A renewable energy source comes from either the sun or other environmental mechanism that occur on planet Earth (TREIA Industries Association). After all of the talk about oil pipelines I thought it would be a good idea to talk about alternative energy. The U.S has nearly a 60 % foreign oil dependency and consumes on average 20 million barrels of oil per day (Department of Energy). With all of the current political and economic issues surrounding oil production and prices as well as the global impact clean renewable energy sounds like a great option, right?
The four main renewable energy sources currently being used are solar, wind, geothermal, and hydroelectric. Solar power has gained a lot of attention in recent years with new technologies and funding from private investors and governments alike. Now solar energy sounds like a great option, its clean, provides more than enough energy for the inhabitants of the entire world, and will be around till the end of the Earth’s days. Yes, truly solar seems to be the way to go, but there are some issues that currently stops every nation from building solar power plants everywhere. The first and largest problem is the cost per watt of energy. Compared to fossil fuels the energy prices are outrageous which is why many developing countries choose fossil fuels over clean energy. The second problem is how fragile the solar panels are. The solar panels are currently made from crystalized silicone. The silicone is prized for its high thermal properties and is ideal for the capture of solar radiation. The problem with making a crystalized panel is that it’s a lot like glass and is prone to cracks and shattering. Other things that plague solar energy are just getting large energy consuming nations on board with the new technology although strides are being made, is it enough to save the planet? I’m no environmentalist or anything, but wouldn’t clean renewable energy be worth the investment to both a cleaner planet and energy security.
No comments:
Post a Comment