Renewable resources are those natural resources that will gradually be able to replenish themselves despite some depletion.
The era of renewable resources and alternative energy has arrived. It’s cheaper now than ever before to generate electricity from renewable resources, catapulting them from fringe options to the fastest-growing energy resources in the country.
These renewable resources include alcohol, water, methane gas, natural oils, and thermal generation. In 2017, renewables set a record in the U.S. by generating 15% of all electricity, predominantly due to hydropower, solar, and wind.
What are some other examples of renewable energy? We’ll go down the list.
What is a Renewable Resource?
A renewable resource is a resource that can be replenished naturally over time. As a result, it is sustainable despite its consumption by humankind.
Renewable resources are considered especially important for their potential to replace non-renewable, or finite, resources in the production of energy. Additionally, renewable resources can offer cleaner energy solutions than those provided by non-renewable resources such as coal and fossil fuels.
Renewable energy sources, such as biomass, geothermal resources, sunlight, water, and wind, are natural resources that can be converted into these types of clean, usable energy:
- Bioenergy
- Geothermal energy
- Hydropower
- Marine energy
- Solar energy
- Wind energy
Fossil fuels – coal, oil, and gas – on the other hand, are non-renewable resources that take hundreds of millions of years to form. Fossil fuels, when burned to produce energy, cause harmful greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide.
Generating renewable energy creates far lower emissions than burning fossil fuels. Transitioning from fossil fuels, which currently account for the lion’s share of emissions, to renewable energy is key to addressing the climate crisis.
Renewables are now cheaper in most countries and generate three times more jobs than fossil fuels.
Examples of Renewable resources
Some common examples of renewable resources include solar energy, wind, falling water, the heat of the earth (geothermal), plant materials (biomass), waves, ocean currents, temperature differences in the oceans, and the energy of the tides.
Here are a few common examples of renewable energy in detail:
- Solar Energy.
- Wind Energy.
- Geothermal Energy.
- Hydropower.
- Ocean Energy.
- Bioenergy.
1. Solar Energy
Sunlight is one of the planet’s most freely available energy resources, which you’d assume would make it the number one source of renewable energy. But of course, the amount of sunlight we get can vary greatly depending on location, season, and time of day.
Solar power generates electricity by capturing sunlight on solar panels in a joint chemical and physical reaction, known as the ‘photovoltaic effect’ (or PV).
From home rooftops to utility-scale farms, solar power is reshaping energy markets around the world. In the decade from 2007 and 2017, the world’s total installed energy capacity from photovoltaic panels increased by a whopping 4,300 percent.
2. Wind Energy
Wind energy harnesses the kinetic energy of moving air by using large wind turbines located on land (onshore) or in sea- or freshwater (offshore). Wind energy has been used for millennia, but onshore and offshore wind energy technologies have evolved over the last few years to maximize the electricity produced – with taller turbines and larger rotor diameters.
Though average wind speeds vary considerably by location, the world’s technical potential for wind energy exceeds global electricity production, and ample potential exists in most regions of the world to enable significant wind energy deployment.
Many parts of the world have strong wind speeds, but the best locations for generating wind power are sometimes remote ones. Offshore wind power offers tremendous potential.
3. Geothermal energy
Geothermal energy utilizes the accessible thermal energy from the Earth’s interior. Heat is extracted from geothermal reservoirs using wells or other means.
Reservoirs that are naturally sufficiently hot and permeable are called hydrothermal reservoirs, whereas reservoirs that are sufficiently hot but that are improved with hydraulic stimulation are called enhanced geothermal systems.
Once at the surface, fluids of various temperatures can be used to generate electricity. The technology for electricity generation from hydrothermal reservoirs is mature and reliable, and has been operating for more than 100 years.
4. Water
Water is one of the most important resources on our planet. Life without it would not be possible at all.
Throughout the earth’s history, we have always had the same amount of water. This means that the water running from your tap today might have been drunk by a dinosaur some 200 million years ago. Water simply does not disappear, neither can be exhausted by us – it always completes a cycle to return in one form or other.
Sounds wonderful, right? But it’s not that simple. We cannot make more water than there already is, and the amount we have is very limited. This means, if water becomes contaminated with toxic chemicals, or if it was misused for excessive irrigation projects, we are shortening the amount available for us.
The fact that water does not replenish in the same way as other renewable resources do, makes scientists argue whether it belongs into this category or not. Perhaps it cannot be classified based on renewability at all, and should stand on its own as a nice example of nature’s great complexity.
Although, one thing is sure – the energy of moving water is a renewable source of energy for us.
