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Nuclear Energy and Fission - Physics for kids

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Nuclear Energy and Fission - Physics for kids

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Kids learn about nuclear energy and fission in the science of physics including E=mc2, power plants, uses of nuclear power, and fusion.

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Environment for Kids: Hydropower Energy 

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Environment for Kids: Hydropower Energy 

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Kids learn about hydropower energy and how this renewable power can help the environment. Teach students about biodiesel, ethanol, and methane gas.

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Create a new document and edit with others at the same time -- from your computer, phone or tablet. Get stuff done with or without an internet connection. Use Docs to edit Word files. Free from Google.

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Kids learn about wind energy and how this renewable power can help the environment. Teach students about turbines that generate electricity from wind.

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Uranium (nuclear) - Energy Kids: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

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The sun is basically a giant ball of hydrogen gas undergoing fusion and giving off vast amounts of energy in the process.

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Humans have been harnessing the energy of river currents for centuries, using water wheels spun by rivers initially to process grains and cloth. Today, hydropower provides about 16 percent of the world's electricity, generating power in all but two U.S. states.

Hydropower became an electricity source in the late 19th century, a few decades after British-American engineer James Francis developed the first modern water turbine. In 1882, the world's first hydroelectric power plant began operating in the United States along the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin.

How hydropower works

A typical hydroelectric plant is a system with three parts: a power plant where the electricity is produced, a dam that can be opened or closed to control water flow, and a reservoir where water is stored. The water behind the dam flows through an intake and pushes against blades in a turbine, causing them to turn. The turbine spins a generator to produce electricity.

The amount of electricity that can be generated depends on how far the water drops and how much water moves through the system. The electricity can be transported through long-distance electric lines to homes, factories, and businesses. Other types of hydropower plants make use of the flow through a waterway without a dam.

The largest hydropower plants

China, Brazil, Canada, the United States, and Russia are the five largest producers of hydropower. The world's largest hydroelectric plant in terms of installed capacity is Three Gorges (Sanxia) on China's Yangtze River, which is 1.4 miles (2.3 kilometers) wide and 607 feet (185 meters) high. The facility that actually generates the most electricity annually is the Itaipu plant situated on the ‎Paraná River between Brazil and Paraguay.

The biggest hydropower plant in the United States is at the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in Washington, a state that gets about two-thirds of its electricity from hydropower.

Hydropower pros and cons

Hydropower has several advantages. Once a dam has been built and the equipment installed, the energy source-flowing water-is free. It's a clean fuel source renewed by snow and rainfall. Hydropower plants can supply large amounts of electricity, and they are relatively easy to adjust for demand by controlling the flow of water through the turbines.

But big dam projects can disrupt river ecosystems and surrounding communities, harming wildlife and forcing out residents. The Three Gorges Dam, for example, displaced an estimated 1.2 million people and flooded hundreds of villages.

Dams also prevent fish such as salmon from swimming upstream to spawn. While equipment such as fish ladders are designed to help salmon go up and over dams and enter upstream spawning areas, such measures aren't always effective. In some cases, fish are collected and trucked around the obstacles. Still, the presence of hydroelectric dams can often change migration patterns and hurt fish populations. In the Columbia River Basin in the Pacific Northwest, for example, salmon and steelhead have lost access to about 40 percent of their historic habitat because of dams.

Hydropower plants can also cause low dissolved oxygen levels in the water, which is harmful to river habitats. Other wildlife can be affected as well: In Indonesia, a hydroelectric project threatens rare Tapanuli orangutans because it stands to fragment their habitat.

Climate change and the increased risk of drought are also having an impact on the world's hydropower plants. In the western U.S., carbon dioxide emissions over a 15-year period were 100 megatons higher than they normally would have been, according to a 2018 study, as utilities turned to coal and gas to replace hydropower lost to drought.

Even the promise of carbon-free electricity from hydropower has been undermined by revelations that decaying organic material in reservoirs releases methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.

However, some argue that the environmental impacts of hydroelectric power can be mitigated and remain low compared with burning fossil fuels. In some places, small hydro projects can take advantage of existing water flows or infrastructure. Special water intakes and turbines can help make sure water released from a dam is better aerated to address the problem of low dissolved oxygen. Dams can be planned more strategically to allow fish passages, for example, while water flows at existing dams can be calibrated to give ecosystems more recovery time from flooding cycles. And research continues on ways to make hydropower projects more friendly to the ecosystems around them.

A growing movement is also working to tear down dams that are no longer functioning or needed around the world, with the aim at restoring more natural rivers and the many benefits they provide to wildlife and people, including recreation.

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Learn about the benefits and pitfalls of generating electricity from waterways.

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LibGuides: : Renewable Energy: Tidal Power

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LibGuides: : Renewable Energy: Nuclear Power

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What is Hydropower?

Hydropower, or hydroelectric power, is one of the oldest and largest sources of renewable energy, which uses the natural flow of moving water to generate electricity. Hydropower currently accounts for 28.7% of total U.S. renewable electricity generation and about 6.2% of total U.S. electricity generation.

While most people might associate the energy source with the Hoover Dam-a huge facility harnessing the power of an entire river behind its wall- hydropower facilities come in all sizes. Some may be very large, but they can be tiny, too, taking advantage of water flows in municipal water facilities or irrigation ditches. They can even be "damless," with diversions or run-of-river facilities that channel part of a stream through a powerhouse before the water rejoins the main river. Whatever the method, hydropower is much easier to obtain and more widely used than most people realize. In fact, all but two states (Delaware and Mississippi) use hydropower for electricity, some more than others. For example, in 2020 about 66% of the state of Washington's electricity came from hydropower.

In a study led by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory on hydropower flexibility, preliminary analysis found that the firm capacity associated with U.S. hydropower's flexibility is estimated to be over 24 GW. To replace this capability with storage would require the buildout of 24 GW of 10-hour storage-more than all the existing storage in the United States today. Additionally, in terms of integrating wind and solar, the flexibility presented in existing U.S. hydropower facilities could help bring up to 137 gigawatts of new wind and solar online by 2035.

How Does Hydropower Work?

Hydropower technologies generate power by using the elevation difference, created by a dam or diversion structure, of water flowing in on one side and out, far below, on the other. The Department of Energy's "Hydropower 101" video explains how hydropower works and highlights some of the research and development efforts of the Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) in this area.

What is the cost of Hydropower?

Hydropower is an affordable source of electricity that costs less than most. Since hydropower relies only on the energy from moving water, states that get the majority of their electricity from hydropower, like Idaho, Washington, and Oregon, have lower energy bills than the rest of the country.

Compared to other electricity sources, hydropower also has relatively low costs throughout the duration of a full project lifetime in terms of maintenance, operations, and fuel. Like any major energy source, significant upfront costs are unavoidable, but hydropower's longer lifespan spreads these costs out over time. Additionally, the equipment used at hydropower facilities often operates for longer periods of time without needing replacements or repairs, saving money in the long term.

The installation costs for large hydropower facilities consist mostly of civil construction works (such as the building of the dams, tunnels, and other necessary infrastructure) and electromechanical equipment costs (electricity-generating machinery). Since hydropower is a site-specific technology, these costs can be minimized at the planning stage through proper selection of location and design.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF HYDROPOWER?

The benefits of hydropower have been recognized and harnessed for thousands of years. In addition to being a clean and cost-effective form of energy, hydropower plants can provide power to the grid immediately, serving as a flexible and reliable form of backup power during major electricity outages or disruptions. Hydropower also produces a number of benefits outside of electricity generation, such as flood control, irrigation support, and water supply.

WHAT IS THE HISTORY OF HYDROPOWER?

The history of hydropower dates back thousands of years. For example, the Greeks used water wheels to grind wheat into flour more than 2,000 years ago. The evolution of the modern hydropower turbine began in the mid-1700s when a French hydraulic and military engineer, Bernard Forest de Bélidor, wrote Architecture Hydraulique. Many key developments in hydropower technology occurred during the first half of the 19th century, and more recently, the past century has seen a number of hydroelectric advancements that have helped hydropower become an integral part of the renewable energy mix in the United States.

To learn how to join the hydropower industry and more about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce development opportunities, visit the Hydropower STEM Portal.

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Hydropower, or hydroelectric power, is one of the oldest and largest sources of renewable energy, which uses the natural flow of moving water to generate electricity.

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Kids learn about solar energy and how this renewable power can help the environment. Teach students about solar cells and using the sun for heat.

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Solar Power Has Benefits as a Source of Alternative Energy

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Learn how solar power works, the benefits it offers, and some of the pitfalls.

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Nuclear Power - Renewable Energy Libguide

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Nuclear Power - Renewable Energy Libguide

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LibGuides: : Renewable Energy: Nuclear Power

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Create a new document and edit with others at the same time -- from your computer, phone or tablet. Get stuff done with or without an internet connection. Use Docs to edit Word files. Free from Google.

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Fun Kids - the UK's children's radio station

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What is wind energy? How can wind generate electricity?

Here's the need-to-know stuff about the energy source, wind!

Description

As the Earth is heated by the Sun, some regions become warmer than others. The air in the warm regions rises. Air from cooler regions rushes in to replace it. This creates air currents - what we know as the wind.

Where can you find wind power?

Winds affect every part of the Earth. There are over 130 wind farms in the UK and many more are under construction.

Wind turbines can be put in any area where there is a lot of wind! Some are on land and some are in the sea - these are called 'offshore' wind farms!

How is it made into electricity?

The wind blows turbine blades, which then turn. This turning motion is transferred to a generator to produce electricity.

What are the advantages of using wind?

It is a renewable source of energy, which means that it will not run out!

As one of the windiest countries in Europe, it is perfect for our climate!

Wind energy is pollution free.

The land between the turbines can be used for farming meaning it doesn't take up too much space.

Wind turbines can be used to supply energy in remote places.

There is no need to dig underground or drill for the resource; therefore there is less land pollution!

What are the disadvantages of using wind?

There are potential local wildlife impacts such as birds being killed by the blades of the turbine. However, the risk to nature from climate change is far greater than this.

The wind is not always predictable. Some days may have a lot of wind and others may have no wind at all.

Click here for more energy facts!

We've got a whole series about energy, electricity, and power generation! It's called Curious Kate, and you can listen to it below!

EXPLORE THIS SERIES

Podcasts

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Wind: Energy Source Fact File! - Fun Kids - the UK's children's radio station

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Here's the need-to-know stuff about the energy source, wind! Description As the Earth is heated by the Sun, some regions become warmer than others. The air in the warm regions more "

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Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.

Even after a boom in recent years, solar energy delivers less than 2 percent of power generation to the US electrical grid. But if we're going to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, the sun's contribution is going to have to ramp up dramatically. Where to put all the solar panels? You might envision vast solar farms stretching across the sun-scorched lands of the Southwest. But according to two recent papers- one from Oregon and Utah researchers, another from a team centered at the University of Arizona-a much different kind of landscape makes the most sense for harvesting solar power: the land currently occupied by food farms.
Blazing-hot deserts pose some problems for solar panels.
That's because the technology that drives solar power-photovoltaic (PV) panels made of silicon that convert light photons directly into electricity-works most efficiently under a specific set of conditions. Most important for this power, of course, is abundant sunlight, which is why deserts make tempting sites for solar energy production. But air temperature is important, too. Above the threshold of 78°F, the hotter it gets outside, the less efficient PV panels are at converting sunlight to electricity. And that's why blazing-hot deserts pose some problems for solar panels.

In addition to plenty of sun and moderate temperatures, solar works best in regions with light winds and low humidity. Bringing all of those factors together, the Oregon/Utah authors found that regions currently covered with crops and grass provided the most optimal conditions for solar all over the world. Barren terrain, the kind of parched desert landscape I associate with big solar installations, came in fifth.

It makes sense that plants and solar panels do well in similar microclimates, the authors note. "One could think of agriculture as a form of solar harvesting where the sun's energy is stored in the chemical bonds of the plant matter," they write. "And agricultural activities already occupy those places on earth most amenable to solar harvesting."

When I first picked up the report, I thought the authors were suggesting that some farmers should switch from food production to solar production. Turns out that the two activities can co-exist. Raising the panels up off the ground leaves room for people and animals to move in under them. Their shading effect can actually help some crops by reducing heat stress; the cover also saves water in farming by cutting down evaporation.

Two of the paper's authors, Oregon State University researchers Elnaz Adeh and Chad Higgins, co-authored a 2018 PLOS One study looking at grass production on a solar installation on a pasture near Corvallis, Oregon. Their finding: Areas covered by the panels generated 90 percent more grass than before, using a fraction of the water. Similar projects are showing promising results in Germany and Massachusetts.
"The plants aren't just freeloading while the solar panels provide shade."
University of Arizona researcher Greg Barron-Gafford leads a team assessing the benefits of combining solar panels with working farms in the hot, arid southwest. They have a paper, out this week in Nature Sustainability, reporting on the results of a project in which tomatoes and hot peppers were grown under solar panels. The results were positive. The shade helped crops thrive-and saved irrigation water-through the scalding Arizona summer; in turn, the plants helped cool the solar panels, increasing their efficiency.

The researchers chose three crops for the study. Chiltepin pepper, a wild chili common along the southwestern borderlands, saw its production triple under the panels compared to an unshaded control; jalapeño pepper production was roughly the same in both settings; and cherry tomato output doubled under PV cover. As for water, soil under the panels retained between 5 percent and 15 percent more moisture between irrigation events.

The relationship benefited the panels, too. Across the growing season, PV panels placed over crops were significantly cooler than their peers placed over bare ground, and as a result churned out about 3 percent more electricity.

"The plants aren't just freeloading while the solar panels provide shade," Barron-Gafford said. "Every time they open their pores to let carbon dioxide in for photosynthesis, water escapes." The process, called transpiration, provides a cooling effect-the same reason restaurants run misters on patios during on hot days.

"One of the reasons we got into this research is we kept finding that large-scale solar arrays create this heat-island effect," he said-and the higher temperatures reduce the panels' electricity output. "We thought, well part of the reason probably is that they always clear the vegetation out-so why don't we stick some vegetation back and get that transpiration effect going?"

So far, it has been hard to get farmers to bite on growing crops under solar arrays, Barron-Gafford said. Covering large portions of fertile fields with sun blockers remains counterintuitive. But as climate change proceeds, irrigation water in the arid southwest will get more expensive, and demand for carbon-free energy will grow. Agrophotovoltaics-as the overlap of food and solar farms is known-can help with both, without hurting crop yields.

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The best place for harvesting solar energy is not where I expected it to be

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And the same land can produce loads of food and electricity simultaneously.

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The Global Solar Atlas provides a summary of solar power potential and solar resources globally. It is provided by the World Bank Group as a free service to governments, developers and the general public, and allows users to quickly obtain data and carry out a simple electricity output calculation for any location covered by the solar resource database.

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In previous posts, we explained how to determine if solar panels are worth it and we outlined the top five factors that influence the solar energy potential of a site. These factors are latitude, cloud cover, aerosols, elevation and shading. Not surprisingly, the site with the highest solar energy potential on Earth happens to be near the equator, surrounded by an arid climate away from major sources of pollution, and it also happens to be on a plateau. Welcome to the Atacama Desert in Chile: the top solar spot on Earth, with annual solar production of more than 9,000 kWh from an average-sized (5kW) residential solar panel system. Atacama is a plateau on the west side of the Andes mountains and it covers a strip of land about 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) long.

What makes Atacama the best solar energy spot on Earth?

A combination of factors renders Atacama the perfect solar spot. It is relatively close to the equator (28 degrees South) and therefore has a high energy density. More importantly, Atacama is dry, very dry. In fact, it is considered as the driest place on Earth. Some of the weather stations in the area have not recorded a single droplet of rain. Since cloud cover accounts for about 20% of the atmospheric absorption, the absence of clouds in this area gives a very sizable boost to solar radiation levels. The third contributing factor is elevation: the Atacama plateau is significantly above the sea level. Most sites in the area are at an elevation of 2400 meters (8000 feet). As you may recall from an earlier post, higher elevation means less atmospheric absorption and consequently higher levels of solar radiation. The absence of significant human presence in the area also means less industrial and urban pollution, limiting the level of aerosols in the air.
Interestingly, these conditions are not only important for solar energy. High-altitude, arid conditions and lack of major urban centers make Atacama one of the most ideal sites for astronomical observations. It's no wonder that the region hosts some of the top observatories in the world, including the European Southern Observatory.

