SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERING

MODULE 4
ENERGY

• Energy can be defined as the capacity or ability to do work.

• It plays an important role in our day to day life as it is required
in every field like industry, transport, communication, sports,
defence, household, agriculture and more.
• There are plenty of energy sources to get energy.
• These energy resources can be classified as Conventional and
Non-conventional sources of energy.
Conventional sources of energy

• Conventional sources of energy are the natural energy

resources which are being used for a long time and are
present in a limited quantity.
• They are called non-renewable sources as once they are
depleted, they cannot be generated at the speed which can
sustain its consumption rate.
• They are formed from decaying matter over hundreds of
millions of years.
• These resources have been depleted to a great extent
due to their continuous exploitation.
• It is believed that the deposits of petroleum in our
country will be exhausted within few decades and the
coal reserves can last for a hundred more years.
• Eg: coal, petroleum, natural gas etc
Non-conventional sources of energy

• Non-conventional sources of energy are the energy

sources which are continuously replenished by
natural processes.
• These cannot be exhausted easily, can be generated
constantly so can be used again and again.
• These sources do not pollute the environment and do
not require heavy expenditure.
• They are called renewable resources as they can be
replaced through natural processes at a rate equal to
or greater than the rate at which they are consumed.
• E.g. solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy, biomass
energy, geothermal energy etc.
SOLAR ENERGY

• Most readily available and cheapest source of energy

• Energy from the Sun – light and heat
• Most basic and inexhaustible source of energy
• EM waves 6.4 UV, visible 48%, IR 45.6%
• Mother of all forms of energy – except nuclear energy
• Plants-solar energy- photosynthesis- atmospheric 𝐶𝑂2 -
Carbon- plant tissues- plant biomass
• Animals-plant biomass- animal biomass
• Plant biomass- heat by burning-or methane, methanol or
coke
• Fossil fuels
• Different temperature- wind energy
• Evaporation of water and winds- hydrological cycle- rain-
hydro power
• Winds and gravitational pull of sun and moon- wave
– wave energy
• Difference in temperature of ocean layers- OTEC-
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion
• Power from the sun intercepted by earth –
1.8× 1011 MW
• 1000 times larger than the present consumption rate
Direct method

• Involves only one step into usable form

• Sunlight hits photovoltaic cell / photoelectric cell generating
electricity
• Sunlight hits the dark absorber surface of a solar thermal
collector and the surface warms. The heat energy may be
carried away by a fluid circuit.
• Sunlight strikes a solar sail and is converted directly into force
Advantages

• Pollution free, sustainable energy source

• Less maintenance
• Local resource
• Can be installed anywhere
Disadvantages

• Unavailable at night
• Reduces when cloud covers
• For distribution should be converted into AC
Applications
• Solar water heater
• Solar space heating of buildings
• Solar drying
• Solar cooking
• Solar electricity – thermal and electrical
• Solar green houses
• Solar furnaces
• Solar desalination
• Salt production
• Solar pond
Solar water heater
Solar space heating
Solar drying
Solar cooking
Solar electricity
Solar green house
Solar furnace
Solar desalination
Solar pond
Biofuels
• Biofuels are a renewable energy source, made from organic
matter or wastes.
• Biofuels are one of the largest sources of renewable energy in
use today.
• In the transport sector, they are blended with existing fuels
such as gasoline and diesel.
• In the future, they can be particularly important to help
decarbonise the aviation, marine and heavy-duty road
transport sectors.
• Biofuels can be produced from organic matter, or
biomass, such as corn or sugar, vegetable oils or
waste feedstocks.
• As biofuels emit less carbon dioxide (CO2) than
conventional fuels they can be blended with existing
fuels as an effective way of reducing CO2 emissions
in the transport sector.
Types
• The two most common types of biofuel are bioethanol and
biodiesel.
• Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermentation, mostly
from carbohydrates produced in sugar or starch crops such
as corn, sugarcane, or sweet sorghum.
• Cellulosic biomass, derived from non-food sources, such as trees
and grasses, is also being developed as a feedstock for ethanol
production. Ethanol can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure
form (E100), but it is usually used as a gasoline additive to increase
octane and improve vehicle emissions.
• Biodiesel is produced from oils or fats
using transesterification
• It can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure form
(B100), but it is usually used as a diesel additive to
reduce levels of particulates, carbon monoxide,
and hydrocarbons from diesel-powered vehicles.
Generations

