Energy Resources

Energy
 It is the capacity of matter to perform work as the result of its motion or its position in relation to forces
acting on it.
 Energy associated with motion is known as kinetic energy, and energy related to position is called
potential energy.
o Example: a swinging pendulum has maximum potential energy at the terminal points; at all
intermediate positions it has both kinetic and potential energy in varying proportions.
 Energy exists in various forms, including:
o Mechanical (Mechanics),
o Thermal (Thermodynamics),
o Chemical (Chemical Reaction),
o Electrical (Electricity),
o Radiant (Radiation),
o Atomic (Nuclear Energy).

Types of Energy Sources

 The energy sources have been split into three categories:

i. Renewable sources
ii. Fossil fuels / Non-renewable sources
iii. Nuclear sources.

Renewable Energy

 Renewable energy that comes from resources which are continually replenishedsuch as sunlight, wind,
rain, tides waves and geothermal heat.
 New renewables such as, small hydro, modern biomass, wind, solar, geothermal and biofuels accounted
for another 3% and are growing very rapidly.
 The share of renewable energy in electricity generation is around 19%, with 16% of electricity coming
from hydroelectricity and 3% from new renewable.
 Renewable energy replaces conventional fuels in four distinct areas:
o Electricity generation: About 16% of global energy consumption comes from renewable resources,
with 10% of all energy from traditional biomass, and 3.4% from hydroelectricity.
o Hot water/ Space heating: Worldwide, total installed solar water heating systems meet a portion of
the water heating needs of over 70 million households.
 Motor fuels:The 93 billion liters of biofuels produced worldwide in 2009 displaced the equivalent of
an estimated 68 billion liters of gasoline, equal to above 5% of world gasoline production.
o Rural (off-grid) energy services

Types of Renewable Energy Resources

1. Wind Power:
 It is the energy contained in the force of the winds blowing across the earth’s surface.
o Airflows can be used to run wind turbines.
o Wind energy can be converted into mechanical energy for performing work such as pumping
water, grinding grain, and milling lumber.
 Modern utility-scale wind turbines range from around 600kW to 5 MW of rated power.
 Areas where winds are stronger and more constant, such as offshore and high altitude sights are
preferred locations for wind farms.

2. Hydropower / Waterpower:
 It is the power derived from the fall of water from a higher to a lower level, and extracted by means
of waterwheels or hydraulic turbines.
 Waterpower is a natural resource, available wherever a sufficient volume of steady water flow exists.
 Its development requires extensive construction, including storage lakes, dams, bypass canals, and
the installation of large turbines and electric generating equipment.
 Since water is about 800 times denser than air, even a slow flowing stream of water or moderate sea
swell can yield considerable amount of energy.
 There are many forms of water energy:
i. Hydro-electric energy:
o It is a term usually reserved for large-scale hydroelectric dams.
o Examples are the Tarbela dam and Mangla Dam.
ii. Micro-hydro systems
o They are hydroelectric power installations that typically produce up to 100 kW of power.
o They are often used in water rich areas as a remote-area power supply.
iii. Run-of-the-river
o It is hydroelectricity systems derive kinetic energy from rivers and oceans without creation of
a large reservoir.
iv. Tidal power /tidal energy:
o It is a form of hydropower that converts the energy of tides into used forms of power –
mainly electricity.
o Tides are more predictable than wind energy and solar power.
o Although not yet widely used, tidal power has potential for future electricity generation.

