The Renewable Energy Sources in Ontario - Research Paper Example

Other renewable energy sources in Ontario, Canada Affiliation Table of Contents Running head: Other renewable energy sources in Ontario, Canada 1 1 Other renewable energy sources in Ontario, Canada 1 Table of Contents 2 Other renewable energy sources in Ontario, Canada 16 2 Introduction 3 Background 4 Significance of the study 5 Literature Review 6 Table 1 gives the annual mean daily insolation 7 Figure1 gives the trend of mean global daily insolation. 8 Discussions 9 Photovoltaic Effect 9 Concentrated Solar Power 10 The Benefits of renewable energy 11 Conclusions 12 Recommendation and implementation 14 Recommendation 14 Implementation 14 References 15 Introduction Carbon emission has increased significantly in every sector of the economy. Climate change and global warming are the resultant products of this increase. A rapid transition need to be put implemented to meet the challenges of climate change and global warming by countering carbon emissions. Renewable energy strategy is the best approach top deal with such issues. According to UK government, the use of renewable energy could achieve up to 15% energy from renewable energy sources by 2020. Renewable energy strategy could also save the economy in growing future industries and support close to five hundred thousand jobs (Treasury, 2009). It is paramount to shift to energy sources that can substantially reduce the CO2 emissions as compared to fossil fuels rather than restricting energy saving portfolios in order to realize a reduction of greenhouse emissions. Renewable energy strategy is the best approach to reducing the emissions. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), to reach the ultimate goal of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, including the developing countries, strategic renewable energy sources should be implemented. Nuclear power generations and fossil fuel-fire d power generations with CO2 storage and recapture measures should be put in place to fast track counter global warming (IEA, 2008). Renewable energy is an inexhaustible energy that is a flow-type and is environment friendly. This proposal will presents some analytic findings of renewable energy outputs towards a low carbon society. It goes further to provide the nature policies on the promotion of renewable energy, measures to overcome non-economic barriers for the adoption, future courses of electricity demand-supply system, cost and effects of promotion of renewable energy and the ways to allocate related costs (IEA, 2008). Background The leading renewable energy producer in North America is Ontario. This renewable energy is beneficial since it does not bring about environmental degradation or pollution. Different methods of producing such energy include harnessing of wind energy through the use of windmills, harnessing of biogas or through the harnessing of solar energy. Electricity harnessed through solar energy directly depends on the energy from the sun and its intensity. Hence, different states that rely on solar energy try to determine solar insolation annually in order to optimize their electricity production during high insolation periods and subsidize their electricity during low insolation periods. There are different methods of harnessing solar energy. The attraction between negative electrons and the positive protons creates a flowing current (Boxwel, 2010). First is the Photovoltaic process utilizes the energy from the sun to create a flow of currents. The other method is the concentrated solar power (CSP) method. This involves the use of lenses or shiny surfaces to concentrate the sun’s energy to a small surface and the heat energy generated is used to generate electricity. Photovoltaic method is however always preferred due to its higher efficiency than the concentrated solar power method. This is because CSP greatly relies on the quality of energy received. This quality is nevertheless affected by the reflecting surfaces which reflect away large amounts of the energy received or absorb the energy received. Significance of the study Greenhouse effect is a global threat that is evident through global warming, and climate changes. It is a process in which the solar radiations penetrate to the earth’s atmosphere and reflecting the earth the unabsorbed radiations. The cause to this is because of the environmental degradation through increased carbon emission. The renewable energy strategies are dimmed to be the ultimate solutions to this problem thus the need to study these strategies. This research will also provide a level base for either academic researchers in the study the renewable energy strategies and policies. To the managers, it will arrive at conclusive comments and recommendations, which will see a reduced cost of production with reduced energy strategy. Literature Review Ontario is North America’s leading producer of renewable energy such as solar energy. This renewable energy is referred to as green energy since they do not produce harmful carbon emissions. The continuous investment in renewable energy sources has reduced the overreliance on fossil fuels that contribute to smog formations, climate change and pollution. The major means of effectively producing electricity from solar energy is through photovoltaic process. This involves the conversion of the sun’s energy (photons) to electricity (voltage). Also, the largest