• First-generation biofuels
▫ First-generation biofuels are fuels made from food
crops .
▫ The crop's sugar, starch, or oil content is converted into
biodiesel or ethanol, using transesterification, or
fermentation
• Second-generation biofuels
▫ Second-generation biofuels are fuels made from woody
biomass, or agricultural residues/waste.
▫ Second-generation feedstocks include straw, bagasse,
perennial grasses, jatropha, waste vegetable oil,
municipal solid waste etc.
• Third-generation biofuels
▫ Derived from algae
▫ Algal fuels have high yields, can be grown with
minimal impact on fresh water resources, can be
produced using saline water and wastewater, have a
high ignition point, and are biodegradable and
relatively harmless to the environment if spilled.
• Fourth-generation biofuels
• This class of biofuels includes electrofuels and solar fuels.
• Electrofuels are made by storing electrical energy in the
chemical bonds of liquids and gases. The primary targets
are butanol, biodiesel, and hydrogen, but include other
alcohols and carbon-containing gases such
as methane and butane.
• A solar fuel is a synthetic chemical fuel produced from solar
energy. Light is converted to chemical energy, typically by
reducing protons to hydrogen, or carbon dioxide to organic
compounds.
Biogas
• Biogas is methane produced by the process of anaerobic
digestion of organic material by anaerobes.
• It can be produced either from biodegradable waste materials
• The solid byproduct, digestate, can be used as a biofuel or a
fertilizer. When CO2 and other impurities are removed from
biogas, it is called biomethane.
• Landfill gas, a less clean form of biogas, is produced
in landfills through naturally occurring anaerobic digestion. If
it escapes into the atmosphere, it acts as a greenhouse gas.
Energy derived from oceans

• The ocean has a tremendous amount of energy.

• Ocean energy refers to energy carried by ocean
waves, tides, salinity and ocean temperature
difference.
Different Form of Ocean Energy

• Ocean Current
• Osmotic Power
• Tidal energy
• Ocean Thermal energy
• Wave Energy
Ocean Current Power

• Ocean Current Power is the kinetic energy of ocean

currents.
• Strong ocean currents are generated from a
combination of temperature, wind, salinity, and the
rotation of the earth.
Osmotic power

• Osmotic power, salinity gradient power or blue

energy is the energy available from the difference in
the salt concentration between seawater and river
water.
• Two practical methods for this are reverse
electrodialysis (RED) and pressure retarded
osmosis (PRO).
Pressure-retarded osmosis

• In this method, seawater is pumped into a pressure

chamber that is at a pressure lower than the difference
between the pressures of saline water and fresh water.
• Freshwater is also pumped into the pressure chamber
through a membrane, which increase both the volume and
pressure of the chamber.
• As the pressure differences are compensated, a turbine is
spun, providing kinetic energy.
Reversed electrodialysis

• Reversed electrodialysis or reverse dialysis, which is

essentially the creation of a salt battery.
• This method was described by Weinstein and Leitz as “an
array of alternating anion and cation exchange membranes can
be used to generate electric power from the free energy of
river and sea water.”
• The technology related to this type of power is still in its infant
stages, even though the principle was discovered in the 1950s.
Tidal energy

