On planet Earth there are many sources of energy available for us to harvest, however, some of these energy resources are considered renewable and clean for the environment, while others are considered dirty, non-renewable and harmful for the environment.
Natural Sources of Energy Available on the Planet Today
On planet Earth, there are available a wide range of natural energy sources from renewable to non-renewable, which means that wasting energy is not an option giving the fact that energy is limited and difficult to produce.
Non-renewable energy sources
Today, mankind still relies massively on fossil fuels for power generation, such as oil, coal, natural gas and nuclear fuel, which are considered non-renewable sources of power.
Besides of being non-renewable, fossil fuels are also considered dirty because they release harmful emissions into the atmosphere while burning and this affects both the people and the environment.
1. Oil
Oil is still a major source of conventional power and heat on the planet, even if we know that oil is a dirty resource that pollutes the environment while burning.
Today, oil is the main source of power, fuel and plastics for mankind because is used to generate electricity, to power our vehicles (gasoline and diesel fuel) and to produce a wide variety of plastics that we are using in the everyday life.
Oil is a fossil fuel that was created by the dead organisms such as zooplankton and algae, which have been buried underneath the sedimentary rock and turned into oil due to the intense heat and geological pressure in the underground.
Being a fossil fuel, oil is a non-renewable energy source (limited resource), and because it pollutes the environment will be replace by low-carbon energy sources (natural gas) and renewables in the future.
2. Coal
Coal is another fossil fuel used on a mass scale on the planet to generate conventional electricity and heat.
Coal is a brownish-black or black colored combustible sedimentary rock that was formed by the geological processes that have lasted for millions of years and turned the dead plants and animals into peat (partially decayed organic matter and vegetation) and then into lignite (a brown coal formed from naturally compressed peat).
Coal is the most polluting fossil fuel available on the planet, but because is cheaper than oil and natural gas is used on a mass scale for electricity and heat generation in almost all the countries.
During the winter, coal is massively used as a heat source, for cooking, and also in the industry as an energy source, which produces an extended air pollution with smog in the cities located close to the steel factories.
Being a non-renewable energy source (limited resource), and because is the most polluting source of conventional power available on the planet, coal and oil will be replaced by natural gas (less polluting carbon energy source) and renewable energy in the future.
3. Natural gas
Natural gas is considered the cleanest fossil fuel today because releases less harmful emissions during burning for electricity or heat production.
Being a gaseous fossil fuel, natural gas is used on a mass scale on the planet for electricity generation, heating, cooking, and as a cheaper fuel for vehicles (more affordable than gasoline and diesel fuel).
Natural gas deposits are often located around coal or oil deposits in the underground because they were formed by similar natural chemical processes that created coal and oil deposits.
Because is a less polluting source of power (compared to coal and oil), natural gas is considered today a good replacement for these conventional fossil fuels in the near future.
In the energy mix of the planet, coal loses ground in front of natural gas as a main source of electricity on the planet.
4. Nuclear power
Nuclear energy uses the power of the atom to generate steam that will spin a turbine to produce clean electricity using a generator.
The nuclear fission reaction used in the today’s nuclear power stations produces clean electricity, but also hazardous nuclear waste that is dangerous for nature and for any living being.
Nuclear waste is hard and very expensive to dispose, and also needs to be guarded strictly.
The nuclear fuel used today is mostly based on uranium and plutonium, which are limited resources on the planet.
Using limited resources, nuclear power becomes a non-renewable energy source.
When mankind will master the nuclear fusion reaction of the hydrogen (an abundant resource on the planet and in the universe), we can say that nuclear power has become a renewable energy source.
Renewable Energy Sources
Renewable energy is still in its infancy today, but for the future we expect to see a massive and complex development of the main sources of renewable and clean power available on the planet because burning dead plants and animals for energy generation in the future is no longer an option.
1. Solar power
Solar power is the energy sent by the Sun towards the Earth and harvested by mankind in two different forms: active and passive solar.
Active solar refers to the use of the sunlight to generate electricity using solar cells or large mirrors pointed towards a tall tower where an agent (molten salt) is heated by the reflected sunlight to produce heat that will rotate a turbine and generate clean electricity.
The sunlight is also used to heat water and produce solar fuels.
Passive solar refers to a concept used in construction that creates houses that are using the sunlight as light and heat source during the winter, and blocks the sunlight during the summer to prevent overheating of the building.
