The myths and facts about alternative fuels–and how they impact our lives As the price of energy continues to soar, so too has the demand for alternative energy. But there's no clear "winner" in the race to replace fossil fuels. Alternative Energy For Dummies explores the current fossil fuel conundrum and society's growing need for more and more energy. Cutting through the competing claims, this book offers a multifaceted examination of alternative energy, including solar, wind, nuclear, biomass, geothermal, biofuel, and other sources. Each alternative scenario is compared to current fossil-fuel intensive practices in the scientific, environmental, social, political, and economic realms. Readers also gain insight into the future of energy production.

Want to take advantage of solar power in your home? Whether you’re looking to save on your energy costs by adding a few solar components or you want to build a solar-powered house from the ground up, Solar Power For Dummies takes the mystery out of this energy source and shows you how to put it to work for you! This friendly, hands-on guide is packed with tips for making your home more energy-efficient though solar power—and helping the planet at the same time. You’ll see how to survey your home to determine your current household energy efficiency and use, and evaluate where solar power would best benefit you. You’ll also calculate what the return on your investment will be before you make any decisions. Once you’ve decided on a project, you’ll see whether it’s best to hire a contractor or do it yourself. We leave no stone unturned—you’ll also discover how to: Choose and install your best solar system Handle small to large solar projects Heat and cool your house with solar energy Install exterior solar lighting Handle swimming pool, water heater, or ventilation solar projects Create greenhouses or solar rooms Build, buy, or sell a solar home Finance your solar investments Take advantage of tax rebates and incentives associated with solar power Avoid the worst solar mistakes Featuring ten of the easiest and cheapest do-it-yourself solar projects, Solar Power For Dummies is the fun and easy way to meet your energy needs with this clean power source!

The bestselling alternative energy reference book in North America—now in an updated edition Want to take advantage of solar power in your home? Whether you’re looking to save on your energy costs by adding a few solar components or you want to build a solar-powered house from the ground up, Solar Power For Dummies, 2nd Edition takes the mystery out of this energy source and shows you how to put it to work for you! This new edition gives you hands-on tips and techniques for making your home more energy-efficient though solar power—and helping the planet at the same time. Plus, you’ll get all the latest information on changes to federal, state, and local regulations, laws, and tax incentives that seek to make solar-power adoption more feasible. Expanded coverage of the technology that underpins full-scale solar-power systems for the home New small- and mid-sized solar products, projects, and applications Rik DeGunther is a design engineer who started his own energy consulting firm Featuring ten of the easiest and cheapest DIY solar projects, Solar Power For Dummies, 2nd Edition is the fun and easy way to meet your energy needs with this clean power source!

Explores different alternative energy sources, including wind, wave, solar, geothermal, and nuclear energy.

The second edition of Alternative Energy: Political, Economic, and Social Feasibility builds on the first edition, but with significant updates on dramatic changes within the renewable energy sector over the last decade. Christopher Simon discusses the basic technical aspects of major renewable energy systems and technological developments and considers the impact of politics on energy policy using contemporary theories of public policy—such as, Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF), Punctuated Equilibrium (PE), Narrative Policy Framework, and Policy Diffusion—as well as discussing the evolution of the social feasibility of renewable energy. The author expands his discussion of alternative energy solutions to consider nuclear power developments and feasibility in the post-Fukushima policy environment. International commitment to renewable energy is also addressed.

The myths and facts about alternative fuels–and how they impact our lives As the price of energy continues to soar, so too has the demand for alternative energy. But there's no clear "winner" in the race to replace fossil fuels. Alternative Energy For Dummies explores the current fossil fuel conundrum and society's growing need for more and more energy. Cutting through the competing claims, this book offers a multifaceted examination of alternative energy, including solar, wind, nuclear, biomass, geothermal, biofuel, and other sources. Each alternative scenario is compared to current fossil-fuel intensive practices in the scientific, environmental, social, political, and economic realms. Readers also gain insight into the future of energy production.

