Introducing renewable energy

&
Sustainable Development

Renewable energy sources, derived principally from the

enormous power of the Sun's radiation, are
simultaneously the most ancient and the most modern
forms of energy used by humanity.

Week 3

Solar power, both in the form of direct solar radiation

and in indirect forms such as bioenergy, water or wind
power, was the energy source upon which early human
societies were based.

When our ancestors first used fire, they were harnessing

the power of photosynthesis, the solar-driven process by
which plants are created from water and atmospheric
carbon dioxide.
Societies went on to develop ways of harnessing the
movements of water and wind, both caused by solar
heating of the oceans and atmosphere, to grind corn,
irrigate crops and propel ships.

As civilizations became more sophisticated, architects

began to design buildings to take advantage of the Sun's
energy by enhancing their natural use of its heat and
light, so reducing the need for artificial sources of
warmth and illumination.

Technologies for harnessing the power of Sun,

firewood, water and wind continued to improve
right up to the early years of the industrial
revolution.
However, by then the advantages of coal, the
first of the fossil fuels to be exploited on a large
scale, had become apparent.
These highly-concentrated energy sources soon
displaced wood, wind and water in the homes,
industries and transport systems of the
industrial nations.

Environmental concerns of fossil fuel use,

such as air pollution and about the finite nature
of supplies, have been voiced for centuries.
In 1970s, with the 'oil crisis' and the steep
price rises the environmental movement
emerged
Humanity began to take more seriously the
prospect of fossil fuels 'running out', and the
possibility that their continued use could be
destabilizing the planet's natural ecosystems
and the global climate.

Today the fossil fuel trio of coal, oil and natural

gas provides over 80% of the world's energy.

After the Second World War nuclear energy raised

hopes of an alternative to fossil fuels believed to be
cheap,
plentiful and
clean

However, nuclear power development has stalled in

some countries in recent years, due to increasing
concerns about safety, cost, waste disposal and weapons
proliferation,
Note that in some countries nuclear expansion is
continuing.

Continuing concerns about the `sustainability' of both

fossil and nuclear fuel use have renewed interest in the
renewable energy sources.
Ideally, a sustainable energy source is one that:

is not substantially depleted by continued use

does not entail significant pollutant emissions or other
environmental problems
does not involve the perpetuation of substantial health hazards
or social injustices.

The word energy is derived from the Greek en (in) and ergon
(work) i.e.
'the capacity to do work'.

In practice, only a few energy sources come close to

this ideal, but `renewables' appear generally more
sustainable than fossil or nuclear fuels:
they are essentially inexhaustible and their use
entails fewer health hazards and much lower
emissions of greenhouse gases or other pollutants.

1. such as thermal energy (heat),

2. chemical energy (in fuels or batteries),
3. kinetic energy (in moving substances),
4. electrical energy,
5. gravitational potential energy,
6. and various others.

Energy conservation:
The First Law of Thermodynamics
The renewable energy technologies transform one form of
energy into another (in many cases being electricity).
In any such transformation of energy, the total quantity of
energy remains unchanged.
This principle, that energy is always conserved, is expressed by
the First Law of Thermodynamics.
So if the electrical energy output of a power station, for
example, is less than the energy content of the fuel input, then
some of the energy must have been converted to another form
(usually waste heat).

Energy is neither created nor destroyed

First Law of Thermodynamics is a version of the law
of conservation of energy, adapted for thermodynamic
systems.
The law of conservation of energy states that the total
energy of an isolated system is constant;
energy can be transformed from one form to another,
but cannot be created or destroyed.

If the total quantity of energy is always the same, how can we

talk of consuming it?
Wedon't:
we just convert it from one form into other forms.
We consume fuels, which are sources of readily available
energy.
We may burn fuel in a vehicle engine, converting its stored
chemical energy into heat and then into the kinetic energy of the
moving vehicle.

Forms of energy
At the most basic level, the diversity of energy forms
can be reduced to four:

kinetic
gravitational
electrical
nuclear.

By using a wind turbine we can extract kinetic energy

from moving air and convert it into electrical energy,
which can in turn be used to heat the filament of an
incandescent lamp causing it to radiate light energy.

