1. No distribution network.

2. Fear of explosion.

When the automotive industry was active in testing this fuel, tests were similarly carried out with liquid petroleum gas (LPG). This fuel also had no bulk distribution network and was also more volatile than petrol. For safe handling both hydrogen and LPG require a robust fuel tank. In Europe LPG gained acceptance and promotion and is now widely available, hydrogen didn?t.

Interestingly, LPG is produced by the same companies that produce petrol and diesel as it is a by-product of that process. More interestingly LPG is produced from the same raw product as petrol. This comes from the same oil fields as petrol. Hydrogen does not come from oil fields.

More recently bio-diesel was extensively prototyped and tested. Again it failed to lift off in a marketing sense.

Bio-fuel is produced from green mass, grown in farm fields and not pumped from oil fields.

Alternative fuels are inherently more expensive than fossil derived fuels. Apparent price parity with petrol/diesel only comes about because the cost of fossil derived fuel is maintained at a high value through supply control of the raw material and taxation on derivative sales. This could be seen as a global attempt at triple bottom line accounting as while oil and gas are relatively cheap to mine, the oil field to petrol pump costs take no account of the millions of years it took the earth to lay down the deposits.

Yet even in countries where petrol and diesel prices are the highest, consumption continues to rise. An indicator, perhaps, that more expensive alternative fuels will not find themselves priced beyond the market.

Marketing and market timing are the key factors here. If and when the world does run out of fossil fuels there will be many alternatives to choose from. The current stalemate is that the producers of raw fossil fuels (countries not companies) cannot withstand the effect that a mass movement away from this resource would create.

This is a very general summary of a very complex world situation, also it does not take account of the environmental issue that surround it, but you can rest assured that, given a gradual process of development, the world?s wheels will not stop turning for want of petrol.

It would seem then that the dichotomy is that though millions will be adversely affected by global warming, if the world were to make the major step of ditching the use of fossil fuel consumption in favour of an alternative, that switch would also adversely affect millions.

Catch 22.

? Copyright 2007

? ????????? In recent times, the wind power industry has experienced tremendous growth, focusing largely on better economic condition, growing market and development of large wind turbines and offshore farms. Higher availability of wind turbines is not because of good reliability or maintenance management in the wind turbines, it is because of the fast and frequent service. Condition Monitoring System (CMS) is better than traditional maintenance management system for increasing the reliability of the wind turbines. CMS monitors the performance of wind turbine parts e.g., transformer, gearbox, generator etc., and precise maintenance work time is determined with the help of CMS. Corrective maintenance is the maintenance which will take place after the problem arises and preventive maintenance is the maintenance carried out before any problem occurs. Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) is the structured approach to find the balance between corrective maintenance and preventive maintenance and to determine plans focusing on the reliability aspects.

??????????? ? ????????? Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) has not yet been implemented as a tool in wind power in Sweden, nor Denmark. US is the world’s largest wind power producer. This is however a feasible solution for the wind power industry. In Norway a RCM has been carried out by Vestas. And German Nordex already has reliability oriented maintenance as part of their CMS systems. The application of RCM is a cost-effective planned maintenance program combined with an effective equipment-monitoring plan for the wind power system. This study focuses on the condition monitoring like vibration analysis and oil analysis for the wind power industries, wide-ranging knowledge about the wind turbine, how CMS could be applied to Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM) and how this has been performed earlier in e.g. hydropower.?

?? ??????????? Few terms are needed to understand the maintenance and RCM as a possible tool in wind power. They are:?

Failure rate: Failure rate is inversely proportional to Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF).

Reliability: Capacity of an item to carry out a required task under given conditions for a given time interval.??

Types of Maintenance

? There are two types of maintenance. They are corrective and preventive maintenance.

1) Corrective Maintenance: It is carried out after the component fails. No maintenance process takes place before the failure of the component. The component which has failed can be repaired or replaced. It can be replaced with the new technology component or the same as the one that was available before it failed.?

2) Preventive Maintenance: It is a proactive maintenance done before the system fails. It reduces the probability of failure of the components. It is a planned and periodical maintenance and carried out in regular intervals to prevent occurrence of failures.

????? a. Scheduled maintenance: Preventive maintenance carried out in accordance with a recognized time schedule or established number of units of use.

????? b.?Condition based maintenance: Preventive maintenance based on performance and/or parameter monitoring. The need for maintenance is predicted with the statistical methods, it is about when, how and why the component has failed.??

Maintenance optimization

???????????? Minimizing total costs or maximizing resources of maintenance is the main goal of maintenance optimization. Maintenance should be carried out so that the tools have high safety and the equipment have a long life and its quality level is preserved. It is difficult to find the relationship between the corrective and preventive maintenance and determine which corrective maintenance cost is associated with a particular amount of preventive maintenance.?

