BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT OF

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY TECHNOLOGY

• Renewable energy: an energy source that we can

use over and over again.
• Non-renewable: an energy source that we are using
up and cannot recreate in a short period of time.

Renewable energy sources include solar energy,

which comes from the sun, geothermal energy from
inside the earth, tidal energy, biomass from plants,
wind energy, wave energy and hydropower from
Renewable Energy Resources 100%
Energy from the sun 99.96%
.
Direct solar energy - 94.2%
Wind and wave energy 4.0%
Biomass energy 0.8%

Hydropower 0.1%

Tidal 0.000033% 0.000033%

Geothermal 0.00036%
Fossil fuels (1.44x10-8 % of solar radiation
absorbed at ground)
Nuclear energy 8
Renewable Energy Resource:
• Sources and Characteristics
• Energy from the Sun
• Energy from the Earth’s Interior
• Tidal Energy
Forms of Renewable Energy Received at the Earths
Surface
• Solar Radiation Energy, Biomass Energy, Wind
Energy, Wave Energy, Hydro Power, Geothermal
Energy Tidal Energy.
Earth’s Energy Flows
There is a continuous flow of energy through the
earth’s atmosphere and surface
• By far the greatest energy source is the sun

The other two sources are:

• Heat from earth’s interior and
• Tidal energy (caused by the gravitational forces of
the earth-moon-sun system) -almost negligible in
 Energy from the Sun (Solar Radiation)

• The rate at which the incoming solar radiation is intercepted at

the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere is 1373W/m2.
• This is known as the ‘solar constant’, defined as the energy
received by a unit surface perpendicular to the solar beam at
the earth’s mean distance from the sun
• The total solar power intercepted by earth is 1.75 x 1017 W or
an annual total of 5.52 x 1024J

For comparison, the world’s total commercial energy

consumption in 1982 was 2.86 x 1020 J, or twenty thousand
times smaller than the solar energy intercepted by the earth
Energy from the Earth’s Interior ( Geothermal Energy)
Heat flow by conduction through the earth’s solid crust has been
estimated to be approximately 0.063 W/m2 on average
There are a few areas surrounding active volcanoes and hot
springs where the heat flow can be very much greater than this
value
Energy from the Tides
(Tidal Energy)
Tidal energy has been estimated from studies of the rates of
change of the periods of rotations of the earth and moon to be 3
x 1012 Watts
 Advantages of Renewable Energy Sources

• Big potential -Meet this growing demand for energy (the offer of
renewable energies is quantitatively nearly unlimited and could
cover the world's energy demand even if only a part of it is
used)
• Environmental friendliness- reduces pollution of atmosphere
(Beat the environmental degradation)

• High degree of decentralization Supply even in remote areas

 Disadvantages of Renewable Energy Sources

• Lack of appropriate technology for all renewable energies:

Not for all kinds of renewable energies have an appropriate
technology

• Economically not reachable: High initial costs / Not

economically competitive

• Supply of energy is not constant for many of the renewable

energy sources
 Future Prospects for Renewable Energy

• Long-term perspective, renewable energies can

replace the conventional modes of energy production
• Could be used to a great extent to replace fossil
energy
• Hydro plants are common since long time
• Wind generators and geothermal power plants are
increasingly being used
• Tidal power application has reached a stage of
commercialization
• Wind, hydro, tidal and geothermal energies are not
available at all places and at all times
 Global Energy Situation
• Renewable electricity generation capacity
• Wind power
• Grid-connected solar photovoltaics (PV)
• Solar heat collectors
• Biomass and geothermal energy
• Biofuels
• Renewable energy,
• Developing countries
• Investment flows ,Jobs worldwide , Policy targets
(Renewable Energy Network for the 21st Century (REN21)
(www.ren21.net) )
REN21 Renewables 2007 Global Status Report
 Renewable Electricity Generation Capacity
• Estimated 240 Gigawatts (GW) 2007, an increase of 50
percent over 2004. Renewable energy represents 5 percent of
global power capacity and 3.4 percent of global power
generation. New renewable energy (not counting large
hydropower) generated as much electric power worldwide in
2006 as one-quarter of the world’s nuclear power plants. Large
hydropower itself accounted for 15 percent of global power
generation.