Running the numbers

So how much electricity could we produce if we were to install an average-sized residential solar photovoltaic system at this site? A 5kW system (corresponding to about 20 solar panels), would yield around 11,000 kWh of electricity throughout the year. This is very close to the average household electricity consumption in North America. Energy Information Administration reports that in 2011, the average annual electricity consumption for a U.S. residential utility customer was 11,280 kWh. Simply put, 20 solar panels in the Atacama Desert would meet all the electricity demand of a household without any need for a supplementing energy source (of course solar electricity production has to be balanced to meet the demand pattern using batteries or a grid connection).

Atacama Desert near the border between Chile and Bolivia

Given this potential, it is no wonder that the region started to attract significant solar investment. In order to supply the mines in the region with electricity, an independent power producer, Etrion Corporation, is in the process of setting up solar parks with a combined capacity of around 100 MW.

Solar radiation levels are important, but so are the technology and economics of the investment

To be fair, Atacama is not the only location on Earth with a Solar Score of 100. There are quite a few locations around the globe with similar, albeit slightly lower, levels of solar radiation. However, most of these other sites are over the ocean around the equator and therefore are not suitable for solar energy installations. We should also mention that solar radiation levels alone cannot determine if investment at a particular location will be a winner or not. The other two variables of the equation, namely, technology and economics, should also be examined. Choosing the optimal technology to make the most of the solar energy potential is always an important factor. For example, a concentrating PV system at the Atacama site would significantly boost the output. Of course, the cost of the installation, financing options, net metering or a feed-in-tariff are also important things to consider. A solar energy investment on a site with lower solar radiation levels could be more profitable than the one at the Atacama site, if the economics are right.

We've seen the best site for solar energy on Earth, and the results are impressive. Why not Discover solar energy where you live!

Image credit: NASA.gov

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Where is the best location on Earth for solar energy?

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In previous posts, we explained how to determine if solar panels are worth it and we outlined the top five factors that influence the solar energy potential of a site. These factors are latitude, cloud cover, aerosols, elevation and shading.

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Solar energy is created by nuclear fusion that takes place in the sun. It is necessary for life on Earth, and can be harvested for human uses such as electricity.

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All About Solar Energy – Earth's Renewable Resources

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Solar Power 101 video - How does Solar Energy work? 

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Solar Power 101 video - How does Solar Energy work? 

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Solar power 101: How does solar energy work?

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Humans have been harnessing the energy of river currents for centuries, using water wheels spun by rivers initially to process grains and cloth. Today, hydropower provides about 16 percent of the world's electricity, generating power in all but two U.S. states.

Hydropower became an electricity source in the late 19th century, a few decades after British-American engineer James Francis developed the first modern water turbine. In 1882, the world's first hydroelectric power plant began operating in the United States along the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin.

How hydropower works

A typical hydroelectric plant is a system with three parts: a power plant where the electricity is produced, a dam that can be opened or closed to control water flow, and a reservoir where water is stored. The water behind the dam flows through an intake and pushes against blades in a turbine, causing them to turn. The turbine spins a generator to produce electricity.

The amount of electricity that can be generated depends on how far the water drops and how much water moves through the system. The electricity can be transported through long-distance electric lines to homes, factories, and businesses. Other types of hydropower plants make use of the flow through a waterway without a dam.

The largest hydropower plants

China, Brazil, Canada, the United States, and Russia are the five largest producers of hydropower. The world's largest hydroelectric plant in terms of installed capacity is Three Gorges (Sanxia) on China's Yangtze River, which is 1.4 miles (2.3 kilometers) wide and 607 feet (185 meters) high. The facility that actually generates the most electricity annually is the Itaipu plant situated on the ‎Paraná River between Brazil and Paraguay.

The biggest hydropower plant in the United States is at the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in Washington, a state that gets about two-thirds of its electricity from hydropower.

Hydropower pros and cons

Hydropower has several advantages. Once a dam has been built and the equipment installed, the energy source-flowing water-is free. It's a clean fuel source renewed by snow and rainfall. Hydropower plants can supply large amounts of electricity, and they are relatively easy to adjust for demand by controlling the flow of water through the turbines.

But big dam projects can disrupt river ecosystems and surrounding communities, harming wildlife and forcing out residents. The Three Gorges Dam, for example, displaced an estimated 1.2 million people and flooded hundreds of villages.

Dams also prevent fish such as salmon from swimming upstream to spawn. While equipment such as fish ladders are designed to help salmon go up and over dams and enter upstream spawning areas, such measures aren't always effective. In some cases, fish are collected and trucked around the obstacles. Still, the presence of hydroelectric dams can often change migration patterns and hurt fish populations. In the Columbia River Basin in the Pacific Northwest, for example, salmon and steelhead have lost access to about 40 percent of their historic habitat because of dams.

Hydropower plants can also cause low dissolved oxygen levels in the water, which is harmful to river habitats. Other wildlife can be affected as well: In Indonesia, a hydroelectric project threatens rare Tapanuli orangutans because it stands to fragment their habitat.

Climate change and the increased risk of drought are also having an impact on the world's hydropower plants. In the western U.S., carbon dioxide emissions over a 15-year period were 100 megatons higher than they normally would have been, according to a 2018 study, as utilities turned to coal and gas to replace hydropower lost to drought.

Even the promise of carbon-free electricity from hydropower has been undermined by revelations that decaying organic material in reservoirs releases methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.

However, some argue that the environmental impacts of hydroelectric power can be mitigated and remain low compared with burning fossil fuels. In some places, small hydro projects can take advantage of existing water flows or infrastructure. Special water intakes and turbines can help make sure water released from a dam is better aerated to address the problem of low dissolved oxygen. Dams can be planned more strategically to allow fish passages, for example, while water flows at existing dams can be calibrated to give ecosystems more recovery time from flooding cycles. And research continues on ways to make hydropower projects more friendly to the ecosystems around them.

A growing movement is also working to tear down dams that are no longer functioning or needed around the world, with the aim at restoring more natural rivers and the many benefits they provide to wildlife and people, including recreation.

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Learn about the benefits and pitfalls of generating electricity from waterways.

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Why hydropower is the forgotten giant of clean energy

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Hydropower is the world’s largest source of renewable energy, but despite its outsize impact, it’s often overlooked. Here’s what the future holds for hydro.

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3 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy Is Awesome! 3/3

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3 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy Is Terrible! 2/3

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Nuclear Energy Explained: How does it work? 1/3

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Do we Need Nuclear Energy to Stop Climate Change?

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HOW A NUCLEAR POWER PLANT WORKS ?.. || NUCLEAR REACTION || 3D ANIMATION || LEARN FROM THE BASE

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What is Nuclear Energy? | National Geographic

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Echo & Friends Explore Wind and Hydro Energy

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Echo & Friends Explore Wind and Hydro Energy

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Hydro Power and Wind Power for Kids | Kit explores the Museum of Natural Curiosity

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Niagara Falls Science - Rainbows and HydroElectric Power JoJo's Science Show

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10. Hydropower is one of the oldest power sources on the planet, generating power when flowing water spins a wheel or turbine. It was used by farmers as far back as ancient Greece for mechanical tasks like grinding grain. Hydropower is also a renewable energy source and produces no air pollution or toxic byproducts. Learn more about the history of hydropower.

9. When most people think of hydropower, they imagine the Hoover Dam - a huge facility storing the power of an entire river behind its walls - but hydropower facilities can be tiny too, taking advantage of water flows in municipal water facilities or irrigation ditches. They can even be "dam-less," with diversions or run-of-river facilities channeling part of a stream through a powerhouse before the water rejoins the main river.

8. Niagara Falls was the site of the country's first hydroelectric generating facility -- built in 1881 when Charles Brush connected a generator to turbines powered by the falls and used the electricity to power nighttime lighting for visiting tourists. America's first commercial hydropower facility was built in 1882 in Appleton, Wisconsin -- powering lighting for a paper mill and multiple homes.

7. Every state uses hydropower for electricity, and some states use a lot of it. Over 70 percent of Washington State's electricity comes from hydropower, and 11 states get more than 10 percent of their electricity from hydropower.

6. Hydropower costs less than most energy sources. States that get the majority of their electricity from hydropower, like Idaho, Washington, and Oregon, have energy bills that are lower than the rest of the country.

5. Hydroelectricity provides about seven percent of the electricity generated in the United States and about half of the electricity from all renewable sources, finds the Energy Information Administration.

4. Some hydropower facilities can quickly go from zero power to maximum output, making them ideal for meeting sudden changes in demand for electricity. Because hydropower plants can dispatch power to the grid immediately, they provide essential back-up power during major electricity disruptions such as the 2003 blackout that affected the northeastern states and southern Canada. Read a report about other services hydropower can provide to the electric grid.

3. Another type of hydropower called pumped storage works like a battery, storing the electricity generated by other power sources like solar, wind, and nuclear for later use. It stores energy by pumping water uphill to a reservoir at higher elevation from a second reservoir at a lower elevation. When the power is needed, the water is released and turns a turbine, generating electricity.

2. Devices at dams can help fish and other wildlife move freely around dams and between sections of rivers. Fish ladders and fish elevators are just some of the techniques used to help fish migrate.

1. Dams are built for a number of uses in addition to producing electricity, such as irrigation, shipping and navigation, flood control or to create reservoirs for recreational activities. In fact, only 3 percent of the nation's 80,000 dams currently generate power. An Energy Department-funded study found that 12 gigawatts of hydroelectric generating capacity could be added to existing dams around the country. View the full report and the interactive map on the energy potential of non-powered dams.

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Top 10 Things You Didn’t Know about Hydropower

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Test your energy knowledge by checking out these surprising facts about hydropower.

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Hydroelectricity is electricity that is made by the movement of water. It is usually made with dams that block a river to make a reservoir or collect water that is pumped there. When the water is "let go", the huge pressure behind the dam forces the water down pipes that lead to a turbine. This causes the turbine to turn, which turns a generator which makes electricity. This use of renewable energy produces less pollution than steam engines do. Some places such as Norway and Quebec get most of their electricity this way.

Hydroelectric power plants

Generating methods

Conventional (dams)

Most hydroelectric power comes from the potential energy of dammed water driving a water turbine and generator. The power extracted from the water depends on the volume and on the difference in height between the source and the water's outflow. This height difference is called the head. A large pipe (the "penstock") delivers water from the reservoir to the turbine.

Pumped-storage

This method produces electricity to supply high peak demands by moving water between reservoirs at different elevations. At times of low electrical demand, the excess generation capacity is used to pump water into the higher reservoir. When the demand becomes greater, water is released back into the lower reservoir through a turbine. Pumped-storage schemes currently provide the most commercially important means of large-scale grid energy storage and improve the daily capacity factor of the generation system. Pumped storage is not an energy source, and appears as a negative number in listings.

Run-of-the-river

Run-of-the-river hydroelectric stations are those with small or no reservoir capacity, so that only the water coming from upstream is available for generation at that moment, and any oversupply must pass unused. A constant supply of water from a lake or existing reservoir upstream is a significant advantage in choosing sites for run-of-the-river. In the United States, run of the river hydropower could potentially provide 60,000 megawatts (80,000,000 hp) (about 13.7% of total use in 2011 if continuously available).

A tidal power station makes use of the daily rise and fall of ocean water due to tides; such sources are highly predictable, and if conditions permit construction of reservoirs, can also be dispatchable to generate power during high demand periods. Less common types of hydro schemes use water's kinetic energy or undammed sources such as undershot water wheels. Tidal power is viable in a relatively small number of locations around the world. In Great Britain, there are eight sites that could be developed, which have the potential to generate 20% of the electricity used in 2012.

Sizes, types and capacities of hydroelectric facilities

Large facilities

Large-scale hydroelectric power stations are more commonly seen as the largest power producing facilities in the world, with some hydroelectric facilities capable of generating more than double the installed capacities of the current largest nuclear power stations.

Although no official definition exists for the capacity range of large hydroelectric power stations, facilities from over a few hundred megawatts are generally considered large hydroelectric facilities.

Currently, only four facilities over () are in operation worldwide, see table below.

Small hydro is the development of hydroelectric power on a scale serving a small community or industrial plant. The definition of a small hydro project varies but a generating capacity of up to 10 megawatts (MW) is generally accepted as the upper limit of what can be termed small hydro. This may be stretched to 25 MW and 30 MW in Canada and the United States. Small-scale hydroelectricity production grew by 28% during 2008 from 2005, raising the total world small-hydro capacity to . Over 70% of this was in China (65 GW), followed by Japan (3.5 GW), the United States (3 GW), and India (2 GW).

Small hydro stations may be connected to conventional electrical distribution networks as a source of low-cost renewable energy. Alternatively, small hydro projects may be built in isolated areas that would be uneconomic to serve from a network, or in areas where there is no national electrical distribution network. Since small hydro projects usually have minimal reservoirs and civil construction work, they are seen as having a relatively low environmental impact compared to large hydro. This decreased environmental impact depends strongly on the balance between stream flow and power production.

Micro hydro is a term used for hydroelectric power installations that typically produce up to of power. These installations can provide power to an isolated home or small community, or are sometimes connected to electric power networks. There are many of these installations around the world, particularly in developing nations as they can provide an economical source of energy without purchase of fuel. Micro hydro systems complement photovoltaic solar energy systems because in many areas, water flow, and thus available hydro power, is highest in the winter when solar energy is at a minimum.

Pico hydro is a term used for hydroelectric power generation of under . It is useful in small, remote communities that require only a small amount of electricity. For example, to power one or two fluorescent light bulbs and a TV or radio for a few homes. Even smaller turbines of 200-300W may power a single home in a developing country with a drop of only 1 m (3 ft). A Pico-hydro setup is typically run-of-the-river, meaning that dams are not used, but rather pipes divert some of the flow, drop this down a gradient, and through the turbine before returning it to the stream.

Underground

An underground power station is generally used at large facilities and makes use of a large natural height difference between two waterways, such as a waterfall or mountain lake. An underground tunnel is constructed to take water from the high reservoir to the generating hall built in an underground cavern near the lowest point of the water tunnel and a horizontal tailrace taking water away to the lower outlet waterway.

Advantages of hydroelectricity

The way the electricity is produced does not harm the environment as much as fossil fuels like oil or coal do. Hydroelectricity is very powerful and safe, and produces no waste.

Hydroelectricity can be made very quickly. This makes it useful for times when demand for electricity is high. Water that has been stored in a reservoir can be released (let go) when needed, so the energy can be made quickly. This controllability also makes hydroelectricity a good match for less controllable intermittent energy sources. When the wind is not blowing or the sun is not shining, hydroelectricity can be released.

Another advantage is that hydroelectricity cannot run out as long as there is a good water supply. Once the dam is built, the electricity costs very little, no waste or pollution is produced, and electricity can be generated whenever it is needed.

A few hydro turbines do not have a dam but instead use the current of the "run of the river". They produce less electricity and cannot store energy for later use.

Disadvantages of hydroelectricity

The building of large dams to hold water can damage the environment. In 1983, the Australian government stopped the Tasmanian state government from building a dam on the Gordon River in Tasmania after a huge public protest. The dam would have flooded the beautiful Franklin River. The Three Gorges Dam in China will be the world's largest hydroelectricity project. The dam has flooded a huge area, meaning that 1.2 million people have had to be moved. Scientists are concerned about many problems with the dam, such as pollution, silt, and the danger of the dam wall breaking.

Images for kids

The Three Gorges Dam in Central China is the world's largest power-producing facility of any kind.

Museum Hydroelectric power plant ″Under the Town″ in Serbia, built in 1900.

The Warwick Castle water-powered generator house, used for the generation of electricity for the castle from 1894 until 1940

The Ffestiniog Power Station can generate of electricity within 60 seconds of the demand arising.

Merowe Dam in Sudan. Hydroelectric power stations that use dams submerge large areas of land due to the requirement of a reservoir. These changes to land color or albedo, alongside certain projects that concurrently submerge rainforests, can in these specific cases result in the global warming impact, or equivalent life-cycle greenhouse gases of hydroelectricity projects, to potentially exceed that of coal power stations.