Wind Turbines

???????????? Wind power generation is becoming more prevalent and wind turbines and farms are increasing, so, there must be new ways to minimize downtime and maximize availability and profit. To transform the kinetic power in the wind into electricity wind turbine, machines are used. The main parts are bearings, gearbox, generator, brakes, control system, a part that balances the electricity and rotor and hub, this rotor and hub design can vary, but the most common is the horizontal axis. With two or three blades, the axis of rotation rotates parallel with the ground. Gearbox is to speed up the rotation from a low speed, generator demand constant speed and it can be cooled in two days with air or water. Wind turbine has two brakes; one brakes the rotor and another one for emergency purpose. Control system is to maximize the energy production, nacelle is a part which controls different parts of the wind turbine and a small motor which runs a gearwheel so that the nacelle is always in the direction of the wind.

????????????? Two vibration frequencies in wind turbines are gear frequency and bearing frequency, in typical machineries there are two gear frequencies and there are several axes that are supported by bearings that produce four different frequencies. The technique has become old in wind power and insurance companies complain about large damages and introduce maintenance restrictions. Monitoring is a solution to avoid damages. Wind Farm Monitoring that periodically inspects the whole machinery is the common monitoring procedure for wind power today. Though damages can then be discovered, these inspections do not give answers to when and how the damage has occurred.?

New Monitoring Ways???

??????????? Condition Monitoring is implemented in a widespread manner to avoid preventive replacement. Condition Monitoring is a steady monitoring of each condition. It is the use of advanced technology for the purpose of monitoring a machinery condition and predicting failures in each condition. In practice, there are two ways of condition monitoring, one is continuous monitoring and another one is periodical mechanical diagnosis. In continuous monitoring, suitable sensors are connected with the control system that raises an alarm as soon as data is changed e.g. failures of the gearbox can be found at an early stage by comparing the current frequency of the gearbox with the original frequency. In periodical mechanical diagnosis, inspections of machinery are carried out periodically with measuring tools and compared with the latest measurement.

??????????? The cost of maintenance of a wind turbine is economically high; condition monitoring should be introduced to discover failures early to reduce costs for corrective maintenance and repairs could be better planned and this would give shorter down times. Some of the functions of control systems in wind turbines, come close to the concept of condition monitoring. For large wind turbines the adjustment system is a module of the security system and it is one of the most susceptible systems in a wind turbine. One of the cost effective methods of condition monitoring is visual inspection of machineries, but it is limited to stationary equipments.

Two techniques of condition monitoring explained in this study are,

1. Vibration analysis and

2. Oil analysis.

1. Vibration Analysis

Vibration analysis is the dominant technique used for condition monitoring, especially for rotating equipments, so in wind turbines wheels and bearings in the gearbox, bearings in the generator and main bearing can be monitored adequately. Vibration analysis is not new. In early 80s, the instrumentations and systematic skills required for noise or vibration based condition monitoring were completely developed.

Bearing condition in wind power is indicated by noise; higher rotation per minute (rpm) and higher stress wear out the bearing soon. Few years ago computer based equipment which can measure the sound and evaluate the condition of the bearing was available; it didn’t need a person to go out to the wind turbines and climb the tower to listen to the bearings.

There were no products in the market for monitoring of bearings that were suitable for wind turbines in the beginning of 2000. But later nine vibration sensors were assembled to monitor bearings on the main axis, gearbox and generator in the turbine Elida on Risholmen in the archipelago of Gothenburg. This system is called SKF’s CMS system WindCon.

This analysis is based on two factors, they are;

All common failure modes have distinctive vibration frequency components which can be identified and isolated and The amplitude of the frequency remains constant, unless there is a change in the operation dynamics of the machine.

? Vibration and noise is normal in machines, so it is therefore important to remember that:

Every machine will have a normal level of vibration and noise. Operating problem is usually the reason for increase in noise and vibration. Own unique way of vibration and noise is generated by each operating problem.

The benefits, if problem can be detected and analyzed early, are as follows:

Convenient time for shutdown of the systems for repairs can be planned. Extensive damage is minimized. Work schedule, requirements for manpower, tools and replacements parts can be equipped before shutdown. Reduce machinery downtime.

Periodic monitoring will not suit high performance machines. For these machines, on-line, continuous, automatic monitoring is required using vibration sensors located at critical points on the machine, when the vibration exceeds pre-set levels, an alarm or the machine would shut down involuntarily.

