Alternative Energy Research Paper Essay Example
Prof. C
Comp. 1-Research Paper
7 Nov. 2008 Within the next few years, one can expect to see a vast change in the way that mankind harnesses energy. Alternative fuels will play a colossal role in what has become one of our generation’s largest challenges, limited supplies of fossil fuels. Scientists have been working for years to develop alternative methods to power the globe given that materials such as coal and oil are not renewable resources. Once they are used up, they are gone forever. New forms of energy have to be developed but what other sources are there and where will each work best? With fuel prices increasing every year and the theory that CO2 emissions from coal and petroleum products are heating up the globe, other resources of energy are being developed and put into use around the world. One of the new resources that is being put to use is wind energy. This particular type of energy is based on the old concept of windmills that used to be used on farms. When the wind blows it causes the blades on the windmill to spin. This spinning in turn, spins a turbine inside of a small generator. That action creates electricity. Although windmills are fantastic, they are not practical everywhere. Wind turbines need to have at least a 14 mph wind speed in order to do any good( Wind Power). Unfortunately this is not found everywhere. So wind turbines must be put only in places that remain consistently windy. The wind farms are also built in areas that are wide open with flat terrain. Iowa is now home to over 600 wind turbines (Wind Power). This number of wind turbines produces enough electricity to power about 140,000 homes. Minnesota and Wisconsin are also putting the technology to use in there windy locations. Some schools in Iowa are even using these wind turbines to power their schools (Wind Power). And when it comes to size on these, bigger is most definitely better. The higher that the turbine is, the more wind that it reaches, thus,
Comp. 1-Research Paper
7 Nov. 2008 Within the next few years, one can expect to see a vast change in the way that mankind harnesses energy. Alternative fuels will play a colossal role in what has become one of our generation’s largest challenges, limited supplies of fossil fuels. Scientists have been working for years to develop alternative methods to power the globe given that materials such as coal and oil are not renewable resources. Once they are used up, they are gone forever. New forms of energy have to be developed but what other sources are there and where will each work best? With fuel prices increasing every year and the theory that CO2 emissions from coal and petroleum products are heating up the globe, other resources of energy are being developed and put into use around the world. One of the new resources that is being put to use is wind energy. This particular type of energy is based on the old concept of windmills that used to be used on farms. When the wind blows it causes the blades on the windmill to spin. This spinning in turn, spins a turbine inside of a small generator. That action creates electricity. Although windmills are fantastic, they are not practical everywhere. Wind turbines need to have at least a 14 mph wind speed in order to do any good( Wind Power). Unfortunately this is not found everywhere. So wind turbines must be put only in places that remain consistently windy. The wind farms are also built in areas that are wide open with flat terrain. Iowa is now home to over 600 wind turbines (Wind Power). This number of wind turbines produces enough electricity to power about 140,000 homes. Minnesota and Wisconsin are also putting the technology to use in there windy locations. Some schools in Iowa are even using these wind turbines to power their schools (Wind Power). And when it comes to size on these, bigger is most definitely better. The higher that the turbine is, the more wind that it reaches, thus,