The Hoover Dam in the United States is a large conventional dammed-hydro facility, with an installed capacity of .

Trends in the top five hydroelectricity-producing countries

In Spanish: Hidroelectricidad para niños

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Fun Kids - the UK's children's radio station

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How do you generate electricity from water? What is hydroelectric power?

Here's the need-to-know stuff about the energy source, hydroelectric power!

Description

Hydroelectric power harnesses the energy in running water!

Where can you find hydroelectric power?

Hydroelectric dams can be found all over the world, where large amounts of water can be trapped behind a reservoir.

How is it made into electricity?

Most hydro schemes create a reservoir, usually by building a large dam to flood a valley. This trapped water is allowed to escape through pipes in the dam. When the water flows through the pipes, it turns a turbine that is linked to a generator that produces electricity.

'Run of the River' hydro systems don't use a dam and reservoir, but harness the energy in fast-flowing rivers!

What are the advantages of using hydroelectric power?

Water is plentiful, free, and renewable.

Hydro-electric power does not produce any carbon dioxide emissions when using water to produce electricity.

Electricity can be generated 24 hours a day as long as there is enough water. But this can't happen every day as the reservoir needs time to fill up again from time to time.

The dam gates can be opened and closed to control when the electricity is made.

The amount of electricity produced can also be controlled by changing how much water can flow.

It is much more reliable than wind and solar power, although it does depend on enough rain, especially for 'run of the river' systems.

What are the disadvantages of using hydroelectric power?

It is very expensive to build a dam, and construction can produce a lot of emissions.

When a dam is built, a huge area is flooded to make a lake. The water displaces the people and animals living there.

It can be difficult to find a suitable site for a reservoir or a dam. There are very few available sites for new plant in the UK.

There can be negative environmental impacts. Water quality and quantity downstream can be affected.

Click here for more energy facts!

We've got a whole series about energy, electricity, and power generation! It's called Curious Kate, and you can listen to it below!

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Hydroelectric Power: Energy Source Fact File! - Fun Kids - the UK's children's radio station

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Here's the need-to-know stuff about the energy source, hydroelectric power! Description Hydroelectric power harnesses the energy in running water! Where can you find hydroelectric power? Hydroelectric dams can be found more "

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Learn about how water can be used as a renewable resource. Information about hydropower and learning materials for teachers that can be shared with children.
Download FREE teacher-made resources covering 'Hydroelectricity'

What is Hydroelectricity?

Hydroelectricity is a form of Hydropower. Hydropower is energy that comes from moving water. Fast-flowing rivers, waterfalls, and the waves at sea are used to spin turbines that generate electricity. Hydropower has its origins in ancient Greece, where water mills were used to grind wheat to create flour. Hydroelectricity has been used for over a century and was the first mainstream renewable energy resource. Currently, 31.5% of total U.S. renewable electricity generation and about 6.3% of total U.S. electricity generation comes from hydroelectricity.

How do hydropower plants work?

Because they need water in order to be able to produce energy, hydropower plants are always located near a source of water. There are four main types of hydropower plants:

1. Dams - this is the most common type of hydropower plant. In this instance, a dam is used to direct water through a turbine in a controlled manner.

2. Pumped Storage - in this method, water is moved between reservoirs at different elevations to provide electricity on demand.

3. Run of the river - this method needs a constant flow of water as the natural stream is used to generate electricity as it passes.

4. Tidal power - as you might expect, this uses the power of the tides and waves to create energy.

In each type of Hydropower Plant; the movement of water, be it natural or artificial, is used to move turbines that power generators - thus creating electricity!

The largest hydropower plant in the world is Three Gorges, located on the Yangtze River in China. Three Gorges is 1.4 miles wide and around 600 feet high. That means it's as wide as 24 football fields and as tall as 37 adult Giraffes!

How does Hydroelectricity work as a renewable resource?

Water is seen as naturally replenishes the world's sources of renewable because the water cycle fresh water. Groundwater - water present under the Earth's surface - is, however, decreasing. 97% of the water on our planet is salt water.

What are some examples of hydroelectric power stations?

Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant, New York - Built in 1961, at the time it was the largest hydropower facility in the world. The 13 turbines are powered by the 748,000 gallons of water from the Niagara River that runs through them per second!

Hoover Dam, Nevada/Arizona - The Hoover Dam was built during the Great Depression between 1931 and 1936, bordering Arizona and Nevada. The dam weighs 6.6 million tons and the maximum water pressure is 45,000 pounds per square foot.

Chief Joseph Dam, Washington - As the second-largest hydropower dam in the States, this US Army Corps of Engineers operated dam has a single powerhouse that's one-third of a mile long with 27 turbines the size of a house! Construction began in 1949 and it was officially opened 30 years later in 1979.

Grand Coulee Dam, Washington State - The Grand Coulee Dam is amongst the largest concrete structures in the world! It measures over 5,200 feet long and 550 feet high. It took 8 years t complete between 1933-41.

The Grand Coulee Dam, Washington State.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of Hydroelectricity?

Some people argue that hydropower is not completely renewable, so it's not the best option to create energy if we want a sustainable future. There are arguments to be made for and against how sustainable hydroelectric power is. We've assembled some of the main discussion points here:

Advantages

Water is a renewable source of energy as it is naturally occurring.

Hydropower can be very predictable - the tides will always flow and water will remain a large part of the planet!

It can generate power and be stopped quickly in cases of high demand or emergencies.

Hydroelectric generators last for around 100 years and are very low-maintenance.

Disadvantages

The cost of building and setting up a hydroelectric system can be extremely high.

Larger scale operations such as dams and larger power stations may disrupt environments: trees may have to come down, views altered and the temperature of natural water sources could change.

Building large dams and power plants can also lead to thousands of humans being displaced and having to leave their homes and move away. This was the case for the Three Gorges Dam in China, which is estimated to have displaced 1.2 million people.

The smaller-scale operations such as "run of the river" will have their output massively changed depending on rainfall.

Despite these negative environmental impacts, hydropower is still more sustainable than energy gained from burning fossil fuels, which is causing global warming. Take time to have a discussion with children about whether or not Hydroelectricity is truly sustainable. It's a great topic to introduce the concept of debate in the classroom and at home.

Where can I learn more about water power and other renewable resources?

Teaching Resources

If you're looking to teach your kids or class about renewable energy, then lucky for you we've got a load of handy teaching resources to help you! Like all of our resources, these have been made by our team of in-house educators to save you a bunch of time without skimping on the learning!

Advantages and Disadvantages of Renewable Energy Worksheet

Identify the advantages and disadvantages of renewable resources using this cut-and-paste forms of energy worksheet. Perfect for providing children will a clear chart demonstrating the advantages and disadvantages of renewable resources as energy sources. This is an interesting area within Earth and Space science for grades 3-5.

Renewable Energy Posters

Explore eight different types of renewable energy using our Renewable Energy Posters. Each poster features a type of renewable energy with an illustration to support understanding. Use these posters as discussion starters or as a reference.

Earth Science: Renewable Energy Choice Board

Provide multiple means of choice for your students with our Renewable Energy Choice Board. Print and distribute for an independent culminating project for renewable energy, or use our digital version. Students can choose three choices from among nine to engage with renewable energy and provide evidence of learning.

Join our Facebook group and get social :)

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Hydropower | Hydroelectricity | Energy | Twinkl USA - Twinkl

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How does hydroelectric energy work? We investigate what it is, how it works, the pros and cons of hydropower with localized examples, and lots of fun facts.

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Hydropower Facts

Enjoy our range of interesting hydropower facts.

Learn about hydroelectricity production, different types of hydropower, the largest hydroelectric power station in the world, the use of tidal power and much more.

Hydropower uses the energy of moving water for a variety of useful applications.

Hydroelectricity generates electricity by harnessing the gravitational force of falling water.

In 2006, hydroelectricity supplied around 20% of the world's electricity.

Most hydroelectric power stations use water held in dams to drive turbines and generators which turn mechanical energy into electrical energy.

The largest hydroelectric power station in the world is the Three Gorges Dam in China.

A small number of countries, including Norway, Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, Paraguay, Venezuela and Switzerland, produce the majority of their electricity through hydropower.

Hydroelectricity is a renewable energy but the building of the large facilities needed to make it can have negative effects on the environment.

Hydropower has been used to power watermills for thousands of years although cheap electricity has largely made them obsolete in modern times.

The most common type of watermill grinds grains into flour.

Tidal power is another form of hydropower, it uses the energy of tides to create electricity.

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Hydropower Facts - Creating Electricity with Water & Gravity

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Hydropower Facts Enjoy our range of interesting hydropower facts. Learn about hydroelectricity production, different types of hydropower, the largest hydroelectric power station in the world, the use of tidal power and much more. Hydropower uses the energy of moving water for a variety of useful applications.

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As we try to reduce carbon emissions, we need to decide if we should keep using nuclear power or focus more on fossil fuels and renewable energy. Let's explore the pros and cons of nuclear energy to understand if nuclear energy is a good alternative to planet-warming fossil fuels. -
What Is Nuclear Energy?

Nuclear energy is a special kind of energy that comes from the centre of an atom, called the nucleus. This energy can be used to make electricity. There are two types of atomic reactions used to create this energy: nuclear fusion and nuclear fission.

When we use nuclear fission, we use a special kind of fuel called uranium. Uranium is used in a reactor, and it makes the atoms split into two or more pieces. This splitting creates a lot of heat. The heat is used to make water boil, and the steam from the boiling water spins turbines. These spinning turbines create electricity.

Nuclear energy has been around for a long time. In the past, we mostly used fossil fuels like coal, natural gas, and oil to make electricity. But now, more and more countries are using nuclear power because it is cleaner and doesn't harm the environment as much as fossil fuels do. Nuclear power plants started operating in the 1950s and have been a good alternative to oil and gas.

Today, around 10% of the world's energy comes from nuclear power. There are 439 nuclear power plants in 32 countries, and more are being built. Countries like the United States, China, and France use a lot of nuclear energy to make electricity. France, for example, gets 70% of its electricity from nuclear power.

When discussing the use of nuclear power as an energy source, it is important to consider both its advantages and disadvantages.

4 Advantages of Nuclear Energy
1. Nuclear energy produces a lot of electricity
Nuclear power plants can generate a large amount of electricity, which can help meet the energy needs of many people.
2. It is low greenhouse gas emissions
Nuclear power produces very low greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuels like coal and oil. This helps reduce air pollution and the impact on climate change.
3. It is reliable and consistent
Nuclear power plants can operate continuously and provide a steady supply of electricity, unlike some renewable energy sources that depend on weather conditions.
4. It has a high energy density
Nuclear fuel contains a lot of energy in a small amount, which means a small amount of fuel can produce a large amount of electricity.

4 Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy
1. Radioactive waste
Nuclear power plants produce radioactive waste that remains dangerous for a long time. Proper management and disposal of this waste is crucial to prevent harm to people and the environment.

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A Kids' Guide to the Pros and Cons of Nuclear Energy - Earth.Org Kids

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As we try to reduce carbon emissions, we need to decide if we should keep using nuclear power or focus more on fossil fuels and renewable energy. Let's explore the pros and cons of nuclear energy to understand if nuclear energy is a good alternative to planet-warming fossil fuels.

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Visit A Giant Wind Turbine on a Wind Farm! | Caitie's Classroom Field Trip | Science For Kids

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How do wind turbines work? - Rebecca J. Barthelmie and Sara C. Pryor

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Wind power is an alternative energy source. This means that the power of the wind can be used in place of other energy sources such as coal, oil, and nuclear reactions. Wind can be used to produce electricity that heats homes and lights streets and buildings.

Wind power is harnessed by a machine called a wind turbine. Wind turbines are tall towers topped with blades. The blades are connected to a vertical shaft, or rod. When wind causes the blades to spin, they turn the shaft. The turning shaft provides power to a machine called a generator, which produces electricity. A group of wind turbines, called a wind farm, can be used to provide electricity to a community. Small turbines provide power for individual homes.

Wind turbines used to be called windmills. The earliest-known windmills were built more than 1,000 years ago. People used them to grind grain. The Dutch used windmills to pump water out of low-lying areas near the sea.

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Wind power is an alternative energy source. This means that the power of the wind can be used in place of other energy sources such as coal, oil, and nuclear reactions. Wind...

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Advantages and disadvantages of wind energy

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Advantages and disadvantages of wind energy

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Kids learn about wind energy and how this renewable power can help the environment. Teach students about turbines that generate electricity from wind.

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Image

Photograph by Jesus Keller/ Shutterstock

An energy source that does not get used up is called renewable energy. The wind, the sun, and heat from Earth are sources of renewable energy.

Solar Energy

Solar energy comes from the sun.

Active solar energy uses special technology to capture the sun's rays. The two types are photovoltaic cells (PV cells or solar cells) and mirrors. They focus sunlight in a specific spot to generate electricity. PV cells last for a long time and are efficient.

Passive solar energy does not use equipment. Energy comes from the way sunlight naturally changes throughout the day. One example is building a house such that it faces the sun more often and thus gets more heat from it.

There are reasons why solar power cannot be used as the only power source in a community. It can be expensive to install PV cells or build a building using passive solar technology.

Also, sunshine is hard to predict. The sun can get blocked by clouds. Different places get different amounts of sunlight based on the location, time of year, and time of day.

Wind Energy

Throughout history, people have been harnessing the wind's energy. Ancient Egyptians made boats powered by the wind more than 5,000 years ago. In 200 B.C.E., people used windmills to grind grain in the Middle East and pump water in China.

Today, we capture the wind's energy with wind turbines. These are large towers with two or three blades at the top. The wind turns the blades, and the blades turn a generator located inside the tower. This creates electricity.

Groups of wind turbines are known as wind farms. Wind farms can be found near farmland, in narrow mountain passes, and even in the ocean. Wind turbines anchored in the ocean are called offshore wind farms.

Steady winds can provide cheap, reliable electricity. Turbines do not emit pollutants into the air. But wind speed changes constantly, depending on the time of day, weather, and geographic location. They are also dangerous for bats and birds, as they can crash into them.

Geothermal energy makes use of the extreme heat of the earth's core. The center of the Earth is extremely hot. It's thought to be over 6,000 degrees Celsius (about 10,800 degrees Fahrenheit). The heat is constantly moving toward the surface.

We can access underground geothermal heat in different ways. One way is to use geothermal heat pumps. A pipe of water loops between a building and holes dug deep underground. Geothermal energy warms water underground. Then the warmth moves aboveground to the building. Geothermal heat pumps can be used to heat houses, sidewalks, and even parking lots.

Another way to use geothermal energy is with steam. In some areas of the world, there is underground steam that naturally rises to the surface. The steam can be piped straight to a power plant. However, in other parts of the world, the ground is dry. Water must be injected underground to create steam. When the steam comes to the surface, it is used to turn a generator and create electricity.

In Iceland, there are large reservoirs of underground water. Almost 90 percent of people in Iceland use geothermal as an energy source. They heat their homes and businesses.

Geothermal Energy
Biomass is any material that comes from plants, animals, or microorganisms that were recently living. Plants create energy from the sun through a process called photosynthesis. This energy is stored in the plants even after they die.

Trees, branches, scraps of bark, and recycled paper are common sources of biomass energy. Manure, garbage, and crops, such as corn, soy, and sugar cane, can also be used as biomass feedstocks.

We get energy from biomass by burning it. Wood chips, manure, and garbage are dried out and compressed into squares called briquettes. These briquettes are so dry that they do not absorb water. They can be stored and burned to create heat or generate electricity.

Biomass can also be converted into biofuel to power cars and trucks. Biofuels are mixed with regular gasoline and can be used to power cars and trucks. Biofuels release less harmful pollutants than pure gasoline.

Biomass can be stored and used when it is needed. However, growing crops for biofuels requires large amounts of land and Biomass Energy pesticides.

Hydroelectric energy is made by flowing water. Most hydroelectric power plants are located on large dams, which control the flow of a river.

Dams block the river and create an artificial lake, or reservoir. A controlled amount of water is forced through tunnels in the dam. As water flows through the tunnels, it turns huge turbines and generates electricity.