A) Tidal Energy
Tidal energy is produced by the surge of ocean waters during the rise and fall of tides. Tidal energy is a renewable source of energy.
During the 20th century, engineers developed ways to use tidal movement to generate electricity in areas where there is a significant tidal range the difference in area between high tide and low tide. All methods use special generators to convert tidal energy into electricity.
Tidal energy production is still in its infancy. The amount of power produced so far has been small. There are very few commercial-sized tidal power plants operating in the world.
b) Hydroelectric Power
Hydroelectric energy, also called hydroelectric power or hydroelectricity, is a form of energy that harnesses the power of water in motion such as water flowing over a waterfall to generate electricity. People have used this force for millennia.
Over two thousand years ago, people in Greece used flowing water to turn the wheel of their mill to ground wheat into flour.
Most hydroelectric power plants have a reservoir of water, a gate or valve to control how much water flows out of the reservoir, and an outlet or place where the water ends up after flowing downward. Water gains potential energy just before it spills over the top of a dam or flows down a hill.
The potential energy is converted into kinetic energy as water flows downhill. The water can be used to turn the blades of a turbine to generate electricity, which is distributed to the power plant’s customers.
c) Wave energy
Waves form when the wind blows over large surface of water. In some areas, such as north coast of Canada, Australia, or south of Africa, the wind creates powerful and fairly consistent waves. The amount of energy these waves carry is significant, and can be harvested for as long as there is wind blowing.
5. Biomass Energy
Biomass energy is energy generated or produced by living or once-living organisms. The most common biomass materials used for energy are plants, such as corn and soy, above. The energy from these organisms can be burned to create heat or converted into electricity.
People have used biomass energy from living things since the earliest “cavemen” first made wood fires for cooking or keeping warm.
Biomass is organic, meaning it is made of material that comes from living organisms, such as plants and animals. The most common biomass materials used for energy are plants, wood, and waste. These are called biomass feedstocks. Biomass energy can also be a non-renewable energy source.
Biomass contains energy first derived from the sun: Plants absorb the sun’s energy through photosynthesis and convert carbon dioxide and water into nutrients (carbohydrates).
6. Biofuel
Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short period from biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil. Biofuel can be produced from plants or agricultural, domestic, or industrial biowaste.
Biofuels are mostly used for transportation but can also be used for heating and electricity. Biofuels (and bioenergy in general) are regarded as a renewable energy source. However, the use of biofuel has been controversial because of the several disadvantages associated with the use of it.
These include for example: the “food vs fuel” debate, biofuel production methods being sustainable or not, leading to deforestation and loss of biodiversity or not.
7. Air
Air is a renewable resource. All living organisms need oxygen, nitrogen (directly or indirectly), carbon (directly or indirectly), and many other gases in small quantities for their survival.
Even our industrial processes depend on the access of oxygen as a catalyst to chemical reactions. The combustion of fossil fuels to supply our energy would not be possible without the access of oxygen, neither would be the ignition of a fire that enabled our ancestors to survive cold weather of the last ice age.
This makes air one of the most important natural resources, which is to our advantage also considered a renewable resource. Even though modern anthropogenic activities pollute air at an unprecedented level, many vital natural processes such as photosynthesis are constantly replenishing clean air again.
For example, one acre of forest absorbs six tons of carbon dioxide emitted from industrial activities, and produces four tons of oxygen in exchange.
Advantages of Renewable Energy
First, it’s good to look at the advantages of using renewable energy sources instead of burning fossil fuels.
- Renewable energy won’t run out
- Renewable energy has lower maintenance requirements
- Renewable energy is reliable.
- Renewable energy is environmentally friendly.
- Renewable energy produces clean air.
- Renewable energy can reduce or eliminate energy costs.
- Renewable energy creates jobs and introduces new industries.
- Renewable energy can lower reliance on foreign energy sources.
- Renewable energy has low or zero carbon and greenhouse emissions.
- Renewable energy can be used without interruption.
- Renewable energy is abundant.
Disadvantages of renewable energy
Here are some cons of renewable energy when compared to traditional fuel sources:
- Renewable energy has high upfront costs.
- Renewable energy is intermittent.
- Renewable energy sources have geographic limitations.
- Renewables aren’t always 100% carbon-free.
- Biomass power can result in air pollution.
- Biomass power takes a lot of energy to produce.
- Biomass power can be seasonal and compete with food production.
- Dams for hydroelectric power can create environmental concerns.
- Solar power relies on sunlight, so it doesn’t generate electricity at night or when overcast.
- Solar power is more expensive than other sources.