Kinetic energy
The kinetic energy possessed by any moving object is
equal to half the mass (m) of the object times the square
of its velocity (v), i.e.:
kinetic energy = 1/2MV2
where energy is in joules (J),
mass in kilograms (kg)
and velocity in metres per second (m s-1).

Thermal energy
Less obviously, the kinetic energy within a material
determines its temperature.
All matter consists of atoms, or combinations of atoms
called molecules.
In a gas, such as the air that surrounds us, these move
freely.
In a solid or a liquid, they form a more or less loosely
linked network in which every particle is constantly
vibrating.

Thermal energy, or heat, is the name given to the energy

associated with this rapid random motion.
The higher the temperature of a body, the faster its molecules
are moving.
In the temperature scale that is most natural to scientific theory,
the Kelvin (K) scale, zero corresponds to zero molecular
motion. In the more commonly used Celsius scale of
temperature (written as C), the size of one degree is the same
as 1 kelvin, but zero corresponds to the freezing point of wa and
100 C to the boiling point of water at atmospheric pressure.
The t, scales are therefore related by a simple formula:
temperature (K) = temperature (C) + 273.

Gravitational energy
A second fundamental form of energy is gravitational
energy.
On Earth, input of energy is required to lift an object
because the gravitational pull the Earth opposes that
movement. If an object, such as an apple, is lift above
your head, the input energy is stored in a form called
gravitation potential energy (often just 'potential energy'
or 'gravitational energy').
That this stored energy exists is obvious if you release
the apple and observe the subsequent conversion to
kinetic energy.

Figure 1.1 The amount of energy required

to raise a 100 g apple vertically through I m
is approximately one joule (I J)

Electrical energy
Gravity is not the only force influencing the objects around us.
On a scale far too small for the eye to see, electrical forces hold
together the atoms and molecules of all materials; gravity is an
insignificant force at the molecular level.
The electrical energy associated with these forces is the third of
the basic forms.
Every atom can be considered to consist of a cloud of
electrically charged particles, electrons, moving incessantly
around a central nucleus.

Nuclear energy
The fourth and final basic form of energy, bound up in the
central nuclei of atoms, is called nuclear energy.
The technology for releasing it was developed during the
Second World War for military purposes, and subsequently in a
more controlled version for the commercial production of
electricity.
Nuclear power stations operate on much the same principles as
fossil fuel plants, except that the furnace in which the fuel burns
is replaced by a nuclear reactor in which atoms of uranium are
split apart in a 'fission' process that generates large amounts of
heat

When atoms bond with other atoms to form molecules,

the distribution of electrons is changed, often with
dramatic effect.
Thus chemical energy, viewed at the atomic level, can
be considered to be a form of electrical energy.
When a fuel is burned, the energy liberated (the
chemical energy) is converted into heat energy.
Essentially, the electrical energy released as the
electrons are rearranged (that is, the net release of
energy from the breaking and forming of bonds) is
converted to the kinetic energy of the molecules of the
combustion products.

The energy source of the Sun is also of nuclear origin.

Here the process is not nuclear fission but nuclear
fusion, in which hydrogen atoms fuse to form helium
atoms such enormous numbers of these reactions
take place that massive amounts of solar radiation are
generated in the process.
Attempts to imitate the Sun by creating powerproducing nuclear fusion reactors have been the subject
of many decades of research and development effort but
have yet to come to fruition.

Energy sources
There are five ultimate primary sources of useful energy:

Renewable energy

1 The Sun.

Renewable energy derives continuously from sources 1,

2 and 3.

2 The motion and gravitational potential of the Sun, Moon and

Earth.

Finite energy derives from fossil fuels, 3 (hot rocks), 4

and 5.

3 Geothermal energy from cooling, chemical reactions and

radioactive decay in the Earth.

The sources of most significance for global energy

supplies are 1 and 4.

4 Human-induced nuclear reactions.

5 Chemical reactions from mineral sources.

The fifth category is relatively minor, but useful for

primary batteries, e.g. dry cells.

1 Renewable energy.
For all practical purposes energy supplies can be
divided into two classes:

Energy obtained from natural and persistent flows of

energy occurring in the immediate environment.

1 Renewable energy.

An obvious example is solar (sunshine) energy, where

repetitive refers to the 24-hour major period.