photovoltaic solar farm is located in Sarnia, producing 80MW at the Sarnia Solar Between 2008 and 2011, the annual development of installed solar energy generating cells exceeded its capacity by 147.3%, according to the Natural Resources Canada (Government of Canada, 2014). This rapid expansion saw the capacity of solar energy rise to 495 megawatts in 2011(Government of Canada, 2014). Also, the potential of solar energy is high in the French River because it is located in the central regions of Canada (Government of Canada, 2014). Furthermore, half of Canada’s residents can be supplied with energy from solar panels installed on their roofs. At French River, the maximum average daily global insolation is 6.7kWh/m3 by 2 Axis sun-tracking in one year (Government of Canada, 2014). The cost of renewable sources of energy is less than that of typical electrical energy with wind energy costing 0.4 cents per kilowatts and electricity costing 13 cents per kilowatts (Environmental Commission of Ontario, 2014). This measurement of insulation is useful in determining the electrical variations in the course of the year since the amount of electricity produced is dependent on the quality of sunshine available at a given time. A table of mean annual insolation is given below with a graph showing its trend. Table 1 gives the annual mean daily insolation Figure1 gives the trend of mean global daily insolation. Discussions Photovoltaic Effect The process through which light from the sun (photons) is converted to electricity (voltage) is known as photovoltaic (PV) effect (Kulichenko & Wirth, 2012, p.198; Labouret & Villoz, 2010, p.322). The PV effect is created when sunlight hits the photovoltaic cells. These are cells made up of two layers of chemically treated semiconductor materials normal silicon. These layers are referred to as P and N. The boundary between P and N allows the movement of electrons from N to P. When the protons hit the cell, they cause electrons to move from N to P creating a voltage difference as long as the cells are still exposed to sunlight. The layers within the cells can be explained with the following figure (Kulichenko & Wirth, 2012); The light effect of the sun is enhanced by the Anti-Reflective-Coating (ARC) which is the topmost layer. The silicon semiconductor doped in Phosphorous creates a free flow of electrons and forms the N-layer. The P-layer is also of a typical semi-conducting material, but doped in Boron thus creating a free flow of protons known as ‘holes’ (Mayfield, 2013, p.164). When sunlight strikes the electric field (P-N junction) - from protons and electrons attractions - it separates the protons and the electrons and thus creating the required voltage. This voltage pushes the electron flow or DC current to the back and the front of the cells where it is conducted along the circuitry that connects the cells together. The solar cells are grouped into modules that carry about 40 cells. 10 of these modules are mounted on PV arrays and arrange facing south or towards the direction where they are most likely to receive the optimal exposure to sunlight over the course of the day. This can also be done by mounting them on tracking devices that follow the sun and thus ensures they make the most of the sunlight. A typical household requires about 10 to 20 PV arrays for its electrical demands while hundreds of PV arrays can be interconnected to form a PV system in the case of industrial application (Thomas, 2007, p.79). Concentrated Solar Power Aside from the flat plate PV arrays, another method used to harness the sun’s energy into electricity is the Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) (Kalogirou, 2014, p.53). Unlike the PV arrays, this system uses lenses or mirrors with tracking systems to concentrate a large amount of sunlight on a single small surface. A large amount of heat generated is used to drive steam turbines that are connected to electrical power generators, or the heat can also be used to power thermochemical reactions used to produce electricity. The electricity produced through this method is referred to as the solar thermoelectricity. This technology exists in four main categories: first is the parabolic trough. This comprises of reflectors that have been positioned in such a way that the reflectors direct their light to a receiver positioned along the parabola’s focal line and contains working fluid such as molten salt. When the working fluid is heated, it flows through the receiver and is used as a heat source for power generation system. Secondly is the enclosed trough. This consists of a series of curved reflectors enclosed inside a glasshouse of a greenhouse-like design. The curved reflectors are suspended from the roof of the glass-house using wires and are positioned by a single axis tracking system in order to retrieve the optimal amount of sun energy. The reflectors concentrate this heat to a series of metallic pipes also suspended in the glasshouse, and the resulting heat boils the water to generate steam, which drives the turbines used to produce electricity. Thirdly is the Dish Stirling that comprises of a single stand-alone parabolic reflector which concentrates light to a receiver on the parabola’s focal path. The receiver contains working fluid that, when heated, flows and generates sufficient energy to generate power. Lastly, is the solar power tower that comprises of double axis tracking reflectors known