Renewable Energy, Essay Example

Renewable energy sources are derived from natural resources that are constant, sustainable and are replenishable. These energy sources include the sun, wind, water, hydropower, biomass, hydrogen, geothermal and ocean.

The two predominant energy sources are the sun and water. Sun is the source of solar energy that generates power for heating cooking, generating electricity, and many other things. According to (Machol), down flow of water results in a powerful force that powers wheels/ turbines that propel mechanical processes that result in electricity. The global water cycle consisting of evaporation and precipitation causes a constant renewal of the water source.

Ocean energy comes from tides and waves that are harnessed to generate electricity whilst geothermal power results from earths steam and hot water use to generate power.

Lastly, hydrogen’s potential to be used as fuel and energy source makes it ideal source. (Wiser and Bolinger). Biomass on the other end encompasses wood, organic waste and methane gas collected from landfills. It generates electricity and fuel for transport and for manufacturing.
Most energy sources may be thought to be harmless but their implications are a cause of alarm. First, they have much impact on aesthetic and require large land use for effective use. Some energy pose a danger to ecosystem including birds and fishes; increased solar power changes the ecosystems characteristics hence affecting all organisms in it.

Electricity is produced in various ways in each of the renewable sources. Wind energy turn wind turbines to produce wind electricity. Wind is because of changes in temperature, atmospheric pressure that makes air move. One turbine generates power used for one household.

Concurrently, flowing water converts the water into electricity. This occurs when a turbine is immersed in water, and the flowing water rotates the blades. Hydro-electricity produces is determined by, amount of water flowing and the size of the turbine. Power generated is connected to the grid for distribution. . Once hydrogen is extracted from its crude form, it purified and used to power machines, gas for cooking and to generate energy.
Subsequently, Solar panels absorb energy from the sun, which is stored in batteries. An inverter changes the AC current into DC electricity. Biomass energy is collected in a biogas chamber to be treated and fermented to produce electricity, which is connected to the grid for distribution.

The long-term cost incurred in production of electricity is the investment in green technology probably a hundred years. This will enable availability of massive scaling that is an inherent factor in the energy production. Comparatively (Deyette and Freese 120 ) States that, short-term cost to be incurred is characterized by limited options to conserve protect and manage the current sources effectively. Building of dams for water storage in dry spells; using large capacity batteries for the solar-generated electricity are some of the short-term options. In this effect, several large-scale storage suggestions for grid have been documented aiming to decrease energy losses but increasing efficiently concurrently.
Results tabled by the department of energy shows that, the Current the demand and consumption rate of renewable energy demand is 7% in the US (Wiser and Bolinger 76). The supply and demand is prone to changes due to depletion of fossil fuels and other forms of fuels. The supply and demand for the energy may be influenced other external factors such as the world energy prices, economy, policies and political stability of oil producing countries, changing lifestyles, climate change, change of laws and regulations governing energy supply and lastly the rate of scientific and engineering advancement. All these external factors change in spans of little periods.

Organizations strive to protect, maintain, and manage the renewable sources since they cause little or no global emissions. The Wiser and Bolinger report further instantiate that , coal emits between 1.4 and 3.6 CO2E/kWh of carbon monoxide as compare to equal winds o.o2 CO2E/kWh , solar 0.02 CO2E/kWh, and geothermal 0.1 CO2E/kWh in each pound. Therefore, it would save the organization the cost of managing and contain pollution (Wiser and Bolinger 80). Solar and wind energies are more reliable and resilient because they are less prone to failure due to the modular and distributed nature. Organizations consider the fact that production of electricity from these sources is less labor intensive, therefore, more jobs in proportion to electricity generated. Lastly, renewable sources provide cheap means hence lead to stabilization of prices of energy.
Deregulation of electricity reduces government control hence giving customers freedom to choose from a variety of energy provides. Hence, the campaigns steered towards the environment will reduce the cost of non-polluting sources since most companies will invest in in renewable sources. Comparatively, it will reduce cost of purchasing electricity as well as increase the chances of pollution (Deyette and Freese 130). In conclusion, the choice of your energy sources can make dynamic impact to the world, thus, changing it from a problem to a solution in a total transformation.

Works Cited

Deyette, Jesse and Freese, Brooks. Burning coal, burning cash: Ranking the states that import the most coal. Cambridge: MA: Union of Concerned Scientists., 2010.

Machol, Rizk. Economic value of U.S. fossil fuel electricity health impacts. Environment International , 2013.
Wiser, Ryan and Mark, Bolinger. “Wind Technologies Market Report.” 2011.