2 Non-renewable energy.

Note that the energy is already passing through the

environment as a current or flow, irrespective of there
being a device to intercept and harness this power.
Such energy may also be called Green Energy or
Sustainable Energy.

2 Non-renewable energy.
Energy obtained from static stores of energy that
remain underground unless released by human
interaction.
Examples are nuclear fuels and fossil fuels of coal, oil
and natural gas.
Note that the energy is initially an isolated energy
potential, and external action is required to initiate the
supply of energy for practical purposes.
To avoid using the ungainly word non-renewable,
such energy supplies are called finite supplies or Brown
Energy.

Environmental energy
The flows of energy passing continuously as renewable
energy through the Earth are shown in Figure 1.2. For
instance, total solar flux absorbed at sea level is about
1.2 1017 W. Thus the solar flux reaching the Earths
surface is 20 MW per person; 20 MW is the power of
ten very large diesel electric generators, enough to
supply all the energy needs of a town of about 50 000
people.

Figure 1.2 Natural energy currents on earth, showing renewable energy system. Note the great
range of energy flux 1:105 and the dominance of solar radiation and heat. Units terawatts 10 12W.

The maximum solar flux density (irradiance)

perpendicular to the solar beam is about 1 kWm 2; a
very useful and easy number to remember. In general
terms, a human being is able to intercept such an energy
flux without harm, but any increase begins to cause
stress and difficulty. Interestingly, power flux densities
of 1kWm begin to cause physical difficulty to an adult
in wind, water currents or waves.

Sankey (spaghetti) diagram,

Present-day energy use

World energy supplies
The energy used by a final consumer is usually the end result of
a series of energy conversions.
For example, energy from burning coal may be converted in a
power station to electricity, which is then distributed to
households and used in immersion heaters to heat water in
domestic hot water tanks.
The energy released when the coal is burned is called the
primary energy required for that use.

The amount of electricity reaching the consumer, after

conversion losses in the power station and transmission
losses in the electricity grid, is the delivered energy.
After further losses in the tank and pipes, a final
quantity, called the useful energy, comes out of the hot
tap.

Figure 1.2 Percentage contributions to world primary energy consumption

in 2009. `Other sources' are `new' biomass, solar and geothermal energy,
and energy from wind, wave, tide and wastes (sources: authors' estimates
based on BP, 2010; lEA, 2009; WWEA, 2010)

World total annual consumption of all forms of primary

energy increased more than tenfold during the twentieth
century, and by the year 2009 had reached an estimated
502 EJ (exajoules 1018), or some 12 000 million tonnes
of oil equivalent (Mtoe) (Figure 1.2).
As the figure reveals, fossil fuels provided more than
four fifths of the total.
The world population in 2009 was some 6.8 billion, so
the annual average energy consumption per person was
about 74 GJ (gigajoules), equivalent to the energy
content of approximately 5.5 litres of oil per day for
every man, woman and child.

But these figures conceal major differences.

The average North American consumes more than 250
GJ per year, most people in Europe use roughly half this
amount, and many of those in the poorer countries of
the world less than one fifth much of it in the form of
local 'biofuels'.

How much do renewables contribute to world energy

supplies?

Figure 1.3 Chart showing percentage breakdown of individual

renewable energy sources' contributions to world primary energy
supplies 2008 (sources authors estimates on EIA 2009 BP 2010).

As Figure 1.2 shows, traditional biomass, hydro power

and a range of other renewable sources contributed an
estimated 13% of world primary energy in 2009.
Figure 1.3 gives a more detailed breakdown, for the
year 2008.

The largest contribution is an estimated value of 30 EJ

from 'traditional biomass' (wood, straw, dung, etc.)
mainly used in developing countries.
Since most of this isn't traded, it often doesn't enter into
national economic statistics and its true magnitude is
only known approximately.
The next largest category is 'new biomass'.
This includes wood and other crops specifically grown
for energy purposes, biogas, and biofuels such as
ethanol and biodiesel.

This is a commodity that is likely to be traded and so its

magnitude is more certain.
Hydro power is the next largest category, supplying
over 2% of the world's primary energy.
'New biomass', together with energy from wastes,
geothermal energy, solar energy and energy from wind,
wave and tidal power make up the 'other sources' shown
in Figure 1.2.