?Techniques Used in Vibration Analysis for Machine Condition Monitoring

??????????? Following are a few techniques of machine conditioning monitoring,

1. Waveform analysis

2. Indices

3. Synchronous averaging

4. Orbit

5. Statistical analysis

6. Digital fast Fourier analysis.

Waveform analysis records the history of time of the events on a storage oscilloscope or a real time analyzer and in wind power. It is easy to identify the damage occurring in gears and bearings, such as broken teeth and cracks.

Indices used to quantify the time signals with the help of peak level and the RMS (Root Mean Square) level is not reliable in detecting damages in continuously operating systems.

Synchronous averaging is useful in gear-vibration diagnosis where multiple shafts are present; it not only removes the noise, but also periodic events not synchronous with the machine being monitored. Bearing wear, shaft misalignment, shaft difference, lubrication instabilities in hydrodynamic bearings and shaft rub are indicated by Orbit.

Statistical analysis derives curves from machinery vibration signals which can be used in monitoring machine condition. Digital fast Fourier analysis derives the frequency domain signal and the signature spectrum obtained can afford important information with regards to machine condition.

2. Oil Analysis???????

Oil failure in wind power is sometimes not detected and it is too late when it is detected. Continuous measurement is needed to the find the defects in the oil. Oil analysis is used to determine the condition and state of the lubricants commonly used in turbines and equipments. The design and operating dynamics of the bearing, lubrication and rotor support structure of machinery is commonly referred as tripology. Lubricating oil analysis is one of the tribology technique used in condition monitoring; it evaluates the condition of lubrication oil in mechanical and electrical equipments. Comparison of the trace metals in oil samples indicates the pattern of oil wetted parts which will provide an indication of the risk of machine failure. Microprocessor based systems are available for lubricating oil analysis.

Oil analysis examines the oil and indicates the elemental chemical composition of the debris present. The major elements present in oil samples are the ingress of extraneous matter such as dust and lubricant with its associate additives.

Atomic absorption, infrared spectro analysis, atomic emissions, coupled plasma, X-ray fluorescence and energy dispersive X-ray analysis are the examples of oil analysis techniques.? Atomic absorption analysis is for wear debris analysis, infrared spectro analysis detects and measures the molecular compounds, and atomic emission is used for debris analysis. Coupled plasma and X-ray fluorescence are used to analyze wear debris and oil additive elements and energy dispersive X-ray analysis is used for the analysis of dry wear debris.

?Gearbox

? ????????? Monitoring gearboxes is quite a difficult process as they include many inner components. Wind turbines have three stage gearboxes which have several bearings and gear wheels; it is difficult to find the source of the failure.? Gearbox is monitored with sensors and four or six accelerometers. Since it is working in a changing environment, injury may not be detected until the future. Gearbox wear and failure is due to the load carrying elements such as shafts, gears and bearings. Surface cracks of these parts are due to contact between metals during operation and cyclic loading and this leads ultimately to failure.

??????????? Vibration analysis investigates the gearbox vibration and it is divided into two categories; spectral and feature analysis. Spectral analysis includes Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) which plots amplitude of the vibration signal as a function of frequency.

?Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM)

???????????? Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) is the structured approach to find the balance between corrective maintenance and preventive maintenance and to determine plans focusing on the reliability aspects. It determines the maintenance plan by e.g. prioritizing critical components and through the choice of maintenance tasks and chooses right preventive maintenance activities for the right component at the right time to reach the most cost proficient solution. Civil aircraft industry is the place of origin for reliability centered maintenance (RCM) and first description came in 1978 by Nowlan and introduction in nuclear power came in 1980 and in hydro power in 1990. RCM is characterized by:

1. System function maintenance.

2. Failure mode identification

3. Function prioritizing

4. Choosing efficient maintenance measure

?Descriptions of the process to define a RCM plan are,

1. Seven steps of smith 1993

2. Steps for a first RCM plan – Nowlan

3. Seven question of Moubray.

??Seven steps of Smith?????

????????????? Theoretical analysis models and decision tree analysis is the base for smith method. The???? seven steps of smith are,

1. Information collection and choice of system

2. System boundary making

3. Description of system and function block diagram

4. Functions of system and losses of function

5. Failure Effect and Function Analysis (FMEA)

6. Decision tree analysis

7. Maintenance measurement estimation.

?????? Failure Effect and Function Analysis???

???????????????? In reliability analysis, failure effect and function analysis FMEA is used and it can determine the connection between possible failure modes for a construction and the failure effects. Aircraft manufacturer Boeing introduced this method in 1957. To find all the ways in which a product can fail is the purpose of this method. The three questions answered are,

1. What failures/events could appear?

2. What are the effects of the failures/events?

3. What are the causes of the failures/events?

With the answers of these three questions failure frequency is indicated with a number between e.g. 1 and 10. These numbers indicate the seriousness of the consequence and the probability for discovery. These numbers are multiplied into a combined index number, for which a higher value indicates a worse failure and it is called risk priority number. Using the size of the risk priority number, estimation of the seriousness of the failures can be determined and then a measurement can be formulated.

