Table of Contents
Abstract
This has been prepared to discuss the application of technology for energy efficiency and environmental pollution control. It highlights the important security, social and ethical issues that are related to alternative energy systems. Additionally, it provides concise and clear discussions about the issues of efficiency of electrical power generation. And lastly, provides a precise flowchart analysis of the alternative energy systems.
Introduction
This century is expected to encounter unprecedented growth of applications of alternative energy systems. This involves both the generation, usage, and delivery. These systems are environmentally friendly and clean alternatives for application and usage. Therefore as power generation technologies, they have played essential roles, and they are predicted in the future power supply because of the increased worldwide public awareness of the environment safeguard as well as a desire for less depends or consumption of fossil systems for energy production. The technologies for power generation from alternative energy sources that have been applied include solar, wind, geothermal, hydro electrical tidal, biomass and hydrogen and clean alternatives energy like fuel cells and microturbines. In the consumption of the alternative energy systems, there various security, social and ethical issues that accompany it. Therefore the power generations have great impacts on lives of people in many different ways ranging from its social, security, ethical and economic effects to its environmental and health effects. Thus the development the development of any policy relating to the alternative energy sources as well as its consumption should account for the various security, ethical and social issues that occur. This report will focus on the discussion of some of the issues, and other issues associated with the efficiency of electrical power generations. Additionally, the analysis of the flowchart of alternative energy system will be comprehensively provided.
The bioethics report starts to address the ethical issues that are a major concern to people. First is the issues of biomass production. This is because it takes into the use of energy crops, such as switchgrass, forest products. It has caused the effect of production which has increased food prices and food security. Certainly, the food prices have surprisingly shot up during the past decades and are currently increasing. Globally, it has increased particularly in the U.S where it diverted the prices of the alternative energy sources. This resulted in public riots in some places like Mexico in which sharp price increase was encountered. Thus it has been found out that if the prices of production of alternative increases, proportionally, the price for foods also increases. Therefore the tension between the productions of alternative energy sources worldwide and production of affordable food prices is a major issue of concern to many people (Pfenninger, Hawkes, & Keirstead, 2014).
The second issue is the social issue of major concern that is related to the consumption of alternative energy system is the debate over indirect land use change and its impacts on greenhouse emissions of gas. The life cycle studies about alternative energy consumption have raised many questions that claim and argue that the consumption of the alternative energy sources. Sources such as solar power mostly associated with the technology used such as the photovoltaic solar cells and the concentrating solar thermal plants which result in land and habitat loss (Pfenninger et al., 2014). This accounts to the to the greenhouse benefits which disappear as a result of the solar power consumption. Additionally, the production of biomass has greatly affected the life cycle and land use because of the global warming emissions caused as a result of biomass power production.
Another social issue is the great concern of the workers’ rights working in the development and production of the alternative energy production areas. Studies have indicated that the conditions in the production houses and exposures are hazardous (Pfenninger et al., 2014). There is also slave labor as well as unhealthy working conditions and informal child labor in the production industries. This is a global issue that has come to a major concern of many people.
Ethically, there is need of adherence of the ethical principles such as justice, equality, and good which are need to be respected. This has also been another major ethical challenge. The use of the alternative energy sources to produce energy should ensure the benefit of maximum people, and equal and equity supply to all people. This is to ensure that the materialized investors with objectives of obtaining profit should ensure that they reduce the biomass emissions and greenhouse gas effects. Therefore, some people do not need the electricity nor the source of energy but need to survive. This brings to attention that the health effects caused by the gas emissions affect the lives of the people which is a major problem (Pfenninger et al., 2014).
There are various forms of generation of electrical power. This includes fossils fuels power generation in thermal power plant and alternative energy sources. There are various issues associated with the efficiency of power generation from each. For instance the cost, the impact they have to both the environment and individuals as well the efficiency of their production. The generation of power from fossil fuels has several impacts including emissions of gases resulting in acidification. This includes the dioxides of Sulphur and nitrogen. Also, some gas emitted from greenhouses such as methane, oxides of carbon and Sulphur with other pollutants which are emitted into the surrounding air. For instance, 1,000 MW volume of generation, 5800 full load hours in a year results to 5.8TWh, which is approximately 42.1% efficient electricity production per year and also produces a diverse mixture of fuels and emissions that are severe (Keyhani, 2016). On the other side, renewable sources which are the alternative energy sources have environmental benefits during the generating of electric power. This includes the non-polluting sources that are quite efficient. For instance, taking into consideration of 10 MW generation in comparison with other to other fossil fuels. The use of the alternative energy sources avoids the emissions of SO2, NOx, CO2, and ashes. Power plants that generate electric power from the alternative renewable sources rarely emit greenhouse gases despite that geothermal power production is an exception (Keyhani, 2016).
Analyzing the alternative energy system flowchart provides more detailed information concerning the production of the alternative energy sources. The flowchart configuration, analyses the alternative energy sources such as wind-diesel system, photovoltaic without battery, and other alternative energy sources have been taken into consideration in the analyzing of the flowchart system of the system. (Hodge, 2017). Depending on the current net price, medium price of the energy source as well as the alternative source fraction, a configuration flowchart analysis is evaluated and determined. The use of diesel (l/yr) and CO2 emissions (tons/yr) are also considered in the study and evaluation of environmental impacts, which are found to be friendly. All these components are calculated and gauged in the HOMER which establishes the analysis of the configuration system (Hodge, 2017).
The total amount of energy that is produced by the alternative energy sources is contrasted with the yearly loads of demand to make sure that it is at per with the load demanded. Also, wind-diesel system, photovoltaic without battery, and other alternative energy PV e diesel source with a battery indicate a state in which the differences of the consumption of the alternative energy sources as well as their prices. The HOMER compares and contrasts prices of the various sources of alternative energy comprising of all the alternative sources and other energy power sources such as biofuels. Therefore the already mentioned parameters for gauging and evaluation in the system analysis indicates an evaluation of the performance of the alternative energy sources. The alternative energy flowchart the system shows the life cycle cost which is by the NPC (Hodge, 2017).
In conclusion, the alternative energy sources have presented the best option for non-renewable sources. However, there are some of the ethical, social and security issues that are associated with it. These include the food security issues, human rights threats, and public health threats. The efficiency of generating electric power depends on the nature of the energy source, where the alternative sources are the most efficient as compared to other sources.
- Hodge, B. K. (2017). Alternative energy systems and applications. John Wiley & Sons.
- Keyhani, A. (2016). Design of smart power grid renewable energy systems. John Wiley & Sons.
- Pfenninger, S., Hawkes, A., & Keirstead, J. (2014). Energy systems modeling for twenty-first-century energy challenges. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 33, 74–86.