Alternative Energy Sources Essay Alternative Energy Essay Alternative Energy Essay Alternative Energy Resources Essays Alternative Energy Sources Alternative Sources of Energy Essay

1. Alternative Energy Sources Essay
Imagine a world where nobody can use their iPhone, their computer, or even turn on the lights.
That is the kind of world the future may be like if there is not an overhaul of how electricity is
obtained. Ever since the Industrial Revolution, people have utilized fossil fuels to power their
homes, cars, and businesses. Unfortunately, our stores of fossil fuels are running low, and they have
been demonstrated to increase the temperature in the atmosphere and accelerate global warming. As
gas prices steadily rise, people need a newer, cleaner source of energy. The alternatives are
numerous and would be beneficial to the well being of the whole world. The human race must
replace its fossil fuel use with renewable resources in order to...show more content...
All of the proven sources of oil will be depleted by the year 2055 according to Erika Antoniazzo, a
woman who is well read in terms of oil production.(eco–info.net) On the other hand, renewable
resources can never be depleted. There will always be wind that can blow turbines. There will
always be a sun to heat solar panels. There will always be water to run through dams. The power
that can be drawn from these sources is limitless, which is obviously more sustainable than fossil
fuels, which clearly has a limit. Scientists are developing technology in the field of nuclear fusion
(the process in which the sun creates its energy), which if obtained will provide an infinite
amount of power. These alternative sources of energy will provide energy for the world until the
end of time. The government has been greatly influenced by big oil companies lobbying for
political power. No single group should have such a large amount of power over the government. If
our focus on fossil fuels is shifted over to a more general scope that includes various renewable
energy sources, then no single group of companies will have a significant amount of power in the
direction of the country. Since oil companies have an iron grip on decisions the U.S. makes, we
have gone to several wars over the pursuit of oil. General Zilmer stated that the amount of
casualties can be reduced greatly if troops could move away from their use of fossil fuels.(News
Observer) These wars would
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2. Alternative Energy Essay
Alternative Sources for Energy
Millions and millions of barrels of oil, coal, and natural gases are being pumped out of the ground
on a daily basis. These fuels are being used to heat homes, run machines, and take people from
place to place. It has become a part of everyday living; just as essential as food and water. The
more resources that is being pumped, the more people want it. Society has an insatiable thirst for
this form of energy that is unyielding. It is a never ending cycle of supply and demand. The
demand is high, but the supply is limited. One day the earth will be sucked dry of all its resources,
yet people will continue to demand. What will happen then? What will take place of the current
resources? Due to this crisis,...show more content...
This concept of solar energy can also be used in refrigeration systems as well. An adsorption chiller
has been manufactured that can achieve temperatures of 0ВЎГ†F (Henkel, pars.41). Solar energy
has enormous potential in reducing gas usage in homes. In fact, one day it may even replace any
need for gas at all.
Solar energy has its functions; however, it is not the only alternative energy source. Wind can be
transformed into practical energy as well. Wind power is one of the fasting growing sources of
energy and it doesnВЎВЇt seem to be slowing down. As technology advances, wind turbines are
getting bigger and more efficient. A wind turbine in the United States has a 104 meter blade
producing 3.6 megawatts of electricity (Talbot, pars.2). The blade span alone is longer than a
football field and generates enough power for 1,000 homes. General Electric is currently
attempting to design an even bigger wind turbine with a blade span of 140 meters and could
produce as much as 7 megawatts according to Jim Lyons, chief technologist at GE wind. Although
there is potential to tap into a vast amount of energy, it is not 100% reliable. Wind is not guaranteed
to be always blowing and with these huge turbines, if one fails many users will be affected until the
problem is fixed (Talbot, pars.4). Furthermore, there is no guarantee for the amount of energy
produced due to constant changes in directions of the wind, which in turn affects the
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3. Alternative Energy Essay
Every day, many fossil fuel consuming contraptions spew out gases that pollute the environment.
However, when the fuel supplies for these devices run out, they will grind to a halt. To prevent this,
the United States needs to find an alternative to unstable and polluting energy sources before it's too
late (Rouge). It also needs to advance in technological status in order to stay above advancing
third–world countries, and retain its current level of hegemony (Glaser). Space Based Solar Power
Satellites, which are satellites that collect the sun's energy and beam it down to the Earth, solve for
all these concerns (Rouge). Thus, the United States Federal Government should provide grants for
research, development, and implementation of Space...show more content...
In other words, even though other energy sources could solve the energy crisis, none boast the
advantages and flexibility that Space Based Solar Power can provide. For example, Solar Power
Satellites are extremely useful to the military, as they are capable of beaming energy down to
any location on the world, and are able to support military operations all over the world. People
may argue that the United States does not have the technology to develop Space Based Solar
Power, and that it will never get into space (Mankins). However, the technology required is
already available. According to Rouge, "Space Based Solar Power is a complex engineering
challenge, but [it] requires no fundamental scientific breakthroughs or new physics to become a
reality (Rouge)." If the United States is to prepare for a future energy crisis, it must act now and
begin development on Space Based Solar Power.