as heliostats. These concentrate the sun’s heat to a receiver on top of the tower that is filled with fluid, usually a saline solution. This working fluid is heated to temperatures of about 500-1000oC and then used in the heating of power generation or energy storage system. The Benefits of renewable energy Contribution to job creation; Production of renewable energy is forecasted to create new jobs by the Treasury. The maintenance and installation of renewable facilities will lead to job creations that will benefit the local. In United States, the job creating is estimated to rise by 5 million in 150 billion investments in renewable energy. In this line, the Treasury estimate that Increased renewable energy production will develop a social investment for the next generation (Treasury, 2009). Among other benefits include; i. Climate change benefits and positive environmental impacts to the ecosystem ii. Boost energy supply including wind generated power and fossil fuel importations iii. A reduction in energy prices as a whole v. Opening of business employment and opportunities in the Canada Conclusions CSP is limited to the sunniest parts of the country due to its usage of lenses and parabolic surfaces to reflect light (McKinney, Schoch, & Logan, 2012, p.73). Also, solar cell’s performance is measured by its ability to convert the sun’s energy to electricity, and most of this energy is usually absorbed by the reflecting surfaces and thus the energy generated is not always optimal. Furthermore, only sunlight of given energies work efficiently with this method but most of it is often reflected away by the shiny surfaces. Thus, photovoltaic is most efficient in areas that have limited sunlight due to these shortcomings. Recommendation and implementation Recommendation Solar energy is clean energy because it does not produce any form of harmful emissions, and its harnessing does not involve any form of environmental degradation. Administrations are thus imperative to promote the use of this green-energy in order to mitigate against natural calamities such as climate change, pollution and smog. Implementation The implementation of solar energy is best done according to their modes of production. It is beneficial for households and industries to adopt PV in order to take advantage of solar energy and due to the low cost nature of such energy production (Boxwell, 2010, p.105). Specifically, high sunlight regions should implement CSP should be implemented in sunny regions so as to take advantage of the high solar energy in these regions (Pern, 2011, p.89). Energy regulators should study the trends in the solar insolation in order to determine ways of subsidizing the electric energy during low insolation and ways of optimizing electricity generated during high insolation. References Boxwell, M. (2010). Solar Electricity Handbook: A Simple, Practical Guide to Solar Energy: Designing and Installing Photovoltaic Solar Electric Systems. Ryton on Dunsmore, Warwickshire, U.K: Greenstream Pub. Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. (2014). The True Cost of Renewable Energy and Conservation. Retrieved From http://www.eco.on.ca/blog/2011/03/22/the-true-cost-of-renewable-energy-and-conservation/. Government of Canada. (2014). About Renewable Energy. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved from http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/renewable-electricity/7295. Government of Canada. (2014). PV potential and insolation. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved from http://pv.nrcan.gc.ca/pvmapper.php?MapSize=500%2C500&ViewRegion=Quick+Zoom&CMD=ZOOM_IN&minx=-57000.000000&miny=5804350.000000&maxx=1688900.000000&maxy=7550250.000000&imagewidth=500&imageheight=500&CHKBOX%5B4240%5D=4240&CHKBOX%5B2057%5D=2057&CHKBOX%5B92093%5D=92093&units=1&tilt=6&period=7&title=PV+potential+and+insolation&title_e=PV+potential+and+insolation&title_f=Potentiel+photovoltaïque+et+ensoleillement&lang=e&LAYERS=2057%2C4240&SETS=1707%2C1708%2C1709%2C1710%2C1122&RLAYER=92093. Government of Canada. (2014). Solar Photovoltaic Energy. Natural Resources Canada, Retrieved from http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/renewables/solar-photovoltaic/7303. HM Treasury (2009): ‘Building a low carbon economy: Implementing the Climate Change Act 2008’, TSO Retrieved from http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/bud_bud09_carbon.htm IEA (2008): ‘Energy Technology Perspectives 2008. Retrieved from http://www.iea.org/Textbase/techno/etp/index.asp Kalogirou, S. A. (2014). Solar Energy Engineering (2nd ed). San Diego: Elsevier Inc. Kulichenko, N., & Wirth, J. (2012). Concentrating Solar Power in Developing Countries: Regulatory and Financial Incentives for Scaling Up. Washington, DC: World Bank Publications. Labouret, A., & Villoz, M. (2010). Solar Photovoltaic Energy. Stevenage: Institution of Engineering and Technology. Mayfield, R. (2013). Photovoltaic Design and Installation for Dummies. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons. McKinney, M. L., Schoch, R. M. & Logan, Y. (2012) Environmental Science: Systems and Solutions. Boston: Jones and Barlett Publishers. Pern, F J. (2011). Thickness Effect of Al-Doped Zno Window Layer on Damp Heat Stability of Cuingase2 Solar Cells: Preprint. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 2011. Thomas, I. (2007). Solar Power: The Pros and Cons. New York: Rosen Central. Read More