?Steps for a first RCM plan – Nowlan

1. Identify the items that require intensive study by partitioning the equipment into object categories.

2. Identify significant items that have essential safety or economic consequences.

3. Identify hidden functions that require scheduled maintenance.

4. Selecting only the tasks that will satisfy the maintenance requirements by evaluating the maintenance requirement for each significant item and hidden functions in terms of the failure consequences.

5. Identifying items for which no applicable or effective task can be found.

6. For each of the included tasks, select conservative initial intervals and group the tasks in maintenance packages for application

7. To provide the factual information necessary to revise initial decisions establishing an age-exploration program.

?Seven question of Moubray’s RCM II

?????????????? Identifying the system items that ought to be analyzed is the first step to analyze the maintenance of a system. After this, according to Moubray we should answer seven questions,

1. What are the functions and performances required?

2. In what ways can each function fail?

3. What causes each functional failure?

4. What are the effects of each failure?

5. What are the consequences of each failure?

6. How can each failure be prevented?

7. How does one proceed if no preventive activity is possible?

Functions are what an asset is expected to perform and when the function is specified it is important to indicate a certain level that the unit should meet. There are two functions, primary and secondary; primary function is the main purpose of the asset and secondary function is additional features the asset should meet. The cause of the failure is then described and the consequences of a failure are divided into three categories,

1. Safety- and environmental consequences

2. Operational consequences

3. Non-operational consequences

If the failure cause an environmental law to be broken it is classified as Safety- and environmental consequences. Environmental consequences and operational consequences have an effect on costs regarding production and operation and non operational consequences only gives cost in the form of operations. The decision tree determines which maintenance should be carried out depending on the consequence of the failure.

?Benefits of RCM??

1. The amount of preventive maintenance often can be reduced or replaced with corrective maintenance through the cautious analysis of the failures

2. Decrease in spare parts carriage

3. At an early stage bad construction methods are revealed.?

Reliability centered asset management (RCAM)

?? This method is developed from RCM principle attempting to relate preventive maintenance to the total maintenance cost and system reliability. To see the effect on a component level of preventive maintenance on system reliability, with the quantitative methods, is the aim of this technique. In this method, the identified critical components for the system reliability are studied and the relationship between reliability and maintenance has been established by relating the effect of preventive maintenance to the causes of failures for the part being assessed. Main stages of RACM approach are,

1. System reliability analysis

2. Component reliability modeling

3. System reliability and cost/benefit analysis.

?Vattenfall Vattenkraft RCM (VVK RCM) in hydro power

????????????? Vattenfall Vattenkraft developed and implemented a RCM model for its hydro power station; it is similar to Moubray’s RCM II in many aspects. This model follows the same steps in Moubray’s RCM II but differs in maintenance strategy.

1. Define the functions

2. Determine the function failure

3. Determine the failure modes

4. Risk analysis performance

5. Determine the possible maintenance tasks

6. Analyze and decide on maintenance strategies

Each function in the standard analysis is studied and functional failures are added or removed if needed. Using the standard analysis as the reference failure mode all reasonable causes for each functional failure are listed.

Eight different consequence categories for each failure are,

?1. Cost incurred due to break down

2. Overall costs

3. Environment in which work is taking place

4. Dam flow

5. Damages take place in the environment

6. Personal need

7. Production ceases

8. Efficiency

Risk analysis is performed for every failure mode and how often a failure occurs is being approximately estimated. Using risk matrix, we can get a number between 0 and 5 that describes the risk of the failure, if the number is three or greater than three, preventive maintenance could be used, otherwise corrective maintenance should be used.

The data, like the cost of personnel to perform maintenance, stop time and costs due to loss of production, cost of new parts for damaged equipment and other costs in connection with the maintenance tasks and breakdowns are needed to economically decide the kind of maintenance that has to be used.

The main difference between VVK RCM and RCM II is, in VVK RCM II with the help of a risk and cost analysis the best maintenance strategy is picked but RCM II has a decision diagram where certain maintenance strategies are preferred and if feasible, they are then chosen.

?Conclusion

? ???????? Planning maintenance with RCM as a system that collects data is needed for wind turbine industry.RCM combined with CMS helps the wind power industry to monitor the equipment which can’t be continuously monitored manually. For any industry, not only the maintenance but reliability is also an important factor. RCM provides better maintenance management system for increasing the reliability of the wind turbines. RCM provides the amount of preventive maintenance that can often be reduced or replaced with corrective maintenance through the cautious analysis of the failures. Co-operation between operators of wind farms, owners and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) is very important to design the maintenance process based on the maintenance experience in wind power industry.

