Renewable energy 0.0 / 5 ? Design & Technology: GraphicsRenewable energy sourcesA2/A-levelEdexcel Created by: Charlotte.cielCreated on: 27-05-16 16:40 Wind Advantages: Flexibility- can be used in large scale wind farms as well as in small individual turbines. Non-polluting, environmentally friendly and sustainable- produces 50x as much energy over lifetime as is consumes by construction. Produces low-cost power if developed commercially, close to zero fuel costs and low maintenance costs. Could be installed off-shore to minimise visual impact. Disadvantages: Can only provide small proportion of total energy needs due to number of turbines needed in relation to space available. Unslightly on-shore. Infrastructure required for wind farms damages landscape. Noise and vibration has potential to affect local community. 1 of 5 Water Advantages: Eliminates fuel costs as it's not required. Highly efficient with minimum running costs due to higly automated operation. Hydroelectric plants have longer economic lives than fuel-fired generation. Set-up and construction costs are recovered in a few years as vast amount of electricity is generated. Reservoirs provide improved leisure and tourism. Large dams can control flooding and protect towns downstream. 2 of 5 Water Disadvantages: Extremely expensive to contruct dams and power plants. Flooding of vast areas of land to create reservoir required local population to relocate. Rivers may be diverted, which causes problems to local community. Dam failures could cause massive destruction due to flooding. Can be disruptive to surrounding aquatic ecosystems. 3 of 5 Solar Advantages: Huge amounts of energy available from Sun. Pollution-free during use. Low operating costs and very little maintenance required. Produces enough electricity for the national grid to cope with peak times. Local grid-connected systems can be self-sufficient. Disadvantages: Relatively expensive set-up costs. Can be more expensive than other sourced electricity. Relies on weather conditions. Energy is lost in converting DC to AC. 4 of 5 Biomass and biofuels Advantages: Relatively inexpensive source. Large amounts of waste biomass materials available. Production of biogas reduces the release of methane. By-products of biogas can be sold and used as compost and fertiliser to improve soil conditions. Disadvantages: Ecological damage, deforestation and intensive farming practices. Expensive processing costs of converting biomass into fuels with low yield. Incineration cause carbon dioxide pollution. 5 of 5
Evaluate, using both advantages and disadvantages, the use of Nuclear power for producing energy. (8) 0.0 / 5
Comments
No comments have yet been made