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Articles » Reference-&-Education » Environmental >> View Article
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| Alternative Energy Powering The Future |
By:
je Dunn |
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Alternative energy is everywhere around us and it's possible to use it in many different ways.
Solar power which is driven by photovoltaic cells is just one of these alternative energy sources that are increasingly becoming more advanced and less expensive. Solar power does not harm the environment and can be used for all our energy requirements including generating vast amounts of electricity with the added benefit of being environmentally friendly.
However, much more work still needs to be done in order for us to economically harness the sun's energy. Since solar energy cannot be used during the evening and on gloomy days, provisions on the resource is unavoidable that is why backups in the form of storage batteries are utilized.
Wind energy has become the most-invested-in (by private investors and governments together) alternative energy source for the time being.
Huge double and triple bladed windmills can be seen around the world, working constantly, day and night to produce large amounts of electricity. The idea of using a windmill to exploit energy is something that we all are already aware about. With the growing developments in our technology and everything that we use, it is so unlikely for us not to use the more sophisticated modern wind turbines as an alternative to the old theme being used.
There is always a negative aspect to everything and with wind farms it is they become useless when you have days without any or little wind. Needless to say, during these times the electric company kicks in for powering your home or office but wind energy is not altogether independent.
Another more reliable source of alternative energy is the use of hydroelectric power plants and these (usually very large) plants can produce huge amounts of power.
All that is required is a large body of water and gravity - this fall of water from a great height is able to turn large turbines which generate electrical power.
Needless to say, water is ubiquitous: finding sources for driving hydroelectric turbines is, therefore, not much of a problem. Having said that, building huge dams is very expensive, time consuming and there are other issues which usually make the whole process costly at the beginning.
To generate the needed power, the flow of water must be adequately controlled and the most often used process is the building of dams.
Building a dam to store and control water's potential and kinetic energy takes quite a lot of work, and operating one is complex as well, and conservationists grow concerned that it is creating environmental problems.
To provide the electrical needs of a city or other heavily populated area, certainly a dam is quite essential otherwise, one should settle for something less than that of the dam.
There are small run-of-river hydroelectric converters which are good for supplying neighborhoods or an individual office or home.
Some countries have harnessed the power of geothermal energy (energy from inside the planet) to heat water under the ground although this is still an under-utilized energy source generally. The transfer of heat into the water is caused by the earth's inner molten core.
Power plants use a number of ways to draw this water to the surface and harness it into 'free' energy. The purpose of this procedure is to gather the steam that is generated when it reaches the surface.
It is in the USA where this technology has become world famous with 'the Geysers' dry steam power plant not that far from San Francisco. |
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