The United States is currently the most powerful nation in the world due to its economy and
technological dominance, but may not stay in that position for much longer if the United States
doesn't substantially increase the money being spent for research and development of new
technologies. Every year, more and more countries pour money into research, and they begin to
develop technology that rivals that of the United States, which reduces the United States'
technological
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4. Alternative Energy Resources Essays
The energy that is used today comes from fossil fuels, which is a nonrenewable limited resource
that will eventually be used up. Alternative energy sources such as solar, hydroelectric,
geothermal and wind energies can be used, to conserve the planets limited natural resources.
Alternative energy is the use of another energy without the burning of fossil fuels and break up on
atoms. Solar energy can be used to operate cars and provide electricity for homes and businesses.
Hydroelectric energy can be used to provide electric power to small towns and cities. Geothermal
energy can be used to heat buildings or water and to power turbines to make power. Wind energy can
be used to pump water and generate electricity. Solar energy is of...show more content...
The most common type of hydroelectric power comes from using a dam on a river or lake. Water
is discharged from the reservoir, which spins the turbine, which activates a generator to get
electricity. Hydroelectric power does not require a large dam. Some hydroelectric power plants
just use a small canal to channel the river water through a turbine. (Union of Concerned Scientists)
Third, geothermal energy is heat from the earth that is used directly as hot water or steam, or used
to produce electricity. Geothermal energy is contained in underground reservoirs of steam, hot
water, hot dry rocks and hot spots. Geothermal hot spots are volcanic features which are found all
around the world. Basically a hotspot is an area of reduced thickness in the mantle which transmits
excess internal heat from the interior of the earth to the outer crust. These hot spots are well known
for their unique effects on the surface, such as the volcanic islands of Hawaii, the mineral deposits
and geysers in Yellowstone National Park, or the hot springs in Iceland. These geothermal hot spots
can easily be used to generate electricity. (Alternative Energy Sources)
They are used at electric generating facilities, hot water or steam extracted from geothermal
reservoirs in the Earth's crust is supplied to steam turbines at electric utilities that drive generators to
produce electricity. Moderate to low
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5. Alternative Energy Sources
Alternative Energy Sources
"In United States around half of million deaths each year are attributed to air pollution. It is
estimated that air pollution each day kills three people in the city of Hong Kong. Air pollution also
contributes to soil and water pollution. More than 15,000 people in the world die each day because
of water pollution" (pollutionfacts.com). With these statistics, it is no wonder people are coming up
with alternative energy sources. From energy to gasoline, there are many different ways to reduce
these statistics. Some alternatives to energy sources are solar and wind power, alternative vehicle
fuels and hybrid cars. Photovoltaic solar electricity, or more commonly known as solar power, is an
alternative energy...show more content...
"There is considerable interest in electric and hybrid cars because of environmental and climate
change concerns, tougher fuel efficiency standards, and increasing dependence on imported oil"
(Deal). Hybrid and electric cars are a way to reduce our carbon footprint. Many vehicle
manufacturers are beginning to jump into the hybrid car craze. Some of the most popular hybrid
cars are the Toyota Prius, Honda Insight and Ford Fusion. There is also the electric car that relies
solely on electricity to get from point A to point B. the downside to these cars however is that
they only get about 100 miles before needing to be recharged. Hybrids are different because they
rely on a mixture of two sources, electricity and gasoline. Hybrids can get further than electric cars
because of this reason. Electric and hybrid cars have a special braking system called regenerative
braking. Regenerative braking causes the car to recharge the battery whenever the car is coasting or
completely stopped. this helps maintain the car's battery life. Charging these batteries can take a
while, some even take more than eight hours!
While the popularity of hybrids and electric vehicles are on the rise, many people still drive a good–
old fashioned gasoline car. Whereas driving a normal car will not be as environmentally friendly as
the hybrid of electrics,
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6. Alternative Sources of Energy Essay
As the population continues to increase day after day, so does the demand for oil and other
natural resources. Eventually we will get to a point where we will need to find different ways of
efficiently producing energy at a low cost. Twenty to thirty years ago it was hard to imagine what
sources of energy (other than obvious possibilities like solar panels and windmills) that could
efficiently supply the world. The advancement of technology today is opening new doors in the
energy field that are likely to change the way we think about energy. With so many different sources
of energy that are prevalent around the world, the challenge is found in harvesting and securing the
energy at its source, and doing so in an efficient...show more content...
Clearly there are many difficulties that would have to be addressed including maintenance, air space
issues, safety, etc, but flying wind farms are a potential source of future energy. wind.png Another
form of energy that could become very useful and resourceful in the near future is the transformation
of human waste into energy. An article by Janet Zimmerman describes a process being developed by
an engineering firm named UC Riverside. The new process "uses heat and pressure to turn human
waste into clean energy," saving millions of dollars and reducing pollution in the process. This idea
has the potential to change the energy industry since there will never be a shortage of human waste.
The first step of the process "pumps a combination of municipal sewage, sawdust and water into a
pressurized reactor that is heated to almost 1,400 degrees." (Zimmerman). A senior development
engineer with UC Riverside, Junior Castillo, explained that the extreme heat transforms the mixture
into different gasses like carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide. In the later stages, these
gasses are converted into substitutes for natural gasses. The goal is to eventually use the gas product
to heat the reactor to increase efficiency. Although this process is still under development, they plan
to have a functioning plant running within the next five
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