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For centuries thereafter, scientists courted the sun and its potent heat and energy. In 1767, Swiss scientist Horace de Saussure constructed the world?s first solar collector. In 1883, American scientist Charles Fritts published a description of the first solar cells made from thin sheets of selenium, and in 1908, Carnegie Steel employee William Bailey invented a solar collector composed of copper coils contained in an insulated box, a design which is still in use today.

Through 1953, solar energy use was of the passive kind. But in 1954, solar energy took a new turn, as Bell Labs developed the first solar cell that was able to produce enough electrical current to run common electrical appliances and equipment. Twenty years later, University of Delaware researchers introduced the world to the power of solar panels, with the construction of Solar One, one of the world?s first solar-powered homes.

Today, solar panels are used in all types of construction, from residential to commercial to government buildings. Tax credits and a shift toward more sustainable fuel resources have helped increase the panels? popularity. But the price of the panels and their installation can still be prohibitive to many individuals attracted by their ?green,? earth-friendly footprint. Most homes require a substantial investment to install a system powerful enough to replace electricity and fossil fuels, and some experts have estimated it can take several decades for a solar panel system to pay for itself.

But despite its high cost and long ?payback? time, solar is still attractive to many homeowners. Thousands of homeowners take the plunge every year and convert their homes to solar power. In addition to eschewing fossil fuels and creating a more earth-friendly profile, solar energy can allow homeowners to live ?off the grid,? disconnecting from the stranglehold of major utilities like electric, oil, and natural gas. What?s more, when a home?s system makes more electricity than it needs, the homeowner can sell that extra electricity back to the local electrical utility. Don?t get too excited: even with that benefit, solar systems can still take decades to pay for themselves.

But just as the solar energy industry has evolved over the past millennia, homeowners interested in incorporating these shiny panels into their home?s design should keep their eyes open: tax breaks, advances in solar technology and increased competition among solar panel manufacturers have caused considerable price drops in recent years. If your home is situated in a position to soak up the rays, and you?re planning on staying put for awhile, solar panel installation might be a wise investment for you.

Did you even imagine that almost 3 percent of the sun?s energy can be converted to wind power? Of course, the origin and use of the energy are quite complex, involving continuous variables that have a direct effect on its efficiency and long term usage. Huge turbines are used for this purpose. Wind energy is converted to power using efficient wind turbines. The wind power turns the blades, generating huge electrical current. This current is then turned into a generator.

You can see wind farms all across California too. The energy of the wind can be harnessed to produce electricity. Wind farms which have 200 turbines generally produce 200-300 watts of electricity. These turbines are grouped together in wind farms. Wind power is successfully harnessed to its best capacity by the leader in this field, i.e. Germany. All throughout this country, the energy of wind is used as a generator.

There are many variables which affect the output of the electrical energy of the wind. They are the location of the turbines, their proximity to each other, and more importantly, the speed of the wind. Scientists are experimenting with these variables so that they can get the optimum output of electricity using the wind energy. The turbines are placed as high up on the mountains as possible and they are grouped together so as to gather the wind power most efficiently.

Though the wind comes free, the turbines are expensive to make and a lot of cost is involved to put them in place. The turbines are also quite noisy and detrimental to animal life. If these drawbacks can be overcome, wind energy could well prove to be a viable source of energy and of wide use. It is necessary to store the energy so generated so that it can be used only when needed.

It should also be practical to use this stored energy. Scientists are finding ways to store up the energy so that it can be widely used.
One way is to increase the output of energy to the maximum and store the surplus amounts for future use. This usage could fluctuate as per the need. It would also need to be cost-effective. So cost comparisons are imperative. This energy storage facility is hydro-electric and is known as flywheel.

Wide scale studies are going on to explore this alternative form of energy. Leaders in the field including China, Brazil, United Kingdom, Canada and Denmark. Turbines are even manufactured by Denmark for self-consumption. We are as yet novices in the field. The US has yet to learn to use the power efficiently.

Electricity is very important in our lives and will be in the future. It plays a very important role in our modern lives and we can’t live any more without it. Without electricity we are not save, we can’t produce the products we need and can’t use all the appliances we love so much.

Most people feel that the price of electricity is too high for the amount they consume. Complaining will not be answer to lower the price. There are other alternatives to lower your monthly bill for electricity. One option is to make use of alternative energy. Let’s review the most used types of this ‘new’ energy source.

