Alternative Renewable Energy Resources

There are several forms of alternative energy that are currently being developed as replacements for the primary fossil fuels that we use today which are coal, oil and gas. The one that gets the most buzz today is solar energy as the power is derived from the sun and because so many homeowners and business are taking advantage of this renewable energy source. In order to take advantage of the energy that sun generates we need a means of converting the suns light energy into electricity. This is accomplished with the use of a solar cell array or a photovoltaic array.

Energy can also be derived from the thermal portion of the spectrum or infra-red; this is done by the heating of a fluid which can then power a turbine converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. Though such a system is quite complex for a homeowner a much simpler system can be used to heat water which can then be circulated through a building to heat and provide hot water for general use.

Currently the technology is not advanced enough to replace or consumption of fossil fuels, but it can help in reducing our dependence on them, with addition of other components that allow us to store the energy that is collected for later use.

The technology is far enough advanced that a homeowner can purchase or build their own photovoltaic arrays (saving themselves lots of money) which can provide enough electricity allowing them to go off grid drastically reducing their fossil fuel use. The only draw back is that on cloudy days power output drops considerably and at night the solar array does not produce any useful electricity, so unless you invest in an adequate storage system you will still need a power utility to supply your electrical needs under such conditions.

Wind energy is another form of alternative energy that is available for us to use as a replacement for fossil fuels. Wind energy is converted into electricity with the use of windmills which are really nothing more than a motor that is run in reverse. We all know that when you feed electricity to a motor the shaft rotates, the windmill works in reverse as the shaft turns electricity is produced by converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. You can see how this works if you connect the wires of a direct current motor to a voltmeter and turn the shaft you will see a voltage being generated.

The windmill rotates a turbine that is outfitted with Neodymium or similar Magnets which are capable of generating very strong magnetic fields, producing high currents at a designated voltage output. A homeowner can purchase a windmill that can provide enough electricity to meet basic power needs for their home as these device are readily available for a few thousand dollars or they can build their own for much less as the components are available from various sources.

To meet the needs of a large community you need wind farms which are spring up in various parts of the world where wind is more or less constant. For wind farms to produce the amounts of energy required for a community they require an enormous amount of space, making them impractical for certain areas.

Hydroelectric Power is a renewable energy source that man has been using for over a hundred years. It is the longest alternative energy resource we have and produces vast quantities of electricity powering cities not only in the USA but across the globe.

Hydroelectric power functions in the same way that a windmill does, by converting the mechanical energy of flowing water in to electrical energy through the use of a turbine. The major draw back of hydroelectric power is that major changes to the landscape is required to convert the potential energy or low level kinetic energy stored in water to the kinetic energy required to drive turbines powerful enough to generate electricity needed by cities.

This is done by building dams which can have a negative impact on the environment, fish and other wildlife and by destroying large areas of land because they will be submerged under water. On top of this massive complex machines must be built to harness this energy source making it a very expensive proposition to implement. As with the other renewable energy solutions discussed above there scaled down version available that homeowners can implement to take advantage of this potential energy source.

The last energy source that will be considered in this short article is Geothermal Energy. Geothermal Energy is the energy that the earth produces as heat. Power plants have been built to take advantage of this energy source by transferring the super heated water from deep within the earth to power turbines which in turn produce electrical power in much the same way as windmills and hydroelectric turbines generate electricity.

If you would like to start reducing your carbon foot print by switching over to alternative renewable energy source you can find plans and material resource HERE!