By, Group Nine

ALTERNATIVE ENERGIES

VOCABULARY

• Renewable Resource: an energy source that is limitless in supply, like wind, moving water, and sunlight

• Nonrenewable Resource: an energy source that will run out eventually, like coal, oil, and gas

• Wind Turbine: a machine that captures the force of the wind to generate electricity

• Wind shade: the area around a wind turbine where turbulence causes especially low wind speed

• Absorber / Solar Panel: a blackened surface that absorbs solar radiation and converts it to heat energy

MAIN IDEAS

• Earth’s sources of energy all come from the sun, originally

• Wind and Solar Power are just 2 of our energy sources, and both are renewable.

• Although they are renewable, they aren’t the best alternatives out there.

• Solar cells are extremely expensive, not very efficient, and only work in certain places and time frames.

• Wind turbines are also very high-priced and they only work in certain areas. They are able to take both weak and strong wind and convert it to electricity, but during storms, they must remain inactive to avoid damage.

WIND (IN A NUTSHELL)• Wind is caused by the sun heating air, and as the heated air rises into the sky forcing the

falling cold air down, given also the coriolis effect it is put into motion. Also, mountains and valleys aim this moving air, creating wind, much like a flute.

also, many regions use wind as a renewable form of clean, eco-friendly energy. Harnessing the power of windmills to churn and spin due to oncoming wind, and producing electricity down in the base of the pole.

instead of using messy forms such as coal, or gasoline; wind is a clean and reusable form of energy, it too however is not without fault, what happens when the wind stops blowing on the windmill? We lose our power and have little to no way of changing that. Now, yes there are solutions such as wind tunnels to funnel the wind currents, but to adapt would be expensive.

So, as an alternative form of energy, it is a possible route but perhaps not the best one.

MORE WIND.•

NIFTY WIND FACTS.• In the year 2009 wind energy usage went up a whopping

34.5% as compared to the previous year.

2. And makes up roughly 10% of all renewable energies.

3. We recently passed Germany in installed wind capacity.

4. A kilowatt hour costs the same as an equal amount of energy

Produced by gasoline.

5. It is predicted by 2030 that we can convert up to 20% of our

energy to wind power.

Q AND A• Where is most of the wind energy harvested in the U.S.

A. The North West states.

Name three nonrenewable resources.

A. Oil, coal and gas

Flaws in solar and wind energies?

A. Unreliability, Instability, it is inconsistent.

Three bonuses to using wind, water and solar.

A. Powerful, reusable, and cheap.

Define an absorber.

A. A dark surface capable of absorbing sunlight.

HYDROPOWER: WHERE IT COMES FROM

• Hydropower mostly comes from dams built in rivers. The Hoover Dam is the best example of hydroelectricity. The Hoover Dam has seventeen main turbines in the bottom of the dam. From 1947 through 2008 the Hoover Dam produced 4.2 billion kilowatts of power. The dam provides power for the states of Arizona and Nevada. It also gives power to Los Angeles, Pasadena, and Riverside, Californina.

HYDROPOWER: USES

• Canada uses the most hydropower in the world

• Hydropower is used because it does not give off harmful toxins

• Hydropower is used because it is an everlasting resource

• Hydropower is used for showers, washing clothes, sinks, and dishwashers

• Hydropower is used in almost all homes

HYDROPOWER: FACTS

• Hydropower provides the most electricity of any renewable resource

• It provides 6% of the United States power

• Hydropower relies on the water cycle

• Hydropower is the oldest source of energy

• Hydropower can kill river life

SOLAR ENERGY!

• Solar energy is by far the most available energy source, meaning it is available at all times anywhere around the world (because of the suns energy shines at all times somewhere in the earth)

WORDS YOU NEED TO KNOW!

• Solar Energy: the sun’s rays (solar radiation) that reach the earth.

• Absorber: a blackened surface on a collection that absorbs solar radiation and converts it into heat energy.

• Fuel cell: used to generate electricity directly from gas through a electrochemical process.

• Watt: an internationally recognized as a measure of electrical energy.

HOW DO WE MOST OFTEN USE IT?

• The way we most often use solar energy is by solar panels. They are used to heat water, and for heating inside of a building (space heating).