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Library >> Renewable Energy Resource Maps >> Definitions Renewable Energy Resources

Global Renewable Energy Resources


Definitions

Bioenergy

Solid Biomass
Biogas
Liquid Biofuels
Municipal Waste

Geothermal Energy
Hydropower
Ocean Energy

Tidal Energy
Wave Energy
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC)
Marine Current Energy

Solar Energy
Wind Energy

Bioenergy

Solid Biomass: Covers organic, non-fossil material of biological origin which may be used as fuel for heat production or electricity generation.
Wood, Wood Waste, Other Solid Waste: Covers purpose-grown energy crops (poplar, willow etc.), a multitude of woody materials generated by an industrial process (wood/paper industry in particular) or provided directly by forestry and agriculture as well as wastes such as straw, rice husks, crushed grape dregs etc.
Charcoal: Covers the solid residue of the destructive distillation and pyrolysis of wood and other vegetal material.

Biogas: Gases composed principally of methane and carbon dioxide produced by anaerobic digestion of biomass and combusted to produce heat and/or power.

Liquid Biofuels: Bio-based liquid fuel from biomass transformation, mainly used in transportation applications.

Municipal Waste: Municipal waste energy comprises wastes produced by the residential, commercial and public services sectors and incinerated in specific installations to produce heat and/or power. The renewable energy portion is defined by the energy value of combusted biodegradable
material. (1)

The most successful forms of biomass are sugar cane bagasse in agriculture, pulp and paper residues in forestry and manure in livestock residues. It is argued that biomass can directly substitute fossil fuels, as more effective in decreasing atmospheric CO2 than carbon sequestration in trees. The Kyoto Protocol encourages further use of biomass energy.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has concluded that although the longer-term maximum technical energy potential of biomass could be large (around 2 600 EJ), this potential is constrained by competing agricultural demands for food production, low productivity in biomass production, and other factors. (2)


Geothermal Energy

Available as heat emitted from within the earth's crust, usually in the form of hot water or steam. It is exploited at suitable sites for electricity generation after transformation or directly as heat for district heating, agriculture, etc. (1)

Geothermal plant capacity and utilization, for both power generation and direct heat supply, is increasing, although the pace of growth in power generation has slowed compared to the past, while that of direct heat uses has accelerated. Over-exploitation of the giant Geysers steam field has caused a decline in geothermal capacity in the USA in recent years, which has been partly offset by important capacity additions in other countries. A large increase in the number of geothermal (ground-source) heat pumps has contributed to the increase in direct heat application. Although the short- to medium-term future of geothermal energy looks encouraging, its long-range prospects depend on the technological and economic viability of rock heat (HDR). (2)


Hydropower

Potential and kinetic energy of water converted into electricity in hydroelectric plants. It includes large as well as small hydro, regardless of the size of the plants. (1)

Hydropower accounts for 17% of the world electricity supply, utilizing one third of its economically exploitable potential. Hydro projects have the advantage of avoiding emissions of greenhouse gases, SO2 and particulates.
Their social impacts, such as land transformation, displacement of people, and impacts on fauna, flora, sedimentation and water quality can be mitigated by taking appropriate steps early in the planning process. Whilst a question remains over the advantages of smaller hydro schemes over larger ones, generally hydropower is the most developed and well established technology. (2)


Ocean Energy

Mechanical energy derived from tidal movement, wave motion or ocean current and exploited for electricity generation. (1)

Despite the high predictability of tidal energy's resource and timing, long construction times, high capital intensity and low load factors will most likely rule out significant cost reductions in tidal technologies in the near term.

Recent favorable developments in wave energy due to the increased focus on climate change include, technological developments in Scotland, Australia, Denmark and the USA, and a high potential for energy supply - wave energy could provide 10% of the current world electricity supply (if appropriately harnessed) - and the potential synergies with the offshore oil and gas industry could be significant. However, there are still a number of unresolved technological issues. The possibility of wave energy unit costs falling to 2-3 pence/kWh within 3 to 5 years mentioned in the commentary is derived from experience of onshore wind energy costs, not from experience in wave energy. Nevertheless, the full utilization of wave energy potential appears to be some way off.

The many benefits of ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) include: small seasonal and daily variations in availability, benign environmental performance and by-products in a family of deep ocean water applications, for example food (aquaculture and agriculture) and potable water, and improving economics as a result of higher oil prices. However, a number of key component technologies and further R&D are still needed, in order to be able to build a representative pilot plant to demonstrate OTEC's advantages to prospective investors.

It is acknowledged that there has been little research into utilizing marine current energy for power generation and today no commercial turbines are in operation (thus making the assessment of production costs difficult). There is, however, a large global marine current resource potential which possesses a number of advantages over other renewables, such as its higher energy density, highly predictable power outputs, independence from extreme atmospheric fluctuations and a zero or minimal visual impact. (2)


Solar Energy

Solar radiation exploited for hot water production and electricity generation. Does not account for passive solar energy for the direct heating, cooling and lighting of dwellings or other. (1)

Raising the contribution of solar and other renewable resources to 50% of total primary energy supply by 2050, as indicated in one of the Shell scenarios, would require sweeping changes in the energy infrastructure, a new approach to the environment and the way that energy is generated and used.
Despite the progress in the development of modern solar energy over the past forty or fifty years, the technology still needs a higher profile and more involvement from scientists, engineers, environmentalists, entrepreneurs, financial experts, publishers, architects, politicians and civil servants. (2)


mill Wind Energy

Kinetic energy of wind exploited for electricity generation in wind turbines. (1)

There has been a steady growth in the size and output of wind turbines, now available with capacities of up to 5 MW for offshore machines. The support provided by governments clearly influences technological development patterns: for example, wind farms in the USA and the United Kingdom and single machines (or clusters of two or three) in Denmark and Germany.
Many utility studies have indicated that wind can be readily absorbed in an integrated power network until its share reaches 20% of maximum demand. It is expected that due to the rapid capacity growth in many countries and regions, global installed wind capacity may reach 150 GW by 2010, depending on political support, both nationally and internationally, and further improvements in performance and costs. (2)

(1) http://www.iea.org/textbase/papers/2006/renewable_factsheet.pdf
(2) http://www.worldenergy.org/wec-geis/publications/reports/ser/foreword.asp

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Updated: 2016/06/30

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