3. Solar Energy:
 It is theradiation produced by nuclear fusion reactions deep in theSun’s core.
 The Sun provides almost all the heat and light, Earth receives and therefore sustains every living
being.
 Solar energy applied energy from the sun in the form of solar radiation for heat or to generate
electricity.
 Solar powered electricity generation uses either photovoltaic’s or heat engines (concentrated solar
powers).
 A partial list of other solar applications includes:
o Space heating and cooling through solar architectures,
 o Day lighting,
o Solar hot water,
o Solar cooking and
o High temperature process heat for industrial purposes.
 Solar technologies are broadly characterized as either passive solar or active solar depending on the
way they capture, convert and distribute solar energy.
 Active solar techniques:
 Include the use of photovoltaic panels and solar thermal collectors to harness the energy.
 Passive solar techniques:
 Include orienting a building to the Sun, selecting materials with favourable thermal mass or
light dispersing properties, and designing spaces that naturally circulate air.
4. Biomass:
 Biomass is biological material derived from living or recently living organisms.
 In the context of biomass for energy this is often used to mean plant based material, but biomass can
equally apply both animal and vegetable derived materials.
 Biomass is matter usually thought of as garbage.
 Some of it is stuff lying around; dead trees, tree branches, yard clipping, leftover crops, wood chips
and bark and sawdust from lumber mills.
 It can even include used tires and livestock manure.
 Using biomass can help reduce global warming compared to a fossil fuel-powered plant.
 Plants use and store carbon dioxide when they grow.
 CO2 Stored in the plant is released when the plant material is burned.
 By replanting the crops, the new plants can use the CO2 produced by the burned plants.
 So using biomass and replanting helps close the carbon dioxide cycle.
 However, if the crops are not replanted, then biomass can emit carbon dioxide that will contribute
towards global warming.
 So, the use of biomass can be environmentally friendly because the biomass is reduced, recycled and
then reused.
 It is also a renewable resource because plants to make biomass can be grown over and over.
 There are a number of technological options available to make use of wide variety of bio mass types
as a renewable energy source.
 Conversion technologies may release the energy directly, in the form of heat or electricity or may
convert it to another form such as liquid biofuel or combustible biogas.
 Today, new ways of using biomass are still `being discovered.
5. Biofuel
 Biofuels include a wide range of fuels which are derived from biomass.
 The term covers solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases.
 Liquid Biofuels include bio alcohols, such as bioethanol and oils, such as biodiesel.
 Gaseous Biofuels include biogas, landfill gas and synthetic gas.
 Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermenting the sugar components of plant materials and it is made
mostly from sugar and starch crops.
 With advanced technology being developed, cellulosic biomass, such as trees and grasses are also
used as feed stocks for ethanol production.
  Ethanol can be used as fuel for vehicles in its pure form, but it is usually used as a gasoline additive
to increase octane and improve vehicle emissions.
 Bioethanol is widely used in the USA and Brazil.
 Biofuels provided 2.7% of the world’s transport fuel in 2010.
6. Geothermal Energy:
 Hot water and steam from underground can be used to drive turbines: this is called geothermal
energy.
 Several types of rock contain radioactive substances such as uranium.
 Radioactive decay of these substances releases heat energy, which warms up the rocks.
 In volcanic areas, the rocks may heat water so that it rises to the surface naturally as hot water and
steam.
 Here the steam can be used to drive turbines and electricity generators.
 Geothermal power stations exists in places such as Iceland, California and Italy.
 In some places, rocks are hot, but no hot water or steam rises to the surface.
 In this situation deep wells can be drilled down to the hot rocks and cold water pumped down.
 The water runs through fractures in the rocks and is heated up.
 It returns to the surface as hot water and steam, where its energy can be used to drive turbines and
electricity generators.
 Geothermal energy is a renewable energy resource and there are no fuel costs.
 No harmful polluting gases are produced.
 But most parts of the world do not have suitable areas where geothermal energy can be exploited.
7. LED Energy: (To be discussed)

Non-Renewable / Fossil Fuels

 Burning coal, natural gas, and petroleum releases energy stored in the fuel as heat.
 The energy contained by the fuels is derived from the energy of the sun.
 The heat that is recovered upon combustion of the fuel can be used by us in several ways.
 Combustion of fossil fuels can be used to generate electricity; the fuel is burned to heat water and the
steam from the boiling water spins turbines that power a generator, thereby manufacturing
electricity.
1. Coal

About 300 million years ago, enormous ferns and other prehistoric plants were common on the swamp-like
earth.

When those plants died and fell to the ground, they were covered with water and they slowly decomposed.

As decomposition took place in the absence of oxygen, much of the hydrogen content of the matter was
eroded away, leaving a material rich in carbon.

The material was compressed over theyears by sand and dirt, leaving the form of carbon known as coal.

There are various types of coal.

 The nature of coal is such that the higher the carbon content, the more cleanly and brilliantly the coal burns.

