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What is renewable energy?

Energyy

By MicutulMicPublished 2 years ago 7 min read
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What is renewable energy?
Photo by Federico Beccari on Unsplash

Energy is an essential element in the development of mankind and is the engine that has made possible all the discoveries and innovations of the last decades.

It is behind the comfort we have in our daily lives, whether at home, at the office, or when traveling: an optimal temperature in the room, light at any time, devices that make our life easier and more beautiful. .

Taking into account the above, it is natural to increase the volume of energy consumed, which is recorded every year, globally.

With the increase of consumption and implicitly of the production of electricity, a problem has arisen that must be solved: the production of electricity by conventional methods can damage the environment and the planet that hosts us.

For more than a century, coal, oil and other fossil fuels have been used as energy sources to power homes, factories and cars. The intense use of these sources and their burning to generate energy, have led to the creation of greenhouse gases considered the main cause for climate change and automatically for global warming.

The solution for remedying these harmful effects, while maintaining the comfort and resources we need, is renewable energy or green energy.

Energy also plays a very important role in economic growth and poverty reduction. However, there are 1.4 billion people in the world who do not yet have access to electricity.

An energy system based on renewable energy could provide electricity in a more economical, sustainable, long-term, non-polluting way to a larger number of people.

One such example is photovoltaic panels, which produce electricity from captured solar energy and is one of the solutions considered to reduce global energy poverty.

We read more and more, we hear about renewable energy and its benefits, and it is natural, given the many benefits it brings.

If we talk about global warming, renewable energy is a solution. If we talk about our own sources of energy and the fight against energy poverty, we are also thinking about renewable energy.

The development of renewable energy sources can also stimulate employment by creating jobs in the new “green” technology sector.

In recent years, renewable energy, sustainable development and environmental protection have become the main topics.

How is renewable energy obtained?

Renewable energy or green energy is obtained from renewable energy sources, which do not harm nature and the environment, do not affect our quality of life.

These energy sources include hydropower, wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, even wave and tidal energy.

The use of these renewable resources is beginning to become more active and desirable in the goals of countries globally. The reasons are numerous and the most important is that they are non-polluting and do not affect the health of the planet or people.

Globally, renewable energy investment is growing at an accelerated rate and the most developed countries are investing billions of dollars in this sector.

According to a UN report, global renewable energy investment will reach $ 2.6 trillion by the end of this decade, more than triple the investment of the previous decade.

The country that has made the largest investments in this sector, this decade is China, which contributed $ 758 billion between 2010 and mid-2019. In the same period, Europe invested $ 698 billion and the United States , about $ 356 billion.

The most important renewable resources at the moment:

Hydropower:

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Hydropower uses the power of water to generate electricity through the force of gravity and the phenomenon of water flow. It is the most widely used type of renewable energy in the world and China, Brazil, Canada, the United States and Russia are recognized as the largest producers of hydropower.

It uses the Earth’s water cycle to generate current, due to the movements of water downstream, kinetic energy is created, and it can be transformed into electricity.

This is also one of the most convenient sources of energy in terms of costs.

Currently, 20% of the world’s electricity is supplied by hydropower plants. They are the main source of energy for more than 30 countries.

The advantage of hydropower over other energy sources is the average rainfall. This is quite predictable, so the result is reliable.

Wind energy:

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Wind energy or wind energy is a clean source of energy discovered over 7000 years ago. It was first used in maritime navigation, then through windmills, and nowadays through wind turbines that turn this energy into electricity.

Globally, energy from wind sources has been one of the best solutions for the development of energy independence and is still a very popular green energy source.

The ecological advantage of this type of energy is the clean way it is produced, without emitting greenhouse gases so harmful to the environment.

Solar energy:

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Solar energy is represented by sunlight that can be converted into electricity through solar or photovoltaic panels.

Photovoltaic panels have both ecological and economic advantages.

From an ecological point of view, they are not harmful to the environment because the production process of electricity does not involve the elimination of gases, smoke, or other harmful substances, so the contribution to the formation of greenhouse gases is excluded.

The economic advantage, which is not to be ignored at all, is the fact that the installation of photovoltaic panels considerably reduces the costs for electricity. Moreover, the surplus energy produced will be redistributed in the grid for a fee.

From a climatic point of view, the Romanians who are thinking of installing photovoltaic panels have the advantage that our country enjoys over 200 sunny days a year, in which the sun’s energy can be fully exploited.

As a positioning, the photovoltaic panels can be mounted both on the roof of the buildings and on the floor.

Geothermal energy:

Geothermal energy is a type of renewable energy that is obtained from the heat inside the Earth. The elements in which it is found are steam, hot water from the hot areas of the Earth or from areas where there are volcanoes.

Biomass energy:

When we talk about biomass energy we are actually referring to the organic matter used as fuel.

Organic matter can be any biodegradable element that remains after the decomposition of waste, living organisms or their metabolic processes.

Because it is based on natural resources found in nature since ancient times, biomass is the oldest energy resource used by humans.

The way electricity is obtained from biomass is by burning it.

Given that biomass is represented by residues and waste that no one normally uses, its use in order to obtain energy has the advantage of recycling this waste which, not being eliminated, would materialize in mountains of “garbage. ”.

Energy of waves and tides:

Obtaining energy with the help of waves and tides, or tidal energy, is achieved by using the force produced by the movement of sea and ocean waters.

In obtaining this type of energy, the moon plays an essential role, the tides being the ones that cause the water to move.

Tidal energy is that which can be captured by exploiting the energy resulting from the vertical movement of water at different levels or the kinetic energy due to currents.

The size of the generated waves depends on the wind speed, its duration and the distance it acts on the water.

The movement of water resulting from this action produces an exploitable energy with the help of special processes and technologies.

Renewable resources, unlike the classic ones, are free; water, wind and sun are offered by nature, but each of them involves an initial investment in technology.

From the steps we can observe both nationally and at European and global level, all responsible countries, which seek to develop, take extremely seriously the subject of renewable energy and invest huge sums in developing the technologies needed to produce energy from sources renewable, whether they are: wind, solar, biomass, or other.

The most involved European countries in this sector are: Denmark, Great Britain and Germany.

Given the ecological and economic benefits of renewable energy, it is not surprising that all developing countries have chosen to invest in this sector.

But in addition to national and global investment, we are seeing a positive change among individual consumers as well.

More and more people are interested in renewable energy, being concerned both with a sustainable future and especially with finding more efficient power supply solutions.

And at the individual level we can choose to use renewable energy, either by installing photovoltaic panels at home, or by choosing a product to supply electricity from renewable sources.

This choice contributes both to the improvement of our lives and to the protection of the environment.

Humanity
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About the Creator

MicutulMic

”Failure is just the opportunity to start all over again, this time in a smarter way - Henry Ford”

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