Renewable Energy

Renewable power is booming, as innovation brings down costs and starts to

deliver on the promise of a clean energy future. American solar and wind
generation are breaking records and being integrated into the national electricity
grid without compromising reliability.
This means that renewables are increasingly displacing “dirty” fossil fuels in the
power sector, offering the benefit of lower emissions of carbon and other types
of pollution. But not all sources of energy marketed as “renewable” are
beneficial to the environment. Biomass and large hydroelectric dams create
difficult trade-offs when considering the impact on wildlife, climate change, and
other issues. Here’s what you should know about the different types of
renewable energy sources—and how you can use these emerging technologies
in your own home.

What is renewable energy?

Renewable energy, often referred to as clean energy, comes from natural sources
or processes that are constantly replenished. For example, sunlight and wind
keep shining and blowing, even if their availability depends on time and
weather.
While renewable energy is often thought of as a new technology, harnessing
nature’s power has long been used for heating, transportation, lighting, and
more. Wind has powered boats to sail the seas and windmills to grind grain. The
sun has provided warmth during the day and helped kindle fires to last into the
evening. But over the past 500 years or so, humans increasingly turned to
cheaper, dirtier energy sources, such as coal and fracked gas.

Types of renewable energy sources

Solar Energy
Solar energy can be captured “actively” or “passively.” Active solar energy uses
special technology to capture the sun’s rays. The two main types of equipment
are photovoltaic cells (also called PV cells or solar cells) and mirrors that focus
sunlight in a specific spot. These active solar technologies use sunlight to
generate electricity, which we use to power lights, heating systems, computers,
and televisions.
Passive solar energy does not use any equipment. Instead, it gets energy from
the way sunlight naturally changes throughout the day. For example, people can
build houses so their windows face the path of the sun. This means the house
will get more heat from the sun. It will take less energy from other sources to
heat the house.
Other examples of passive
solar technology are green
roofs, cool roofs, and
radiant barriers. Green roofs
are completely covered
with plants. Plants can get
rid of pollutants in
rainwater and air. They help
make the local environment
cleaner.
Cool roofs are painted
white to better reflect
sunlight. Radiant barriers are made of a reflective covering, such as aluminum.
They both reflect the sun’s heat instead of absorbing it. All these types of roofs
help lower the amount of energy needed to cool the building.
Advantages and Disadvantages
There are many advantages to using solar energy. PV cells last for a long time,
about 20 years.
However, there are reasons why solar power cannot be used as the only power
source in a community. It can be expensive to install PV cells or build a
building using passive solar technology.
Sunshine can also be hard to predict. It can be blocked by clouds, and the sun
doesn’t shine at night. Different parts of Earth receive different amounts of
sunlight based on location, the time of year, and the time of day.

Wind Energy
People have been harnessing the wind’s energy for a long, long time. Five-
thousand years ago, ancient Egyptians made boats powered by the wind. In 200
B.C.E., people used windmills to grind grain in the Middle East and pump water
in China.
 Today, we capture the wind’s
energy with wind turbines. A
turbine is similar to a windmill;
it has a very tall tower with two
or three propeller-like blades at
the top. These blades are turned
by the wind. The blades turn a
generator (located inside the
tower), which creates electricity.
Groups of wind turbines are
known as wind farms. Wind
farms can be found near farmland, in narrow mountain passes, and even in the
ocean, where there are steadier and stronger winds. Wind turbines anchored in
the ocean are called “offshore wind farms.”
Wind farms create electricity for nearby homes, schools, and other buildings.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Wind energy can be very efficient. In places like the Midwest in the United
States and along coasts, steady winds can provide cheap, reliable electricity.
Another great advantage of wind power is that it is a “clean” form of energy.
Wind turbines do not burn fuel or emit any pollutants into the air.
Wind is not always a steady source of energy, however. Wind speed changes
constantly, depending on the time of day, weather, and geographic location.
Currently, it cannot be used to provide electricity for all our power needs.
Wind turbines can also be dangerous for bats and birds. These animals cannot
always judge how fast the blades are moving and crash into them.