• Tidal power or tidal energy is harnessed by converting

energy from tides into useful forms of power, mainly
electricity using various methods.
• Tides are more predictable than the wind and the sun.
• Among sources of renewable energy, tidal energy has
traditionally suffered from relatively high cost and limited
availability of sites with sufficiently high tidal ranges or flow
velocities, thus constricting its total availability.
• However, many recent technological developments
and improvements, both in design and turbine
technology indicate that the total availability of tidal
power may be much higher than previously assumed
and that economic and environmental costs may be
brought down to competitive levels.
• A tidal generator converts the energy of tidal flows
into electricity.
• Greater tidal variation and higher tidal current
velocities can dramatically increase the potential of a
site for tidal electricity generation.
• Earth's tides are ultimately due to gravitational
interaction with the Moon and Sun and the Earth's
rotation, so tidal power is practically inexhaustible
and classified as a renewable energy resource.
Methods

• Tidal power can be classified into four generating

methods
▫ Tidal stream generator
▫ Tidal barrage
▫ Dynamic tidal power
▫ Tidal lagoon
Tidal stream generators
• Tidal stream generators make use of the kinetic energy of moving
water to power turbines, in a similar way to wind turbines that use
the wind to power turbines.
• Some tidal generators can be built into the structures of existing
bridges or are entirely submersed, thus avoiding concerns over the
impact on the natural landscape.
• Land constrictions such as straits or inlets can create high velocities
at specific sites, which can be captured with the use of turbines.
• These turbines can be horizontal, vertical, open, or
ducted.
• Stream energy can be used at a much higher rate than
wind turbines due to water being denser than air.
Tidal barrages
• Tidal barrages make use of the potential energy in the difference in height

between high and low tides.

• When the sea level rises and the tide begins to come in, the temporary

increase in tidal power is channeled into a large basin behind the dam,

holding a large amount of potential energy.

• With the receding tide, this energy is then converted into mechanical

energy as the water is released through large turbines that create electrical

power through the use of generators.

Dynamic tidal power
• Dynamic tidal power or DTP is an untried but promising
technology for tidal power generation.
• It would involve creating a long dam -like structure perpendicular to
the coast, with the option for a coast-parallel barrier at the far end,
forming a large 'T' shape.
• This long T-dam would interfere with coast-parallel tidal wave
hydrodynamics, creating water level differences on opposite sides of
the barrier which drive a series of bi-directional turbines installed in
the dam.
Tidal lagoon
• A new tidal energy design option is to construct circular retaining
walls embedded with turbines that can capture the potential energy
of tides.
• The lagoons can also be in double (or triple) format without
pumping or with pumping that will flatten out the power output.
• The pumping power could be provided by excess to grid demand
renewable energy from for example wind turbines or solar
photovoltaic arrays. Excess renewable energy rather than being
curtailed could be used and stored for a later period of time.
Ocean Thermal Energy
Conversion (OTEC)
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) uses
the ocean thermal gradient between cooler deep and
warmer shallow or surface seawaters to run a heat
engine and produce useful work, usually in the form
of electricity.
Types of OTEC plants

• Closed cycle
• Open cycle
• Hybrid
• Closed-cycle systems use fluid with a low boiling point,
such as ammonia (having a boiling point around -33 °C at
atmospheric pressure), to power a turbine to generate
electricity.
• Warm surface seawater is pumped through a heat
exchanger to vaporize the fluid. The expanding vapor
turns the turbo-generator. Cold water, pumped through a
second heat exchanger, condenses the vapor into a liquid,
which is then recycled through the system.
• Open-cycle OTEC uses warm surface water directly to make
electricity.
• The warm seawater is first pumped into a low-pressure
container, which causes it to boil
• The expanding vapor drives a low-pressure turbine attached to
an electrical generator.
• The vapor, which has left its salt and other contaminants in the
low-pressure container, is pure fresh water. It is condensed
into a liquid by exposure to cold temperatures from deep-
ocean water. This method produces desalinized fresh water,
suitable for drinking water, irrigation or aquaculture
• A hybrid cycle combines the features of the closed- and
open-cycle systems.
• In a hybrid, warm seawater enters a vacuum chamber and
is flash-evaporated, similar to the open-cycle evaporation
process.
• The steam vaporizes the ammonia working fluid of a
closed-cycle loop on the other side of an ammonia
vaporizer. The vaporized fluid then drives a turbine to
produce electricity. The steam condenses within the heat
exchanger and provides desalinated water