Archive for the ‘energy conference’ tag

Build Solar And Wind Power System For Your Home

With summer coming, you know you can expect sky-high electric bills. Want to lower your electric bills by tens of hundreds of dollars this summer? You can build your own solar power system and wind power system for your home and see your electric bills drop dramatically. There is no better way to show respect for your environment than by using alternative forms of electricity, and many of these alternate energy products also come with an added tax credit for purchasing them.

Using solar power or wind power is the wave of the future. By capturing these natural resources, you can not only cool and heat your home cheaply; you are also conserving the earth’s resources. A solar power system is non-polluting and its main source of energy, the sun, is plentiful and readily available – for free! Wind is another resource that can generate energy that is like solar power – free and non-polluting. Green energy can help you protect both the environment and your wallet.

Because there are so many benefits to solar power and wind power, a contractor or installer will want to charge you hundreds of thousands of dollars to get the benefits of a solar powers system or wind power system for the home. But you can easily and for less money install a solar and wind power system for your home. It’s not hard to set up your own solar and wind system, and whether you want to move off grid entirely, or only supplement your power, it’s quite easy to set up a system that works for you.

First, you have to make or purchase solar panels. There are different types of solar panels available to deliver solar power to your home. For example, there are different wattages based on how much power you need. Solar panels are the most expensive part of the your solar power system. But there are ways that you can make them cheaply. Additionally, they are essentially the only expense. After you get your solar panels and install them, you will have a complete solar power system and will begin to save money for the life of the panels, which can be many years. The sun doesn’t cost you a dime, but it will certainly save you plenty of them.

Other expenses related to your solar power system are minimal. You will also need to build a box to hold the solar panels. This can be done with inexpensive wood, particle board or other type of durable substance. Additionally, you will want to secure your solar panels to protect them from the elements. They are the most expensive part of your solar power system.

Wind power systems will operate in a similar manner. By capturing the wind, you can also harness mother nature to lower your bills. With wind power, you will need a wind turbine or windmill. While wind is a great source of energy, often people find that a combination of solar power and wind power is optimal to deliver electricity to your home all year long.

Everyone is watching their bills in these economic times. With a small amount of money and a little hard work, you can save thousands on your electric bills by installing a solar power system or a wind power system. By utilizing what mother nature has to offer, you can not only save money, but contribute to the green energy revolution. Instead of being concerned about the planet when you turn on the lights in your home, start feeling good about your electrical source. With wind energy and solar energy you can feel confident that you are protecting the earth.

Exploring Alternative Energy – How To Use The Ocean To Generate Electricity

With water encompassing over 70 percent of the Earth, it would make sense to try and gain alternative energy from the ocean. Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion or OTEC is a way to do just that. French engineer Jacques D’Arsonval is the brainchild of the idea. In 1881, he felt that the thermal energy of the ocean would be able to provide a great, clean source of energy. In other words, the different temperatures of the ocean in deep and shallow waters will be able to run a heat engine, which runs efficiently with great temperature changes.

There are three states that are heavily involved in exploring OTEC. The United States is one of them and has a large OTEC facility in Hawaii. Tests are done here to learn more about the technology. It has been said to be the perfect place for OTEC because of the warm surface temperature and access to deep cold temperatures of the ocean. Japan, while not a great area for OTEC, created a closed-cycle OTEC plant on the island of Nauru. It uses the energy to power the plant and neighboring communities. India also sponsors OTEC operations and is looking for ways to get new and better energy.

There are three ways to use OTEC: open cycle, closed cycle and hybrid cycle. Of the three cycles there are also three locations, land-based, shelf-based and floating-based.

A closed-cycle system uses a fluid with a low boiling point to rotate a turbine. Warm surface ocean water is pumped in causing the fluid to evaporate and the vapor turns the generator. Cold ocean water is pumped through the other side, causing the substance to form back into liquid and start the cycle all over again.

An open-cycle uses the ocean’s warm surface temperature to make energy. Warm seawater boils when placed in a low-pressure container. The steam turns the low-pressure turbine, which in turns moves the generator. It is condensed back into liquid form when it comes in contact with cold temperatures from the cold seawater.

A hybrid-cycle contains features of both systems. In the hybrid system, warm water is flash vaporized causing the steam to vaporize the low-boiling point fluid. The vapors drive the turbine and the steam condenses with the cold temperature creating desalinated water.

While it sounds like a great plan and a wonderful way to use the environment in a safe manner, the problem is this technology is extremely expensive. The United States hasn’t run any new tests in almost 10 years because of the costs, especially with companies focusing on other energy sources. Few other countries have been working at ways to find an operational system. The reason why it is so expensive is because the main thing needed is a large pipe, sometimes a mile long to reach to the bottom of the ocean to get the cold water. Creating this pipe and maintaining the process costs too great of a price.