How long will the world's fossil fuel reserves last?

In practice, many electricity-generating fossil fuelled
and renewable energy technologies produce large
amounts of unused 'waste' heat.
Renewable energy proportions based on primary energy
may thus give a misleading picture.
Proportions of renewable energy in national (and
global) statistics are now often quoted in terms of gross
final energy consumption (see Box 1.1).

In order just to maintain the world's oil production at its

current level, a large number of new oil fields will have
to be developed.
Even more challenging is the need for new fields to be
continuously discovered (Figure 1.4).
According to the International Energy Agency, the 'easy
oil' has been largely used up.
What remains is likely to be more expensive and in
difficult areas such as the Arctic or in deep offshore
wells (IEA, 2010a).

At current consumption rates, it is estimated that world

coal reserves could last for about 120 years, oil for
approximately 45 years and natural gas for around 60
years (BP, 2010).
However, in the more immediate future there are likely
to be serious constraints on the rate at which fossil fuels
can be produced, particularly oil.
Existing oilfields have a limited life; once exhausted
they have to be replaced with new ones.

Figure 1.4 An International Energy Agency chart indicating the

challenges involved in maintaining current levels of
conventional oil production (source: IEA, 2010a)

According to a study of global oil depletion by the UK

Energy Research Centre:
a peak of conventional oil production before 2030 appears likely and
there is a significant risk of a peak before 2020. (Sorrell et al., 2009)

So although large worldwide reserves of oil will remain,

the overall production of conventional oil seems likely
to 'plateau' or even decline.
This has serious implications for the UK, where oil
production peaked in 1999 and gas production peaked
in 2000.

The surface temperature of the Earth establishes itself at

an equilibrium level where the incoming energy from
the Sun balances the outgoing infrared energy reradiated from the surface back into space.
If the Earth had no atmosphere its surface temperature
would be -18 C; but its atmosphere, which includes
'greenhouse gases' principally, water vapour, carbon
dioxide and methane acts like the panes of a
greenhouse, allowing solar radiation (which lies in the
range from ultra-violet to short wave infrared) to enter
but inhibiting the outflow of long-wave infrared
radiation.

Fossil fuels and climate change

Society's current use of fossil and nuclear fuels has
many adverse consequences.
These include air pollution, acid rain, the depletion of
natural resources and the dangers of nuclear radiation.
This brief introduction concentrates on one of these
problems: global climate change caused by emissions of
greenhouse gases from fossil fuel combustion.

Figure 1.6 (a) Primary energy contributions from

renewable energy in the UK, 2009. The total, 6875
Mtoe, is equivalent to 288 PJ.The main contributors
were wind, biomass in various forms, and hydro
power (b) Growth in electricity generation from
renewable sources in the UK 1990-2009- In 2009
renewables contributed 6.7% of UK electricity
Source .DECC 2010b)

The natural 'greenhouse

effect' that these gases cause
is essential in maintaining the
Earth's surface temperature at
a level suitable for life at
around 15 C.

Since the Industrial Revolution, however, human

activities have been adding extra greenhouse gases to
the atmosphere.
The principal contributor to these increased emissions is
carbon dioxide from the combustion of fossil fuels.
Humanity's rate of emission of CO2 from these fuels has
increased enormously since 1950 (see Figure 1.7).

Such rises would probably be associated with an

increased frequency of climatic extremes, such as floods
or droughts, and serious disruptions to agriculture and
natural ecosystems.
The thermal expansion of the world's oceans could
mean that sea levels would rise by around 0.5 m by the
end of the century, which could inundate some lowlying areas.
Beyond 2100, or perhaps before, much greater sea level
rises could occur if major Antarctic ice sheets were to
melt.

Scientists estimate (IPCC, 2007a) that these

'anthropogenic' (human-induced) emissions caused a
rise in the Earth's global mean surface temperature of
approximately 0.7 C between 1950 and 2005 (Figure
1.8).
If emissions are not curbed, the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that the
Earth's surface temperature could rise by between 1.4
and 5.8 C (depending on the assumptions made) by the
end of the twenty-first century.

