that nuclear power plants are very dangerous and not ideal—which is not. According to Smith, et. al (n.d), all the nuclear disasters that ever occurred were caused by human error and natural disasters like tsunamis, not one because of system failure. Putting the false beliefs aside, with proper engineering and adequate maintenance by experts, a nuclear power plant is a very ideal and viable source of energy for the following reasons:
The world that we live into today affords us the expectation that the flip a switch will turn the lights on. As populations increase and developing nations undergo dramatic economic growth, this energy demand will only continue to grow. The International Energy Agency (IEA) believes that “the world’s energy needs could be 50% higher in 2030 than they are today” (ElBaradei). Given this projected growth, it is necessary for world leaders must take action to secure the energy supply. Meaning that world leaders need to start seriously considering an alternative to non-renewable energy sources. “In 2012, the United States generated about 4,054 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. About 68% of the electricity generated was from fossil fuel (coal, natural gas, and petroleum), with 37% attributed from coal” (U.S. Energy Information Administration). The fossil fuels that are used to supply over half of our country’s energy are in finite supply and are increasing in price to astronomical heights.