The states of coal, from lowest carbon content to highest, are peat, lignite, bituminous coal, and anthracite
coal.

If the coal is heated and compressed even more, the result is “graphite,” almost completelypure carbon.

Nearly all the different forms of coal are used in some way or another.

For instance, peat has been used for burning in furnaces,

Whereas bituminous coal is used extensively for the generation of electricity.

Coke – a very pure form of coal with a high heat content is used primarily in the steel industry, where high
temperatures are required.

2. Natural Gas

Natural gas is almost always found in deposits of petroleum.

When the petroleum is drilled, natural gas is also recovered.

Wells with only natural gas also exist.

Once the natural gas is recovered, other fuels are extracted by processes called condensation or absorption.

The remaining gas is piped directly for commercial and residential applications.

Many houses, offices and other buildings are heated by natural gas heats.

The western hemisphere, Europe and parts of Africa contain the largest natural gas deposits.

The gas is usually transported by pipelines.

Compared to petroleum and coal, natural gas is relatively clean-burning.

Because it contains only trace portions of Sulphur and Nitrogen, emissions of the harmful by products
associated with combustion of other fossil fuels are minimal.

3. Petroleum:

Petroleum or “Crude Oil”, is a liquid fuel that is present in various locations throughout the world.

It has many uses from the generation of electricity to the manufacture of medicines, plastics and other
commercial items.

Much like coal, petroleum is formed from remains of biodegraded organic material.

When animals that lived in the sea millions of years ago died underwater, their remains were gradually
covered by layers of very fine dirt know as silt on the ocean floor.
Then, as theyears passed, pressure from the layers built up and compressed the organic material, forming the
oil.

Petroleum has many different “viscosities” or thicknesses.

The viscosity depends on the amount of gases and solids that are present in the oil.

Often, natural gas is dissolved in the liquid and can be extracted for other uses.

Petroleum takes three main forms: paraffin, asphaltic and mixed-base.

These forms are based upon the chemical makeup of the hydrocarbon-based oil.

Why is renewable energy important?

There are several important reasons that make renewable energy extremely important for the future of our
society.

Renewable energy still has a long way to go in order to replace fossil fuels and become primary source of
energy consumption but things have been lately definitely moving in the right direction.

But let us focus here about the future impact of renewable energy on our society.

Positive environmental impact is certainly one of the most important reasons.

Fossil fuels when burn, create harmful greenhouse gas emissions and our planet is already feeling the
impact of climate change.

By using renewable energy instead of fossil fuels we would significantly decrease the current level of
greenhouse gas emissions, and this would have positive environmental impact for our entire planet.

Renewable energy is not all about environment as it can also give strong boost to our economy in form of
new jobs.

The number of people employed within the renewable energy industry is rapidly growing, giving many
countries an excellent option to boost their economies in this post-recession period.

Renewable energy can improve our energy security by reducing the need for foreign oil import.

The global oil market has been characterized by extremely volatile prices and our dependence on oil contuse
to grow.

By switching to renewable energy and using more domestic renewable sources instead of importing foreign
oil we would drastically improve our energy security and energy independence, not to mention the fact that
our money would stay inside our borders instead going to OPEC countries.
Renewable energy offers variety of different options to choose from. What this means is that countries can
choose between sun, wind, biomass, geothermal energy, water resources etc. depending on the potential of
each of these sources.

We can exploit abundant potential of many renewable energy resources.

Our sun for instance has almost unlimited potential. Wind, geothermal, biomass – all of these sources have
excellent potential to satisfy our energy needs.

Renewable energy can help in the fight against poverty by playing part in electrification of many rural areas
in developing world.

In these rural areas renewable energy is much cheapenergy option to satisfy energy needs as compared to
traditional energy solutions

Energy Conservation

Def:Term energy conservation refers to different methods and processes that have the main purpose in
reducing the total amount of energy that is currently being used by industry, households and various other
sectors of our society.

Energy conservation is important from many different perspective Energy conservation methods are also
extremely important from the environmental point of view because we are still heavily dependent on fossil
fuels, and by reducing our energy needs we are also reducing the global level of greenhouse gas emissions
that contributed to climate change and global warming.

Energy conservation will no doubt play even bigger role in years to come.

