Renewable Energy Sources Alternative energy sources to using fossil fuels.

Renewable Energy Sources

Alternative energy sources to using fossil fuels.

Why is there a push to using renewable energy?

1. Help protect against harmful toxins and greenhouse gasses that are produced from using fossil fuels.

2. Preserve the natural resources, fossil fuels, that we use for energy.

Renewable Resources

Wind PowerSolar PowerGeothermal EnergyHydroelectric EnergyBiomass

Wind PowerHarnesses the power of

the wind to move the blades of wind turbines. The rotation of the blades is converted into electrical energy that can be stored in electrical grids.

The bottom picture is a wind turbine in Atlantic City, NJ.

Solar Power

• Trapping the sun’s rays into solar cells where the sunlight is converted into electricity.

• Used for heating, cooking, and the production of electricity.

• “Thermal energy” – when heat is moving.

Tidal Energy

What is Tidal Energy?• Tidal energy is a form of

hydropower that converts the energy of the tides into electricity or other useful forms of power.

• The tide is created by the gravitational effect of the sun and the moon on the earth. Tidal energy is therefore a predictable form of renewable energy.

• This type of energy is obtained from changing sea levels.

Tidal stream generator

Tidal barrage

Tidal Fences

Geothermal EnergyLiterally means “Earth Heat”

Harnesses the heat energy from under the earth. Hot rocks underground heat water to produce steam. When holes are drilled in this area, the steam that shoots up is purified and is used to drive turbines which power electric generators.

Hydroelectric Energy

• Comes from energy of dammed water driving a water turbine and generator.

• Comes from collecting energy from moving water.

Tidal EnergyHow it works

• Works by building Barrages to contain water after high tide, then water has to pass through a turbine to return to low tide

• Sites in France (La Rance), Canada (Annapolis), and Russia

• Future sites possibly on Severn River in England, San Francisco Bay

Tidal Power

• Tidal power generators derive their energy from movement of the tides.• Obviously requires large bodies of water nearby. Not viable on the

prairies for example.• Has potential for generation of very large amounts of electricity, or can

be used in smaller scale. • Tidal power is not a new concept and has been used since at least the

11th Century in Britain and France for the milling of grains. • There are a number of places around the world that have adopted pilot

projects for different types of tidal generators

Biomass• Renewable energy from

plants and animals. • Biomass contains stored

energy from the sun. Plants absorb the sun's energy in a process called photosynthesis. The chemical energy in plants gets passed on to animals and people that eat them.

• We can always grow more trees and crops, and waste will always exist.

• When burned, the chemical energy in biomass is released as heat.

• The most common form of biomass is wood.

• Biomass can be converted to other useable forms of energy, such as methane gas or transportation fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel.

• Biodiesel, another transportation fuel, can be produced from left-over food products like vegetable oils and animal fats.

20% Renewable Energy 2020

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cysaOnlv_E