Hydroelectric energy is inexpensive and reliable. Water is constantly flowing, so the dam does not depend on the weather and time of day.

However, hydroelectric power plants are damaging to the environment. When a river is dammed, it creates a large lake behind the dam. This lake drowns the original river habitat and sometimes drowns entire towns. Silt, or dirt from a riverbed, can build up behind the dam. It can damage the dam, shortening its life span.

Other Renewable Energy Sources

Scientists and engineers are working to harness other renewable energy sources. Three of the most promising are tidal energy, wave energy, and algal (or algae) fuel.

Tidal energy uses the power of ocean tides to generate electricity. Moving tides turn the blades of a turbine. Other projects use reservoirs that are filled at high tide and slowly release the water and turn turbines at low tide.

Wave energy harnesses waves from the ocean, lakes, or rivers. Some use the same kind of equipment as for tidal energy. Hydroelectric Energy

Algal fuel is a type of biomass energy that uses the unique chemicals in seaweed to create a clean and renewable biofuel. Algal fuel does not need the acres of cropland that other biofuel feedstocks do.

Editor

Producer

National Geographic Society

Last Updated

October 19, 2023

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Renewable energy comes from sources that will not be used up in our lifetimes, such as the sun and wind.

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Do you know how we can get electricity from windmills? Here are five wonderful wind power facts for kids.

Wind Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 1: Windmills Have been Used to Power Machines Since 2000 BC

The first time wind turbines were used to create electricity was in 1887 in Scotland but wind turbines were used to harness the power of the wind long before that. People have been turning wind energy into mechanical energy for over 5000 years. Windmills are a great example of this. When the wind pushes the wings of the windmill the energy moves the workings of the mill creating flour by grinding up grains. Ancient people used this energy from the wind to work very heavy machinery that they could never move themselves.

Wind Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 2: One Wind Turbine can Power over 400 Homes

Wind turbines create electricity when the wind moves the wings of the turbine so the amount of energy created depends on the weather. In America the average wind turbine can create 402 megawatts per month. That's around enough to power 460 homes even if it isn't windy every day. That is 460 more homes that don't have to rely on fossil fuels for their electricity. That reduced the amount of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere, reducing the effects of climate change. That's a very big impact for just one wind turbine.

Wind Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 3: Wind Turbines are Very Big

They look small from a distance, especially if they are placed out at sea on the horizon but wind turbines have to be very big to catch enough wind to make energy. Wind turbines come in a range of sizes and they have been made taller in the last 20 years. On average each blade of the turbine is 170 feet long. That's around half of a football field. The turbine itself is around 280 feet tall. That is almost as tall as the Statue of Liberty in New York or Big Ben in London.

Wind Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 4: The Largest Wind Farm in The World has 7000 Wind Turbines

The largest wind farm in the world is being built in China to have 7000 wind turbines. China has the fastest growing wind energy industry in the world. This wind farm makes over 7000 megawatts of electricity but when it is fully built it will produce 20,000 megawatts.

Wind Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 5: Scientists have Created Wind Turbines which Float in The Air

Wind is very strong high up in the air so to get the most power from the wind we need to get the turbines high up. Turbines are already very tall but scientists have now developed an airborne wind turbine which can fly even higher. These turbines don't fly around as they are tethered to the ground and they look a bit like a plane engine or a large kite. It is a very new technology but it could be a big breakthrough for us getting the most out of the energy made by wind.

We hope you enjoyed learning more things about wind power as much as we loved teaching you about it. Now that you know how important this wind power is to our planet Earth, you can move on to learn more about our environment like: Energy, Wind Energy, Electricity, Water, Electromagnetic Waves, Recycling, Recycling Crafts, Recycling Paper, Plastic recycling, Rainbows, Farming, Seas and Lakes, Miraculous Atmosphere, Earth and Water Cycle.

Why not subscribe to our LearningMole Library for as little as £1.99 per month to access over 2300 fun educational videos.

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Wind Power Facts for Kids - 5 Wonderful Facts about Wind Power - Learning Mole

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Do you know how we can get electricity from windmills? Here are five wonderful wind power facts for kids.

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How is wind energy produced? - Sustainability for kids Part 1 | Vestas

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Wind power is the use of wind energy to generate useful work. Historically, wind power was used by sails, windmills and windpumps, but today it is mostly used to generate electricity. Wind power is considered a sustainable, renewable energy source, and has a much smaller impact on the environment compared to burning fossil fuels.

Wind power has been used as long as humans have put sails into the wind. King Hammurabi's Codex (reign 1792 - 1750 BC) already mentioned windmills for generating mechanical energy. Wind-powered machines used to grind grain and pump water, the windmill and wind pump, were developed in what is now Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan by the 9th century. Wind power was widely available. Wind-powered pumps drained the polders of the Netherlands, and in arid regions such as the American mid-west or the Australian outback, wind pumps provided water for livestock and steam engines.

The first windmill used for the production of electric power was built in Scotland in July 1887 by Prof James Blyth of Anderson's College, Glasgow (the precursor of Strathclyde University). Blyth's 10 metres (33 ft) high cloth-sailed wind turbine was installed in the garden of his holiday cottage at Marykirk in Kincardineshire, and was used to charge accumulators developed by the Frenchman Camille Alphonse Faure, to power the lighting in the cottage, thus making it the first house in the world to have its electric power supplied by wind power. Blyth offered the surplus electric power to the people of Marykirk for lighting the main street, however, they turned down the offer as they thought electric power was "the work of the devil." Although he later built a wind turbine to supply emergency power to the local Lunatic Asylum, Infirmary, and Dispensary of Montrose, the invention never really caught on as the technology was not considered to be economically viable.

Across the Atlantic, in Cleveland, Ohio, a larger and heavily engineered machine was designed and constructed in the winter of 1887-1888 by Charles F. Brush. This was built by his engineering company at his home and operated from 1886 until 1900. The Brush wind turbine had a rotor 17 metres (56 ft) in diameter and was mounted on an 18 metres (59 ft) tower. Although large by today's standards, the machine was only rated at 12 kW. The connected dynamo was used either to charge a bank of batteries or to operate up to 100 incandescent light bulbs, three arc lamps, and various motors in Brush's laboratory.

With the development of electric power, wind power found new applications in lighting buildings remote from centrally generated power. Throughout the 20th century parallel paths developed small wind stations suitable for farms or residences.

From 1932 many isolated properties in Australia ran their lighting and electric fans from batteries, charged by a "Freelite" wind-driven generator, producing 100watts of electrical power from as little wind speed as 10 miles per hour (16 km/h).

The 1973 oil crisis triggered the investigation in Denmark and the United States that led to larger utility-scale wind generators that could be connected to electric power grids for remote use of power. By 2008, the U.S. installed capacity had reached 25.4 gigawatts, and by 2012 the installed capacity was 60 gigawatts.

Today, wind-powered generators operate in every size range between tiny stations for battery charging at isolated residences, up to gigawatt-sized offshore wind farms that provide electric power to national electrical networks.

Wind farms and how they work

Wind is air movement in the earth's atmosphere. To convert the kinetic energy of wind into mechanical energy, which is then converted into electrical energy, wind turbines are used. The basic components of a wind turbine include a rotor, blades, a shaft, a gearbox, a generator, and a tower.

Wind turns the blades, which spins a rotor that is connected to a generator. The output of the generator is collected through electric power cables.

Turbines are generally grouped into wind farms and connected to the electrical grid. A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred wind turbines. In general, a distance of 7D (7 times the rotor diameter of the wind turbine) is set between each turbine in a fully developed wind farm. The land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other purposes. A wind farm may also be located offshore.

Almost all large wind turbines have the same design - a horizontal axis wind turbine having an upwind rotor with 3 blades, attached to a nacelle on top of a tall tubular tower.

Offshore wind power

Offshore wind power is wind farms in large bodies of water, usually the sea. These farms have less visual impact on the landscape than land-based projects. However, the construction and maintenance costs are considerably higher.

As of November 2021, the Hornsea Wind Farm in the United Kingdom is the largest offshore wind farm in the world at 1,218 MW.

Small-scale wind power

Small-scale wind power is the name given to wind generation systems with the capacity to produce up to 50 kW of electrical power. Isolated communities, that may otherwise rely on diesel generators, may use wind turbines as an alternative. Individuals may purchase these systems to reduce or eliminate their dependence on grid electric power for economic reasons, or to reduce their carbon footprint. Wind turbines have been used for household electric power generation in conjunction with battery storage over many decades in remote areas.

Examples of small-scale wind power projects in an urban setting can be found in New York City, where, since 2009, several building projects have capped their roofs with Gorlov-type helical wind turbines. Although the energy they generate is small compared to the buildings' overall consumption, they help to reinforce the building's 'green' credentials in ways that "showing people your high-tech boiler" cannot, with some of the projects also receiving the direct support of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

Impact on environment and landscape

Advantages

Wind power stations have the advantage over fossil fue power stations as they do not produce any greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide or water vapour. They also do not produce gases that helps to make acid rain, such as sulphur dioxide. They also make the environment safer and less pollution is caused.

Disadvantages

Wind turbines have to be carefully placed. They must be in positions where there is a constant, steady supply of wind. In fact, the wind must not become too strong or it may damage the turbine. Because wind is uncontrollable, so is the amount of power that wind turbines will produce, making them a possibly unreliable source of energy.

Onshore wind farms can have a significant visual impact. Also, wind farms typically need to be spread over more land than other power stations and need to be built away from urban areas. Some wind farms can potentially spoil protected scenic areas, archaeological landscapes and heritage sites. A report by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland concluded that wind farms harmed tourism in areas known for natural landscapes and panoramic views.

Wind farms have a negative impacts on wildlife. Thousands of birds and bats, including rare species, have been killed by wind turbine blades, though wind turbines are responsible for far fewer bird deaths than fossil-fueled power stations. This can be mitigated with proper wildlife monitoring.

Many wind turbine blades are made of fiberglass, and have a lifetime of 20 years. However, many of them are non-recyclable.

Interesting facts about wind power

In 2021, wind supplied over 1800 TWh of electricity, which was over 6% of world electricity and about 2% of world energy.

Wind power is one of the lowest-cost electricity sources per unit of energy produced.

Regions in the higher northern and southern latitudes have the highest potential for wind power.

In most regions, wind power generation is higher in nighttime and in winter.

In 1919, the German physicist Albert Betz showed that for a hypothetical ideal wind-energy extraction machine, the fundamental laws of conservation of mass and energy allowed no more than 16/27 (59%) of the kinetic energy of the wind to be captured.

Wind power is variable, and during low wind periods, it may need to be replaced by other power sources.

The energy payback time of a wind farm is typically around a year.

An estimated 1.25 million people were employed in wind power in 2020.

Wind turbines generate noise. At a distance of 300 metres (980 ft), this may be around 45 dB, which is slightly louder than a refrigerator. At 1.5 km (1 mi), they become inaudible.

There are anecdotal reports of negative health effects on people who live very close to wind turbines. Peer-reviewed research has generally not supported these claims.

Wind cannot be cut off unlike oil and gas so can contribute to energy security.

Surveys of public attitudes across Europe and in many other countries show strong public support for wind power.

In Spanish: Energía eólica para niños

Images for kids

Wind turbines such as these, in Cumbria, England, have been opposed for a number of reasons, including aesthetics, by some sectors of the population.

A panoramic view of the United Kingdom's Whitelee Wind Farm with Lochgoin Reservoir in the foreground.

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Why wind farms are bad for the environment. 

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Why wind farms are bad for the environment. 

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Why Wind Farms Are Bad for the Environment

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Ecological impact of wind turbines - IN 60 SECONDS

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Have you ever wondered how we can get electricity from water? Here are five powerful hydro power facts for kids.

Hydro Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 1: Humans Have been Using Hydro Power for Over 5000 Years

Humans have used flowing water to create power since some of the first civilizations. It wasn't used to create electricity but it was used to power machinery. Large water wheels were placed in rivers, the river would push the wheel around which would make the machinery inside the mill work. This helped people mill grains into flour. Hydro power was only used to create electricity after 1880 but the power of water helped us before then.

Hydro Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 2: Hydro Power is Helped by Gravity

Hydro power is created when water travels through a turbine and transfers the energy it has to the turbine which transfers it to a battery. The faster the water moves the more energy is put into the system. Gravity is what makes the water flow through the system. Hydroelectric dams are usually built high up in the mountains so the water can fall further to built up more speed and put more energy into the system.

Hydro Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 3: Fast Rushing Rivers can Make Hydro Power

Not all hydro power comes from massive hydroelectric dams, some hydro power comes from rivers or smaller turbines. The water in a river rushes from the mountain tops where it rains down and keeps going until it hits the ocean. The water in the river can move very fast if it is going down a steep hill. This fast flowing water can create energy just like the water flowing from a dam and so it can create hydro power too.

Hydro Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 4: Norway Gets 99% of Its Power from Hydro Power

Norway is the 6 th biggest producer of hydro power in the whole world. They use mostly hydro power because they have a lot of valleys and rivers which make it the perfect place for hydroelectric dams and turbines. They even store extra water when the rain is heavier throughout the year to make up for the small amount of rain they get in the winter. So, they always have enough energy!

Hydro Power Facts for Kids Fact Number 5: Hydroelectric Dams Have Elevators and Ladders for Fish

Hydro power is much better for the environment than fossil fuels. Hydro power uses water and gravity to make energy rather than non-renewable fuel. Hydro power also does not release carbon dioxide and other chemicals into the atmosphere. Using hydro power can reduce the effects of climate change. But hydroelectric dams can have an impact on the environment because they are in the water ways. Some fish migrate like birds do during their breeding season and they need to travel past these dams to do that. So, to help out the fish, dams have ladders and elevators to help the fish get past all the machinery safely.

We hope you enjoyed learning more things about hydro power as much as we loved teaching you about it. Now that you know how important this hydro power is to our planet Earth, you can move on to learn more about our environment like: Energy, Wind Energy, Electricity, Water, Electromagnetic Waves, Recycling, Recycling Crafts, Recycling Paper, Plastic recycling, Rainbows, Farming, Seas and Lakes, Miraculous Atmosphere, Earth and Water Cycle.

Why not subscribe to our LearningMole Library for as little as £1.99 per month to access over 2300 fun educational videos.

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Hydro Power Facts for Kids - 5 Powerful Facts about Hydro Power - Learning Mole

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Have you ever wondered how we can get electricity from water? Here are five powerful hydro power facts for kids.

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Hydroelectric power, also called hydropower, is the process of using the energy of moving water to create electricity. The water cycle and gravity come into play when it comes to moving water, so teachers can tie this article to those studies.

People have harnessed the energy from water for thousands of years. For example, we know that more than 2,000 years ago, people used water wheels to grind corn and wheat. Tidal water and river water were both used to power water wheels, which were connected to other wheels and gears to power millstones and sawmills. It was in the mid-1770s when a French engineer named Bernard Forest de Bélidor described the first modern turbine. The turbine pretty much took the place of the water wheel and was eventually involved in almost every kind of electrical power.

The new invention inspired engineers to come up with a plan to create a lot more energy from water using water turbines. The theory was to build a dam on a large river, one that has a large drop in elevation. The dam stores water in a reservoir behind it. There is a water intake close to the bottom of the dam that leads to a penstock, which is a channel for conveying water. Gravity causes the water to drop down the penstock where it heads through a turbine propeller. The turbine is turned by the moving water, causing it to produce mechanical energy, just as the water wheel did. The mechanical energy in this case is kinetic energy (the energy of motion). That energy goes into a generator, where it is converted into electricity. Power lines carry the electricity to where it is needed. The plan worked. Hydroelectric power systems at dams could soon generate enough electricity to power factories, communities, cities, and eventually, entire regions.

As of 2014, according to the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, the U.S. has over 100,000 megawatts of conventional hydropower. 1 megawatt is enough to power about 1,000 homes, so this would be enough electricity to supply 75-101 million homes. While that's only about 7 percent of the country's total electricity generation from all energy sources, the amount accounts for about 52 percent of the renewable electricity generation.
It's pretty easy to see the *pros* when it comes to hydropower:

It only requires moving water in order to work.

