How can electrical energy be obtained?

С самого начала развития цивилизации человечество gets energy using natural resources. Oil, gas, coal - these minerals are irreplaceable. Their reserves are depleted over time, which, undoubtedly, in the near future may lead to an energy crisis. Electric energy is the future of humanity. Universality, diversity in application - the main quality of electrical energy. But modern, well-developed ways of obtaining it either completely depend on the above-mentioned resources, or cause irreparable harm to the environment.

Тепловые электростанции потребляют огромное the amount of fuel oil or coal, and carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere adversely affect the overall ecology of the region. Hydroelectric power plants during work do not cause much harm, but for their construction the riverbed changes, which has a detrimental effect on the ecosystem.

Nuclear power plants are also harmless, they are notcarry out emissions into the atmosphere, but each of them is a powerful time bomb. A striking example of this are two terrible man-made disasters at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the USSR and Fukushima in Japan. But electrical energy can be obtained not only by traditional methods. Moreover, the production of electric energy using alternative technology has already been fully mastered and studied. It even applies, though not on such a large scale.

With modern technology, electrical energycan be almost free. It can be obtained using the force of the wind, the heat of the Earth, transforming solar energy and biofuel. Each type of electricity generation will be discussed in more detail below.

The force of the wind mankind uses the most ancienttimes. With the help of the wind, ships moved, the millstones turned the millstones, and now the wind helps to get electricity by rotating the blades of wind power plants. They vary in size and power output; wind stations can serve as a primary and secondary source of energy.

Electric energy can be generated atgeothermal power plants. The principle of their operation is similar to the operation of a heat and power plant, but heat from thermal water is used as a fuel. In Russia, similar power plants are located in Kamchatka. Significant disadvantages of such stations became the high cost and limited construction. Such stations can be located only in zones of active hot sources.

An installation that is using sensitiveA photovoltaic cell converts solar energy into electrical energy, called a solar panel. Such batteries are used now in space, supplying the ISS with electricity, ensuring its uninterrupted operation. The amount of electricity produced depends directly on the area of ​​photovoltaic cells. Such power plants can be used both at the level of a single house and on a city scale.

Waste is a major concern.modern civilization. Ever-increasing landfills for domestic waste increasingly pollute the environment. But any household waste can be recycled into biofuel, which in the near future is likely to become the main type of fuel. Waste is subjected to pyrolysis and gasification, but alcohol and biogas are produced at the exit. They are able to rotate the turbines, even obsolete CHP. You can refuel diesel cars with fuel.

Despite the seemingly obvious benefits inthe use of alternative sources for generating electric energy, the government is reluctant to build them. The power plants of the future will pay for themselves, but for a long time, and the amount of energy they give out is still lower than the output from the nuclear power plants and hydroelectric power stations. But the coming energy crisis and the deteriorating environmental situation will still lead to the creation of new, cheap and environmentally friendly power plants.