Although people think alternative energy is ‘new’ it really is not. We have used this energy source long before we even knew electricity. Just think about drying your washed clothes outside in the sun. In fact many of us still use this method to dry clothes and there is nothing wrong with this. Drying your clothes this way will save a lot of electricity!

Here we will list other types of alternative energy.

The first is wind energy. Today windmills are used in homes to run small generators. Using windmills is not a new concept. Windmills have been used in the past century before. They were primarily used to mill grain. Making flour from grain was hard work and using the power of the wind was an economical way to complete this task. Another use of the windmill was to pump out water from large beaks or lakes to gain land. One country which used this techniques was frequently used was the Netherlands. Acres of land were won this way and today home owners still benefit from this land.

Today the windmill has a renewed function and that is run small generators for home owners. These generators produce electricity to be used in running small home appliances. These windmills are commonly used outside the city area. It would be hard for home owner in the city to make use of technique because they are a few meters in diameter and a placed fairly high.

The second form is solar energy. This energy source can be used in several ways. Most home owners use it to produce electricity. The solar power can be used to power small appliances. Other home owners used it to heat there home. This can be done passive and active. The passive form works like placing your car in the sun. The temperature in the car increases fast making the inside of the car very hot. For homes it can be done by making use of glass and positing your home to the sun. Your home can be heated up very quick. By using certain types of stone walls inside your home this warmth can be held inside the house. The active method uses solar energy to produce hot water for central heating. The hot water can also be used for running hot water, the washing machine and dishwasher. The efficiency by which we are now able to convert solar power into electricity and hot water is of such a degree that it is very possible to power a whole house and use for central heating! Solar energy is much easier to use in the city area and so many people in cities can lower their energy by making use of the energy source. The roof solar-panels that are needed can be placed on the roof out of sight. Some people think this is ugly view, but that is an individual taste.

The third is hydropower. By making use of the power of running water small turbines can run generators. These generators in turn can store electricity which can be used for running the home appliances. This technique is also used in the past where waterwheels were used to grind grain into flour, just like windmills. But like the windmills this form of alternative energy is not feasible to use in the city area.

The fourth technique is biogas. Biogas is produced naturally via the decomposition of different biological material. This can be from animals and from humans. Farmers can successfully use this method to produce biogas. The biogas can be used for heating to home or can even be used to cook. This form is also not common to use inside the city area.

There are more ways to make use of alternative energy than mentioned here. The forms mentioned here are very common today and are evolving. In the early days of solar energy the efficiency was poor but today it has improved dramatically. If you live inside the city area your options are limited to solar energy. The advantage with this energy source is that is very versatile. You can produce electricity and hot water.

When you decide to use alternative energy you accomplish more than only saving money you’re also helping to create a better world. The big reason not to use alternative energy is the price tag. The devices to convert the ‘free’ energy source are not cheap. You need to realize that you’re investing in your home. But after good calculations you will realize that you’ll be saving more than you’ll spend. Don’t forget to apply for tax credits or other benefits for investing in alternative energy.

Alternative Energy

When we speak of alternative energy, we refer to sources of usable energy that can replace conventional energy sources (usually, without undesirable side effects). The term “alternative energy” is typically used to refer to sources of energy other than nuclear energy or fossil fuels.

Throughout the course of history, “alternative energy” has referred to different things. There was a time when nuclear energy was considered an alternative to conventional energy, and was therefore called “alternative energy.” But times have changed.

These days, a form of “alternative energy” might also be renewable energy, or clean energy, or both. The terms are often interchangeable, but definitely not the same.

Renewable Energy

Renewable energy is any type of energy which comes from renewable natural resources, such as wind, rain, sunlight, geothermal heat, and tides. It is referred to as “renewable” because it doesn’t run out. You can always get more of it.

People have begun to turn to this type of energy due to the rising oil prices, and the prospect that we might one day deplete available sources of fossil fuels, as well as due to concerns about the adverse effects that our conventional energy sources have on the environment.

Of all the different types of renewable energy, wind power is one which is growing in its use. The number of users who have some form of wind power installed has increased, with the current worldwide capacity being about 100 GW.

Clean Energy

“Clean energy” is simply any form of energy which is created with clean, harmless, and non-polluting methods.

Most renewable energy sources are also clean energy sources. But not all.

One such example is geothermal power. It may be a renewable energy source, but some geothermal energy processes can be harmful to the environment. Therefore, this is not always a clean energy. However there are also other forms of geothermal energy which are harmless and clean.

Clean energy makes the less impact on the environment than our current conventional energy sources do. It creates an insignificant amount of carbon dioxide, and its use can reduce the speed of global warming – or global pollution.

As you can see, alternative energy, renewable energy, and clean energy are very similar. But it is important to know that there are differences.

