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10 Different Alternative
Sources of Energy
by Rinkesh

There are 10 main different alternative

sources of energy that are used in the
world to generate power. While other
sources are being discovered all the
time, none of them has reached the
stage where they can be used to
provide the power to help modern life
function.

All of these different sources of energy

are used primarily to produce
electricity. The world runs on a series
of electrical reactions – whether you
are talking about the car you are
driving or the light you are turning on.
All of these different sources of energy
add to the store of electrical power
that is then sent out to different
locations via high powered lines.

Table of contents

Types of Sources of Energy

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These can be broken down into

renewable and non-renewable energy
sources.

Renewable Energy
Source
A renewable energy source is any
natural resource that can replace it
quickly and dependably. These energy
sources are plentiful, sustainable,
naturally replenished and good to the
environment.

The major types or sources of

renewable energy are:

Solar energy from the sun

Wind energy
Geothermal energy from the
heat inside the earth
Hydropower from flowing
water
Ocean energy in the form of
wave, tidal, current energy
and ocean thermal energy.
Biomass from plants

Non-renewable Energy
Source
A non-renewable energy source is a
source with a limited supply that we
can mine or extract from the earth, and
it’ll eventually run out.

These are formed over thousands of

years from the buried remains of
ancient sea plants and animals that
lived millions of years ago. Most of
these energy sources are “dirty” fossil
fuels, which are generally bad for the
environment.

The major types or sources of non-

renewable energy are:

Petroleum
Hydrocarbon gas liquids
Natural gas
Coal
Nuclear energy

Different Sources of Energy

Here is an overview of each of the

different sources of energy that are in
use and what’s the potential issue for
each of them.

1. Solar Energy

The primary source of energy is the

sun. Solar power harvests the energy
of the sun by using collector panels to
create conditions that can then be
turned into a kind of power. Large solar
panel fields are often used in the
desert to gather enough power to
charge small substations, and many
homes use solar systems to provide
for hot water, cooling and supplement
their electricity.

The issue with solar is that while there

is plentiful amounts of sunlight
available, only certain geographical
ranges of the world get enough of the
direct power of the sun for long
enough to generate usable power from
this source.

Its availability is also dependent on the

change in seasons and weather when
they may not always be used. It
requires high initial investments for
productive use as solar electricity
storage technology has not reached its
optimum potential yet.

2. Wind Energy

Wind power is becoming more and

more common. The new innovations
that are allowing wind farms to appear
are making them a more common
sight. By using large turbines to take
available wind as the power to turn, the
turbine can then turn a generator to
produce electricity.

It requires high investment, and wind

speed is also not uniform every time,
which affects the generation of power.
While this seemed like an ideal
solution to many, the reality of the wind
farms is starting to reveal an
unforeseen ecological impact that may
not make it an ideal choice.

3. Geothermal Energy

Source: Canva

Geothermal energy is the energy that

is produced from beneath the earth. It
is clean, sustainable and
environmentally friendly. High
temperatures are produced
continuously inside the earth’s crust
by the slow delay of radioactive
particles. Hot rocks present below the
earth heats up the water that produces
steam. The steam is then captured,
which helps to move turbines. The
rotating turbines then power the
generators.

Geothermal energy can be used by a

residential unit or on a large scale by
an industrial application. It was used
during ancient times for bathing and
space heating. Geothermal plants
typically have low emissions if they
pump the steam and water they use
back into the reservoir.

The biggest disadvantage of

geothermal energy is that it can only
be produced at selected sites
throughout the world. The largest
group of geothermal power plants in
the world is located at The Geysers, a
geothermal field in California, United
States.

Another disadvantage is, where there

are no underground reservoirs,
creating geothermal plants may
increase the risk of an earthquake in
areas already considered geological
hot spots.

4. Hydrogen Energy

Hydrogen is available with water

(H2O) and is the most common
element available on earth. Water
contains two-thirds of hydrogen and
can be found in combination with other
elements.

Once it is separated, it can be used as

a fuel for generating electricity.
Hydrogen is a tremendous source of
energy and can be used as a source of
fuel to power ships, vehicles, homes,
industries and rockets. It is completely
renewable, can be produced on
demand and does not leave any toxic
emissions in the atmosphere.

5. Tidal Energy

Source: Canva

Tidal energy uses the rise and fall of

tides to convert the kinetic energy of
incoming and outgoing tides into
electrical energy. The generation of
energy through tidal power is most
prevalent in coastal areas. Tidal energy
is one of the renewable sources of
energy and produces large energy
even when the tides are at low speed.
When there is an increased height of
water levels in the ocean, tides are
produced, which rush back and forth
in the ocean. In order to capture
sufficient power from the tidal energy
potential, the altitude of high tide
needs to be at least five meters
(around 16 feet) greater than low tide.

Huge investment and limited

availability of sites are a few of the
drawbacks of tidal energy. The high
civil construction and high power
purchase tariff make the capital cost
for tidal energy power plants very high.