It is considered to be a green source of energy. It does not pollute itself. Only the construction of power plants can be potential sources of pollution.

It is a domestic source of energy.

It is a renewable resource.

It is the most affordable cost of power when spread out over the system's lifetime costs.

It is reliable. As long as there is water, electricity can be generated.

It is flexible. Water flow can be adjusted and even conserved according to the need for power.

It is safe! Compared with the use of fossil fuels and nuclear energy, hydropower is a much safer system.

There also some *cons* when it comes to hydropower:

There are numerous environmental consequences of damming water, flooding entire areas, creating massive reservoirs, changing water flow, blocking the natural course of rivers, and constructing power lines and roads.

There are only a limited number of places where these power plants can be built.

The initial expense is huge (though comparatively, so are other energy resources)

Lack of water. Droughts have a serious impact on how much hydropower can be produced.

Many of the negative impacts of hydropower center on what the damming of rivers does to the native plants and animals in the waterways that are affected. For instance, sediments build up behind dams, triggering oxygen-starved zones that can't support river life. Water temperature changes can also make survival difficult. Riparian channels and estuaries are also negatively affected.

One problem of major concern is the survival and passage of migratory native fish. Fish ladders have been installed next to dams and their designs have been improved over the years to make it somewhat easier for fish to migrate upstream where they will spawn. But the populations of native fish in the Pacific Northwest and other areas have drastically declined since rivers were dammed up to manufacture electricity.

Political pressure is building in some areas to give stronger consideration to the impact hydroelectric dams have on the ecosystem. Hundreds of hydroelectric dams have been removed in recent years, including the Elwha River project in Washington. It was determined that the small amount of energy these dams produced was not worth the damage being done to the environment.
Discussion and Research Projects:

Hydropower sounds like an excellent source for alternative energy! But the impact it has on the environment is important, too. Discuss the pros and cons presented here, and challenge students to come up with possible solutions. They should be armed with more information than we had room to include in this article.

Trace the history of hydroelectric energy in the world. Create a timetable that highlights the important discoveries.

Where are all the hydropower plants in the world today?

What is happening in areas where the dams have been torn down? Has it helped the environment? Where do people get their energy now?

How do people make use of other alternative energy resources - not just water, but solar, wind, wave, and geothermal?

Activity: How does hydropower work? Build a small waterwheel!
There are lots of designs for a simple waterwheel out there, most using cardboard, straws, and paper cups.
Here's a video showing a water wheel built from a pie tin and "other easy to find parts." Here's a more sophisticated design along with a nice lesson plan from the Maine Energy Education Curriculum:

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What's Good and What's Bad about Hydropower? - Kids Discover

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Hydroelectric power, also called hydropower, is the process of using the energy of moving water to create electricity. The water cycle and gravity come into play when it comes to

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An innovative ideas for wind power in Singapore

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An innovative ideas for wind power in Singapore

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Singapore's INSANE NEW Breakthrough Tech Solves Wind Power's BIGGEST Problem!

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National Geographic - Nuclear Energy Facts

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National Geographic - Nuclear Energy Facts

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Nuclear energy is the energy in the nucleus, or core, of an atom. Nuclear energy can be used to create electricity, but it must first be released from the atom.

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Nuclear energy is energy in the core of an atom

Atoms are tiny particles in the molecules that make up gases, liquids, and solids. Atoms are made up of three particles, called protons, neutrons, and electrons. An atom has a nucleus (or core) containing protons and neutrons, which is surrounded by electrons. Protons carry a positive electrical charge, and electrons carry a negative electrical charge. Neutrons do not have an electrical charge. Enormous energy is present in the bonds that hold the nucleus together. This nuclear energy can be released when those bonds are broken. The bonds can be broken through nuclear fission, and this energy can be used to produce (generate) electricity.

Source: NASA (public domain)

In nuclear fission, atoms are split apart, which releases energy. All nuclear power plants use nuclear fission, and most nuclear power plants use uranium atoms. During nuclear fission, a neutron collides with a uranium atom and splits it, releasing a large amount of energy in the form of heat and radiation. More neutrons are also released when a uranium atom splits. These neutrons continue to collide with other uranium atoms, and the process repeats itself over and over again. This process is called a nuclear chain reaction. This reaction is controlled in nuclear power plant reactors to produce the desired amount of heat.

Nuclear energy can also be released in nuclear fusion, where atoms are combined or fused together to form a larger atom. Fusion is the source of energy in the sun and stars. Developing technology to harness nuclear fusion as a source of energy for heat and electricity generation is the subject of ongoing research, but whether it will be a commercially viable technology is not yet clear because of the difficulty in controlling a fusion reaction.

Nuclear fuel-uranium

Uranium is the fuel most widely used by nuclear plants for nuclear fission. Uranium is considered a nonrenewable energy source, even though it is a common metal found in rocks worldwide. Nuclear power plants use a certain kind of uranium, referred to as U-235, for fuel because its atoms are easily split apart. Although uranium is about 100 times more common than silver, U-235 is relatively rare.

Most U.S. uranium ore is mined in the western United States. Once uranium is mined, the U-235 must be extracted and processed before it can be used as a fuel.

Last updated: August 21, 2023.

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Introduction to nuclear energy, nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, and uranium as a source of nuclear fuel.

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Nuclear Energy Advantages and Disadvantages

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Nuclear Energy Advantages and Disadvantages

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Since the first nuclear plant started operations in the 1950s, the world has been highly divided on nuclear as a source of energy. While it is a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels, this type of power is also associated with some of the world's most dangerous and deadliest weapons, not to mention nuclear disasters. The extremely high cost and lengthy process to build nuclear plants are compensated by the fact that producing nuclear energy is not nearly as polluting as oil and coal. In the race to net-zero carbon emissions, should countries still rely on nuclear energy or should they make space for more fossil fuels and renewable energy sources? We take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear energy. -
What is Nuclear Energy?

Nuclear energy is the energy source found in an atom's nucleus, or core. Once extracted, this energy can be used to produce electricity by creating nuclear fission in a reactor through two kinds of atomic reaction: nuclear fusion and nuclear fission. During the latter, uranium used as fuel causes atoms to split into two or more nuclei. The energy released from fission generates heat that brings a cooling agent, usually water, to boil. The steam deriving from boiling or pressurised water is then channelled to spin turbines to generate electricity. To produce nuclear fission, reactors make use of uranium as fuel.

For centuries, the industrialisation of economies around the world was made possible by fossil fuels like coal, natural gas, and petroleum and only in recent years countries opened up to alternative, renewable sources like solar and wind energy. In the 1950s, early commercial nuclear power stations started operations, offering to many countries around the world an alternative to oil and gas import dependency and a far less polluting energy source than fossil fuels. Following the 1970s energy crisis and the dramatic increase of oil prices that resulted from it, more and more countries decided to embark on nuclear power programmes. Indeed, most reactors have been built between 1970 and 1985 worldwide. Today, nuclear energy meets around 10% of global energy demand , with 439 currently operational nuclear plants in 32 countries and about 55 new reactors under construction. In 2020, 13 countries produced at least one-quarter of their total electricity from nuclear, with the US, China, and France dominating the market by far.
You might also like: A 'Breakthrough' In Nuclear Fusion: What Does It Mean for the Future of Energy Generation?
Advantages of Nuclear Energy

France's success in cutting down emissions is a clear example of some of the main advantages of nuclear energy over fossil fuels. First and foremost, nuclear energy is clean and it provides pollution-free power with no greenhouse gas emissions. Contrary to what many believe, cooling towers in nuclear plants only emit water vapour and are thus, not releasing any pollutant or radioactive substance into the atmosphere. Compared to all the energy alternatives we currently have on hand, many experts believe that nuclear energy is indeed one of the cleanest sources. Many nuclear energy supporters also argue that nuclear power is responsible for the fastest decarbonisation effort in history , with big nuclear players like France, Saudi Arabia, Canada, and South Korea being among the countries that recorded the fastest decline in carbon intensity and experienced a clean energy transition by building nuclear reactors and hydroelectric dams.
You might also like: Nuclear Energy: A Silver Bullet For Clean Energy?
Finally, nuclear energy has some advantages compared to some of the most popular renewable energy sources. According to the US Office of Nuclear Energy , nuclear power has by far the highest capacity factor, with plants requiring less maintenance, capable to operate for up to two years before refuelling and able to produce maximum power more than 93% of the time during the year, making them three times more reliable than wind and solar plants.

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

As mentioned in the previous section, nuclear energy is clean. However, radioactive nuclear waste contains highly poisonous chemicals like plutonium and the uranium pellets used as fuel. These materials can be extremely toxic for tens of thousands of years and for this reason, they need to be meticulously and permanently disposed of. Since the 1950s, a stockpile of 250,000 tonnes of highly radioactive nuclear waste has been accumulated and distributed across the world, with 90,000 metric tons stored in the US alone. Knowing the dangers of nuclear waste, many oppose nuclear energy for fears of accidents, despite these being extremely unlikely to happen. Indeed, opposers know that when nuclear does fail, it can fail spectacularly. They were reminded of this in 2011, when the Fukushima disaster, despite not killing anyone directly, led to the displacement of more than 150,000 people, thousands of evacuation/related deaths and billions of dollars in cleanup costs.

Lastly, if compared to other sources of energy, nuclear power is one of the most expensive and time-consuming forms of energy. Nuclear plants cost billions of dollars to build and they take much longer than any other infrastructure for renewable energy, sometimes even more than a decade. However, while nuclear power plants are expensive to build, they are relatively cheap to run , a factor that improves its competitiveness. Still, the long building process is considered a significant obstacle in the run to net-zero emissions that countries around the world have committed to. If they hope to meet their emission reduction targets in time, they cannot afford to rely on new nuclear plants.

Who Wins the Nuclear Debate?
You might also like: The Nuclear Waste Disposal Dilemma
There are a multitude of advantages and disadvantages of nuclear energy and the debate on whether to keep this technology or find other alternatives is destined to continue in the years to come. Nuclear power can be a highly destructive weapon, but the risks of a nuclear catastrophe are relatively low. While historic nuclear disasters can be counted on the fingers of a single hand, they are remembered for their devastating impact and the life-threatening consequences they sparked (or almost sparked). However, it is important to remember that fossil fuels like coal and oil represent a much bigger threat and silently kill millions of people every year worldwide. Another big aspect to take into account, and one that is currently discussed by global leaders, is the dependence of some of the world's largest economies on countries like Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq for fossil fuels. While the 2011 Fukushima disaster, for example, pushed the then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel to close all of Germany's nuclear plants, her decision only increased the country's dependence on much more polluting Russian oil. Nuclear supporters argue that relying on nuclear energy would decrease the energy dependency from third countries. However, raw materials such as the uranium needed to make plants function would still need to be imported from countries like Canada, Kazakhstan, and Australia. The debate thus shifts to another problem: which countries should we rely on for imports and, most importantly, is it worth keeping these dependencies?

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The Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy | Earth.Org

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In the race to net-zero carbon emissions, should nations rely on nuclear power or should they make space for more fossil fuels and renewable energy?

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Nuclear power is a low-carbon source of energy. In 2018, nuclear power produced about 10 percent of the world's electricity. Together with the expanding renewable energy sources and fuel switching from coal to gas, higher nuclear power production contributed to the levelling of global CO ₂ emissions at 33 gigatonnes in 2019. Clearly, nuclear power - as a dispatchable low carbon source of electricity - can play a key role in the transition to a clean energy future.

As part of the capacity building process for energy system analysis and planning, the IAEA provides assistance to Member States for the evaluation of the role of nuclear energy in national climate change mitigation strategies through the Technical Cooperation programme and Coordinated Research Projects. For this purpose, a comprehensive set of IAEA tools and methodologies are available to Member States.

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With the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2015, almost all Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) agreed to prepare nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to control GHG emissions and limit the increase of global mean surface temperature by the end of the century to below 2°C relative to pre-industrial levels.

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MapperX Otonom PV Panel İnceleme Yapay Zeka Yazılımı

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Renewable energy sources are unlimited and clean energy sources, unlike fossil fuels. Solar energy and wind energy are among the most important of these sources, but many different factors should be taken into account when deciding which is more efficient. These factors include efficiency, cost, ease of installation and maintenance, environmental impacts, energy storage capabilities and regional climatic conditions. In this article, we will make a comparative analysis between solar energy and wind energy.

Solar energy is a renewable energy source that generates electricity from sunlight through solar panels. Solar panels use photovoltaic (PV) cells to convert sunlight into electrical energy. Solar energy is a highly efficient source of energy, especially in areas with abundant sunlight.
Solar energy systems consist of components such as solar panels, inverters and batteries. Solar panels convert sunlight into electricity, while inverters convert DC electricity into AC electricity. Batteries form the energy storage part of the solar power system and release the stored energy when needed.

Solar energy systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their low cost and environmental impact. The materials used in the production of solar panels and the efficiency in areas with insufficient sunlight are low. There may also be energy storage problems in solar energy systems.

Wind energy is a renewable energy source that converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electrical energy through wind turbines. Wind turbines drive a generator that rotates when the wind hits the turbine blades. This generator provides the rotational motion necessary for electricity generation.

Wind energy systems are a highly efficient source of energy in open areas with strong winds. Wind turbines provide higher efficiency where there are strong winds. Unlike solar energy systems, wind energy systems are less dependent on energy storage problems. The use of wind energy in electricity generation also contributes to environmental impacts by reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Wind energy systems can be more expensive than solar energy systems in terms of installation and maintenance. The construction of wind turbines requires large quantities of raw materials such as steel and concrete, which has environmental impacts.

Although it is difficult to make a precise comparison between solar energy and wind energy in terms of efficiency, an assessment can be made by looking at the advantages and disadvantages of these energy sources.

Solar energy is advantageous in terms of efficiency in regions with abundant sunlight. Solar energy systems are more affordable as installation and maintenance costs are lower.

Solar energy systems are environmentally friendly and require low maintenance, but energy storage issues can limit their effectiveness. In addition, the production of solar energy systems has been criticized for its environmental impact.
Wind energy is more advantageous in terms of efficiency where there are strong winds. Wind energy systems are less dependent on energy storage problems and are environmentally friendly in electricity generation, but wind energy systems are more expensive than solar energy systems. The construction of wind turbines has also been criticized for its environmental impact.

1. Solar energy generates electricity directly from sunlight, while wind energy converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electricity through turbines. So, for solar energy it is the amount of sunlight that matters, while for wind energy it is the wind speed.

2. Solar panels can be placed on roofs or on fields. This means they can be used over a large area without space constraints. Wind turbines, on the other hand, must be installed in open areas where the wind is strong. This means that a specific area is required for wind energy.

3. Solar energy production takes place over a continuous period from sunrise to sunset. However, wind power generation varies depending on the speed and intensity of the wind. Therefore, wind energy is a more variable energy source.

4. Solar panels are easy to install and have a long lifetime. Wind turbines are more complex to install and in some cases require maintenance. However, wind energy can produce higher power and is more efficient than solar energy.

5. Solar energy experiences a reduction in production on cloudy or rainy days. But wind energy can be used almost anywhere there is wind. So wind energy can be used even more widely.

Deciding which energy source is more efficient depends on the intended uses, geographical locations and climatic conditions. Both sources are important for a more environmentally friendly future by replacing fossil fuels. If you are considering solar energy, you know that regular maintenance of your PV panels can extend their lifespan and increase their efficiency. Then you will need MapperX's world-class reporting of thermographic inspection data for operation and maintenance activities. Visit the website to learn more about "Inspection of Solar Panels by Drones"

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Is Solar or Wind More Efficient in Renewable Energy? - MapperX

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Solar energy systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their low cost and environmental impact. The materials used in the production of solar panels

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As solar panels continue to decrease in price while becoming more efficient, many people ask us to compare our favorite form of renewable energy with other power sources. Chariot Energy is happy to discuss these questions. We believe in educating people about the advantages that all green energy has over fossil fuels. And since hydropower has long been the mainstay form of sustainable energy in the global energy mix, we wanted to help people understand it.

In this article, we will discuss the following:

1. Definitions for solar and hydropower

2. The big differences between them

3. The pros and cons of using them as power sources

Both are viable and popular forms of energy generation, but we must understand how they work.

