Types Of Renewable Energy
What are the different types of renewable energy? Renewable energy is quickly becoming increasingly predominant all around the world. Nevertheless it is still not the leading energy resource of the globe. The main 6 types of renewable energy are solar, hydro power, wind, geothermal, biomass, and biofuels. Each of these types of renewable energy provides an alternative to customary energy generation and replicated, decreasing footprint on the environment.
The most common of the types of renewable energy is wind energy. A plentiful source of renewable energy, the wind is mainly used as a way of generating electricity. This is through the use of wind turbines. Wind turbines are adept in harnessing the energy derived from the wind. It converts kinetic energy. The energy it harnesses then becomes mechanical energy. Europe is a place that is very well equipped with wind turbines. This is because the place is very well suited to be installed these types of renewable energy.
Another one of the common types of renewable energy is solar energy. This is basically energy that is coming form the sun. For thousands of years now, people have been harnessing this power and turning it to electricity. With the recent breakthroughs in technology, solar panels are born. These are the devices that are used to harness the energy coming from the sun. Among all these types of renewable energy, this is the one that requires least energy and resources to consume. Also, among the types of renewable energy, solar energy is the most popular as it doesn’t emit any greenhouse gases and they are very economically and environmentally friendly.
Biomass energy is among the types of renewable energy that are formed from organic materials. However, biomass energy is usually harnessed with the help of the sun. For instance, photosynthesis allows plants to gather energy from the sun. The plants then pass these energies to the different organisms that eat it. Therefore, the energy is now formed.
Geothermal energy is among the types of renewable energy that also comes from heat. These are the energy sources that are gotten from the heat of the earth. A common example of this type of renewable energy is steam energy, where hot water or water droplets are used and converted into energy.
Hydro power is a type of renewable energy that comes from water. In specific, the energy here is derived from the movement of water. If wind energy uses turbines, the hydro power energy uses water turbines to harness power. Common examples of hydro power are energies that are harnessed by water turbines that are placed in dams.
Lastly, we have biofuels. These are renewable energy types that are consequential to burning plants as well as animal substances. In other terms, biofuel energy is collected through a process called combustion. Common examples of biofuel energy are ethanol and other biofuel oils. The best part about these renewable energy sources is that they are great to use in large scale applications. The problem, however, is that it is relatively difficult to convert biofuels into energy.