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.

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.

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.

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.

Bio diesel fuel is nearly completely free of sulfur and aromatics and is a naturally oxygenated fuel because it is composed of almost 10 percent oxygen. Because of this biodiesel provides a significant reduction in particulate and carbon monoxide emissions then petroleum based diesel fuel.

It is also safe to handle and transport because it is has the biodegradability of table sugar, is 10 tens less toxic then plain salt, and has a high flashpoint, the temperature at which it catches fire, of 300 degrees Fahrenheit as compared to regular diesel fuel which flashes ate 125 degrees Fahrenheit.  Bio diesel can also be blended with petroleum diesel to create a biodiesel blend as well as its ability to be used in almost any diesel engine without any modifications.

Many gas stations are beginning to make biodiesel available to consumers and a growing number of transport fleets are using it as an additive to their fuel. It is important that fuel grade bio diesel be refined to tight industry specifications in order to ensure proper performance. One of the benefits of this fuel is it lower engine wear. In fact some vehicle manufacturers are beginning to make engines specifically for bio diesel for this reason.

Because it is a better solvent then regular diesel it tends to clean the engine when first used and removes deposits from the fuel lines which can clog fuel injectors. After switching to biodiesel most car manufacturers recommend changing the fuel filter to help prevent this. Use of this fuel leads to lower engine emissions while improving engine lubrication. Many government fleets on the federal and state level as well as utility fleets are now required to purchase 75 to 90 percent alternative fuel vehicles these days. Since biodiesel is the lowest cost alternative fuel option many of these fleets are converting to its use.

Diesel forms nearly 40% of the energy consumed in the form of hydrocarbon fuels, and its demand is estimated at 40 million tons per year. In the coming years as concerns about rising fuel prices and the lack of renewable energy sources rises the value of bio diesel fuel as a cheap renewable energy source will continue to rise.

- Establishing that solar power isn’t only for hotter climates, the British have decked out Manchester’s biggest building, the CIS Tower, with solar panels. In 2005 it began pumping energy into their national energy grid.

- Solar energy can play a huge role in the transportation industry. The 3000+ KM Australian Darwin-Adelaide yearly car race for solar-powered vehicles leads solar research. It draws in multinational competition and is making lots of headway in the field. In the first race in 1987, the racer’s average speed was 67 km/hr. By 2005 it was 103 km/hr. Speed isn’t necessarily the most crucial aspect of solar energy, but to the solar transportation industry it is. Car exhausts are a leading cause of global warming.

- The human being ecological footprint is huge, some countries bigger than others. There are approximately 2 billion global citizens with no electricity whatsoever. To these people, the facts about solar energy are that they can’t just hit a switch to turn it on and are often engulfed in poverty. By contrast, America accounts for over 25% of global energy consumption, but only 5% of the global population.

- Shell has forecasted that 50% of the world’s electrical energy will come from renewable sources by 2040. Shell will also unite in a monumental renewable energy development project backed up by the UAE. Numerous industrial heavyweights will join, such as British Petroleum, Total, Occidental Petroleum Corp, General Electric, Rolls Royce, Fiat and Mitsubishi.

- The facts about solar energy are not only about technology. The fact is the acceptance of solar energy alone isn’t going to give rise to a sustainable Earth. Without a larger passion of favorable human being fundamental interaction it will still be a frigid, and unsustainable, world.

Ethanol in itself is not new, E15 and on a small scale E85 have been around for some years. The production was not at a point where auto makers got to excited about it, and as a result only a token amount of vehicles were produced that would burn the E85 ethanol, although most automobiles could and still today burn the E15 ethanol. The E15 and the E85 is the percent of ethanol that is added to gasoline to make the product. Ethanol can be made from several different sources, in this country most of our ethanol at this time is made from corn. In the future other products will be used in the making of ethanol that should also help get the cost down for all Americans. GM has said the cost to convert automobiles that were not already flex fuel to be some where around $500.

American companies are starting to produce more ethanol. This will help get more cars rolling off the assembly line, and get some of those big gas guzzlers off the road. Toyota is another company that seems to have a lot of interest in the flex fuel vehicles. They seem to be working very hard to catch up. Things will not happen over night, it will take some time to change the thinking of some of our politicians and get them behind ethanol and flex fuel vehicles. Once the ball gets rolling things can only get better for all of us.

