Electricity from Renewable Resources

Electricity from Renewable Resources PDF

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2010-04-05

Total Pages: 386

ISBN-13: 030913708X

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A component in the America's Energy Future study, Electricity from Renewable Resources examines the technical potential for electric power generation with alternative sources such as wind, solar-photovoltaic, geothermal, solar-thermal, hydroelectric, and other renewable sources. The book focuses on those renewable sources that show the most promise for initial commercial deployment within 10 years and will lead to a substantial impact on the U.S. energy system. A quantitative characterization of technologies, this book lays out expectations of costs, performance, and impacts, as well as barriers and research and development needs. In addition to a principal focus on renewable energy technologies for power generation, the book addresses the challenges of incorporating such technologies into the power grid, as well as potential improvements in the national electricity grid that could enable better and more extensive utilization of wind, solar-thermal, solar photovoltaics, and other renewable technologies.

America's Renewable Resources

America's Renewable Resources PDF

Author: Kenneth D. Frederick

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-10-18

Total Pages: 317

ISBN-13: 1135994420

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By recording one country's experience with its vast natural resource base, America's Renewable Resources: Historical Trends and Current Challenges will help to inform the management of future demands on the resource base in the U.S. and throughout the world. The contributors focus specifically on renewable resources--water, forests, rangeland, cropland and soils, and wildlife--which possess the capacity to restore themselves after they have be consumed. Because this capacity can be destroyed and the time required for restoration can be very long, a balance in their use is necessary to sustain continued productivity. In arresting fashion, the authors trace the history of each resource's use from early colonial times through periods of dramatic, sometimes cataclysmic, changes in its utilization by an expanding, diversifying society. They show how unforeseen consequences have forced social institutions into existence and compelled policy makers, especially at the federal level, to deal with problems for which they were largely unprepared. America's Renewable Resources, by examining changes in demand, technologies, policies, and institutions, will assist both policy makers and the public at large to look past short-term events to the conditions fundamental to maintaining our future economic and environmental wellbeing. Originally published in 1991

America's Energy Future

America's Energy Future PDF

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2010-01-15

Total Pages: 736

ISBN-13: 0309116023

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For multi-user PDF licensing, please contact customer service. Energy touches our lives in countless ways and its costs are felt when we fill up at the gas pump, pay our home heating bills, and keep businesses both large and small running. There are long-term costs as well: to the environment, as natural resources are depleted and pollution contributes to global climate change, and to national security and independence, as many of the world's current energy sources are increasingly concentrated in geopolitically unstable regions. The country's challenge is to develop an energy portfolio that addresses these concerns while still providing sufficient, affordable energy reserves for the nation. The United States has enormous resources to put behind solutions to this energy challenge; the dilemma is to identify which solutions are the right ones. Before deciding which energy technologies to develop, and on what timeline, we need to understand them better. America's Energy Future analyzes the potential of a wide range of technologies for generation, distribution, and conservation of energy. This book considers technologies to increase energy efficiency, coal-fired power generation, nuclear power, renewable energy, oil and natural gas, and alternative transportation fuels. It offers a detailed assessment of the associated impacts and projected costs of implementing each technology and categorizes them into three time frames for implementation.

Renewable Electricity Generation

Renewable Electricity Generation PDF

Author: Benjamin Zycher

Publisher: AEI Press

Published: 2011-11-16

Total Pages: 82

ISBN-13: 0844772232

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This volume examines the outlook for renewable energy in electricity generation-particularly wind and solar power-as a substitute for conventional fuels such as coal and natural gas. Economist Benjamin Zycher evaluates the central arguments in favor of policies that would make way for broader use of renewables and concludes that all are deeply problematic. "Renewable" energy sources are not superior in cost to conventional fuels; nor are they less taxing on the environment. The popular argument that increased use of renewables will create "green jobs" is likewise a fallacy-because wind and solar power are costly and inefficient, the net economic impact is a negative one. Zycher concludes that resource-use behaviors emerging from market competition are the best guides to effective, sustainable energy policies.

Renewable energy market analysis: Latin America

Renewable energy market analysis: Latin America PDF

Author: International Renewable Energy Agency IRENA

Publisher: International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)

Published: 2016-11-01

Total Pages: 334

ISBN-13: 9292602101

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The report offers a comprehensive review of the status and trends in the region’s renewable energy development. It highlights Latin America’s wealth of knowledge, draws key lessons, and outlines findings to support the continued expansion of renewables for power generation, transport and other end-uses.

Superpower

Superpower PDF

Author: Russell Gold

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Published: 2020-11-10

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 1501163590

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Meet Michael Skelly, the man boldly harnessing wind energy that could power America’s future and break its fossil fuel dependence in this “essential, compelling look into the future of the nation’s power grid” (Bryan Burrough, author of The Big Rich). The United States is in the midst of an energy transition. We have fallen out of love with dirty fossil fuels and want to embrace renewable energy sources like wind and solar. A transition from a North American power grid that is powered mostly by fossil fuels to one that is predominantly clean is feasible, but it would require a massive building spree—wind turbines, solar panels, wires, and billions of dollars would be needed. Enter Michael Skelly, an infrastructure builder who began working on wind energy in 2000 when many considered the industry a joke. Eight years later, Skelly helped build the second largest wind power company in the United States—and sold it for $2 billion. Wind energy was no longer funny—it was well on its way to powering more than 6% of electricity in the United States. Award-winning journalist, Russel Gold tells Skelly’s story, which in many ways is the story of our nation’s evolving relationship with renewable energy. Gold illustrates how Skelly’s company, Clean Line Energy, conceived the idea for a new power grid that would allow sunlight where abundant to light up homes in the cloudy states thousands of miles away, and take wind from the Great Plains to keep air conditioners running in Atlanta. Thrilling, provocative, and important, Superpower is a fascinating look at America’s future.