GE3451 - Environmental Sciences and Sustainability Following five steps are important in the process of Energy

UNIT III RENEWABLE SOURCES OF ENERGY

Management
Energy management and conservation, New Energy Sources: Need of new
sources. Different types new energy sources. Applications of Hydrogen  Step 1 Collecting and analysing continuous data
energy, Ocean energy resources, Tidal energy conversion. Concept, origin and  Step 2 Identify optimisation in equipment schedules
power plants of geothermal energy.
 Step 3 Calculate return on investment
Course Objectives:  Step 4 Execute energy optimization solutions
To facilitate the understanding of global and Indian scenario of renewable and non
renewable resources, causes of their degradation and measures to preserve them.  Step 5 Repeat step 2 to continue optimising Energy Efficiency
Course Outcome:
CO3 To identify and apply the understanding of renewable and non-renewable
resources and contribute to the sustainable measures to preserve them for future
generations.

ENERGY MANAGEMENT Importance of Energy Management:

 Energy management includes planning and operation of energy
• Primary goal of energy management is design and maintain
production and energy consumption units as well as energy
distribution and storage.
optimal energy consumption.
 For the past decades energy generation has been shifted to • Energy Management is a best strategy for lowering direct and
alternative energy sources like renewable energy forms such as
immediate energy use.
solar, wind and biomass energy.
 Apart from the growth in the energy sector there has been an • Managing and reducing energy usage not only results in
equivalent increase in business and Organisations. financial savings but also benefits the environment and a
 Energy Management introduced in an organisation can effectively
company’s reputation.
manage how much energy they produce and how to control and
monitor. • Energy should be considered a business cost.
 Energy and money can be saved by employing Energy Management
principles.

Aims of Energy Management ENERGY CONSERVATION

 Resource conservation  Energy conservation means reducing the consumption of
energy by using less energy.
 Climate protection
 Energy conservation is the practice of using less energy in
 Cost savings minimise waste order to lower the cost and reduce environmental impact.
 Minimise Environmental effects Needs to save energy
The Ultimate aim or objectives of this process is not only to save  We have finite and our demand for energy is growing.
the cost but also to achieve complete environmental
sustainability.  Most fossil feels likely to run out and forcing which to
alternative sources of energy.
Principles of Energy Management
Aims of energy conservation
 Reducing needless energy use
 To reduce overall energy demand
 Increasing energy efficiency
 To lower energy cost
 Purchasing energy at a lesser cost
 To reduce energy consumption
 Changing operations to allow for lower cost energy purchases
 To lower the overall Greenhouse gas emission

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10 ways to conserve energy:
Hydrogen Energy
1. Adjust your day today behaviours: switch off lights and appliances when you
 Hydrogen energy is a type of renewable energy that uses hydrogen
do not need them
gas as a fuel to generate electricity or power vehicles.
2. Replace your light bulbs: traditional incandescent light bulbs consume more
 Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, and it can
amount of electricity and must be replaced by energy efficient like LED
be obtained from a variety of sources such as natural gas, biomass,
bulbs.
and water.
3. Install Programmable or smart thermostat
 The process of generating hydrogen involves separating it from
4. Turn off or reduce heating and cooling during the time when you are asleep or other elements in a process called electrolysis.
away  This process uses electricity to split water molecules into hydrogen
5. Purchase energy efficient appliances and oxygen.
6. Install energy efficient Windows: prevent heat loss through windows  Once the hydrogen is separated, it can be stored and transported to
7. Update your HVAC systems be used as a fuel.
8. Insulate your home: Insulation retains heat during winter  One of the main advantages of hydrogen energy is that it produces
9. Using Natural light like sun we can reduce the energy consumption.
zero emissions, as the only by product of hydrogen combustion is
water vapour.
10. Replacing dirty air filters in HVAC and AC’s

New Energy Sources

Need for new energy sources
• Fossil fuels and nuclear energy are the important resources
used to meet most of our energy needs today these are
expected to be widely used in the near future.
• Fossil and nuclear energy resources are non-renewable and
will some day be exhausted, while their continued use possess
environmental risks related to air pollution, land use and
waste disposal.
• These issues have stimulated the research for new energy
sources for producing and using energy.

Applications of Hydrogen Energy:

New Energy Sources  Hydrogen is a reagent used in many industries including chemicals,
textile fibre manufacturing, glass electronic and metallurgy.
1. Hydrogen energy
 It is also used as a fuel for rocket launchers.
2. Ocean Thermal Energy conversion  In electronics hydrogen is used as a carrier gas, for manufacture of
electronic components.
3. Tidal and wave energy
 In industry hydrogen combines with nitrogen to produce ammonia, base
4. Geothermal energy for fertilizers.
5. Solar energy  It is a good reagent for textile fibres like nylon.
 Hydrogen is used in metallurgy for heat treatment process mechanical
6. Wind energy
parts or to alter their properties.
7. Biomass energy  Atomic hydrogen welding (AHW) is a type of arc welding which utilizes
hydrogen environment.

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 A mixture of hydrogen and nitrogen is used to prevent Disadvantages of hydrogen energy

oxidation in flat glass production.  The production of hydrogen is highly energy-intensive, requiring
large amounts of energy and expensive technologies.
 Hydrogen is used to create semiconductors, LEDs and display
 Storage and Transportation: Unlike traditional fuels, hydrogen is
units.
lightweight and highly volatile. It requires specialized storage and
 Hydrogen gas is used as a therapeutic gas for a number of
transportation.
different diseases.  Safety concerns: Hydrogen is highly flammable, which raises
 Hydrogen fuel cell uses hydrogen as a fuel in an serious safety concerns. Any leakage or exposure to oxygen can
electrochemical process to produce electrical energy with potentially result in an explosion.

water and heat.  Limited availability: Hydrogen is not readily available at gas
stations and service stations, making it difficult to refuel vehicles.