There is another fuel out there for the folks who burn diesel. It’s called BIODIESEL. This product is a combination of animal fats and diesel fuel. Again like the ethanol product it contains a small amount of diesel and a large amount of the animal fats. This product can and is being made by some people to burn in their own vehicles, making the fuel from byproducts of oil from many of their local restaurants. Most automobiles need a conversion kit, but the high mileage they receive per gallon is worth the investment. As far as places across the country that sell Biodiesel, there are only a few at this time, but they are gaining every day. Watch for this product to become more popular and thus increasingly available in the future as things get rolling. I guess the high price of fuel has helped in some way. Only time will tell.

Thirty years ago, hydrogen fuel appeared to have a massive future as a direct replacement for petrol/diesel. In those days the main threat was the expiry of fossil fuel reserves. More modern times bring us other concerns, with global warming currently topping most agendas.

Hydrogen?s star has waned a little in the current environment as it requires lots of energy to produce a useable hydrogen fuel. That energy in turn needs to be produced in an environmentally sympathetic manner.

We also have to bear in mind that the nations who hold the current fossil fuel reserves are dependant on the sale of their oil/coal field produce to maintain internal development.

We appear to have reached a stage where, instead of standing back in horror, uttering the words – ??there are only fossil fuel reserves for two more generations?? we can now stand back and say ? ??okay, we have two generations before fossil fuels are gone, that?s time enough to develop the alternatives??

The big concern is, of course, managing fuel production in such a fashion that environmental damage is held or, better yet, reduced.

Hydrogen can be produced from natural gas or from water. The extraction of hydrogen from water requires the use of an electrolytic process. This requires an electricity consumption of around 50kw hours per 1kg of hydrogen produced. Global scale hydrogen production would require vast amounts of electricity and that in its turn would need to be generated.

Taken to the logical conclusion, this would require the electricity production to be nuclear based as, currently, that is the only means available to produce the bulk required in an environmentally neutral fashion.

To commit fully to hydrogen would also mean committing irrevocably to a nuclear power society complete with all its waste management problems.

This scenario would only apply for so long as the hydrogen fuel cell remains a better means of energy transportation than the battery. As the years go by it is certain that battery technology will also undergo a few major developments.

While it looks unlikely that the world will stop for want of fuel or power, do we wish to continue down the spiral path of consume (and waste) because the resource is cheap? This always leads to an increase in production and supply simply to satisfy demand.

We need a strategy of gradually increasing the cost of power to the consumer, while slowly bringing on line alternative power production methods. Nuclear, hydrogen, bio-mass, bio-diesel, wind, and water power will all be exploited, but non will be the ?silver bullet?. Placing restrictions on the ways in which currently available fuels are burned will certainly increase the price of power and make the alternatives gradually more attractive.

Of course, we also have to keep in mind that increasing affluence in countries with emerging economies will play a major role. More comfortable home environments, more cars, more manufacture, more transportation will all carry a price, but nothing affects a market like cost and the only way to get the consumer to care about power wastage is to make energy more expensive.

If we can eventually attain a culture of less waste we may yet achieve a sustainable existence.

? Copyright 2007

We have many forms of renewable water energy from which to choose. There are many forms of water energy.

The first type of water energy, and the one we most commonly think of when we think of renewable water power, is hydroelectric. This is the power that commonly is created by large hydroelectric dams.

You can also have what are called micro hydroelectric systems. These are small power installations that produce as much as 100 kilowatts of power. The most common places to find these renewable water energy sources are in areas where water is abundant and the hydro system can be used as a remote area power supply RAPS. While there are many RAPS around the globe several are functioning in the Solomon Islands.

Wave power is another way of using water as a renewable energy source. The waves are used to create an up and down affect for pontoons that float in the water. This has just started to be used commercially as renewable energy.

Tides can produce renewable energy as well. As the ocean tides come in the water level is raised in the water basin. Then, at low tide the basin water gets discharged through the water turbine. Tidal stream power is different in that it captures the energy produced by the tidal flow. This usually is accomplished through the use of an underwater plant that looks like a small-scale wind turbine. While governments have set up demonstrations for this type of tidal power, any large scale commercialization of this renewable tidal energy would require extensive upfront capital. This has yet to be attempted.

Ocean thermal energy conversion OTEC is yet another form of water energy. OTEC uses the different in temperature between the oceans surface water and the water at deeper points. To do this it uses a cyclic heat engine. This form of renewable energy has had no large scale field test as yet.

Though not technically a form of generating renewable energy the cooling of the water in deep lakes is an efficient way to save energy during the hot summer months. Pipes are submerged and used as heat sinks. The bottom of these lakes typically stays at less than 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Blue energy, which is really desalination in reverse, is a renewable energy resource still being researched. There is no data at this point to show whether it will work.