Figure 1.8 Observed changes in global average surface temperature

1860-2005, relative to corresponding averages for the period 19611990.The term '95% confidence range' indicates that there is only a one in
20 chance of a measurement lying outside this range (source: IPCC,
2007b)

The threat of global climate change, mainly caused by carbon

dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion, is one of the
main reasons why there is a growing consensus on the need to
reduce such emissions.
In order to ensure that global mean temperature rises do not
exceed 2 C above pre-industrial levels by 2050, studies show
that global carbon emissions will need to be reduced by
approximately 80% by that date.
This implies that global CO, emissions need to peak almost
immediately and then fall sharply over the course of the rest of
this century (Allen et al., 2009).
Emission reductions on this scale will inevitably involve a
switch to low-or zero-carbon energy sources such as
renewables.

Renewable energy sources

Renewable energy can be defined as:
energy obtained from the continuous or repetitive
currents of energy recurring in the natural environment
Or energy flows which are replenished at the same rate
as they are 'used'
From Figure 1.9, which summarizes the origins and
magnitudes of the Earth's renewable energy sources, it
is clear that their principal source is solar radiation.

Approximately 30% of the 5.4 million EJ per year

arriving at the Earth is reflected back into space.

(If biofuels and hydro power are included, total world

energy consumption was 502 EJ, as stated earlier.)

The remaining 70% is, in principle, available for use on

Earth, and amounts to approximately 3.8 million EJ,
more than 8200 times the rate of consumption of fossil
and nuclear fuels in 2009, some 462 EJ.

Two non-solar, renewable energy sources are also

shown on the figure: the motion of the ocean tides and
geothermal heat from the Earth's interior, which
manifests itself in convection in volcanoes and hot
springs, and in conduction in rocks.

Solar energy: direct uses

Solar radiation can be converted into useful energy
directly, using various technologies.

Solar energy can also be concentrated by mirrors to provide

high-temperature heat for generating electricity.
Such 'solar thermal-electric' power stations are in commercial
operation in countries like the USA and Spain. Solar thermal
energy conversion is described in Chapter 2.

Absorbed in solar 'collectors', it can provide hot water

or space heating.

Solar radiation can also be converted directly into electricity

using photovoltaic (PV) modules, normally mounted on the
roofs or facades of buildings.

Buildings can also be designed with 'passive solar'

features that enhance the contribution of solar energy to
their space heating and lighting requirements.

At the time of writing, electricity from photovoltaics is more

expensive than that from conventional sources, but prices are
falling fast and the industry is expanding rapidly.

Solar energy: Indirect uses

Solar radiation can be converted to useful energy
indirectly, via other energy forms.
A large fraction of the radiation reaching the Earth's
surface is absorbed by the oceans, warming them and
adding water vapour to the air.
The water vapour condenses as rain to feed rivers, into
which dams and turbines can be located to extract the
energy of the flowing water.
Figure 1.9 The various forms of renewable energy depend primarily
on incoming solar radiation, which totals some 5.4 million EJ per year

Hydropower, has steadily grown during the twentieth century,

and at the time of writing provides about a sixth of the world's
electricity.

Wind power & Wave power

Sunlight falls in a more perpendicular direction in tropical

regions and more obliquely at high latitudes, heating the tropics
to a greater degree than the polar regions.

Wind power, has developed on a large scale only in the

past few decades, but is one of the fastest-growing of
the 'new' renewable sources of electricity.

The result is a massive heat flow towards the poles, carried by

currents in the oceans and the atmosphere. The energy in such
currents can be harnessed, for example by wind turbines.

Where winds blow over long stretches of ocean, they

create waves, and a variety of devices can be used to
extract that energy.
Wave power, is attracting new funding for research,
development and demonstration in several countries.

Bioenergy
Bioenergy, is another indirect manifestation of solar energy.
Through photosynthesis in plants, solar radiation converts water
and atmospheric carbon dioxide into carbohydrates, which form
the basis of more complex molecules.
Biomass, in the form of wood or other `biofuels', is a major
world energy source, especially in the developing world.
Gaseous and liquid fuels derived from biological sources make
significant contributions to the energy supplies of some
countries.
Biofuels can also be derived from wastes, many of which are
biological in origin.