Two main applications of hydrogen fuel cells are Ocean energy

 Stationery power sources are used to power office buildings,  Ocean energy refers to the renewable energy generated from
data centres, grocery stores and telecommunication towers, it is the ocean's tides, waves, currents, temperature differences, and
used as a part of UPS system. salinity gradients.
 Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) are a type of electric vehicle Concept:
that use hydrogen gas as their primary fuel source. The  Tidal energy or tidal power is a form of ocean energy that is
hydrogen is stored in high-pressure tanks and is combined with harnessed by converting tidal energy into useful forms of
oxygen from the air in a fuel cell to generate electricity. The power.
electricity is then used to power an electric motor, which drives  Tidal energy is obtained from the rise and fall of tides.
the vehicle's wheels. Hydrogen fuel cell trains have now  Tidal barrages and dams are constructed across a narrow
appeared. Hydrogen fuel cells are found in a number of marine opening to the sea, where water rushes into the dam when the
applications. sea level rises which moves the blade of the turbines which
helps in the generation of electricity.

Advantages of hydrogen energy Important applications of ocean energy

• Electricity generation
 Hydrogen is readily available • Desalination
 It does not produce harmful emissions • Aquaculture
 It is environmentally friendly • Transportation
 Efficient and more powerful than fossil fuels • Oil and gas exploration
 It is renewable • Recreation
 It reduces carbon footprints
 It can be used for long time

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Advantages of ocean energy Tidal energy
• Tidal energy is a form of renewable energy that harnesses the
power of the tides to generate electricity.
• Ocean energy is cheaper and efficient
• Tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the moon and the
• It is environment friendly sun, and as the water moves in and out with the tides.
• Tidal energy conversion is the process of generating
• Operational and maintenance cost or low electricity from the movement of ocean tides.
• Tidal energy sources can last for decades • This is typically done by placing turbines in tidal currents or
using underwater turbines that are driven by the kinetic
• It protects coastal flooding due to the stability of rock energy of moving water.
• As the tides move in and out, the turbines spin and generate
armor
electricity, which can then be used to power homes,
businesses, and other electrical devices.

Disadvantages of ocean energy • Tidal stream systems use underwater turbines that are placed
• High capital costs in areas with strong tidal currents, such as narrow channels or

• Location-dependent between islands. The turbines are turned by the movement of

the water, generating electricity that can be transmitted to
• Environmental impacts
shore.
• Maintenance costs • Tidal barrage systems, on the other hand, use large dams or
• Interference with shipping and fishing barrages to trap the incoming tide and then release it through
turbines as the tide goes out. This method is similar to
hydroelectric power generation, but uses the power of the
tides rather than the flow of a river.

Tidal Energy APPLICATIONS OF TIDAL ENERGY

 Electricity can be generated from the tidal energy
 Tidal energy is used to grinning mills for the mechanical
crushing of grains.
 Tidal energy is used to rotate turbine
 Tidal energy is used to store energy in hydroelectric Dam
acting as large energy storage
 Tidal barrage and reservoirs can be modified to store energy
 Tidal barrages are capable of preventing damages to the coast
during high storms
 Tidal barrage is also help to create easy transport.

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Advantages of tidal energy CONCEPT
• Geothermal technology extracts the heat found within the
 It is environment friendly
subsurface of the earth, which can be used directly for heating and
 It is cheaper, efficient and predictable cooling or converting it to electricity.
• The steam comes from the reservoirs of hot water found a few
 Low operating and maintenance cost miles below the earth surface rotate a turbine that activates a
generator, which produces electricity.
 Protects coastal flooding
POWER PLANTS OF GEOTHERMAL ENERGY:
 Power output is highly predictable • Geothermal power plant uses hydro thermal resources that have
both water and heat.
• Geothermal power plants require high temperature hydro thermal
resources that come from either dry steam wells or from hot water
wells.
• Generally, we use this resources by drilling wells into the earth and
then piping steam or hot water to the surface. The hot water or
steam rotates a turbine that generates electricity, the depth of the
geothermal wells is as much as two miles.

Disadvantages of tidal energy TYPES OF GEOTHERMAL POWER PLANTS

1) Dry steam power plant
Construction of tidal Power Plant is expensive.
 It uses steam directly from geothermal reservoir to drive
Equipment maintenance difficult generator’s turbine.

Storage capacity is required.

Negative influence on marine life forms.

Location Limited

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY (GTE) 2) Flash steam power plant

Geothermal energy is the energy that is derived from the  It takes high pressure hot water from deep inside the earth and
Converts it into steam to drive generator’s turbine.
heat within the earth's crust. The earth's crust contains a large
 When the steam cools, it condenses to water and is injected back
amount of heat, which is generated by the radioactive decay of into the ground to be used again.
minerals and the residual heat left over from the earth's  Most thermal power plants are flash steam plants.
formation. This heat can be used to generate electricity through
the use of geothermal power plants.
 GTE is used for space heating and cooling
 GTE is used to generate electricity
 It is also used for industrial process heat
 Geothermal heat pumps are used to heat buildings in the
winter and cool them in summer

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3) Binary cycle power plants
 It transfers the heat from geothermal hot water to another liquid.
 The heat causes the second liquid to convert it into steam which is
used to drive a generator’s turbine.

Advantages of geothermal Disadvantages of geothermal

energy energy
GT energy is environmentally
Location is restricted
friendly

GT is a source of renewable There are many other gases released

energy into the aatmosphere

The potential of GTE is huge May cause earthquakes

It is expensive resource,
GTE is natural management is
required to maintain sustainability