WHAT ARE RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES?
Energy sources are sources that enable the production of energy in any way. The energy we need in our daily lives and at every moment provides us with energy sources and can constantly renew itself in nature. We can define it as inexhaustible energy.
Solar Energy
It is a technology based on obtaining energy from sunlight. Solar energy is a renewable energy source that has features such as ease of installation and use, as well as not polluting the environment and not creating harmful waste.
Solar energy is the radiation energy released by the fusion process in the core of the sun. It is caused by the fusion process in the form of the transformation of hydrogen gas in the sun into helium. Even a small part of this energy that comes into the world is many times more than the energy used by human beings. The energy coming to the world from the sun is 20 thousand times the energy used in a year in the world.
Solar energy is used by converting it into secondary energy types such as electricity and mechanics with some systems or by storing it in fluid materials such as air and water. From solar energy; it is used as an energy source in many processes such as heating of pool water, use in solar cookers, use in drying agricultural products, use in cooling applications, use in water distillation applications, use in heating greenhouses, use in soil solarization processes, etc.
Wind Energy
The main source of wind energy is solar energy. Solar energy doesn’t heat land, seas and the atmosphere to the same degree everywhere. Therefore, the temperature and pressure differences that occur create the wind. Wind turbines installed in areas where the effect of wind is felt excessively convert the existing kinetic energy of the wind into mechanical energy and then into electrical energy. The energy obtained from the wind depends on the current speed of the wind and the duration of its blow.
Today, wind energy meets 2% of the world’s electricity needs. Wind turbine technologies have little harmful impact on the environment compared to other electricity generation techniques.
Bioenergy / Biomass Energy
Biomass; As a term that describes plants, trees and all organic matter formed by agricultural products and wastes, they are essentially the environments where solar energy is collected and stored by photosynthesis. This type of energy is the sum of plants that use carbon dioxide, water and solar energy. Bioenergy is obtained in the forms of liquid biofuel (usually obtained from energy-rich products), waste (including household waste), solid biomass (wood, charcoal and other biomass substances) and gas (obtained from biomass decay). Biomass energy is used today by both traditional and modern methods. In its traditional sense, it is often widely used for heating and cooking purposes in developing countries. In the modern sense, it is used in the production of products such as biodiesel and bioethanol, especially in the production of electricity.
This type of energy is an inexhaustible resource, it can be obtained everywhere, it is seen as a convenient and important source of energy, especially for rural areas, as it helps with socio-economic developments.
Specially grown plants such as corn and wheat, grasses, algae, algae in the sea, animal excrement, manure and industrial wastes, all organic garbage (fruit and vegetable residues) thrown from homes are the source for biomass. Despite the depletion of fossil fuels (coal, etc.) and the environmental pollution it creates, the use of biomass is becoming increasingly important to solve the energy problem.
Geothermal Energy:
The heat energy in hot water, steam gas or hot dry rocks under pressure accumulated in various depths of the earth’s crust is called Geothermal Energy. The ancient Romans and Chinese used this energy for bathing, cooking, and heating. Today, electricity is produced by using high heat values of geothermal energy. Since it does not depend on atmospheric events, unlike solar and wind energies, continuous energy can be supplied. That is why its efficiency is higher.
It is used in the production of electrical energy, central heating, central cooling systems, peat fruit growing, vegetable growing and floriculture by heating greenhouses, heating of airport runways, heating of animal farms, physical therapy and tourist centers, drying and sterilizing food, timber and wood covering industry, pharmaceutical and pasteurized milk factories, etc. Geothermal energy is a renewable, sustainable and inexhaustible source of energy. It is quite economical compared to other energy sources. It does not take up much space, is clean and does not pollute the environment.
Hydroelectric Energy
It is the energy produced by hydroelectric power plants using water power. The basis of energy is to use the energy of flowing water and convert this energy into electrical energy. Hydroelectric power plants are renewable. They are a clean source of energy for nature. Since the flow rate of water will be high in places where the elevation is high, these power plants will be more useful in these regions. Since the energy of the water flowing in hydroelectric power plants is based, it is used to develop fisheries, facilitate transportation, irrigation and most of all in energy production.
Hydrogen Energy
Due to the technology and production difficulty used today, its use is not yet very common. However, with the advancement of technology, it is one of the most important candidates in meeting the energy needs of the world as a clean energy source. In the future, we can talk about the use of hydrogen energy in the production of electricity, heat and fuel cells.
Wave/Ocean Energy
One can actually think of the oceans as two separate sources of energy. The first is thermal energy due to solar heat, and the second is mechanical energy, which is fed by waves and tides. The oceans, which cover 70% of the Earth’s surface, also make up the world’s largest solar collectors.
The temperature difference between the excess heat water on the surface of the oceans and the cool waters in the depths creates a natural thermal energy. If it can be utilized sufficiently, even a small part of this energy is enough to meet the energy needs of the whole world.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1- T.C. Bingöl University, Institute of Natural and Applied Sciences, Renewable Energy Systems https://fbe.bingol.edu.tr/programlar_/yenilenebilir-enerji-sistemleri/
2- DURUKAN, Ali., ERMAN, Mutlu. : The Importance of Renewable Energy and Its Place in Latin American Geography: The Case of Brazil,
https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1816618
3- DEMİRCAN, Rüya., GÜLTEKİN, Arzuhan. : Investigation of Passive and Active Solar Systems in Buildings,
https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/281830
4- Online, Journal of Advanced Technology Sciences
