Solar Energy

Is radiant light and heat from the Sun harnessed using a range of ever-evolving
technologies such as solar heating, photovoltaics, solar thermal energy, solar architecture
and artificial photosynthesis.

Components
The Panels
PV (photovoltaic) panels are the most common type of panel, especially for residential
installations. They are made from three layers:
-The N-Layer silicon that is mixed with phosphorus
-The P/N Junction pure silicon
-The P-Layer silicon that is mixed with boron
The Inverter
The Battery
The Distributor

Functioning
Solar panels use a special process of converting photons to electrons to generate a
current by making use of a special type of cell known as a photovoltaic cell. These cells
are commonly found on the front of calculators and small gadgets. When a bank of them
are connected together, they are collectively known as a solar panel.
Photovoltaic cells are made up of semi conductive materials such as silicon. The
semiconductor absorbs the light from the sun. When this happens, the photons in the
sunlight knock some of the electrons in the semi conductive material loose which allows
them to flow in an electrical current.
Within each cell, there is an electric field which is used to streamline this flow of electrons
in a particular direction. When these electrons meet a metal contact placed on the
photovoltaic cell, it can be used to power devices.

Location in Honduras
Examples of solar farms:
144 MW solar park in Nacaome
61.5 MW Aura II PV Solar Plant
35.1 MW Choluteca II
23.3 MW Pacfico
23.3 MW Choluteca I
An additional 250 MW of solar power are expected to come online in 2015 including
another 50 MW project in Nacaome.

Eolic Energy
Air flow through wind turbines or sails can produce significant mechanical power.
Windmills are used for their mechanical power, wind pumps for water pumping, and sails
to propel ships, but the most frequent current use is to turn a generator for electrical
power. Wind power, as an alternative to burning fossil fuels, is plentiful, renewable, widely
distributed, clean, produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, and uses little
land. The net effects on the environment are far less problematic than those of
nonrenewable power sources.

Components
Modern wind energy systems consist of three basic components: a tower on which the
wind turbine is mounted; a rotor that is turned by the wind; and the nacelle, which houses
the equipment, including the generator, that converts the mechanical energy in the
spinning rotor into electricity. The tower supporting the rotor and generator must be strong.
Rotor blades need to be light and strong in order to be aerodynamically efficient and to
withstand prolonged use in high winds.

Functioning
Simply stated, a wind turbine works the opposite of a fan. Instead of using electricity to
make wind, like a fan, wind turbines use wind to make electricity. The wind turns the
blades, which spin a shaft, which connects to a generator and makes electricity.

Location in Honduras
Due to the diversity of the Honduran landscape, the potential for wind development varies
considerably. A 100 MW wind project was built in 2012. Finance was agreed with US EXIM
Bank in mid-2010 (EXIM bank project reference AP083987xx). This project, sponsored by
Mesoamerica Energy, is located in Cerro de Hula, in the municipalities of Santa Ana and
San Buenaventura, 20 km south of Tegucigalpa. Mesoamerica seems to be actively
controlled by the Actis Infrastructure Fund. A 24 MW expansion of this wind farm was
completed in 2014. A 50 MW wind plant was built in 2014 in San Marcos de Coln.

Hydroelectric Energy
The production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or
flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy, accounting for 16
percent of global electricity generation 3,427 terawatt-hours of electricity production in
2010, and is expected to increase about 3.1% each year for the next 25 years.

Components
Dam
Water Reservoir
Intake or Control Gates.
The Penstock
Water Turbines
Generators

Functioning
By letting the water flow through turbines on their way to the sea, we can harness some of
the kinetic energy of water to produce electricity. The flow and head determines the
potential energy of a waterfall. The head is the height difference between the water level in
the inlet and outlet from the power plant. From the intake reservoir, the water flows down
to the power station, and then into the turbine wheel.

Location in Honduras
Cangrejal: This planned dam on the Rio Cangrejal near La Ceiba, with an associated 40
MW power plant, has attracted international criticism due to its potential environmental
impact, including the flooding of rapids that are a well-known whitewater sports destination
and attract many tourists.
Patuca 3: The Patuca 3 dam on the Patuca River in the Department of Olancho, with an
associated 100 MW power plant, is to be built in a protected area that is part of the
Mesoamerican Biological Corridor and is inhabited by indigenous people whose livelihoods
would be affected.
Los Llanitos: The Los Llanitos Hydroelectric Power Project is planned on the Ulua River.
The plant was initially expected to have a capacity between 94 and 135 MW, but has later
been reduced to 50 MW. Initial plans had been drawn up as part of the Sula Valley Water
Management Plan, but the project had not been implemented.
The Jicatuyo dam (170 MW) on the river of the same name, a tributary of the Ulua River.

Biomass
Biomass energy is any kind of energy that uses a biological organism (plant or animal) as
its source.

Components
Fuel storage area
Fuel conveyor system
Chipper/grinder
Boiler
Turbine
Generator
Condenser
Pollution control devices
Smokestack
Cooling system
Electrical substation
Administration building

Functioning
To many people, the most familiar forms of renewable energy are the wind and the sun.
But biomass (plant material and animal waste) supplies almost 15 times as much energy
in the United States as wind and solar power combinedand has the potential to supply
much more. It is the oldest source of renewable energy known to humans, used since our
ancestors learned the secret of fire. Biomass is a renewable energy source because the
energy it contains comes from the sun. Through the process of photosynthesis, chlorophyll
in plants captures the sun's energy by converting carbon dioxide from the air and water
from the ground into carbohydrates, complex compounds composed of carbon, hydrogen,
and oxygen.
When these carbohydrates are burned, they turn back into carbon dioxide and water and
release the sun's energy they contain. In this way, biomass functions as a sort of natural
battery for storing solar energy. As long as biomass is produced sustainablywith only as
much used as is grownthe battery will last indefinitely. From the time of Prometheus to
the present, the most common way to capture the energy from biomass was to burn it, to
make heat, steam, and electricity. But advances in recent years have shown that there are
more efficient and cleaner ways to use biomass. It can be converted into liquid fuels, for
example, or cooked in a process called "gasification" to produce combustible gases. And
certain crops such as switchgrass and willow trees are especially suited as "energy crops,"
plants grown specifically for energy generation.

Location in Honduras
Honduras has a large potential for electricity generation from biomass, mainly from the
sugar industry. Currently, there are nine biomass projects in operation, with a total of 81.75
MW installed capacity. These plants are estimated to supply 2.3 percent of the total
demand of energy in Honduras for 2007.

Saint Johns Episcopal School

Environmental Education
-Alternative Energy Sources

Ms. Ana C. Orellana

Yesmin Galindo

Eleventh Grade

February 23, 2016

Puerto Corts