However one of the huge advantages to OTEC is that it provides more than just electricity. By bringing up the cold water from the bottom of the ocean, there are many other uses such as air conditioning, chill-soiled agriculture, desalination and mineral extractions. But there are concerns worldwide about the effects of using alternative energy from the ocean can cause on the environment. Unfortunately, because of the lack of research this question may never get answered.

Get Educated About Alternative Energy

The best method of educating young people about alternative energy production that this writer has ever witnessed is the use of the PicoTurbine Company’s kits, books, and projects. The PicoTurbine Company produces these things for the purpose of advancing the cause of renewable (alternative) energy and getting young people to look into the future and see that the environment that’s being seeded now is the one they will inherit then. As the late, great Gerry Ford said, “Things are more like they are now than they have ever been before.” If we are to change the future world for the better, then it starts right here and now with the advent of “green” energy systems.

One of the core concepts of PicoTurbine can be stated: Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I might remember some of it. Involve me, and I will master it. Based on this old tried and true adage, the kits that the company produces come with activity suggestions to get the young people into hands-on learning situations. One suggestion of the company is to demonstrate how heat can be produced by wind energy (the company’s specialty) through using a “picture wire” for the heating element. PicoTurbine has found that people typically think of wind energy as being “cold” energy, and are pleasantly surprised to see how wind can be used for generating heat in the home. Another project suggestion that the company offers is to have different groups split off in the classroom and then compare their respective wind turbines that they have built. They can see which ones produce the most or least electricity; which ones start up with need of the least amount of wind power; and for very young children, which ones have the most aesthetic appeal.

There is a core curriculum that PicoTurbine has in mind for teachers to instill in their pupils. Renewable, alternative sources of energy include solar, hydroelectric, geothermal, and biomass in addition to wind-produced energy. When we use more alternative sources of energy, we decrease our nation’s dependence on foreign oil supplies, which often come from nations who cannot really be called our “allies”. Alternative energy is already becoming cost effective when set against the fossil fuels that we are so reliant on currently.

PicoTurbine points out that wind farms and solar arrays are already letting their makers enjoy commercial success. In the last two decades, the cost of photovoltaic cells expressed in terms of per-watt has gone from nearly $1000 to just $4! It has been predicted by analysts that by the year 2015, the cost per watt should only be about $1 (in today’s dollars). Students also need to be taught about the hidden cost of fossil fuels: pollution and environmental degradation. Air pollution from burning fossil fuels has been shown through studies to increase incidences of asthma attacks, heighten the effects of allergies, and even cause cancer. Switching over to clean, green energy found in the alternative forms would prevent air pollution and help bolster the environment.

The Benefits of Renewable Energy Solutions

Some people may not want to admit it, but the world is slowly moving towards an energy crisis. Non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels are much closer than people think to becoming extinct. We have always known that the everyday energy we use is not unlimited, yet it is constantly being taken for granted. Oil, gas, power, even water has limited availability. Yet, we have not taken nearly enough precautions to deal with a very real threat of an energy crisis. When I say ?we?, I am not referring to the governments of the world, but to all of us, the common people. We are the ones who can make a difference.

To neutralize this crisis, it is important that we learn to reduce our dependency on energy sources that are non-renewable and start focusing on energy solutions that can provide us with a continuous source of energy that will not exhaust any resources. There are 3 main sources of energy which fall into this category: hydro energy, wind energy, and solar energy.

First, let’s look at hydro energy.

Hydroelectricity is the most widely used form of renewable energy in the world. It is typically generated on a large scale by way of hydroelectric dams. Although it is indeed a renewable source of energy, hydro energy comes with some drawbacks. Hydroelectric projects have been known to have negative effects on surrounding aquatic ecosystems. One example, is there are studies that have shown that dams along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North America have reduced salmon populations due to their preventing access to spawning grounds upstream. A major disadvantage to hydroelectricity although rare, is the risk of dam failure. In Southern China, the Banquio Dam failure resulted in the deaths 171,000 people and left millions homeless. Although it is an effective source of renewable energy, it is not as environmentally friendly as the other 2 main sources of renewable energy, wind and solar power.

Let’s look at wind energy.

Windmills have been around for thousands of years. They are older than electricity itself. In pre-industrialization times, they were used to propel sailboats and ships, they were used to pump water, and they were used as a means of natural ventilation in buildings.

Wind power has many advantages: It causes absolutely no pollution whatsoever. It consumes no fuel and has practically no effects on the environment at all. Wind energy can help generate tonnes of megawatts of electricity. When employed at home, it can help do away with conventional power sources which will reduce your electricity bill and can even eliminate it altogether. Wind power is an excellent source of continuous, renewable energy.

Finally, let’s look at solar energy.

Solar power is by far the most available source of continuous, renewable energy on the planet. It is easily capable of providing the world’s total current energy demand many times over. Solar power solutions at home are another way of dramatically cutting down power bills or even completely eliminating them altogether. Also, solar power has no effect on the environment whatsoever. It is the most environmentally friendly source of energy in the world.

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