Your Questions About Renewable Energy Group
Thomas asks…
Is it true that wind turbines can never produce enough energy in their lifespans to offset its creation?
I’ve heard on several occasions that wind turbines are not economically feasible because it takes an inordinate amount of time and money, such that it will never produce enough energy to recoup that which was lost in building the turbine. Is this true? Can anyone give me a source?
admin answers:
Hey Patrick, this concept has been around since about 1998 when it first surfaced in regard to solar panels. There was a lot of complaints that solar panels never earn back their, “Embodied Energy,” which is a phrase referring to how much energy it takes to mine raw materials, ship them to a factory, build the product, ship it to it’s destination and install it. To be honest, it is difficult to put an exact energy price on something like that, there are almost limitless variables, such as which mine was used, where it was shipped, how it is installed and used in the end, and so on. A non profit group called, Solar Energy International finally offered some grants to a few colleges to research this. In the end, they couldn’t come up with an exact timeline, but a range based on the above variables.
First of all, solar panels actually do repay their embodied energy some time between 1.5 and 6 years after they are installed. Virtually all manufacturers warranty their product to last at least 25 years, and typically they operate well beyond this time. Similar work was done later with wind turbines, and the results are very similar. The main difference being the range of payback time is wider, meaning it’s possible for a turbine to repay its embodied energy faster, like in less than a year, but it may take as long as 9 years. This is because shipping a utility sized wind turbine can take a huge bite into its embodied energy budget depending on how far it has to go. Solar panels can fit in the back seat of a good sized car, some wind turbines have specially designed hauling vehicles that might have to drive across the country, or across the street. But when you look deeper down this rabbit hole, you eventually learn that non of this matters, I’ll explain.
Electricity has been around since Thomas Edison nearly burned down his house running high amounts of current through bailing wires inside old mason jars, so it isn’t going away anytime soon. The question becomes, “What is the best way to produce it?” Let’s assume you build a 10 KW wind turbine, and put it alongside an efficient conventional power source, say a natural gas fired turbine 10 KW generator. Which will earn back its embodied energy faster? The answer is the gas generator never does. You have to remember that once you build a natural gas generator, coal plant, or any other non renewable energy based power plant, you now have to feed it fuel for the rest of it’s life. It’s conversion rate will always be something below 100%, so in the end it slowly digs itself a deeper and deeper energy hole that it can never crawl out of. At least the wind turbine has a chance to get even in it’s lifetime. This is the key to what makes renewable energy so great, it’s really the difference between buying a home and renting an apartment, one day the home will be paid off, the apartment never is.
We live in a home that is powered by the wind and sun today. About 12 years ago we started looking into solar and wind when our electricity was constantly going out. It began as a small backup plan, just to run a few lights and some electronics. Over time it became more of a hobby and lifestyle, like growing your own tomatoes instead of buying them at the store, we just grew electrons in our garden. Now our home generates over 90% of its own electricity, and we use the power company as our backup source. Even though it will take years to get even with the power bill, it’s worth it to us, and we’ve turned a lot of heads. Once each year now I am invited to the local schools to teach solar power to the 5th graders, then they run a field trip out to our house to see a working solar and wind powered home. Since then the power companies have been busy building wind farms and looking into solar, geothermal and biomass energy. They even have a methane plant alongside a landfill in the next county. Most people are not aware of these things, but they are happening. They are busy complaining about wind mills never earning back their manufacturing energy, solar being too expensive, or hybrid cars not really saving and gas. There is research on these subjects, and it’s available for the asking if you look for it online. My suggestion is you look into it and become better informed insteading of asking hacks like me online for advice. I’ll include some sources below. Hope this answers your question. Good luck Patrick, and take care, Rudydoo
Donna asks…
I want to become a Renewable Energy Consultant?
I’m a senior in high school, starting the college application process and I want to become a renewable Energy Consultant. I know by the time I graduate college renewable energy will be the “new thing,”or at least bigger than it is now. I’m wondering what steps I need to go through to actually achieve my goal. thanks. 8)
admin answers:
You are on the cusp of dynamically changing world with respect to renewable energy consultant types. I suspect that in 4 to 5 years, much of this world will be relatively specialized with respect to specific energy sources (i.e. Wind, solar, biomass, etc…). Specialized or not, I;m guessing that the consultant world with respect to energy systems will be divided into two groups: the scientific/technical and then the planner/project manager groups.
The scientific/technical types are going to need a math and science background and probably some type of an engineering or physics degree. The planner/project manager types are going to need some business, city planning, and systems management/anaylsis types of courses. Still, if you’re from the technical side of the house, it would help to be able to smooze and speak with the folks funding, politicing, and managing the projects you’re working on. And if you’re from the planning/managing side of the house it would help if you had at least some type of idea what you’re talking about from a technical stand point.
You speak of being a senior. What are you doing this summer? If you already have a bit of physics under your belt, how about starting in on some stats, taking a speech course, or brushing up on some chemistry? The first year of college is pretty much spent taking a series of undergraduate requirements. The function of the undergraduate requirements is to ensure that students are working at par when they start their major’s courses, give them a sampling of subjects they haven’t particularly been exposed to before, and give them a little bit of a general education so that they can funciton in the real world outside of their little group of departmental geeks. Your goal this next year should be to get a firm understanding of a well rounded set of courses; these will form the foundation for the rest of your college career which you either learn now or struggle with the rest of your time. (It’s sort of like learning fractions. Some of us learn and understand them from the onset; others of us struggle and then learn to understand them somewhere between college chemistry and the end of our calculus series.)
Meanwhile, start with your high school and college advisors, high school and college instructors to try to figure out what course work could or should comprise a “Renewable Energy Consultant Degree” . But, be sure to troll the internet to see what other institutions are offering in their assorted green, environmental, alternative energy, and other programs; don’t forget to try to read the course descriptions for skills/things taught and the names of the required textbooks. Troll the internet to see what empolyers are seeking in terms of knowledge and skills for those being hired to perform renewable energy consultation. Ultimately you will learn what you should possess in terms of knowledge and skills despite the name of your degree. And, you may find that there is an institution out there teaching the course work that fits your vision and understanding of what a renewable energy consultant is.
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