Wind Power
• The largest component of the renewable power capacity
increase
was wind power, which grew again by over 25 percent worldwide
in 2007, to reach an estimated 95 GW.
 Grid-connected Solar Photovoltaics

The fastest growing energy technology in the world is grid-

connected solar photovoltaics (PV), with 50 percent annual
increases in cumulative installed capacity in both 2006 and
2007, to an estimated 7.7 GW. This translates into 1.5 million
homes with rooftop solar PV feeding into the grid worldwide.
Another estimated 2.7 GW of stand-alone systems brings
global PV capacity to over 10 GW.

Solar Heat
Roof top solar heat collectors provide hot water to nearly 50
million households worldwide, and space heating to a growing
number of homes. Existing solar hot water/heating capacity
increased by 19 percent in 2006 to reach 105 gigawatts-thermal
globally.
 Biomass and Geothermal Energy

• Commonly used for both power and heating, with recent

increases in a number of countries, including uses for district
heating.
• More than 2 million ground-source heat pumps are used in 30
countries for heating and cooling of buildings.
Biofuels
• Production of biofuels (ethanol and biodiesel) exceeded an
estimated 53 billion liters in 2007, up 43 percent from 2005.

• Ethanol production in 2007 represented about four percent of

the 1,300 billion litres of gasoline consumed globally.
• Annual biodiesel production increased by more than 50
percent in 2006.
Biofuel Feedstocks - Biodiesel

EN 601 Lecture Series 21

 Renewable Energy

RE especially small hydropower, biomass, and solar PV, provides

electricity, heat, motive power, and water pumping for tens of
millions of people in rural areas of developing countries, serving
agriculture, small industry, homes, schools, and community
needs.
Twenty-five million households cook and light their homes with
biogas, and 2.5 million households use solar lighting systems.

Developing Countries
Have more than 40 percent of existing renewable power
capacity, more than 70 percent of existing solar hot water
capacity, and 45 percent of biofuel production.
Investment
• Investment reached an estimated $71 billion in new
renewable power, fuel, and heat production assets
worldwide in 2007 (excluding large hydropower), of which
47 percent was for wind power and 30 percent was for solar
PV.
• Investment in large hydropower represented an additional
$15–20 billion.

Jobs Worldwide
• Jobs worldwide from renewable energy manufacturing,
operations, and maintenance exceeded 2.4 million in 2006,
including some 1.1 million for biofuels production.
 Policy Targets
• There is now an EU-wide target of 20 percent of final energy by 2020,
and a Chinese target of 15 percent of primary energy by 2020. In
addition to China, several other developing countries adopted or
upgraded targets during 2006/2007.
• Targets for biofuels as future shares of transport energy now exist in
several countries, including an EU-wide target of 10 percent by 2020.
• Strong momentum for feed-in tariffs continues around the world as
countries enact new feed-in policies or revise existing ones. At least 44
states, provinces, and countries have enacted Renewable Portfolio
Standards

• Policy support for renewable power generation, including capital

investment subsidies, tax incentives and credits, sales tax and value-
added tax exemptions, energy production payments or tax credits,,
public investment or financing, and public competitive bidding.
How Does a Renewable Portfolio Standard Encourage
Clean Energy?

• Owning a renewable energy facility and its output

generation.
• Purchasing Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).
• Purchasing electricity from a renewable facility inclusive
of all renewable attributes ET
 Biomass and Commercial vs Non Commercial
Energies
• Non-commercial fuels, such as firewood, animal dung and
vegetables wastes are not include because this energy is not
part of the normal commercial market it is difficult to estimate
accurately the amounts .

