Potential Energy Sources

Old Ways Made New

Solar energy is the oldest energy on the planet Earth it is a nearly infinite source of energy if only people could figure out the most efficient ways of using it. Today most solar energy collectors are only able to collect about 10 to 20 percent of the energy they are subjected to, scientists hope to double that percentage with the use of harnessing UV rays to make electricity as well.

Another way solar energy can be used is straight up, drying clothes on a line instead of an electric/gas dryer, opening blinds on sunny days instead of using indoor lighting, and even something as simple as making sun tea instead of turning on the stove are little ways to save potential energy.

People have been using water and wind to make energy for hundreds of years as well, wind powered grain mills and water wheeled wood mills are old technology, however the potential energy from wind or water is very real today.

What Technology Makes Possible

Scientists have developed a variety of ways to use the ocean’s waves to create electricity the method uses a type of turbine which the rising and falling water is able to turn and the turning creates electricity.

Wind turbines are available for residential or commercial use smaller four to twenty foot poles with turbines are considered small enough for home use. The residential wind powered generators can create useful electricity in winds as low as 10 miles per hour when properly installed a rule of thumb with wind powered generators is the taller the mounting pole the more potential energy for electricity it will be able to create.

Another potential energy source can be found in the waste sites and land fills around the world. New technology has made it possible to use trash in a variety of ways to make electricity instead of polluting the environment also this energy gives off no pollution so hopefully every land fill in the nation will eventually be converted to a power plant.

The government is doing its small part by providing money for both rewarding citizens for improving their homes with energy efficient upgrades and providing people unable to make those improvements with grants allowing them to do so.

The potential energy available in the world around us is only limited to a person’s imagination, with all the creative people finding technologies to make solutions to these problems, it is only a matter of time before these potential energies become the energy we use every day.

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