We are still heavily dependent on fossil fuels and the energy consumption continues to grow heavily in all
parts of the world, particularly with the rise of new economic giants from Asia, namely China and India.

The current dominant fossil fuels are finite energy resources that will eventually become depleted and in this
sense energy conservation is of vitalimportance to ensure reliability of future energy deliver, at least until
the time when renewable energy industry will mature enough to replace fossil fuel fired power plants.

In addition to developing alternative sources of energy, energy supplies can be extended by the conservation
(the planned management) of currently available resources.

Three types of possible energy conservation practices may be described.

The first type is curtailment that is, doing without—for example, closing factories to reduce the amount of
power consumed or cutting back on travel to reduce the amount of gasoline burned.

The second type is overhaul, that is, changing the way people live and the way goods and services are
produced—for example, slowing further suburbanization of society, using less energy-intensive materials in
production processes, and decreasing the amount of energy consumed by certain products (such as
automobiles).
 The third type involves the more efficient use of energy, that is, adjusting to higher energy costs—for
example, investing in cars that go farther per unit of fuel, capturing waste heat in factories and reusing it,
and insulating houses.

Efficient Energy use / Energy Efficiency

Energy conservation refers to reducing energy through using less of an energy service.

Energy conservation differs from efficient energy use, which refers to using less energy for a constant
service.

For example, driving less is an example of mileage vehicle is an example of energy efficiency.

Energy conservation and efficiency are both energy reduction techniques. Even though energy conservation
reduces energy services, it can result in increased financial capita, environmental quality, national security
and personal financial security.

To conserve energy everyone will have to play his role. Major sectors that use electricity are industry,
transport, commercial and domestic sector, all these sectors will ha e to fulfill their duties. Here are the
guidelines.

Domestic Users

1. Switch off all unnecessary light save electricity, this our national duty.
2. Use energy savers instead of conventional bulbs and tube lights in order to reduce your electricity bill.
3. Adjust cooling of refrigerators according to the atmospheric conditions to reduce your electric bill
4. Use electrical appliances of good quality. Remember, that poor quality appliances increase electric
consumption.
5. Turn off computer, TV and radio when not in use and Switch off AC after the room has been cooled and use
fan.
6. Educate your children regarding energy saving tips to enable them to be part of the national energy saving
campaign.

Industry – Energy Saving Guidelines

1. All industrialists must prepare energy plan and undertake energy audit.
2. Prevent leakages in order to save energy.
3. In order to save energy get the boilers turned after every three months.
4. All motors should be properly checked regularly.
5. Use energy savers, energy efficient lighting, instead of conventional bulbs and tube lights
6. Devise energy conservation plans to avoid energy losses.
7. Arrange for regular boiler/ furnace tune ups.

Transport – Energy saving in vehicles

1. Get your vehicle properly tuned in order to reduce fuel consumption

2. Switch off the engine if the traffic signal is likely to remain red for a longer duration.
3. For travelling to the same destination use a sing vehicle instead of more, if possible. Opt for joint
commuting instead of using individual vehicle.
4. Avoid overloading. Overloading not only increases your fuel consumption but also spreads environmental
pollution.
5. Tune up your vehicles regularly.

Energy Conservation tips for Gas Consumers.

1. Minimize the use of heaters.

2. Turn on geyser only in the morning.
3. Repair gas leakages immediately
4. Switch off the stove after use.

Electricity Consumers

1. With energy prices rising, it’s important to make our home more fuel efficient. Use energy savers.
2. Change your light bulbs to fluorescent. They are bit more expensive to buy than standard light bulbs but
much cheaper to operate.
3. Use lower wattage bulbs, especially in rooms where bright light is not necessary
4. If you have a lamp that uses three 60 watt light bulbs, try using three 40 watt light bulbs. The effect will be
almost undetectable in terms of light but should help the power meter slow down.
5. Use daylight to the maximum
6. Turn off your lights when leaving the rooms.
7. When you are not using something like a lamp or a toaster or a computer, but it is still plugged in that uses
energy, switch these off.
8. Keep the thermostat of refrigerator and air-conditioner low and instead of air conditioners, use fans because
they use 10 times less energy.
9. Avoid ironing at peak hours in the evening or morning.