Today’s world is heavily dependent on energy from fossil fuels such as coal, oil, gasoline and uranium. That’s all fine since the wheels of global economy are dependent on these fuels. However, at the same time we are certain that this energy won’t last us forever. And besides, these fossil fuels are very polluting as well. So what other alternatives do we have? Plenty if you troll through the Net.
Increasingly there are calls for other sources of energy to fill in the impending void. And that’s where renewable energy comes in. These types of energy are derived from non-consumable, natural sources such as sunshine (solar energy), wind (wind energy), living organisms (bio-energy), Earth’s heat (geothermal) and flowing water (hydro energy). The energy captured from these sources is usually directly converted to heat or electricity. It is also considered green energy because it doesn’t cause any pollution in the process of its conversion.
A type of renewable energy is the kinetic (movement) energy of flowing water. This whole cycle of energy is explained on the site http://www.iclei.org/EFACTS/HYDROELE.HTM. The ma-in discussion is the explanation of hydropower plant. It first briefly discusses the history of hydropower starting from 250BC when the water-power was first used to build a clock. Then there were various developments at some of the great waterfalls of the world such as Niagara Falls. The site goes on to explain the functioning of the water plant and how efficiently one can take maximum advantage of natural running or flowing water. However, this method is not devoid of its negative impacts on the environment, which are summarized in another section of the site. These impacts, however, must be weighed against the environmental impacts of alternative sources of electricity.
Wind energy uses the energy in the wind for practical purposes like generating electricity, charging batteries, pumping water, or grinding grain. Large, modern wind turbines operate together in wind farms to produce electricity for utilities. Homeowners and remote villages in order to meet their energy needs use small turbines. The official web site of the US department of Energy http://www.eere.energy.gov/RE/wind.html has some interesting sections and links that aim at the conservation of energy and chalking out some innovative ways of generating power. Wind energy is one such topic that is discussed in detail focusing on its impact on environment and economy. You can check various links to read further about this amazing technique that has been used for a long time now. The coastal areas of Pakistan such as Gwadar are a perfect place for the installation of windmills as they are less populated and receive a tremendous wind flow from the Arabian Sea.
Bio energy is yet another interesting resource that can provide striking results. Bio energy is stored in material that is made by living things such as wood, plant fibres, ethanol or methanol and cow dung. Each of the above mentioned substances possess the chemical energy and can be released as heat energy when they are being burned. They are highly flammable and thus can be easily used to produce energy. The web site http://www.re-energy.ca/t-i_biomassenergy.shtml explains this phenomena is great detail. Other than this you can also find material on other alternative energy resources.
Biogas is a clean and efficient fuel, generated from cow-dung, human waste or any kind of biological materials derived through anaerobic fermentation process. One web site that specifically deal with this type of energy is http://eastindiavyapaar. com/rene_energy/rene_boigasenergy.htm. It mainly focuses on the use of cow dung in the rural parts of India and how different institutes and organization are successfully making use of this type of energy. The site http://geothermal.marin.org/ pwrheat.html summarizes various facts about the use of geothermal energy in order to generate power (electricity). Different aspects of this energy can be easily understood through the question and answer format. It starts right from the scratch, explaining the meaning of the term geothermal and then goes on to discuss the main process, advantages and disadvantages of using the Earth’s heat as a main energy source.
Solar power systems transform the heat and light directly received from the sun into various other forms. The site http://www.renewableenergy.com/ is a detailed portal where the latest developments and news about the renewable energies can be read. Solar energy is one of the main highlights of this site. It features its complete process and various equally interesting other links on the same topic such as SolarEnergy.com etc. This site is so huge and exciting that it is worth spending hours on it.
Another available option is the use of hydrogen as fuel and energy carrier. Hydrogen is the third most abundant element on Earth’s surface as it is found in water and some other organic compounds and can again form water when being burned and later combine with oxygen. The site http://www.eere.energy.gov/RE/hydrogen.html briefly explains this phenomenon in terms of production, storage, safety etc. Another interesting site on alternative energy is http://www.topix.net/tech/alt-energy where top stories and current news is being compiled and updated regularly from various authentic sources. You can also check out the related pages to this subject and get the news alert in your e-mail after subscribing with the site.
Today’s world is heavily dependent on energy from fossil fuels such as coal, oil, gasoline and uranium. That’s all fine since the wheels of global economy are dependent on these fuels. However, at the same time we are certain that this energy won’t last us forever. And besides, these fossil fuels are very polluting as well. So what other alternatives do we have? Plenty if you troll through the Net.