What is Solar Power?

As you'd imagine, we've written a considerable amount on solar energy, light waves that we as humans use to complete a task, whether that's cooking food, drying clothes, or boiling water. To that end, we've used the power of the sun for centuries.

But when we talk about creating electricity to power our homes and businesses, we've entered the new age of solar. Thanks to the introduction of photoelectric cells, we can now harness the sun's rays to generate electricity that can then be transmitted to buildings. Today, solar companies like Chariot use solar panels (often arranged in massive arrays called solar farms) or concentrating solar power plants (CSP plants) to create electricity.

What is Hydropower?

Much like solar power, hydropower has been around for millennia. Flowing water turned large wheels, which spun other large equipment, including sawmills, granaries, and irrigation systems. It's the reason so many civilizations throughout have always been situated near or around a river.

In terms of creating electricity from water, this is called "hydroelectricity." In 1882, the world's first hydroelectric power plant began operating in Wisconsin, as the Fox River began turning massive water turbines to create electricity. From there, humans have created massive dams situated on and around powerful bodies of water to create electricity to power homes and businesses.

What are the Primary Differences Between Solar Power and Hydropower?

The similarities between hydroelectricity and solar energy are rather fundamental. After the construction and installation of the necessary machinery, both use 100% renewable sources to create electricity with absolutely zero carbon emissions. Outside of very dramatic circumstances, the earth will never run out of the water and sunlight required for energy generation.

When it comes to their differences, three prominent ones stand out:

Location

How they work

How they affect the planet

The first two differences are quite stark, while the third is a bit more nuanced than you'd imagine.

Location

It's rather obvious from their names that solar and hydropower must be created in dramatically opposite locales: one needs lots of water and the other needs lots of sunshine.

Hydroelectricity requires either a naturally strong rushing river or the man-made creation of those effects through the construction of a dam.

Solar energy needs access to lots of sunlight without any nature blocking the solar arrays, both in terms of foliage and inclement weather that could block out the sun.

To that end, you'll rarely see a hydro plant or solar farm in the same relative area. Substantial rushing rivers usually bring with them trees, grasses, farms, and civilization. Wide expanses of flat land that don't receive regular rainfall or cloud cover usually exist in areas without many people or greenery.

We'll discuss the follow-up issues with these locations later.

How Electricity is Generated

This is the big one, as solar and hydro create electricity in wildly different ways.

With photovoltaic solar cells, the sunlight hits two alternately charged sheets of silicon to produce an electric current that then is sent down electrical wires.

Concentrating solar power plants point sunlight at water using highly reflective mirrors point, and the converted steam spins turbines to generate energy.

At a hydroelectric plant, flowing water spins a turbine to create electricity.

Yes, CSP plants and hydro plants both spin turbines, but the former is much less efficient than the latter. Directing the sunlight to boil water for a steam turbine is much more difficult than ensuring water can flow through a turbine.

Environmental Impact

In terms of how these renewable energy sources interact with their environment, it all comes down to what happens before and during construction.

Solar Power

Everything centers around extracting the necessary materials from the earth, specifically the mining operations and the people hired to locate those metals. To that end, the solar industry is working toward more sustainable ways to extract the materials needed to lessen the environmental impact.

Additionally, all solar energy is considered green, clean, and renewable, which can't be said about some forms of hydropower.

Hydropower

Excavating the necessary area to create the dam can cause problems for the local ecosystems. Potential problems include:

Changing the course of a river

Disrupting plant life

Bothering local animal populations

Displacing people currently living in what would become the new floodplain

Because of the substantial environmental impact caused by creating large-scale plants, hydropower is typically regarded as renewable energy, but not green or clean.

Our Comparison of Solar Power and Hydropower

Ultimately, both renewable energy methods benefit the planet because they don't create carbon emissions or any other environmental degradation. They are remarkably clean and efficient, often needing very little in the way of regular maintenance or repair.

Sure, we're biased toward solar power, but we also believe that hydropower is a very successful way to create electricity that doesn't burn fossil fuels or pollute our atmosphere with hydrocarbons.

Pros and Cons of Solar Power

Plenty of sunlight on the planet

Generation can be unpredictable

Zero carbon emissions

Higher upfront costs

Affordable

Environmental impact of installation

Can be installed on roofs

Doesn't work at night

Long lifecycle

Poor transmissions options from large facilities

Pros and Cons of Hydropower

Which is Better: Hydropower or Solar Power?

If we're answering for the future of our planet and the long-term health of the environment, then the answer is both.

We need both of them working in conjunction with other forms of clean energy if we're going to break our reliance on fossil fuels. Truly, we shouldn't have to choose one or the other when we should look for every opportunity to diversify the amounts and types of renewable energy we use to power our homes and businesses.

The more ways you can take advantage of renewable energy, the better. This includes installing rooftop solar; choosing an energy plan backed by solar, wind, or hydro; and/or advocating for the adoption of sustainable energy sources in your city, region, and state.

Sources:

1. https://grist.org/living/whats-better-new-solar-panels-or-old-hydropower/

2. https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/hydropower/

3. https://www.greenjournal.co.uk/2017/12/hydropower-or-solar-power/

4. https://group.vattenfall.com/what-we-do/our-energy-sources/solar-power

5. https://group.vattenfall.com/what-we-do/our-energy-sources/hydro-power

6. https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/our-natural-resources/energy-sources-distribution/renewable-energy/about-renewable-energy/7295

7. https://sciencing.com/hydro-power-vs-solar-power-advantages-6513.html

8. https://homeguides.sfgate.com/hydropower-vs-solar-power-advantages-79612.html

9. https://www.pluginindia.com/solarvswindvshydrovsbiogas.html

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Solar Energy vs. Hydropower: What's the Difference? | Chariot Energy

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Learn about the differences between solar energy and hydropower to get better educated about renewable energy sources and how they can change our world.

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MapperX Otonom PV Panel İnceleme Yapay Zeka Yazılımı

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Renewable energy sources are unlimited and clean energy sources, unlike fossil fuels. Solar energy and wind energy are among the most important of these sources, but many different factors should be taken into account when deciding which is more efficient. These factors include efficiency, cost, ease of installation and maintenance, environmental impacts, energy storage capabilities and regional climatic conditions. In this article, we will make a comparative analysis between solar energy and wind energy.

Solar energy is a renewable energy source that generates electricity from sunlight through solar panels. Solar panels use photovoltaic (PV) cells to convert sunlight into electrical energy. Solar energy is a highly efficient source of energy, especially in areas with abundant sunlight.
Solar energy systems consist of components such as solar panels, inverters and batteries. Solar panels convert sunlight into electricity, while inverters convert DC electricity into AC electricity. Batteries form the energy storage part of the solar power system and release the stored energy when needed.

Solar energy systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their low cost and environmental impact. The materials used in the production of solar panels and the efficiency in areas with insufficient sunlight are low. There may also be energy storage problems in solar energy systems.

Wind energy is a renewable energy source that converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electrical energy through wind turbines. Wind turbines drive a generator that rotates when the wind hits the turbine blades. This generator provides the rotational motion necessary for electricity generation.

Wind energy systems are a highly efficient source of energy in open areas with strong winds. Wind turbines provide higher efficiency where there are strong winds. Unlike solar energy systems, wind energy systems are less dependent on energy storage problems. The use of wind energy in electricity generation also contributes to environmental impacts by reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Wind energy systems can be more expensive than solar energy systems in terms of installation and maintenance. The construction of wind turbines requires large quantities of raw materials such as steel and concrete, which has environmental impacts.

Although it is difficult to make a precise comparison between solar energy and wind energy in terms of efficiency, an assessment can be made by looking at the advantages and disadvantages of these energy sources.

Solar energy is advantageous in terms of efficiency in regions with abundant sunlight. Solar energy systems are more affordable as installation and maintenance costs are lower.

Solar energy systems are environmentally friendly and require low maintenance, but energy storage issues can limit their effectiveness. In addition, the production of solar energy systems has been criticized for its environmental impact.
Wind energy is more advantageous in terms of efficiency where there are strong winds. Wind energy systems are less dependent on energy storage problems and are environmentally friendly in electricity generation, but wind energy systems are more expensive than solar energy systems. The construction of wind turbines has also been criticized for its environmental impact.

1. Solar energy generates electricity directly from sunlight, while wind energy converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electricity through turbines. So, for solar energy it is the amount of sunlight that matters, while for wind energy it is the wind speed.

2. Solar panels can be placed on roofs or on fields. This means they can be used over a large area without space constraints. Wind turbines, on the other hand, must be installed in open areas where the wind is strong. This means that a specific area is required for wind energy.

3. Solar energy production takes place over a continuous period from sunrise to sunset. However, wind power generation varies depending on the speed and intensity of the wind. Therefore, wind energy is a more variable energy source.

4. Solar panels are easy to install and have a long lifetime. Wind turbines are more complex to install and in some cases require maintenance. However, wind energy can produce higher power and is more efficient than solar energy.

5. Solar energy experiences a reduction in production on cloudy or rainy days. But wind energy can be used almost anywhere there is wind. So wind energy can be used even more widely.

Deciding which energy source is more efficient depends on the intended uses, geographical locations and climatic conditions. Both sources are important for a more environmentally friendly future by replacing fossil fuels. If you are considering solar energy, you know that regular maintenance of your PV panels can extend their lifespan and increase their efficiency. Then you will need MapperX's world-class reporting of thermographic inspection data for operation and maintenance activities. Visit the website to learn more about "Inspection of Solar Panels by Drones"

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Is Solar or Wind More Efficient in Renewable Energy? - MapperX

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Solar energy systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their low cost and environmental impact. The materials used in the production of solar panels

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While renewable energy is widely touted as the future of energy, nuclear power is increasingly being discussed as a necessary part of the mix. To combat climate change we must replace greenhouse gas (GHG) intensive fossil fuels with emissions-free energy. Although both nuclear and renewables are clean sources of energy, renewables (hydroelectric, solar, wind, and biogas) account for nearly 29 percent of the energy mix, while nuclear is only around 10 percent. A breakdown of low carbon energy reveals that 11.4 percent comes from renewables, and only 4.3 percent comes from nuclear energy.

A growing chorus is calling for emissions reduction with many countries signing on to the UN's Net Zero commitment, In the US and elsewhere polls indicate that people want to reduce carbon. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted at the beginning of this year, a clear majority of Americans (69%) favor taking steps to become carbon neutral by 2050. While 72 percent want more solar and wind, only slightly more than a third want more nuclear power. While both renewables and nuclear are emissions-free, many are bullish on renewables, but reticent when it comes to nuclear.

Cost of Nuclear Power vs Renewable Energy

Due to construction costs, nuclear power is more expensive than renewable sources of energy. In terms of construction and installation nuclear is the most costly form of energy, while renewables are the least expensive. Many are hoping that fusion could reduce costs, but as reported in Nature, even if advanced fusion reactors are deployed commercially, they will not be able to compete with wind, solar and geothermal in terms of pricing.

Solar & Wind Compared to Nuclear Energy

David Suzuki claimed the energy from nuclear power costs 10 times that of wind and solar, while the US Energy Information Administration's Annual Energy Outlook 2022 indicates that the cost of electricity from advanced nuclear power stations is double the cost of solar farms. An analysis of the levelized costs of energy {LCOE) by Lazard investment bank indicates that wind and solar energy are five times cheaper than nuclear. The report also concluded that renewables remain less expensive even when we include storage and network costs. The declining costs of battery technology are also contributing to ongoing wind and solar price declines.

As the cost of renewables is decreasing, the cost of nuclear power is increasing. Between 2009 and 2021, renewables like wind and solar have declined by 90 percent, while nuclear power has increased by 33 percent. The average five-year compound annual declines of utility-scale solar are 8 percent and offshore wind is 4 percent. Solar is increasingly less expensive than fossil fuels and price declines are expected to continue as the technology scales.

While renewables offer a compelling value proposition, there are also solid arguments in support of nuclear. When we evaluate the economic and environmental costs of different types of energy generation, we should also factor in the lifespan of the technology Nuclear power plants can operate for 40 years (some advanced nuclear designs may last 60 years) while solar panels last a maximum of 30 years, and wind turbines last an average of 25 years. There is evidence to suggest that nuclear power lowers the cost of energy for consumers as illustrated by the costs of energy in France and Germany. France, which gets 70 percent of its energy from nuclear, is far cheaper than Germany which has effectively removed nuclear from the mix.

Advantages of nuclear power compared to renewable energy

Nuclear energy has advantages over renewables in terms of reliability, GHG emissions, land use and waste. Nuclear is far more reliable (dispatchable) than renewables like wind and solar. Nuclear plants keep churning out energy even when the wind is not blowing, and the sun is not shining.

Nuclear is also one of the cleanest sources of energy. Recent research published in the Journal of Cleaner Production found that the emission of GHGs and natural resource use associated with nuclear power generation was similar to that of renewable energy. An analysis by the European Commission indicates that in terms of full-cycle production, the emissions from nuclear are around the same as wind. Other studies have concluded that nuclear may be even cleaner than solar. Orano claims that nuclear power generates four times fewer GHGs than solar.

Nuclear also requires substantially less land than wind and solar. According to some assessments, nuclear requires 1/2,000th as much land as wind and 1/400th as much land as solar. US government data indicates that a 1,000-megawatt wind farm requires 360 times more land than a similar-capacity nuclear facility, while a solar plant requires 75 times more area.

While there are valid concerns about nuclear waste, there are also legitimate issues with renewable waste. Wind and solar generate a litany of chemical wastes including toxic heavy metals like cadmium, arsenic, chromium, and lead. While nuclear waste can remain radioactive for thousands of years, waste metals associated with renewables remain dangerous forever. Perhaps most importantly, the volume of nuclear waste is a tiny fraction of renewable waste. Nuclear waste is 1/10,000th of the waste generated by solar and 1/500th of the waste generated by wind.

Perceptions of nuclear vs. renewables

Despite hyperbolic headlines, nuclear energy is both clean and safe. Some people inaccurately portray nuclear energy as a panacea but most do not share this optimistic assessment. Many environmentalists and well-meaning renewable energy advocates have been swayed by misinformation about the dangers of nuclear energy.

Even science-based environmentalists like David Suzuki oppose nuclear. Suzuki excludes nuclear and emphasizes renewables as the answer to our energy issues. "New nuclear doesn't make practical or economic sense," Suzuki wrote. Many supporters of renewable energy share this view and oppose nuclear power.

In 2021, academics and other researchers signed a public declaration calling us to fight climate change by transitioning entirely to renewable energy. Stanford University professor Mark Z. Jacobson, is one of the signatories of the declaration and he is stridently anti-nuclear. He wrote, "investing in new nuclear power is the surest way to climate disaster".

Tim Judson, executive director of the Nuclear Information and Resource Service, and Linda Pentz Gunter the international specialist at Beyond Nuclear are concerned that support for nuclear power detracts from renewable energy. "Subsidizing nuclear power siphons funds from real solutions, like renewables, just when these are needed most urgently, thereby making climate change worse." Ben Wealer, who researches nuclear power economics at the Technical University of Berlin, succinctly said, "[nuclear] blocks the cash we need for renewables."

Fossil fuel use

We are nowhere near where we need to be and we are moving in the wrong direction. Oil, coal, and gas make up 84.4 percent of global primary energy consumption. According to theauthoritative Renewables 2022 Global Status Report, the world is using more fossil fuels than ever and the transition to green energy has stalled. The growth of renewables is being eclipsed by the growth in demand for energy. The net result is a 2 billion tonne net increase in carbon emissions.

The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, clearly stated that we are not doing enough to mitigate the climate crisis. According to another recent study, the current decarbonization scenarios will not result in the required drawdowns of carbon.

Almost two-thirds of countries do not have economy-wide targets for renewables and national support for renewables is being undermined by the war in Ukraine. Germany is among a handful of countries that have abandoned zero carbon pledges in the wake of the energy crisis.