There are many actions which can be taken, to help reduce the greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. Some of these steps can be taken in your own home. Many clean energy solutions can can be easily installed, and some kits are quite affordable.

Carbon emissions and other forms of pollution are not only created by heavy industrial factories. They are created in the common household as well. Energy efficiency has become an important aspect of our lives.

It’s important to start making changes now; if we want to save our planet for our children, for the flora and fauna of the Earth, and for the future of mankind. Clean energy, to be exact, can make a big difference.

Food: Travel can not miss tasting the local specialty. Authentic taste of natural origin is cheap, but do not buy in the tourist areas, to the streets of shops to buy a residence will not be “slaughtered.”

Attention to hygiene and health. Tasting the local dishes, is undoubtedly a “food culture” to enjoy, but must pay attention to eating water sanitation, should not eat too much.

Housing: If conditions in trips with good reputation before the travel agent to carry out consultation and commissioned by booking the room. Pre-trip without prior reservation, to a city tourist traffic the first to buy a map, view live, easy and cheap, choose a good hotel check-in before you can try to talk to the waiter: I come again to here, and you regulars here that the receive a discount (though you are a first time stay). Perhaps, you will see greater benefits. One of no more than 4-5 people sharing a double room has a Simmons beds can be put thick mattress on the floor, two feet close together and two feet close together and branding for two bed pad. During the tourism, you should ensure adequate sleep time. Bye the way, don?t forget to take a universal solar charger .With a universal portable solar charger, you will be fully prepared for emergencies in which AC power supply is not available.

Transport: Traffic cost is often more than half of total expenditure. If the time off, train hard sleeper the most suitable not only much cheaper than the plane, but also to save cost of accommodation, adding to travel the content. Purchase tickets must first understand the time and aircraft to take off. On arrival, take a taxi before a rough idea of distance and price, it will not be deceived.

If you travel on foot, you must wear sneakers. Shoes should be light and the right size. Soles can not be too thin, do not wear new shoes. Way to rest, it will be loose shoelace, promote blood circulation.

During the travel, tourists should not carry too much baggage. That is meaningless. Excess baggage will become a drag on our trip. Therefore, I advocate a packet of policies: all baggage only a backpack.

Tour: This is the biggest tourism purposes. Concept area, exhibitions or shopping, they always spend money. The face of a lot of scenic spots, where to go should not go? At this point we have to look tourist map or to inquire about the local people: first select the most representative of the landscape; the exhibition should be selective to visit; pictures of press the shutter a waste of film, select a good scene or with commemorative scenes.

Shopping: Tourist shopping, a big difference between men and women. Most men do not share or less to buy, if purchased, it may take some time to choose something more unique native arts and crafts, or go home mother of filial respect his wife. Most of chaos, Ms. purchase the purchase, in the purchase of clothing, jewelry, or jewelry, jade, they need to hear clearly describes, but also believed in his vision and common sense.

Entertainment: journey to participate in recreational sure to ask what the price, there is no additional tips and projects which are included content. In addition, it has been calculated that at least one third of the travel time is consumed in the long road.

Many ethnic minorities have different religious beliefs and customs of taboo. Travel into the minority areas, we must respect their traditional customs and taboos in life, must not ignore the customs or because of the careless actions hurt their national pride.So take a portable solar charger and have a good trip in China!

?There are two possible sources for creating hydrogen. Firstly, it can be created by electrolysis of water, where you split water molecules to create pure hydrogen and pure oxygen. Secondly, it can be created by reforming fossil fuels – oil and natural gas both contain hydrocarbons which are molecules consisting of hydrogen and carbon. Using a device named a fuel processor or reformer you can spilt the hydrogen from the carbon. However, using this method, you discard the carbon into the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide. This second matter of course does not rid society of it’s economic dependency and it continues to destroy the environment. But this is the method that is being touted for fuel cell powered vehicles because petroleum is an easily available hydrogen source until there are hydrogen stations located as widespread as petrol station currently are. But there is no doubt that the first option is the better one, however that option faces a major hurdle. Electrolysis of water requires electricity, we need to figure out how to generate that electricity without using fossil fuels. Of course, there are currently several methods of doing so, including nuclear power, hydroelectric dams, solar cells, wind turbines, geothermal power, wave and tidal power or co-generation (biomass fuels).The problem is that currently these would not provide near enough electricity to create sufficient hydrogen for all the world’s needs. So realistically, we need to increase the amount of electricity produced by these methods most probably concentrating on nuclear and solar power. However, there are problems associated with this as nuclear power has political and environmental issues and solar power provides problems with location and cost. Another issue with putting pure hydrogen vehicles on the road is with the storage and transportation. Hydrogen is a bulky gas and compressed hydrogen contains far less energy than the same volume of petroleum.

