Alternative power

Alternative power

Alternative power means the energy derived from natural resources that are renewed or that can not be implemented (renewable energy). It differs materially from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas, or nuclear fuel which is used in nuclear reactors. Renewable energy does not produce the waste like carbon dioxide or harmful gases or increase global warming, which occurs with the combustion of fossil fuels or nuclear waste resulting from harmful nuclear power reactors.

Alternative power or renewable energy can be produced from wind, water and sun; also it can be produced from the movement of waves, tides or geothermal activity underground.

Solar power

There are so many types of renewable energy resources like solar power. Solar power is an excellent energy resource. The sun gives us free rays, so why not use them as a power source?  Solar power is set out in a row of panels which take in the sun’s energy and provides power for homes and other things. Cars can now be solely powered by solar panels, creating huge possibilities which are called hybrid cars. If solar energy was used worldwide, along with other renewable sources, the world would be cleaner and more pleasurable to live in. Solar power cells convert sunlight into electricity, using the energy of speeding photons to create an electrical current within a solar panel. Photons are created in the center of the sun by the fusion of atoms. It takes a photon about a million years to work its way to the surface of the sun, but once free it is hurled through space so fast that it reaches earth in just eight minutes after traveling 93 million miles.http://0-www.accessscience.com.library.hct.ac.ae/content.aspx?searchStr=renewable+energy&id=YB041150

Wind power

Wind is a natural occurrence where air is pushed in a direction powerfully or gently. In places where it is powerful, wind turbines have been constructed to provide energy. Wind is around all the time and has no limit to it. People have decided to create structures such as wind turbines. Wind turbines are big ‘towers’ with 3 prongs on them (similar to a windmill) which are pushed around and around by the wind which creates energy.  The largest wind farm in the world is in Denmark, where a lot of wind turbines have been built. The energy is being sold and used. This is an exceptional concept of using natural energy to benefit people. The large turbine farms burn large amounts of garbage to form coal, thus creating steam. The steam powers the turbines faster, creating more clean energy. The easiest way to understand how wind turbines work is to think of a fan operating in reverse; rather than electricity spinning the blades and thus generating wind, the wind spins the blades, thereby generating electricity. Wind turbines operate on a simple principle. The energy in the wind turns two or three propeller-like blades around a rotor. The rotor is connected to the main shaft, which spins a generator to create electricity.Wind turbines are mounted above ground on a tall tower to capture the most energy.Wind turbines can be used to produce electricity for a single home or building, or they can be connected to an electricity grid. http://www.poweredgenerators.com/wind-power-generators.html

Tidal power

Tidal power or tidal energy is a form of hydropower that converts the energy of tides into electricity or other useful forms of power. The main benefit of tidal power is that it is free and it does not generate any unsafe greenhouse gases or hazardous waste. It functions without any fuel requirement, only with natural tidal energy. It is a consistent source of electricity with very little maintenance cost. Offshore turbines and vertical-axis turbines are economical to construct and do not have a big ecological effect. Tidal waves are a way to generate electricity from the movement of the moon and its effect on ocean level. The energy is generated by the movement of water when the tides are produced in the ocean by the gravitational movement of moon and sun. The magnitude of tide is the dependent on the movement and change in the position of sun and the moon. The tidal force is infinite as long as the sun and the moon survive. The energy of tidal waves can be converted to electricity by making dams and barrages. The energy from the tidal wave is stored by installing a tidal generator. The greater the velocity of the tide, the greater would be the electricity generation. There are three broad categories & types of tidal power. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidal_power

Bibliography

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidal_power

http://www.poweredgenerators.com/wind-power-generators.html

http://0-www.accessscience.com.library.hct.ac.ae/content.aspx?searchStr=renewable+energy&id=YB041150

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