6. Wave Energy

Source: Canva

Wave energy is produced from the

waves that are produced in the
oceans. As the ocean is ruled by the
moon’s gravity, it makes harnessing its
power an attractive option. Different
techniques for transforming wave
energy to electric power have been
studied with dam-like structures or
ocean floor–anchored devices on or
just below the water’s surface.

Wave energy is
renewable, environment friendly and
causes no harm to the atmosphere. It
can be harnessed along coastal
regions of many countries and can
help a country to reduce its
dependence on foreign countries for
fuel.

Producing wave energy can damage

the marine ecosystem and can also be
a source of disturbance to private and
commercial vessels. It is highly
dependent on wavelength and can
also be a source of visual and noise
pollution. This energy is also less
intensive as compared to what is
available in more northern and
southern latitudes.

7. Hydroelectric Energy

Source: Canva

What many people are not aware of is

that most of the cities and towns in the
world rely on hydropower, and have for
the past century. Every time you see a
major dam, it is providing hydropower
to an electrical station somewhere.
The power of the water is used to turn
generators to produce the electricity
that is then used. It is non-polluting,
entails no waste or produces toxic
gases, and environment friendly.

The problems faced with hydropower

right now have to do with the aging of
the dams. Many of them need major
restoration work to remain functional
and safe, and that costs enormous
sums of money. The drain on the
world’s drinkable water supply is also
causing issues as townships may wind
up needing to consume the water that
provides them power too.

8. Biomass Energy

Source: Canva

Biomass energy is produced from

organic material and is commonly
used throughout the world.
Chlorophyll present in plants captures
the sun’s energy by converting carbon
dioxide from the air and water from the
ground into carbohydrates through the
process of photosynthesis. When the
plants are burned, the water and
carbon dioxide are again released
back into the atmosphere.

Biomass generally includes crops,

plants, trees, yard clippings, wood
chips and animal wastes. Biomass
energy is used for heating and cooking
in homes and as a fuel in industrial
production.

However, the collection of fuel

involved drudgery. This type of energy
produces a large amount of carbon
dioxide into the atmosphere. In the
absence of sufficient ventilation, while
cooking indoor, fuels such as dung
cause air pollution, which is a serious
health hazard. Moreover,
unsustainable and inefficient use of
biomass leads to the destruction of
vegetation and hence degradation of
the environment.

9. Nuclear Power

Source: Canva

While nuclear power remains a great

subject of debate as to how safe it is to
use, and whether or not it is really
energy efficient when you take into
account the waste it produces – the
fact is it remains one of the major
renewable sources of energy available
to the world.

The energy is created through a

specific nuclear reaction, which is then
collected and used to power
generators. While almost every
country has nuclear generators, there
are moratoriums on their use or
construction as scientists try to
resolve safety and disposal issues for
waste.

Nuclear energy is produced from

uranium, a non-renewable energy
source whose atoms are split (through
a process called nuclear fission) to
create heat and, eventually, electricity.
Scientists think uranium was created
billions of years ago when stars
formed. Uranium is found throughout
the earth’s crust, but most of it is too
difficult or too expensive to mine and
process into fuel for nuclear power
plants.

In future, nuclear power will make use

of fast neutron reactors by not only
utilizing about 60 times the amount of
energy from uranium but also
unlocking the potential use of thorium,
which is a more abundant element, as
a fuel. Now some 1.5 million tonnes of
depleted uranium seen as little more
than a waste becomes a fuel resource.

In effect, as they operate, they will

‘renew’ their own fuel resource. The
possible outcome is that the resource
of fuel available for fast neutron
reactors is so abundant that significant
depletion of the fuel source is almost
impossible under practical terms.

10. Fossil Fuels (Coal, Oil

and Natural Gas)

Source: Canva

When most people talk about the

different sources of energy, they list
natural gas, coal and oil as the options
– these are all considered to be just
one source of energy from fossil
fuels. Fossil fuels provide power for
most of the world, primarily using coal
and oil.

Oil is converted into many products,

the most used of which is gasoline.
Natural gas is starting to become more
common but is used mostly for heating
applications, although there are more
and more natural gas-powered
vehicles appearing on the streets.

The issue with fossil fuels is twofold.

Getting to the fossil fuel and convert it
to use, there has to be heavy
destruction and pollution of the
environment. The fossil fuel reserves
are also limited, expecting to last only
another 100 years given the basic rate
of consumption.

It isn’t easy to determine which of

these different sources of energy is
best to use. All of them have their
good and bad points. While advocates
of each power type tout theirs as the
best, the truth is that they are all
flawed. What needs to happen is a
concerted effort to change how we
consume energy and to create a
balance between which of these
sources we draw from.

About Rinkesh
A true environmentalist by heart .
Founded Conserve Energy Future
with the sole motto of providing
helpful information related to our
rapidly depleting environment.
Unless you strongly believe in Elon
Musk‘s idea of making Mars as
another habitable planet, do
remember that there really is no
'Planet B' in this whole universe.

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