Rather than resist nuclear, renewable energy advocates may be better served by going after fossil fuel subsidies. Subsidies to fossil fuels are growing. As explained by Rana Adib, the executive director of REN21 we are subsidizing fossil fuels at the rate of $11m per minute. in 2020 this amounted to 7 percent of the global GDP. "This obviously creates a system which is unbalanced, because even though renewable energy is an economic alternative to fossil fuels, it's not playing in a fair market," Adib said. That is why many are working to end fossil fuel subsidies and redirect them towards renewables.

Efforts to reduce GHGs

Despite the undeniable importance of renewables, we have to face the fact that wind and solar have not been able to slow let alone stop emissions from fossil fuels. In 2019 only 16 percent of global primary energy came from low carbon sources (11.4% comes from renewables, and 4.3% comes from nuclear). Even if we were to cut subsidies to fossil fuels, renewables are nowhere near where they need to be to counter climate change. Esam Hussein, the dean of engineering and applied science at the University of Regina explained that renewables cannot yet solve the energy emissions problem on their own. Even the most optimistic assessments suggest it could take more than 30 years to transition to renewable energy. The problem is we do not have 30 years.

There has been very little movement in the distribution of the energy mix. "The share of renewable energy has moved in the last decade from 10.6% to 11.7%, but fossil fuels, all coal, and gas have moved from 80.1% to 79.6%. So, it's stagnating," said Adib, adding that since energy demand is rising, we are actually using more fossil fuels than we ever have.

There is no question that emissions-free renewables are critical sources of energy but even though wind and solar have been growing at a prodigious rate, renewables will need to be massively scaled prodigious if we are to meet our emissions reduction goals.

We have yet to come close to investing in renewables at the required scale. As reported by the BBC, UN Secretary-General Guterres recently called for a dramatic increase in spending on renewables, saying "Had we invested massively in renewable energy in the past, we would not be so dramatically at the mercy of the instability of fossil fuel markets."

The fact is that we have not made the required investments in renewables, nor are we on the cusp of doing so. While renewables have experienced prodigious growth, they are not growing anywhere near fast enough to slow fossil fuels. It remains that renewables have not made a dent in fossil fuel use. It is hard to envision a pathway in which adequate solar and wind infrastructure will be built within the timeframes we have.

We have to face the hard reality that it is unlikely to build out enough renewable energy to allow us to wean ourselves off of fossil fuels within the window of time we have available. Germany is a good example, despite the national obsession with wind and solar the country still gets most of its energy from coal. Last October the International Energy Agency's (EIA) World Energy Outlook bluntly stated the world is not transitioning to clean energy fast enough to zero out emissions by the middle of the century. Efficiency is part of the solution but we also need more clean power to meet the massive surge in demand associated with decarbonization through electrification.

We cannot afford to overlook nuclear power's capacity to massively increase our production of emissions-free electricity. Nuclear fuel is by far the longest-lasting source of energy on the planet and among the most abundant. Soil commonly contains an average of around 6 parts per million (ppm) of thorium and the uranium and thorium concentrations in seawater range from 1.80 to 4.1 and 0.14 to 0.88 microg/L, respectively. The longevity of nuclear fuel can even be compared to solar power Astronomers estimate that the sun has about 7 billion to 8 billion years left, while the half-life of thorium- 232 is about 14 billion years.

Nuclear energy and the question of time

As we consider the important question of energy supply we must remember that the clock is ticking. We need to reevaluate the claims of those who say " nuclear power has no business case and could make climate change worse ". While renewables can be built much more rapidly than nuclear power plants, they have not been able to replace fossil fuels and they are unlikely to do so in the time we have.

Time is of the essence as indicated by a 2021 UNECE policy brief which warned that, "time is running out to rapidly transform the global energy system,"

As explained in The Hill, "the consequences of inaction exponentially increase as time marches on. If we have any hope of turning back the clock on the climate crisis, we need to ensure nuclear energy remains a vital part of our carbon-free energy mix with collaboration from every level of government."

A Foreign Affairs headline in 2021 read "Nuclear Energy Will Not Be the Solution to Climate Change There Is Not Enough Time for Nuclear Innovation to Save the Planet" In a CNN article, Ben Wealer, who researches nuclear power economics at the Technical University of Berlin, is quoted as saying we don't have time to wait for new nuclear plants. "Looking at the time frames, it cannot be a huge help in combating climate change," Weaver said. Jacobson also argues that we do not have the time to build nuclear power plants. Edwin Lyman, a physicist with the Union of Concerned Scientists who published a report that harshly criticized nuclear power called it 'magical thinking' to expect that advanced designs will be able to prove themselves within the limited timeframes we have.

If we assess these claims from the ten-year timeframes required to build conventional nuclear energy facilities, we will not be able to deploy enough of these plants to meet 2030 emissions reduction targets. If these timelines are intractable nuclear energy is not a viable short-term option. But even if you accept the veracity of these timelines, nuclear remains our best hope for fully decarbonizing the energy sector by 2050.

There are signs that we may be moving in this direction. Capital investments in nuclear increased dramatically in 2021. Around 60 GW of nuclear capacity was under construction at the start of last year, and more than 100 GW of planned reactor projects after 2030.

Innovative nuclear power technologies may prove to be a game changer. According to the IEA nuclear technologies like small modular reactors (SMRs) have shorter construction and approval times, SMRs can be manufactured quickly and installed just about anywhere. Conventional wisdom says it takes five years to build an SMR, however, China, Russia, and Korea have demonstrated that it is possible to build nuclear reactors in less than five years. China is working on a nuclear plant in Jiangsu province that will take only 2 years to construct. So there is still time to build out nuclear reactors to help us to achieve the 2030 carbon reduction goals. As explained in World Nuclear News, "it is possible that some additional reactors that start construction before 2025 could be completed by 2030". Microreactors can generate between 1 and 20 microwatts of power and they can be installed almost anywhere including large factories, residential building complexes, charging stations for electrical vehicles, data centers, desalination plants, and commercial shipping.

Which is better renewables or nuclear?

Jacobson argues that we should choose renewables over nuclear power, however, this is a false choice. According to Dan Byers, vice president for policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Global Energy Institute, nuclear power is part of the clean energy mix. "[W]hile the case for nuclear power has always been strong, growing political support from governments, businesses, and environmental interests alike is making it stronger," Byers said, adding, "To reach our ambitious global climate objectives, we need every tool in the toolbox to reduce emissions, and including nuclear energy needs to be a priority."

Rather than being an either-or proposition, nuclear energy should be understood as an ideal partner for renewables like solar and wind. George Bilicic, the vice-chair and global head of Lazard's Power, Energy & infrastructure Group explained that to slash emissions we need the full array of clean energy technologies: "[T]he transition [away from fossil fuels] will not be dominated by any one [energy] solution - rather a new 'all of the above approach." Bilicic said.

We are faced with a climate emergency that requires us to deploy every tool at our disposal to end our reliance on fossil fuels. As Spanish Vice President Riberta explained the transition away from fossil fuels is, "our lifeline". If we are to make this transition we must massively build out clean sources of energy and we cannot ignore the potential contribution of nuclear power. As EU climate chief Frans Timmermans stated, "nuclear being zero emissions is very important to reduce emissions." Climate scientist James Hansen explained his support for nuclear saying, "We need renewables to be complemented by a reliable, 24/7 energy source."

Innovative nuclear power could revolutionize the energy mix. We are closer than we have ever been to realizing the dream of fusion energy so it is very possible that this new form of energy could be " an 11th-hour hero " Even if we do not realize this dream in the short term, increasing existing nuclear technologies could go a long way toward helping us to achieve our longer-term clean energy goals.

The scale of the challenge we are facing is daunting. Even if we build out clean energy infrastructure at an expedited pace, we will still need to massively deploy carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies including the full range of natural climate solutions (NCS), direct air capture, and other carbon capture, and sequestration technologies.

To achieve carbon neutrality we must deploy the full array of clean technologies. Without economy-wide clean energy, we will not be able to halve emissions by 2030 and eradicate them by 2050. Energy is central to efforts to combat the climate crisis, so we need all the sources of emissions-free power we have at our disposal. The mix of renewables and nuclear energy may be the best hope we have of zeroing out carbon by the middle of the century.

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Hydroelectric vs. Wind Power: Current Statistics
Hydroelectric power stats

79,000 megawatts of power in the U.S. (7% of total capacity)

22,000 megawatts of pumped storage capacity in the U.S.

Offshore wind power stats

82,000 megawatts of power in the U.S. (4% of total capacity)

28 projects with total of 23,735 megawatts of capacity in planning and development

Hydroelectric power was the largest source of renewable energy, but recent rapid growth in wind power capacity took away that title. Wind surpassed hydro regarding capacity in 2016, and the U.S. Energy Information Administration recently predicted that it would also overtake it in an actual generation this year.

Offshore wind, meanwhile, is just getting started in the U.S. As of now, Europe has much more offshore wind but, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, the United States has a technical resource potential of around 2,000 gigawatts per year for offshore wind.

Interest in building new dams may be waning, but hydro has offshore potential too in the form of largely unexplored tidal and wave power. Plus, dams continue to be a vital, reliable energy resource.

So, hydroelectric vs. wind power: which makes a better renewable power source? Let's explore.

Hydroelectric Power

Hydroelectric Dams

The U.S. has around 79,000 megawatts of conventional hydroelectric power, about seven percent of the country's total capacity. Many of these hydroelectric dams are among the oldest hydroelectricity generators in the nation. The U.S. likely won't build any large dams shortly but may add capacity to existing ones and build some smaller ones.

Conventional hydroelectric power is beneficial because it provides a reliable, clean energy source. It's considerably less variable than wind turbines, generation from which varies from day to day depending on wind speeds. Dams can dry up during times of drought but are generally reliable. They can also run for many years with low operational costs.

However, locations fit for building dams are limited. They also have substantial environmental impacts that wind power doesn't. They alter the aquatic environments they depend on, and creating reservoirs requires flooding habitats where animals, and even people, lived. Dams can also lower the surrounding water table and even dry up smaller downstream rivers in some cases.

Pumped Storage

There are approximately 22,000 megawatts of hydroelectric pumped storage capacity in the U.S., according to the Department of Energy. These facilities store energy by keeping water in an upper reservoir. When energy demand is high, and the grid needs the extra power, facility operators can release the water to a lower reservoir, generating electricity. Then, when electricity costs are low, typically at night, the facility pumps the water back up to the top reservoir.

These storage facilities serve important functions for the electric grid. They can respond quickly to changes in demand and supply and provide grid stabilization services. In this way, pumped storage can complement variable resources such as wind well.

Because it's a storage technology, pumped storage can only make up so much of the electricity we use. In fact, the facilities use more power than they produce. However, they are often more than 80 percent efficient and make the grid balancing capabilities they provide worth the cost.

The energy that pumped storage facilities produce doesn't release any emissions. The electricity used to pump the water to the upper reservoir might, depending on how it's generated, leading to possible indirect emissions.

Tidal and Wave Power

There's another way we could potentially generate power from water, and we can do it with inland rivers as well as ocean waters. Numerous technologies that harness the power of tides, waves and currents are currently undergoing research and development.

These technologies, sometimes called marine or hydrokinetic technologies, aren't widely used commercially yet, but based on current project proposals, we could be generating 13,000 MW of electricity from the power of moving water by 2025.These resources have the obvious benefits of being clean and renewable. Unlike with conventional hydroelectric, there's vast untapped potential when it comes to hydrokinetic energy. Initial research suggests that environmental disturbance caused by these facilities would be minimal.

Currently, various projects are underway to advance these new technologies, reduce their costs and speed up the timeframe for getting them on the market.

Offshore Wind Power

The U.S. now has around 82,000 megawatts of wind capacity, according to the Department of Energy. Included in that number is a small amount of offshore wind. However, Europe already has over 12,600 gigawatts of offshore installed wind capacity. The first U.S. offshore wind facility began providing power in December 2016.Despite its slow start, the U.S. offshore wind market seems to be heating up. Twenty-eight projects with a total of 23,735 megawatts of capacity are now in various stages of planning and development. As mentioned earlier, offshore wind has a technical resource potential of around 2,000 gigawatts, or 2,000,000 megawatts, per year in the United States.

Offshore wind has many of the same advantages that onshore wind does, with the addition of a few that are unique to it. Offshore wind farms produce clean, renewable energy like onshore ones, but have the advantage of the faster, steadier winds that occur offshore. They may be able to provide substantially more electricity since a wind turbine can generate twice as much in 15 mile-per-hour wind than in 12 mph wind.

Building such large structures offshore, as well as the infrastructure to transport electricity back to land, is a challenge. The turbines must withstand wave action and heavy storms. Building turbines in deeper water is more challenging than in shallower water but has several benefits.

Turbines seen from the coastline are often unpopular with coastal communities and may also hurt local tourism activity and property values. Wind facilities close to shore could get in the way of recreational and other commercial activities.

New floating turbine technologies are now making it more feasible to build wind facilities in deeper waters, which could increase the amount of potential we can take advantage of.

Wind Energy vs. Hydro Energy: Which Is Best?

All of these energy technologies have their benefits and their challenges. Conventional hydroelectric capacity is not likely to increase in the coming years, and expanding it would have a substantial negative environmental impact. However, it will remain a significant energy resource, and we will continue to enhance the facilities we already have.

Pumped storage may see some increased capacity in the coming years, but its potential for growth is limited since it is a storage technology. However, it could serve a crucial role in the future by serving as a backup for variable energy sources, such as wind.

Tidal and wave energy have a lot of potential. But the technology is so new that we won't see it being used much for energy production.

Offshore wind, as well as onshore wind, is growing faster than any hydroelectric and hydrokinetic resources. Increasing its capacity has its challenges, but it's one of the most environmentally and economically beneficial resource potentials we have.

Necessary Changes in the Debate of Hydroelectric vs. Wind Power

The fact remains, though, that we are still heavily dependent on natural gas and other fossil fuels, which release greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. If we transition to a green energy economy, we likely won't be able to rule out any renewable energy source. This includes hydropower and wind power, at least not until technology improves further and regulations and markets adapt to these changes.

Who do you think has the upper hand in the battle of hydroelectric vs. wind power?

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Hydroelectric vs. Wind Power: What Offshore Energy is Best?

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Hydroelectric power was once the largest source of renewable energy. Now, it's a battle of hydroelectric vs. wind power.

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MapperX Otonom PV Panel İnceleme Yapay Zeka Yazılımı

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Renewable energy sources are unlimited and clean energy sources, unlike fossil fuels. Solar energy and wind energy are among the most important of these sources, but many different factors should be taken into account when deciding which is more efficient. These factors include efficiency, cost, ease of installation and maintenance, environmental impacts, energy storage capabilities and regional climatic conditions. In this article, we will make a comparative analysis between solar energy and wind energy.

Solar energy is a renewable energy source that generates electricity from sunlight through solar panels. Solar panels use photovoltaic (PV) cells to convert sunlight into electrical energy. Solar energy is a highly efficient source of energy, especially in areas with abundant sunlight.
Solar energy systems consist of components such as solar panels, inverters and batteries. Solar panels convert sunlight into electricity, while inverters convert DC electricity into AC electricity. Batteries form the energy storage part of the solar power system and release the stored energy when needed.

Solar energy systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their low cost and environmental impact. The materials used in the production of solar panels and the efficiency in areas with insufficient sunlight are low. There may also be energy storage problems in solar energy systems.

Wind energy is a renewable energy source that converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electrical energy through wind turbines. Wind turbines drive a generator that rotates when the wind hits the turbine blades. This generator provides the rotational motion necessary for electricity generation.

Wind energy systems are a highly efficient source of energy in open areas with strong winds. Wind turbines provide higher efficiency where there are strong winds. Unlike solar energy systems, wind energy systems are less dependent on energy storage problems. The use of wind energy in electricity generation also contributes to environmental impacts by reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Wind energy systems can be more expensive than solar energy systems in terms of installation and maintenance. The construction of wind turbines requires large quantities of raw materials such as steel and concrete, which has environmental impacts.

Although it is difficult to make a precise comparison between solar energy and wind energy in terms of efficiency, an assessment can be made by looking at the advantages and disadvantages of these energy sources.

Solar energy is advantageous in terms of efficiency in regions with abundant sunlight. Solar energy systems are more affordable as installation and maintenance costs are lower.