• Biomass is clearly a very important source of energy in the

world terms -even more so when we consider its contribution in
the developing countries.

• Classification of commercial and non-commercial sector is

somewhat arbitrary since some biomass is included in
commercial sector.
 Impact of Oil Prices

• The oil crises 1773/74 (First) and 1979 (Second), helped in

raising peoples’ awareness on the importance of energy in
development. revealing the apparent problem in the energy i.e.
that depletion of forests for fuel wood

• Being the leader in the energy marker, the price of oil will
determine the ceiling price of other fuels and therefore
determining the extent and rates of oil substitution and
investment in alternative energy resources and conservation.
 Impact on the Environment

• Use of carbon containing fuels e.g. oil, coal, natural gas and
wood based fuels - greenhouse effect’

• Certain gases including CO2 in the atmosphere allow the

ultraviolet and visible radiation from the sun to pass through
and warm the earth, but then absorb the longer wavelength,
infra-re radiation emitted from the earths surface, creating
thermal barrier around the earth raising the earth’s temperature

Above behaviour is exactly opposite to that of ozone which is

present higher up in atmosphere. The latter is destroyed by
fluorocarbons emitted into atmosphere, adding onto the
‘greenhouse effect
Temperature of the poles has gone up by 4oC in 30 years Also the earth’s
average temperature will rise by 1.5 to 3.5oC by the years 2030 if the
‘greenhouse effect’ continues its present rate

• Increased burning of carbonaceous fuels accelerates the ‘greenhouse effect’

due to the emission of carbon dioxide, which is the main greenhouse gas

• Moreover, other emissions e.g. CO2, SO2, soot, etc. from the combustion
cause severe pollutions like acid rains, to our environment

• Consequently there are greater efforts on the global scale to try and cut
down or substitute the use of such fuels with other sources, which cause
less harm to our environment, such as solar, wind, and water energy
 ENERGY SITUATION IN TANZANIA 2014

• About 80% of Tanzanians live in rural areas and majority rely

on human energy and labour for agricultural and transport
activities. (80% of total energy in Tanzania is consumed in
rural areas).

• About 90% of all energy consumed in Tanzania is solid

biofuels, in rural areas as firewood and in urban areas as
charcoal.

• Grid electricity, Petroleum products (Petrol, diesel. LPG. NG

etc) contribute only 10% of total energy consumption
 Solid Biofuels
90%

Others
Electricity Petroleum 1%
1% 8%

Tanzania Energy Consumption Pattern

 National Energy Context Cont……..
• More than 85% of the
Tanzanians have no access to
electricity, in rural areas only
2.5% have access.
• Each day, a village woman
spends more than three hours
collecting firewood.

• Each day, more than 500

hectares of natural forest are
lost due to charcoal and
firewood harvest.

• Each year, more than 50,000

Tanzanians die due to inhaling
5/3/2018
smoke while cooking with 32
three stone fire-places.
 Yet, The Country is endowed with huge energy
resources which include:
• Biomass (forest 35 mil.hacteres, bio-residues), hydro
(4700Mw), Small hydro(475Mw).
• Feedstock (molasses more than 20,000 tonnes per year) for
producing more than 20mil. Litres of ethanol per year.

• Solar energy (>6000MJ/sq.m. of solar radiation) play a

significant role in the agric. sector (crop production, drying
etc).
• Moderate wind speed (4-8 m/s) in some areas, yet to be
explored.
• Natural gas (more than 45 billion cubic meters) exploited for
power production and industrial use since 2004.
• Coal resources available, 1.2 billion tones of which 304
million tones are proven, little exploited for electricity
generation.
• Geothermal resources, (650Mw) available, not yet exploited.
Uranium resources available, not yet exploited.
• 5/3/2018 ..33
 ALSO, MODERN ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES
ARE PLENTY!!

5/3/2018 34