Renewable Energy - Top 5 Alternative Energy Sources for Sustainable Future

Currently, the apprehension of energy crisis is looming large all over the world. Owing to the indiscriminate use of the non-renewable energy resources they are on the verge of extinction. In such a circumstance it has become pivotal to look for energy sources to meet the ever increasing needs.

Some of the best alternative energy sources are discussed below –

1. Solar Energy:

It is no doubt that is sun is the most power natural source of energy. The solar energy (heat and light) which is available in abundance for free can be used for cooling, lighting, water heating, generating electricity and a variety of other purpose both at residential and industrial level. Most of the renewable energy sources are directly or indirectly obtained from the sun. For example, sun’s heat is a major factor responsible for blowing of wind.

The light from the sun is a crucial factor for the growth of plants and trees that are used for producing biomass energy. Additionally, the heat from plays a vital role in the evaporation cycle and the rain, which in turn makes production of hydropower possible.

Water flowing in a downstream has tremendous amount of force. Water is the most useful renewable energy source, owing to the natural evaporation cycle and the rain there would never be shortage of water. The rain water that gets accumulated on the surface flows to join the water bodies like streams, lakes or rivers which ultimately flow into the Ocean.

The power of flowing water can be tapped to power water wheel to produce mechanical energy. This energy can be captured by generators or turbines to produce electricity for homes and industries.

The natural heat inside the earth’s crust produces hot water and steam. This can be used trapped to drive power generators and produce electricity. This free energy can be used for applications such as heaters or coolers for residential and industrial purposes.

The Geothermal energy can be derived from underground reservoirs through drilling or other geothermal sources that are close to the earth’s surface.

4. Wind Energy:

The natural movement of air occurs when the warm air rises up and it is replaced by the cooler air. The movement of air causes the wind to blow and when the wind blows with great intensity it has tremendous energy.

This energy from the wind has been used to sail ships in the oceans since a long time. Today, with the advancement of technology, the wind energy is used to drive the windmills that are connected to turbines for producing electricity.

Biomass energy has been used since long. People first used it by burning wood to cook food and keep themselves warm in cold weather. Wood is the most common source of biomass energy, but there are many other sources of biomass energy sources including grass, food crops, waste and residue from forestry and agricultural land.

Even the organic waste components emitted by the industries can be used to produce biomass energy. Recently, harvesting methane gas from landfills has become a popular way to produce biomass energy. This energy can be used for generating electricity, for transportation purpose and to produce certain material that would otherwise use the precious, non renewable energy sources.