Sources of Energy Page 80 Physical science

E X P L A I N T H I S How can the Sun be the source of hydroelectric-, wind-,

and fossil-fuel power?
Except for nuclear power, the source of practically all our energy is the
Sun. Even the energy we obtain from petroleum, coal, natural gas, and
wood originally came from the Sun. That’s because these fuels are created
by photosynthesis—the process by which plants trap solar energy and store it
as plant tissue. Sunlight evaporates water, which later falls as rain; rainwater
flows into rivers and into dams where it is directed to generator turbines. Then
it returns to the sea, where the cycle continues. Even the wind, caused by
unequal warming of Earth’s surface, is a form of solar power. The energy of
wind can be used to turn generator turbines within specially equipped
windmills. Because wind power can’t be turned on and off at will, it is
presently a supplement to fossil and nuclear fuels for large-scale power
production. Harnessing the wind is most practical when the energy it
produces is stored for future use, such as in the form of hydrogen.
Hydrogen is the least polluting of all fuels. Most hydrogen in America is
produced from natural gas, in a process that uses high temperatures and
pressures to separate hydrogen from hydrocarbon molecules. The same is
done with other fossil fuels. A downside to separating hydrogen from carbon
compounds is the unavoidable production of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse
gas. A simpler and cleaner method that doesn’t produce greenhouse gases is
electrolysis— electrically splitting water into its constituent parts. Figure 3.34
shows how you can perform this in the lab or at home: Place two wires that
are connected to the terminals of an ordinary battery into a glass of salted
water. Be sure the wires don’t touch each other. Bubbles of hydrogen form on
one wire, and bubbles of oxygen form on the other. A fuel cell is similar, but
runs backward. Hydrogen and oxygen gas are combined at electrodes and
electric current is produced, along with water. The space shuttle uses fuel
cells to meet its electrical needs while producing drinking water for the
astronauts. Here on Earth fuel-cell researchers are developing fuel cells for
buses, automobiles, and trains.
((The power available in sunlight is about 1 kW/m2. If all of the solar energy falling
on a square meter could be harvested for power production, that energy would
generate 1000 W. Some solar cells can convert 40% of the power, or about 400
W/m2. Solar power via low-cost thin solar films used in building materials, including
roofing and glass, is changing the way we produce and distribute energy )).
A hydrogen economy may likely start with railroad trains rather than
automobiles being powered by fuel cells. Hydrogen can be obtained via solar
cells, many along train tracks and on the rail ties themselves (Figure 3.35).
Photovoltaic cells transform sunlight to electricity. They are familiar in solar-
powered calculators, iPods, and flexible solar-powered shingles on rooftops.
Solar cells can also supply the energy needed to produce hydrogen. It is
important to know that hydrogen is not a source of energy. Energy is required
to make hydrogen (to extract it from water and carbon compounds). As with
electricity, the production of hydrogen needs an energy source; the hydrogen
thus produced provides a way of storing and transporting that energy. Again,
for emphasis, hydrogen is not an energy source. The most concentrated
source of usable energy is that stored in nuclear fuels—uranium and
plutonium. For the same weight of fuel, nuclear reactions release about 1
million times more energy than do chemical or food reactions. Watch for
renewed interest in this form of power that doesn’t pollute the atmosphere.
Interestingly, Earth’s interior is kept hot because of nuclear power, which
has been with us since time zero.

((F IGUR E 3 . 3 6
Dry-rock geothermal power. (a) A hole is sunk several kilometers into dry granite.
(b) Water is pumped into the hole at high pressure and fractures the surrounding
rock to form a cavity with increased surface area. (c) A second hole is sunk to
intercept the cavity. (d) Water is circulated down one hole and through the cavity,
where it is superheated before rising through the second hole. After driving a
turbine, it is recirculated into the hot cavity again, making a closed cycle .))

2-Energy Resources
Primary energy sources take many forms, including nuclear energy, fossil energy --
like oil, coal and natural gas -- and renewable sources like wind, solar, geothermal
and hydropower. These primary sources are converted to electricity, a secondary
energy source, which flows through power lines and other transmission
infrastructure to your home and busines

Energy technology is an interdisciplinary engineering science having to do with the

efficient, safe, environmentally friendly and economical extraction, conversion,
transportation, storage and use of energy, targeted towards yielding high efficiency
whilst skirting side effects on humans, nature and the

For people, energy is an overwhelming need and as a scarce resource it has been an
underlying cause of political conflicts and wars. The gathering and use of energy
resources can be harmful to local ecosystems and may have global outcomes

In the future, civilization will be forced to research and develop alternative energy
sources. Our current rate of fossil fuel usage will lead to an energy crisis this
century. In order to survive the energy crisis many companies in the energy industry
are inventing new ways to extract energy from renewable sources. While the rate of
development is slow, mainstream awareness and government pressures are
growing

a-Nuclear energy[edit]

A steam turbine.

Nuclear technology deals with nuclear power production from nuclear

reactors, along with the processing of nuclear fuel and disposal of
radioactive waste, drawing from applied nuclear physics, nuclear
chemistry and radiation science.
Nuclear power generation has been politically controversial in many
countries for several decades but the electrical energy produced
through nuclear fission is of worldwide importance. There are high
hopes that fusion technologies will one day replace most fission
reactors but this is still a research area of nuclear physics.

b- Solar electricity - photovoltaic (PV) panels

Solar energy can also be captured by solar PV panels. Photovoltaic (PV -

also sometimes called solar electric panels) transform the solar
radiation directly into electricity. PV panels generate electricity in a