Geothermal Energy
Deep beneath the surface is Earth’s core. The center of Earth is extremely hot—
thought to be over 6,000 °C (about 10,800 °F). The heat is constantly moving
toward the surface.
We can see some of Earth’s heat when it bubbles to the surface. Geothermal
energy can melt underground rocks into magma and cause the magma to bubble
to the surface as lava. Geothermal energy can also heat underground sources of
water and force it to spew out from the surface. This stream of water is called a
geyser.
However, most of Earth’s heat stays
underground and makes its way out
very, very slowly.
We can access underground
geothermal heat in different ways.
One way of using geothermal
energy is with “geothermal heat
pumps.” A pipe of water loops
between a building and holes dug deep underground. The water is warmed by
the geothermal energy underground and brings the warmth aboveground to the
building. Geothermal heat pumps can be used to heat houses, sidewalks, and
even parking lots.
Another way to use geothermal energy is with steam. In some areas of the
world, there is underground steam that naturally rises to the surface. The steam
can be piped straight to a power plant. However, in other parts of the world, the
ground is dry. Water must be injected underground to create steam. When the
steam comes to the surface, it is used to turn a generator and create electricity.
In Iceland, there are large reservoirs of underground water. Almost 90 percent of
people in Iceland use geothermal as an energy source to heat their homes and
businesses.
Advantages and Disadvantages
An advantage of geothermal energy is that it is clean. It does not require any
fuel or emit any harmful pollutants into the air.
Geothermal energy is only available in certain parts of the world. Another
disadvantage of using geothermal energy is that in areas of the world where
there is only dry heat underground, large quantities of freshwater are used to
make steam. There may not be a lot of fresh-water. People need water for
drinking, cooking, and bathing.

Biomass Energy
Biomass is any material that comes from plants or microorganisms that were
recently living. Plants create energy from the sun through photosynthesis. This
energy is stored in the plants even after they die.
Trees, branches, scraps of bark, and recycled paper are common sources of
biomass energy. Manure, garbage, and crops, such as corn, soy, and sugar cane,
can also be used as biomass feedstocks.
We get energy from biomass by
burning it. Wood chips, manure,
and garbage are dried out and
compressed into squares called
“briquettes.” These briquettes
are so dry that they do not
absorb water. They can be stored
and burned to create heat or
generate electricity.
Biomass can also be converted
into biofuel. Biofuels are mixed with regular gasoline and can be used to power
cars and trucks. Biofuels release less harmful pollutants than pure gasoline.
Advantages and Disadvantages
A major advantage of biomass is that it can be stored and then used when it is
needed.
Growing crops for biofuels, however, requires large amounts of land and
pesticides. Land could be used for food instead of biofuels. Some pesticides
could pollute the air and water.
Biomass energy can also be a non-renewable energy source. Biomass energy
relies on biomass feedstocks—plants that are processed and burned to create
electricity. Biomass feedstocks can include crops, such as corn or soy, as well as
wood. If people do not replant biomass feedstocks as fast as they use them,
biomass energy becomes a non-renewable energy source.

Hydroelectric Energy
Hydroelectric energy is made by flowing water. Most hydroelectric power
plants are located on large dams, which control the flow of a river. Dams block
the river and create an artificial lake, or reservoir. A controlled amount of water
is forced through tunnels in the dam. As water flows through the tunnels, it turns
huge turbines and generates electricity.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Hydroelectric energy is fairly inexpensive to harness. Dams do not need to be
complex, and the resources to build them are not difficult to obtain. Rivers flow
all over the world, so the energy source is available to millions of people.
Hydroelectric energy is also fairly reliable. Engineers control the flow of water
through the dam, so the flow does not depend on the weather (the way solar and
wind energies do).
However, hydroelectric power plants are damaging to the environment. When a
river is dammed, it creates a large lake behind the dam. This lake (sometimes
called a reservoir) drowns the original river habitat deep underwater.
Sometimes, people build dams that can drown entire towns underwater. The
people who live in the town or village must move to a new area.
Hydroelectric power plants don’t work for a very long time: Some can only
supply power for 20 or 30 years. Silt, or dirt from a riverbed, builds up behind
the dam and slows the flow of water.

Conclusion
In conclusion, renewable energy represents a sustainable and environmentally
friendly solution to our growing energy needs. With sources such as solar, wind,
hydro, and geothermal power, we have the opportunity to transition away from
fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Investing in renewable energy
technologies not only mitigates climate change but also fosters economic
growth, creates jobs, and enhances energy security. It is imperative that we
continue to prioritize the development and deployment of renewable energy to
build a cleaner, more resilient energy future for generations to come.

References
https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/what-is-renewableenergy

https://www.energy.gov/eere/renewable-energy
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/renewable-energy-clean-facts
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/renewable-energy