Alternative Energy Sources is designed to give the reader, a clear view of the role each form of alternative energy may play in supplying the energy needs of the human society in the near future (20-50 years). The two first chapters on "energy demand and supply" and "environmental effects," set the tone as to why alternative energy is essential for the future. The third chapter gives the laws of energy conversion processes, as well as the limitations of converting one energy form to another. The section on exergy gives a quantitative background on the capability/potential of each energy source to produce power. The fourth, fifth and sixth chapters are expositions of fission and fusion nuclear energy, the power plants that may produce power from these sources and the issues that will frame the public debate on nuclear energy. The following five chapters include descriptions of the most common renewable energy sources (wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, hydroelectric) some of the less common sources (e.g. tidal and wave energy). The emphasis of these chapters will be on the global potential of each source, the engineering/technical systems that are used in harnessing the potential of each source, the technological developments that will contribute to wider utilization of the sources and environmental effects associated with their wider use. The last three chapters are: "energy storage," which will become an important issue if renewable energy sources are used widely. The fourteen chapters in the book have been chosen so that one may fit a semester University course around this book. At the end of every chapter, there are 10-20 problems and 1-3 suggestions of semester projects that may be assigned to students for further research.

The comprehensive guide to engineering alternative and renewable energy systems and applications—updated for the latest trends and technologies This book was designed tohelp engineers develop new solutions for the current energy economy. To that end it provides technical discussions, along with numerous real-world examples of virtually all existing alternative energy sources, applications, systems and system components. All chapters focus on first-order engineering calculations, and consider alternative uses of existing and renewable energy resources. Just as important, the author describes how to apply these concepts to the development of new energy solutions. Since the publication of the critically acclaimed first edition of this book, the alternative, renewable and sustainable energy industries have witnessed significant evolution and growth. Hydraulic fracturing, fossil fuel reserve increases, the increasing popularity of hybrid and all-electric vehicles, and the decreasing cost of solar power already have had a significant impact on energy usage patterns worldwide. Updated and revised to reflect those and other key developments, this new edition features expanded coverage of topics covered in the first edition, as well as entirely new chapters on hydraulic fracturing and fossil fuels, hybrid and all-electric vehicles, and more. Begins with a fascinating look at the changing face of global energy economy Features chapters devoted to virtually all sources of alternative energy and energy systems Offers technical discussions of hydropower, wind, passive solar and solar-thermal, photovoltaics, fuel cells, CHP systems, geothermal, ocean energy, biomass, and nuclear Contains updated chapter review questions, homework problems, and a thoroughly revised solutions manual, available on the companion website While Alternative Energy Systems and Applications, Second Edition is an ideal textbook/reference for advanced undergraduate and graduate level engineering courses in energy-related subjects, it is also an indispensable professional resource for engineers and technicians working in areas related to the development of alternative/renewable energy systems.

Green energy promises an alluring future---more jobs in a cleaner environment. We will enjoy a new economy driven by clean electricity, less pollution, and, of course, the gratitude of generations to come. There's just one problem: the lack of credible evidence that any of that can occur. --

This book reviews alternative and renewable energy resources in order to pave the way for a more sustainable production in the future. A multi-disciplinary team of authors provides a comprehensive overview of current technologies and future trends, including solar technologies, wind energy, hydropower, microbial electrochemical systems and various biomass sources for biofuel production. In addition, the book focuses on solutions for developing countries. Conventional energy sources are finite, and estimates suggest that they will be exhausted within a few decades. Finding a solution to this problem is a global challenge, and developing countries in particular are still highly dependent on fossil fuels due to their rapidly growing populations accompanied by a huge growth in primary energy consumption. Moreover, the most common conventional energy sources (coal and petroleum) are non-sustainable since their combustion exponentially increases greenhouse gas emissions. As such, there is a pressing need for clean energy based on alternative or renewable resources, not only to ensure energy supplies at an affordable price but also to protect the environment.