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Cleaner Than Coal?
Over half of all the worlds electrical energy needs are satisfied by coal-fired power plants, which are probably the biggest single contributor to global warming and airborne pollution. But what are the alternatives?
Although it still produces the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide when burned, Natural Gas is by far the cleanest and most efficient fossil fuel based method of generating electricity. This is partly due to the fact that the combustion gases themselves can be used to turn the turbine as well as the water vapour that the gas is primarily being used to heat.
Although it is more commonly used as automobile fuel, petrol can also be used to heat water into the steam that turns a turbine. However, it is residual fuel oil, which is what is left over when crude oil has been refined into saleable products such as gas, automobile and aviation fuel, and plastic, that is used, as this can be purchased comparatively cheaply.
Currently, the only large-scale alternative to fossil fuel fired power stations is nuclear energy, which works by splitting the atoms of a nuclear fuel such as uranium, releasing a massive amount of heat which is used to vaporise the water that drives the steam turbines. Although this process does not produce carbon dioxide, other than indirectly through the energy required to split the atoms in the first place, it does produce quite a significant volume of dangerous nuclear waste.
One of the oldest sources of power for machinery, flowing water, or hydro power, is also one of the cleanest and most renewable. Hydro power stations either take the form of a huge dammed reservoir with a small, high pressure waterfall outlet that drives a turbine, or in the case of stations near fast-flowing rivers, the flow of the river itself is used to turn the turbines.
If you have ever seen a volcano erupt, you will be aware that beneath the earths crust there is a lot of heat waiting to get out. In some regions, this heat energy is so close to the surface that underground water is turned into steam and shot through holes in the surface known as hot springs. This can be harnessed to power steam turbines in the usual way, and this is known as Geothermal Power.
The energy radiated by the sun can be trapped and turned into electricity by devices known as solar panels, or photovoltaic cells. Solar power can also take the form of using concentrated heat energy from the sun to heat water for steam turbines, and this process is known as solar thermal electricity generation.
Another renewable option, in countries where there is no shortage of windy weather, is wind power, which uses windmills equipped with dynamos to turn the kinetic energy of the wind into electrical energy. However, these windmills have a habit of ruining a nice landscape, which is why so many proposed wind farms run into planning difficulties.
About the Author British Gas are one of the most eco friendly electricity companies in the United Kingdom. Save up to 40% on your electric bills by switching today!
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