Courtesy : Development of alternative energy such as solar
Trends for individual technologies
Hydroelectricity
In 2020 the world renewable hydropower capacity was 1,330 GW.Only a third of the world’s estimated hydroelectric potential of 14,000 TWh/year has been developed. New hydropower projects face opposition from local communities due to their large impact, including relocation of communities and flooding of wildlife habitats and farming land. High cost and lead times from permission process, including environmental and risk assessments, with lack of environmental and social acceptance are therefore the primary challenges for new developments. It is popular to repower old dams thereby increasing their efficiency and capacity as well as quicker responsiveness on the grid. Where circumstances permit existing dams such as the Russell Dam built in 1985 may be updated with “pump back” facilities for pumped-storage which is useful for peak loads or to support intermittent wind and solar power. Because dispatchable power is more valuable than VRE countries with large hydroelectric developments such as Canada and Norway are spending billions to expand their grids to trade with neighboring countries having limited hydro. # ISO certification in India
Wind power development
Main article: Wind power by country
Worldwide growth of wind capacity (1996–2018)
Four offshore wind farms are in the Thames Estuary area: Kentish Flats, Gunfleet Sands, Thanet and London Array. The latter is the largest in the world as of April 2013.Offshore wind is becoming more profitable
Solar thermal
Main article: List of solar thermal power stations
The 377 MW Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System with all three towers under load, February 2014. Taken from I-15.
Solar towers of the PS10 and PS20 solar thermal plants in Spain
Solar thermal energy capacity has increased from 1.3 GW in 2012 to 5.0 GW in 2017.
Spain is the world leader in solar thermal power deployment with 2.3 GW deployed. The United States has 1.8 GW, most of it in California where 1.4 GW of solar thermal power projects are operational. Several power plants have been constructed in the Mojave Desert, Southwestern United States. As of 2017 only 4 other countries have deployments above 100 MW: South Africa (300 MW) India (229 MW) Morocco (180 MW) and United Arab Emirates (100 MW). # ISO certification in India
The United States conducted much early research in photovoltaics and concentrated solar power. The U.S. is among the top countries in the world in electricity generated by the Sun and several of the world’s largest utility-scale installations are located in the desert Southwest.
The oldest solar thermal power plant in the world is the 354 megawatt (MW) SEGS thermal power plant, in California. The Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System is a solar thermal power project in the California Mojave Desert, 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Las Vegas, with a gross capacity of 377 MW. The 280 MW Solana Generating Station is a solar power plant near Gila Bend, Arizona, about 70 miles (110 km) southwest of Phoenix, completed in 2013. When commissioned it was the largest parabolic trough plant in the world and the first U.S. solar plant with molten salt thermal energy storage. # ISO certification in India
In developing countries, three World Bank projects for integrated solar thermal/combined-cycle gas-turbine power plants in Egypt, Mexico, and Morocco have been approved.
Photovoltaics (PV) is rapidly-growing with global capacity increasing from 177 GW at the end of 2014 to 385 GW in 2017.
PV uses solar cells assembled into solar panels to convert sunlight into electricity. PV systems range from small, residential and commercial rooftop or building integrated installations, to large utility-scale photovoltaic power station. The predominant PV technology is crystalline silicon, while thin-film solar cell technology accounts for about 10 percent of global photovoltaic deployment. In recent years, PV technology has improved its electricity generating efficiency, reduced the installation cost per watt as well as its energy payback time, and reached grid parity in at least 30 different markets by 2014. Building-integrated photovoltaics or “onsite” PV systems use existing land and structures and generate power close to where it is consumed.
Photovoltaics grew fastest in China, followed by Japan and the United States. Solar power is forecasted to become the world’s largest source of electricity by 2050, with solar photovoltaics and concentrated solar power contributing 16% and 11%, respectively. This requires an increase of installed PV capacity to 4,600 GW, of which more than half is expected to be deployed in China and India. # ISO certification in India
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Solar panels at the 550 MW Topaz Solar Farm
Commercial concentrated solar power plants were first developed in the 1980s. As the cost of solar electricity has fallen, the number of grid-connected solar PV systems has grown into the millions and utility-scale solar power stations with hundreds of megawatts are being built. Many solar photovoltaic power stations have been built, mainly in Europe, China and the United States. The 1.5 GW Tengger Desert Solar Park, in China is the world’s largest PV power station. Many of these plants are integrated with agriculture and some use tracking systems that follow the sun’s daily path across the sky to generate more electricity than fixed-mounted systems. # ISO certification in India
Biofuel development
See also: Ethanol fuel, Sustainable biofuel, and Issues relating to biofuels
Brazil produces bioethanol made from sugarcane available throughout the country. A typical gas station with dual fuel service is marked “A” for alcohol (ethanol) and “G” for gasoline.
Bioenergy global capacity in 2017 was 109 GW. Biofuels provided 4% of the world’s transport fuel in 2017.
Mandates for blending biofuels exist in 31 countries at the national level and in 29 states/provinces.
Since the 1970s, Brazil has had an ethanol fuel program which has allowed the country to become the world’s second largest producer of ethanol (after the United States) and the world’s largest exporter.Brazil’s ethanol fuel program uses modern equipment and cheap sugarcane as feedstock, and the residual cane-waste (bagasse) is used to produce heat and power.[194] There are no longer light vehicles in Brazil running on pure gasoline. # ISO certification in India
Biojet is expected to be important for short-term reduction of carbon dioxide emissions from long-haul flights.