Renewable Energy
Dec 25, 2015
Renewable Energy
Energy
• An essential part of modern society
• Need reliable supply
• The U.S. constitutes less than 5% of the world population, but uses 26% of the world’s energy.
Primary Sources of Electricity50%: Coal
40%:• Natural gas• Oil• Nuclear
9%: Hydroelectricity
1%: Solar, Wind, Geothermal, Other
Vocabulary
• Alternative: options besides fossil fuels.
• Renewable: energy source that is replaced or restored as it is used.
• Nonrenewable: once you burn them, they are used up.
Need for Alternative Energy
• Burning fossil fuels causes air pollution and is a big contributor to global warming.
• Oil spills, acid rain, and national security are other problems associated with fossil fuels.
• Fossil fuels will eventually run out.
Increase in Renewable Energy
• Government has began to recognize the need for renewable energy sources.
• Many states are now requiring that renewable energy sources make up a certain amount of its electricity supply.
Solar Energy
• Solar energy—power from the sun
• Advantages: clean, inexhaustible
• Disadvantages: Needs sun (generate electricity only on sunny days), not always reliable, needs huge amounts of land.
Nevada Solar One • Example of large solar power plant
• Boulder City, NV (40 miles from LV)
• 300 acres, the size of about 200 football fields
WIND ENERGY
WIND ENERGY
WIND ENERGYAdvantages:
• Fueled by the wind, so it's a clean fuel source
• No combustion of fossil fuels, no air pollution
• Wind supply is abundant and can’t be used up (renewable)
• Lower cost
WIND ENERGY
Disadvantages:• When the wind isn’t blowing, the windmills aren’t
turning and no power is being generated or sometimes the wind can be too strong.
• A single windmill will not produce a lot of electricity. Instead, hundreds or thousands are needed depending on the production goals.
• For some people, a lot of windmills can be an eyesore.
• Take a large amount of space• Noise produced by the rotor blades • Birds have been killed by flying into the rotors
Biomass
• Energy derived from burning organic material such as wood, alcohol, and garbage.
Pros and Cons of Biomass
• Advantages:
Cheap source of energy, reduces landfills.
• Disadvantages:Causes air pollution.
May use more energy than it creates.
Hydroelectric
• Energy produced by running water.
• A dam is built to hold back the water, forming a lake behind the dam.
• As water is released, its force turns turbines in the dam that generate electricity.
Hoover Dam near Las Vegas
Turbines inside Hoover Dam
AdvantagesClean energy
Low cost
DisadvantagesLake formed upstream fills with sediment.Downstream of dam, erosion increases.Land above the dam is flooded and wildlife habitats are destroyed.
Tidal Energy
Uses energy from the tides to create electricity.
Advantages: Reliable and predictable
Disadvantages: Expensive to build and limited availability of sites with enough tidal range.
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
Geothermal energy is the use of Earth’s natural heat.
Geo means
Thermal means
Crust
Mantle
Outer core
Inner core
Geothermal Reservoir
When the hot water and steam accumulate in permeable and porous rock, a geothermal reservoir forms.
When the hot water and steam accumulate in permeable and porous rock, a geothermal reservoir forms.
Powerful Energy Source
Geothermal reservoirs can reach
temperatures of 700˚F/370˚C
(more than 3 times boiling).
Generation of Electricity
Production Well
Injection Well
Geothermal power plants have no smoky emissions.They emit water vapor.
Those white plumes you see at geothermal power plants are steam (water vapor). Geothermal plants do not burn fuel or produce smoke.
Those white plumes you see at geothermal power plants are steam (water vapor). Geothermal plants do not burn fuel or produce smoke.
Advantages of Geothermal Energy• Clean energy – no burning, little to no air pollution,
no fossil fuels
• No “smog” or acid rain emissions
• Uses little land, less than all other energy types
• Is renewable and sustainable
• Generates continuous, reliable power – 24 hrs/day
• Less expensive than other energy plants
Disadvantages of Geothermal
• Limited locations (no resources in Eastern USA)
• Risks of being near faults and volcanoes
• Steam and flash plants – release some gases from deep in Earth
• Steam from some plants may be unappealing (but still better than fossil fuel plants)
Geothermal Power Plants