More 2 Study

Biomass is a renewable energy source because the growth of new plants and trees replenishes it. Biomass is the term used for the mass derived from carbonaceous waste of various human and natural activities. It includes agricultural and forest residues, animal waste, household waste and by products of wood and discarded material from food processing plants. Biomass is basically a hydrocarbon containing carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. Chemical formula for biomass is C 6n (H₂O) 5n . Solar energy is stored in plants by the process of photosynthesis, absorbing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere and converting into carbohydrates such as sugar, starch and cellulose. Biomass does not add carbon dioxide (CO₂) to the atmosphere, as it aborbs the same amount of carbon in growing as it releases when consumed as a fuel. So, energy produced from biomass is carbon-cycle neutral. Biomass can be used in the form of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels. Biomass fuels used in India contribute about 30% of ...

A fuel cell is a new promising power source, because it has the least environmental impact in comparison to conventional fossil fuel. As an alternative and renewable energy source, it helps in reducing the exhaustion of fossil fuels. Fuel cells have high efficiency, longer operation, so they are widely used for different applications as portable power sources. Basically, fuel cells are electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy from a fuel into electrical energy without a combustion process. They differ from storage batteries in the sense that fuel cells need fuel supply from an external source whereas a battery stores electricity inside it. In 1839 Sir William Grove discovered fuel cell technology, so he is known as 'father of fuel cell. However, the first fuel cell devices were invented by an engineer Francis Bacon in 1934. Fuel cells found practical application when NASA developed fuel cell technology in 1950 as a power source for space travel and also used fuel cells ...

Geothermal energy is an important non-conventional source of energy. Geothermal energy is heat from within the earth. The origin of the word 'geothermal' is from Greek words geo (earth) and therme (heat). Geothermal energy is generated in the earth's core. The core is very hot at about 4000°C. The double-layered core is made of very hot molten rock called magma which surrounds a solid metallic center. Outer to the core there is another layer called mantle. It is about 2900 km thick and consists of hot, dense silicate rock. The outermost layer, which is about 30 km thick, is called the crust of the earth. It is possible to make use of the heat energy of the earth from volcanoes, hot springs, fumaroles geysers. In some countries it is possible to pump out the water from underground hot water deposits and use it to heat houses in cold areas. It is also possible to generate electricity from geothermal energy through transfer of heat energy to a working fluid which may operate t...