The Exploration of Alternative Energy
You may find that by doing some research you will notice the climate change topic has been around for quite a long time. You will find that a Swedish named Svante Arrhenius, a scientist, was one of the first people who thought that with how much fossil fuel was being used it could lead to warming of the globe and that was in 1896.
It was not until recently that the issue would become a hot-button topic that would last for several decades. Now, people are starting to come to a shift of environmental issues and the sources of how we generate power are starting to become scrutinized more and more. This has even led to people looking for a lot of alternative sources.
You will find that most of these are going to be lower emissions, fuel cost going down, and the overall reduction in the amount of pollution that is seen.
Here are some of the best examples you can find when it comes to alternative energy sources.
11. Gas – Hydrogen
You will find that this is different than natural gas as it burns completely clean. You will find that once it has been used it is going to only leave water vapor and warm air. The main issue with this energy source is it comes from the fuels everyone is trying to get away from. You will find that it can be noted that the emissions from this is going to remove the benefits. You may notice that electrolysis, which is how you split water into the oxygen and hydrogen will make this less of a problem. You will notice, that electrolysis is ranked well below the other methods mentioned and makes it a less than ideal way to get the energy.
10. Tidal Energy
You will find that this is going to use water to make electric, but this is an application that is often find in wind mills. This is a newer technology, but it has a tremendous potential. You will find that that some reports out of the United Kingdom even mention that this form of energy could meet 20% of the demands for electricity in the future. This is often seen in the form of Tidal Stream Generators for energy generation. You will notice that the kinetic energy that is seen in the ocean can even power turbines, without using any fossil fuels or being impacted by the other forms of problems that plague alternative energy.
9. Biomass
The energy here comes in multiple forms. You will find that this can even been seen as wood, but you will find recent advances have started to look at the landfills and alcohol. You may notice that burning wood is often seen as heating for a home. What else is seen is the burning of this tends to cost less money and does not release as much carbon as the other fuels. What else you can see is you are going to have multiple factors to consider with these systems. The amount of upkeep can become an issue as well as the fact you may need to get permission to use one of these systems.
8. Wind Energy
This has really started to gain a lot of popularity lately. Wind energy has a lot of the same benefits that other sources have, but it tends to use a renewable source without waste. You will find that in the United States the amount of wind power in use is powering 20 million homes, but it going up each year. What else is kind of interesting is the fact that a majority of the states have a wind energy set-up plan to help people in getting the power set up. When you are using wind energy you will find that it does have some drawbacks. They can be hard on views and can cause some harm to wildlife.
7. Geothermal
The basic concept here is it extracts energy from the ground to use. In 2015 the popularity of this has grown to the point it increased by 5 percent. Current estimates are showing that up to 40 counties could start using this to meet their demands on energy. This has a lot of potential and does not damage the land a lot. The issue that arises is the power source here has a lot of upfront cost that can make it expensive to use.
6. Natural Gas
This is an energy source that has been in use for decades, but it is starting to have compression techniques used that make this viable. Cars are starting to use this with reduced carbon emissions. With natural gas you will notice it has slowly been increasing in demand. In 2016, the amount of demand has even went up to record levels. Some issues are present with this form of energy use. You can find that the drilling and potential contamination is quite a bit higher than expected and it will emit the greenhouse gases, but at lower levels.
5. Biofuels
With this energy source you will notice it is going to use animal and plant life to make the energy. These are the fuels that are made from organic matter. They are often renewable and with plants they are often regrown each year. These are going to require different machinery to get in use and that can increase the contributions of fossil fuels. In the United States, though, this is starting to become really increasing in demand. In 2012, this type of fuel was actually 7% of everything that was consumed for transport.
4. Wave
Water is going to be another contributor here as the wave energy can be converted into regular energy. These have a huge advantage over tidal as they can be placed in various locations in the ocean. Just like the tidal energy, is they do not have a lot of waste produced. With this form of energy, it is going to be reliable and has a large potential energy. The cost of building a major system is a reason this has not really taken off. Something else is not enough research has been done to see how this is going to impact the natural ecosystems.
3. Hydroelectric
These methods have been one of the earliest ways to make energy, but they have started to decrease in popularity as fossil fuels become popular. However, this form of energy is still generating 7% of the electric in the US. This is going to have a lot of benefits you can enjoy. The power here is very clean and it does not create pollution, but it has a lot of issues that come with it. You will find that it is a renewable source, but has a lot of secondary benefits to enjoy as well. The dams have also seen a lot of the different benefits with flood and irrigation.
2. Nuclear
This is one of the most abundant forms of energy. The primary is the emissions and how efficient it is, but also will boost the economy by creating a lot of jobs. In 2015, 450 plants were in use around the world and were spread between 13 different countries. The problem is when a major issue happens it has a huge potential to ruin the world. A good example of this is Fukushima and Three Mile Island.
1. Solar
This is what people think about the most when they start to think about alternative power. Solar power technology has changed a lot over the years and has been used in both single home applications to solar plants. Quite a few countries have started to have initiatives to help in getting solar power to grow. In the UK it is called the Feed-In Tariff, but for the United States, it is considered the Solar Investment Credit. With this energy source, it is renewable, but it does cost quite a bit of money to get it installed and this means a larger electric bill than traditional methods. What else does not help is the fact that these can start to have issues with how they function and they can be impacted by the weather.
In Conclusion
You will find that fossil fuels are becoming an issue, but you will like the fact that you want to have information about alternative energy sources. Quite often the alternative sources will solve the issues caused by fossil fuels and the emissions. What is needed is more advances in the technology to help out in getting the work done as this has slowed down the investment to make these viable. Just by combining a lot of the aspect, it will be easy to see how these reduce pollution and even the climate change issues.
Just make sure that you contribute to the discussion on the topic and share the article so you can help spread the word about alternative energy sources.