However, scientists are beginning to develop strategies to overcome these problems. For example, hydrogen can be stored in a solid form in a chemical called sodium borohydride, when the solution releases its hydrogen , it turns into borax which can be recycled. Fuel cell technology is pretty similar to that of a car battery, in that hydrogen and oxygen are combined to produce electricity. But unlike the battery, the fuel cell does not need to be recharged, it can run continuously because it’s fuel and oxygen are external. Pure hydrogen gas is fed to the anode, which is one of two electrodes in the cell, the hydrogen atoms of their electrons, transforming them into hydrogen ions, which are then passed through an electrolyte to a second electrode known as the cathode. This electron movement produces electric current, the intensity of which depends on the size of the electrodes. At the cathode. The electrons are brought back together with their ions and combined with oxygen to produce one of the cell’s major by-products – water. The other by-product is heat which can be captured and used again in a co-generation process. Hydrogen economy would transform society completely, no longer would energy be in the hands of global conglomerates. Instead, every human being with access to renewable energy sources could produce their own energy. Millions of these small producers of energy could connect their fuel cells into local, regional and national publicly owned Hydrogen Energy Webs (HEWs). Commuters could feasibly drive to work, park, plug their fuel cells into a hydrogen line attached to the building’s fuel cell and their cars could produce electricity which they could sell back to the grid while they worked! So, it looks like old Hydrogen is making a comeback after it’s rather dodgy flash in the pan as a mass consumer product ended in the 1930s when the German zeppelin Hindenburg exploded in New Jersey.

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While the West is considered developed and is growing slowly, the Chinese economy is still growing fast and is expanding the range of products and services that it offers to the West. Some of these products that are manufactured such as plastics and chemicals will require even more oil. As the Chinese economy expands then so will the demand. As people move from urban to rural areas, the use and availability of electricity and gas in the home will also increase causing further strain on its reserves.

This growing economy needs the energy to drive this growth, there is only a limited amount of fossil fuels in the world and the oil and gas will not last for ever. This is leading to increasing competing demands for a countires resources, be that in Latin America or Africa. It also means that everybody buys oil from countries that have appaliing human rights issues. If America stops buying oil from Sudan because it is persecuting its citizens?.China steps in to buy the oil and vice versa in countless countries around the world. Until recently, Chinese companies seemed most comfortable operating in locations not dominated by the major oil companies often owned by UK or USA companies. This means that countries like Angola and Iran have partnerships and joint ventures with the Chinese.

For example, over half of Chinese overseas oil production currently comes from Sudan. In 2005 the Chinese wanted to buy a USA oil company but congress blocked this on the basis that national energy security was at stake. There is a little irony in that USA companies expect to buy energy companies all over the word, but if a key competitor wants to buy one of theirs and is even offering a higher price then the deal is blocked.

Nobody can argue that China now plays a key role in the supply and demand of many global commodity markets including steel, cement, and oil. This need for resources combined with the bags of cash from its economic growth means that China can afford to buy any oil field and rights anywhere in the world. A position that only the USA held in the past.

Some argue that the allied forces only went to war in Iraq to get their hands on the oil, time will tell if this true as oil production is currently lower than when Saddam was in power due to sabotage and security problems. Will the next war have oil as its stated aim and not Weapons of Mass Destruction?

Iceland is right on top of very active geological ground (the Mid-Atlantic ridge) and is home to a high concentration of volcanoes. The ground in Iceland is much warmer than nearby countries due to this geological activity, and therefore, makes the extraction of geothermal energy much easier and much more effective.

Heating is not the only use of geothermal energy in Iceland , as the energy is also used to provide around 25% of the country’s power capacity. Iceland achieves this through five major power plants producing electricity from the geothermal energy.

Iceland is a leader in the use of renewable energy sources, with another 70% of the country’s power capacity coming from the use of hydroelectric power. It is estimated that only 0.2% of Iceland’s power output comes from the use of fossil fuels, this makes Iceland a very clean environment to live in.

Not only does the use of geothermal energy and hydroelectric power provide a cleaner environment, the large scale use of these energy sources lowers electricity and heating bills for the residents of Iceland.

Two of the five main geothermal power plants in Iceland produce not only electricity, but also hot water for use in heating. The remaining three geothermal power stations provide only electricity. Many homes have their own geothermal hot water (ground source) equipment installed.

Iceland aims to be totally energy independent by 2050 and plans to reach this milestone through the continued development and use of the renewable energy sources the land and area has on offer. The economy in Iceland is also very productive and the use of such renewable energy gives this economy a huge boost.

You may find additional information relating to the use of geothermal power at the following website