Solar energy is considered a renewable and clean source of power because the Sun is here to send us free and green energy for another five billion years.
Solar power will become a main source of energy in the future when fossil fuels will become only a sad memory of mankind.
2. Wind power
The wind is a great source of clean energy here on the planet and is here and available for us to harvest since the apparition of the atmosphere.
The wind is created by the Sun due to the fact that the sunlight heats the different layers of air in an uneven way, which makes the air to move up and down and this is how the wind is created.
The power of the wind is known since ancient times
The power of the wind was first used to navigate on the sea and to grind grain, but also to pump water.
Today, we are using the wind to produce clean electricity day and night with the help of wind turbines (horizontal axis and vertical axis wind turbines) that are turning the kinetic power of the wind into clean electricity with the help of a generator.
The problem with the renewable energy sources generated by the Sun (solar and wind power) is created by the fact that these sources of clean electricity are intermittent sources of power (the Sun is up only during the day, and the wind is not always present, and differs in speed).
Being intermittent sources of energy they are usually combined with fossil fuels such as natural gas to ensure a constant source of power for the grid.
The wind is produced by the Sun, which means that wind power is a renewable energy source because the Sun will be here for another 5 billion years to send us heat and light.
3. Hydropower
Hydropower also known as the power of the water was first used in ancient times, and is used today to produce clean electricity in many forms.
Hydroelectric power is produced using the power of the falling water, which spins underwater turbines to generate electricity with the help of generators (large dams).
The power of the water is also used when the power of the tides (tidal power) is turned into clean electricity using a different type of underwater turbines.
Another way of producing clean electricity using the power of the water is by turning the power of the waves into clean energy.
Hydropower or water power is considered a renewable energy source because the water is replenished every time it rains, and because the source of hydropower is gravity (is always here), and the source of tidal and wave power is created by the combined gravitational forces of the Earth, Moon and Sun.
4. Wood
Wood is a very important natural resource because it was first used in human history to make fire and is massively used today for heating and cooking, and also to generate steam (wood is used as fuel to heat the water) that will spin a turbine to produce electricity.
Wood is the main ingredient in biomass, which is known today as a natural source of low-carbon electricity.
Wood as natural resource is considered a renewable source of power because trees grow back.
However, we need to be careful to not overuse the wood as a source of heat and electricity because the trees are great producers of oxygen and consumers of carbon dioxide, but they need decades to be fully developed.
5. Geothermal power
The word “geothermal” refers to the heat produced by our planet.
Planet Earth has a very hot core that has a temperature of 10,800 °F (6,000 °C), which means that is hotter than the surface of the Sun (this could be the reason why the core of the planet was called “the inner sun”).
This very hot core of our planet sends the heat through the mantle are through the crust.
The Earth’s core is a continuous source of heat and energy
The heat provided by the Earth’s core reaches the surface of the planet under the form of steam and hot water.
We are using this natural resource for residential heating and cooling, and also the steam that comes from the underground to generate electricity (the high pressure of the steam spins a turbine that produces clean electricity using a generator).
Geothermal power is a resource limited by its location.
There are certain areas of the planet where this natural resource is available.
Geothermal energy is considered a great economic asset in countries like Iceland, the U.S., Indonesia, Philippines, New Zealand, Italy, Mexico, Japan, Iran, El Salvador, Kenya, Costa Rica and Nicaragua.
Geothermal power is a pretty recent source of clean energy, but due to the fact that is a source of free energy provided by our planet and does not hurt the environment is considered a green source of power.
Being produced by the Earth’s core, geothermal power is a renewable energy source that will be here as long as the planet will exist in its actual form.
Final Conclusion
The natural resources available on the planet can be split into two different types of resources: renewable and non-renewable.
Giving the fact that we need to reduce the level of pollution on the planet and increase the production of clean electricity that is produced only by the renewable resources, the future will focus mostly onto developing clean sources of energy and reduce the use of fossil fuels.
In the following two to three decades, we may see that natural gas will slowly replace coal and oil as the main source of fossil fuel energy on the planet (natural gas produces less emissions than coal and oil while burning).
Wood is a great natural resource available on the planet.
Final thought
However, before the end of the century, the share of the fossil fuels in the energy mix of the planet will drop to zero, while renewable energy will reach the level of 100% share for a future that will be 100% clean.
