Renewable energy
hideRenewable energy is energy generated from natural resources—such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat—which are renewable (naturally replenished). In 2006, about 18% of global final energy consumption came from renewables, with 13% coming from traditional biomass, such as wood-burning. Hydroelectricity was the next largest renewable source, providing 3% of global energy consumption and 15% of global electricity generation.
Wind power is growing at the rate of 30 percent annually, with a worldwide installed capacity of 121,000 megawatts (MW) in 2008, and is widely used in European countries and the United States. The annual manufacturing output of the photovoltaics industry reached 6,900 MW in 2008, and photovoltaic (PV) power stations are popular in Germany and Spain. Solar thermal power stations operate in the USA and Spain, and the largest of these is the 354 MW SEGS power plant in the Mojave Desert. The world's largest geothermal power installation is The Geysers in California, with a rated capacity of 750 MW. Brazil has one of the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving production of ethanol fuel from sugar cane, and ethanol now provides 18 percent of the country's automotive fuel. Ethanol fuel is also widely available in the USA. While most renewable energy projects and production is large-scale, renewable technologies are also suited to small off-grid applications, sometimes in rural and remote areas, where energy is often crucial in human development. Kenya has the world's highest household solar ownership rate with roughly 30,000 small (20–100 watt) solar power systems sold per year.
Some renewable energy technologies are criticised for being intermittent or unsightly, yet the renewable energy market continues to grow. Climate change concerns coupled with high oil prices, peak oil and increasing government support are driving increasing renewable energy legislation, incentives and commercialization. New government spending, regulation, and policies should help the industry weather the 2009 economic crisis better than many other sectors.
For more information about Renewable energy, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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News tagged with renewable energy
Liquid battery big enough for the electric grid?
Nov 19, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- There's one major drawback to most proposed renewable-energy sources: their variability. The sun doesn't shine at night, the wind doesn’t always blow, and tides, waves and currents fluctuate. ...
Boosting the amount of energy obtained from water
Nov 18, 2009 |
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The energy generated in places where fresh water and salt water meet is known as blue energy. This is a relatively new but highly promising renewable energy source. Piotr Długołęcki of the University ...
NASA Develops Algae Bioreactor as a Sustainable Energy Source
Nov 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- As a clean energy alternative, NASA invented an algae photo-bioreactor that grows algae in municipal wastewater to produce biofuel and a variety of other products.
China to become 'global leader in green tech'
Nov 14, 2009 |
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China can become the world's top exporter of "green technology" if it carries out crucial energy and ecological reforms, leading environmental campaigners said here Saturday.
Funding A Greener Grid: How Obama plans to spend billions on modernizing the U.S. electrical network
Oct 29, 2009 |
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President Barack Obama announced on Tuesday that his administration plans to spend $3.4 billion on producing a safer, more efficient electrical grid. Obama underscored the need to find clean forms of energ ...
Obama unveils historic power grid reform
Oct 27, 2009 |
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President Barack Obama Tuesday announced the largest modernization of the US electricity grid in history, in a 3.4-billion-dollar bid to launch a new era of renewable energy consumption.
Largest solar panel plant in US rises in Fla.
Oct 24, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Greg Bove steps into his pickup truck and drives down a sandy path to where the future of Florida's renewable energy plans begin: Acres of open land filled with solar panels that will soon power thousands ...
Algae may be secret weapon in climate change war
Oct 22, 2009 |
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Driven by fluctuations in oil prices, and seduced by the prospect of easing climate change, experts are ramping up efforts to squeeze fuel out of a promising new organism: pond scum.
Calif. solar firm hits desert swarm
Sep 29, 2009 |
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BrightSource Energy has encountered some storm clouds in its quest to bring a solar future to large stretches of the western United States. The Oakland, Calif.,-based developer of solar farms has been forced to scuttle its ...
US tops $1 bln in stimulus for clean energy projects
Sep 22, 2009 |
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The US government has spent more than one billion dollars on private sector renewable energy projects from the massive economic stimulus program passed seven months ago, officials said Tuesday.
China hydropower to near double by 2020: state media
Sep 20, 2009 |
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China's hydropower capacity is expected to nearly double to 300,000 megawatts by 2020, state media said, as the nation powers ahead with the development of renewable energy sources.
Impact of renewable energy on our oceans must be investigated, say scientists
Sep 17, 2009 |
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Scientists from the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth are today calling for urgent research to understand the impact of renewable energy developments on marine life. The study, now published in the Journal of ...
Germany paves way to offshore wind farms
Sep 16, 2009 |
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The German government on Wednesday agreed a plan to set aside special zones off its northern coast for a host of wind farms that could provide energy for more than eight million homes.
Can U.S., China find common ground in climate talks?
Sep 15, 2009 |
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The U.S. and China should be able to agree on energy cooperation projects that reduce greenhouse gases and lead to a successful outcome at international climate talks in Copenhagen in December, two U.S. climate insiders said ...
Schwarzenegger to sign order boosting clean power
Sep 15, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is scheduled to sign an executive order requiring California utilities to get a third of their energy come from renewable sources by 2020.