Solar energy systems are environmentally friendly and require low maintenance, but energy storage issues can limit their effectiveness. In addition, the production of solar energy systems has been criticized for its environmental impact.
Wind energy is more advantageous in terms of efficiency where there are strong winds. Wind energy systems are less dependent on energy storage problems and are environmentally friendly in electricity generation, but wind energy systems are more expensive than solar energy systems. The construction of wind turbines has also been criticized for its environmental impact.

1. Solar energy generates electricity directly from sunlight, while wind energy converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electricity through turbines. So, for solar energy it is the amount of sunlight that matters, while for wind energy it is the wind speed.

2. Solar panels can be placed on roofs or on fields. This means they can be used over a large area without space constraints. Wind turbines, on the other hand, must be installed in open areas where the wind is strong. This means that a specific area is required for wind energy.

3. Solar energy production takes place over a continuous period from sunrise to sunset. However, wind power generation varies depending on the speed and intensity of the wind. Therefore, wind energy is a more variable energy source.

4. Solar panels are easy to install and have a long lifetime. Wind turbines are more complex to install and in some cases require maintenance. However, wind energy can produce higher power and is more efficient than solar energy.

5. Solar energy experiences a reduction in production on cloudy or rainy days. But wind energy can be used almost anywhere there is wind. So wind energy can be used even more widely.

Deciding which energy source is more efficient depends on the intended uses, geographical locations and climatic conditions. Both sources are important for a more environmentally friendly future by replacing fossil fuels. If you are considering solar energy, you know that regular maintenance of your PV panels can extend their lifespan and increase their efficiency. Then you will need MapperX's world-class reporting of thermographic inspection data for operation and maintenance activities. Visit the website to learn more about "Inspection of Solar Panels by Drones"

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Is Solar or Wind More Efficient in Renewable Energy? - MapperX

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Solar energy systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their low cost and environmental impact. The materials used in the production of solar panels

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Explore and compare energy data, analysis and recommendations from countries and regions around the world

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Tidal energy is power produced by the surge of ocean waters during the rise and fall of tides. Tidal energy is a renewable source of energy.

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How does tidal energy work? - BBC Bitesize

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Learn how tidal energy can be used as a renewable energy source to generate electricity. Find out about tidal energy’s advantages and disadvantages with BBC Bitesize Scotland article for upper primary 2nd Level Curriculum for Excellence.

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6 Fun Facts About Tidal Energy - Earth Day

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Tidal energy, powered by the Moon, is ancient yet cutting-edge. Discover its history, methods, challenges, and untapped potential as a renewable energy source!

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Advantages And Disadvantages Of Tidal Power: A Detailed Breakdown

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Tidal power is gaining traction with its amazing advantages, But it’s not without its flaws. Here are the pros and cons of renewable wave energy

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How Waves Could Power A Clean Energy Future

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What are Biofuels and Where are They Going?

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What is Biofuel? - Biomass Science Explainer Video

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A biofuel is any liquid fuel derived from biological material such as trees, agricultural wastes, crops, or grass. Biofuel can be produced from any carbon source that can be replenished rapidly, such as plants. Biofuels are used globally and biofuel industries are greatly expanding in Europe, Asia, and North and South America. They contain no sulfur and produce low carbon monoxide and toxic emissions.

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Contents1 Biofuels: Harnessing Renewable Energy for a Sustainable Future1.1 Introduction2 Historical Background3 Key Concepts and Definitions4 Main Discussion Points4.1 Feedstock for Biofuels Production4.2 Biofuel Production Processes4.3 Biofuel Applications and Benefits5 Case Studies or Examples6 Current Trends or Developments7 Challenges or Controversies8 Future Outlook9 Conclusion10 References Biofuels: Harnessing Renewable Energy for a Sustainable Future Introduction Biofuels

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What Are Biofuels? | Definition, Generations, Types, & Benefits

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Discover the benefits of biofuels. This article defines biofuels, explains their different generations, and highlights the benefits of using them.

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Tidal energy is a growing renewable, clean, and environmentally friendly energy source that produces far fewer greenhouse gases than fossil fuels such as coal and oil. Moreover, its high predictability and elevated power output are also among the advantages of tidal energy. In this article, we examine what tidal energy is, its advantages and disadvantages as well as the future trends of this still unpopular but highly promising renewable energy source.
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What Is Tidal Energy And How Does it Work?

Tidal energy is a form of power produced by the natural rise and fall of tides caused by the gravitational interaction between Earth, the sun, and the moon. The potential or kinetic energy of tide movement is captured and converted into electricity. This energy is renewable , derived from natural sources that are replenished at a higher rate than consumed, creating far less greenhouse gas emissions than burning fossil fuels. The global potential for tidal energy is huge, estimated to be around 500 gigawatts in 2020, equivalent to about one-fourth of the world's coal capacity at that time.

3 Tidal Energy Technologies

Tidal energy technology can be classified into three types: tidal range, tidal current, and hybrid forms technologies.

1. Tidal Range Technologies

Tidal range technologies make use of the potential energy in the difference in height between high and low tides.

Tidal lagoons are very much like tidal barrages, except that they are not necessarily

connected to the shore and can sit within the ocean. The environmental impacts brought by the lagoons are far less than those of tidal barrages, making them an encouraged alternative to the latter. Other newly developed tidal range technologies include tidal reefs, tidal fences, and low-head tidal barrages.

2. Tidal Current Technologies

Tidal current technologies - or tidal stream technologies - make use of the kinetic energy of moving water to power turbines, similar to how wind turbines are moved by air. Due to its relatively low cost and limited ecological impact, this method has become more prevalent compared to tidal range technologies.

Horizontal- and vertical-axis turbines are an example of this type of technologies. The rotors of the turbine are turned by tidal currents, oriented either horizontally or vertically. Tidal kite, best used in slower tidal flows area, is also a common tidal current technology. The kite is tethered to the seabed, flying through the water with a turbine attached below its wing to generate power from motion. With up to 398 megawatts of generation capacity, the MeyGen Tidal Energy project in Scotland is expected to be the largest tidal generating station with tidal current technologies.

3. Hybrid Forms Technologies

Hybrid forms make use of both tidal current and tidal range technologies for electricity generation. Dynamic Tidal Power (DTP) is a recent development in these technologies. A long dam is constructed perpendicular to the coastline, with a barrier built at the end of the dam. DTP makes use of the height difference to create potential energy, while also using turbines to generate electricity.
Figure 1: You might also like: What the Future of Renewable Energy Looks Like How tidal power generators capture energy from the natural ebb and flow of the oceans
Now that we know how energy is generated from tidal current and range, let's examine the advantages and disadvantages of tidal energy to see if it is an ideal and feasible renewable source.

Advantages of Tidal Energy

High Predictability

Unlike wind and solar energy - which are subject to the variability and uncertainty of atmospheric forcing - tidal energy is much more predictable and reliable. Low tide and high tide cycles are easy to forecast and rarely experience unanticipated variation. Long-term and accurate predictions of tidal currents can even be made hundreds of years in advance. In addition, tidal range is hardly influenced by weather conditions .

High Power Output and Space Saving

Sihwa Lake Tidal Power Plant in South Korea - the largest tidal power station in the world - consists of a seawall that spans 12.7 kilometres. Contrarily, wind turbines and solar panels usually require more space. For example, the Roscoe wind farm in Texas takes up 400 square kilometres of land, while Indiana's Fowler Ridge wind project, despite being a smaller wind farm, also takes up about 200 square kilometres. Solar power faces the same issue, with the Bhadla Industrial Solar Park in India spreading across 45 square kilometres.

Disadvantages of Tidal Energy

High Construction and Maintenance Cost

Geographical Limitations

Figure 2: World map of average tidal range

Environmental Impacts: Advantage or Disadvantage?

Tidal energy has both advantages and disadvantages to the environment and the overall effect on the ecosystem is still ambivalent, although this very much depends on the power plant site.

Both pros and cons brought to the ecology by tidal power can be observed in the two following examples of tidal power stations: Sihwa Lake Tidal Power Station and La Rance Tidal Power Station.

Examples of Tidal Power Station

Sihwa Lake Tidal Power Station

La Rance Tidal Power Station

The Future of Tidal Energy
Featured image by Juergen Adolph (CC BY 2.0) You might also like: 4 Indisputable Advantages of Wind Energy
More and more tidal power plant projects are in the pipeline. The Morlais project , initiated in Wales, Britain, proposed to install turbines at what will be one of the largest tidal stream energy sites in the world, covering 13 square miles of the seabed. The project is expected to power 180,000 homes when fully operational. Other future tidal power plants include Incheon Tidal Power Station in South Korea and Penzhinskaya Tidal Power Plant in Russia.

All in all, renewable energy will continue to be a hot topic with its increasing importance in the energy sector. While many of these clean energy are still in the development stage, there is no doubt that the only way we have to lower our emissions of greenhouse gases and reverse climate change is by transition to societies fully powered by renewable energy.

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What is Tidal Energy? Advantages, Disadvantages, and Future Trends | Earth.Org

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Tidal energy is a growing renewable, clean, and environmentally friendly energy source that produces far fewer greenhouse gases than fossil fuels such as coal and oil. Moreover, its high predictability and elevated power output are also among the advantages of tidal energy.

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Estimates suggest, at the best locations, tidal energy could power a turbine for between 18 and 22 hours a day, every day. At a time when a rising proportion of electricity generation comes from inconstant sources, and the need for reliability has become a mantra in public debate, the tides along Australia's vast coast are potentially a significant untapped resource.

Though invisible in most discussions of the future of electricity - tidal energy didn't rate a mention in chief scientist Alan Finkel's recent review of the future of the National Electricity Market - there has been interest from some investors in the possibility of tidal energy. Usually, they ask authorities for information about the potential for development around the continent. Until now he answer has basically been: we don't really know.

Australia's tidal resource has only been modelled to a resolution of 10km - not fine grained enough to be meaningful given the impact of local geography.

This gap should be filled through a new $5.85 million project, led by researchers at the University of Tasmania's Australian Maritime College in partnership with ARENA, the CSIRO and the University of Queensland. ARENA has contributed $2.95 million.

The three-year plan involves developing a national hydrodynamic tidal model that can map the tidal energy resource to 500m and identifying the most promising regions for energy extraction. The results will be published in an online atlas similar in style to a CSIRO wave energy map completed earlier this year.

There will also be a detailed feasibility study of two sites with potential for a commercial-scale tidal plant. And there will be an assessment of the cost of connecting high-potential tidal energy sites to either the national grid or off-grid sites.

How does tidal energy work?

In simple terms, a tidal energy works via a turbine works like a wind turbine, with blades rotating 12-to-18 times a minute depending on tide strength. The turbine is connected to a gearbox that turns a generator, creating electricity. Projects are under way in Canada's Bay of Fundy and at testing sites in Ireland and France, and the maritime college recently completed a trial in Launceston's Tamar River for Australian manufacturer MAKO Tidal Turbines.

Project chief investigator Irene Penesis, an associate professor at the maritime college, says Australia's potential installed tidal energy capacity could easily exceed 1.5GW - roughly the scale of Hazelwood, the giant Victorian brown coal generator that was retired in March.

One of the high-potential sites that will be studied is Banks Strait, which stretches between Tasmania's north-eastern tip and the Furneaux island group. Dr Penesis says it could have a capacity of 350MW, generating about three terawatt hours of electricity a year - nearly a third of what Tasmania uses annually. It could be connected to the national grid or off-grid to Flinders Island, which is currently reliant on a diesel-fuelled generator.

Other prospective sites are largely in the far north. The Clarence and Dundas straits near Darwin have an estimated combined resource of 1.3GW. The Torres Strait is about 500MW. King Sound, north of Broome, has great potential but is quite shallow and particularly remote.

ARENA's Scott Grierson says far-flung sites could support off-grid mining, minerals processing and potential export industries in renewable hydrogen and ammonia.

All sites will face a challenge to become economically viable, but Dr Penesis says tidal energy has advantages - predictability, being less in need of back-up, having low visual impact, working effectively on or off grid - that suggest it could become affordable relatively quickly. "It has some greater advantages over some of the other marine (wave, offshore wind) resources. We expect it can have a faster cost reduction by 2030," she says.

Read more about ocean energy.

This article was originally written by Adam Moreton, Writer.

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What is tidal energy and how does it work? - ARENAWIRE

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Estimates suggest, at the best locations, tidal energy could power a turbine for between 18 and 22 hours a day, every day. At a time when a rising proportion of electricity generation comes from inconstant sources, and the need for reliability has become a mantra in public debate, the tides along Australia's vast coast are potentially a significant untapped resource.

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Biofuel, also referred to as biomass, is energy converted from organic matter from plants or animals. The two most commonly used types of biofuel are ethanol and biodiesel.

Ethanol is made from plant materials. A chemical process called fermentation is one of the more frequent methods used to convert biomass into ethanol. During fermentation, plant sugars are metabolised to produce ethanol.

Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oils or animal waste. Almost all biodiesel is made using a process called transesterification - a chemical reaction between vegetable oil or animal waste with an alcohol such as methanol or ethanol. This reaction produces biodiesel and glycerin.

Simply put: Vegetable oil/animal waste + alcohol (methanol/ethanol) = Biodiesel and Glycerin

Glycerin is used in industries such as pharmaceutical and cosmetics. Biodiesel is usually blended with petroleum diesel for vehicle fuel. Pure biodiesel is uncommon and rarely used as a transportation fuel due to its higher cost as compared to blended biodiesel.

What are the pros and cons of biofuel?
Biodiesel from palm oil is increasingly used as an alternative to fossil fuels. In terms of direct carbon footprint, only palm oil offers a reduction of 50 percent in emissions compared with diesel. Biofuel also releases only one-fourth the amount of carbon dioxide as compared to conventional diesel releases.

Moreover, oil palm is the most productive vegetable oil. It has the highest yield per area and requires smaller amounts of pesticides and fertiliser than other vegetable oil crops like soybean and canola. These make palm oil the most economical feedstock for biofuel.

Despite these advantages, palm oil is often associated with deforestation that causes biodiversity loss and worsens climate change. But did you know that the palm oil industry has taken the most steps to protect forests and conserve biodiversity?

For example, Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) has a strict No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) policy that effectively delinks palm oil production from deforestation. Also, GAR is partnering with biodiversity experts, such as Orangutan Foundation International (OFI), and has rehabilitated 127 orangutans back to their natural habitat since 2011.

Banning palm oil feedstock for biofuel production is not the solution. Using sustainably produced palm oil is the answer - not only to combat climate change, but also to fulfil the global demand for energy, food, and industrial goods.

Biofuel production benefits smallholders and communities
The expansion of the biofuel industry can create more jobs for local rural communities. The income of smallholders can increase from biofuel crops as the demand for raw materials like crude palm oil rises. More domestically produced biofuel will also result in lower fossil fuel imports.

As the third-largest producer of biofuel, the palm oil industry in Indonesia generates large quantities of residue that can be used to process biofuel. In 2020, the Indonesian government launched the B30 mandate (30 percent palm oil, 70 percent diesel) to reduce GHG and fuel imports. This boosts the demand for locally-produced raw materials such as crude palm oil and reduces the dependency on imported fuel.

The future of biofuel
Biofuel is the largest renewable energy source in use today, globally accounting for 70 percent of renewable energy supply and 10 percent of total primary energy supply in 2017.

It plays a key role as a source of energy in the replacement of fossil fuel in end-use sectors (industry, transport and buildings). Biofuel can contribute to balancing an electricity grid with high shares of variable renewables, such as solar PV and wind. This renewable energy source also makes a significant impact in decarbonising challenging sectors such as long-haul or heavy freight transport and industrial sectors such as iron and steel, cement and lime, aluminium and chemicals and petrochemicals.
Biofuel is produced from responsibly sourced crude palm oil (CPO) at Golden Agri-Resources (GAR). Read about how biofuel is produced at GAR .

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What is biofuel? Definition & pros and cons - Golden Agri-Resources

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Biofuel, also referred to as biomass, is energy converted from organic matter from plants or animals. The two most commonly used types of biofuel are ethanol and biodiesel. Ethanol is made from plant materials. A chemical process called fermentation is one of the more frequent methods used to convert biomass into ethanol.