Biofuels have been around as long as cars have.

A biofuel is a fuel that contains energy from geologically recent carbon fixation. These fuels are produced from living organisms.

Generating Electricity from Wing Waves.

Wind turbines, like windmills, are mounted on a tower to capture the most energy. At 100 feet (30 meters) or more aboveground, they can take advantage of the faster and less turbulent wind.

Producing electricity from solar energy.

Solar energy is a free, inexhaustible resource, yet harnessing it is a relatively new idea. The ability to use solar power for heat was the first discovery.

Turbines catch the wind's energy with their propeller-like blades.

A blade acts much like an airplane wing. When the wind blows, a pocket of low-pressure air forms on the downwind side of the blade.

Solar energy may have had great potential

Solar technology advanced to roughly its present design in 1908 when William J. Bailey of the Carnegie Steel Company invented a collector with an insulated box and copper coils.

We have been harnessing the wind's energy for hundreds of years.

For utility-scale sources of wind energy, a large number of wind turbines are usually built close together to form awind plant.

Biofuels are produced from living organisms.

In order to be considered a biofuel the fuel must contain over 80 percent renewable materials.

Geothermal energy is the heat from the Earth.

Resources of geothermal energy range from the shallow ground to hot water and hot rock found a few miles beneath the Earth's surface, and down even deeper to the extremely high temperatures of molten rock called magma.

Geothermal heat pumps can tap into this resource to heat and cool buildings.

A geothermal heat pump system consists of a heat pump, an air delivery system (ductwork), and a heat exchanger-a system of pipes buried in the shallow ground near the building.

In the future, civilization will be forced to research and develop alternative energy sources.

Possession of surplus energy is, of course, a requisite for any kind of civilization, for if man possesses merely the energy of his own muscles, he must expend all his strength - mental and physical - to obtain the bare necessities of life.

Showing posts with label united states wind energy policy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label united states wind energy policy. Show all posts

Sunday, January 4, 2015

An Integrated Assessment For Wind Energy In Lake Michigan Coastal Counties

11:06 AM  , ,   

An Integrated Assessment For Wind Energy In Lake Michigan Coastal Counties
The benefits and challenges of onshore and offshore wind energy development were assessed for a four-county area of coastal Michigan. Economic, social, environmental, and spatial dimensions were considered. The coastal counties have suitable wind resources for energy development which could contribute toward Michigan's ten percent renewable energy standard. Wind energy is cost-effective with contract prices less than the benchmark energy price of a new coal-fired power plant. Constructing a 100 MW wind farm could have a 54.7 million economic impact. A patchwork of township-level zoning ordinances regulates wind energy siting. Voluntary collaborations among adjacent townships standardizing the ordinances could reduce regulatory complexity. A Delphi Inquiry on offshore wind energy in Lake Michigan elicited considerable agreement on its challenges, but little agreement on the benefits to coastal communities. Offshore turbines could be acceptable to the participants if they reduced pollution; benefited coastal communities; involved substantial public participation; and had minimal impact on property values and tourism. The US Coast Guard will take a risk-based approach to evaluating individual offshore developments and has no plans to issue blanket restrictions around the wind farms. Models showed that using wind energy to reach the remainder of the ten percent renewable energy standard could reduce SO2, NOx, and CO2 pollution by 4-7 percent. Turbines are highly likely to impact the area's navigational and defense radar systems but planning and technological upgrades can reduce the impact. The integrated assessment shows that responsible wind energy development can enhance the quality of life by reducing air pollution and associated health problems and enhancing economic development. Policies could reduce the negative impacts to local communities while preserving the benefits to the broader region.

Read More