Biofuels are a renewable resource if the rate at which

they are consumed is no greater than the rate at which
new plants are re-grown which, unfortunately, is often
not the case.
Although the combustion of biofuels generates
atmospheric CO2 emissions, these should be offset by the
CO2 absorbed when the plants were growing, but
significant emissions of other greenhouse gases can
result if the combustion is inefficient.

Non-solar renewables
Two other sources of renewable energy do not depend
on solar radiation:

tidal and
geothermal energy.

Tidal energy, is often confused with wave energy, but

its origins are quite different.

It is also possible to harness the power of strong

underwater currents, which are mainly tidal in origin.
Various devices for exploiting this energy source, such
as marine current turbines (rather like underwater wind
turbines) are at the demonstration stage.

Ocean tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the

Moon (with a small contribution from the Sun) on the
world's oceans, causing a regular rise and fall in water
levels as the Earth rotates.
The power of the tides can be harnessed by building a
low dam or 'barrage' behind which the rising waters are
captured and then allowed to flow back through
electricity-generating turbines.

Heat from within the Earth is the source of geothermal

energy.
The high temperature of the interior was originally
caused by gravitational contraction of the planet as it
was formed, but has since been enhanced by the heat
from the decay of radioactive materials deep within the
Earth.

In some places where hot rocks are very near to the

surface, water is heated in underground aquifers.
These have been used for centuries to provide hot water
or steam.
In some countries, geothermal steam is used to produce
electricity and, in others, hot water from geothermal
wells is used for heating.

Renewable energy in a sustainable

future
The EU in its '20:20:20' Directive, passed in 2009, set a
target for Europe to achieve by 2020 a 20% reduction in
carbon emissions combined with a 20% contribution to
gross final energy consumption from renewable
sources.
Within this overall target, individual member states
have been given different specific targets suited to their
climates and circumstances:

If steam or hot water is extracted at a greater rate than

heat is replenished from surrounding rocks, a
geothermal site will cool down and new holes will have
to be drilled nearby.
When operated in this way, geothermal energy is not
strictly renewable.
However, it is possible to operate in a renewable mode
by keeping the rate of extraction below the rate of
renewal.

Summary
each of the principal renewable energy sources are
examined in turn: in each case their physical principles,
the main technologies involved, their costs and
environmental impact, the size of the potential resource
and their future prospects are discussed. To start, we
discuss the renewable source that is the basis of most of
the others: solar energy.

Figure 1.10 Scenarios from the UK Committee on Climate Change

illustrating the potential contribution of renewables to UK heat (H),
electricity (E) and transport energy (T), and to overall gross final energy
consumption, by 2020 and 2030, compared with the contributions in 2009
(adapted from CCC, 2011). Note: `gross final consumption' shown above
is approximately equivalent to `delivered energy', excluding losses in
conversion and delivery, as shown in the last three bars of Figure 1.5
above

Renewable energy supply systems

divide into three broad divisions:
1 Mechanical supplies, such as hydro, wind, wave and
tidal power. The mechanical source of power is usually
transformed into electricity at high efficiency. The
proportion of power in the environment extracted by the
devices is determined by the mechanics of the process,
linked to the variability of the source, as explained in
later chapters. The proportions are, commonly, wind
35%, hydro 7090%, wave 50%and tidal 75%.

2 Heat supplies

3 Photon processes

2 Heat supplies, such as biomass combustion and solar

collectors. These sources provide heat at high
efficiency. However, the maximum proportion of heat
energy extractable as mechanical work, and hence
electricity, is given by the second law of
thermodynamics and the Carnot Theorem, which
assumes reversible, infinitely long transformations. In
practice, maximum mechanical power produced in a
dynamic process is about half that predicted by the
Carnot criteria. For thermal boiler heat engines,
maximum realisable quality is about 35%.

3 Photon processes, such as photosynthesis and

photochemistry (Chapter 10) and photovoltaic
conversion (Chapter 7). For example, solar photons of a
single frequency may be transformed into mechanical
work via electricity with high efficiency using a
matched solar cell.In practice, the broad band of
frequencies in the solar spectrum makes matching
difficult and photon conversion efficiencies of 2030%
are considered good.1.4.4 Dispersed versus centralised
energy