Lesson 11 - Energy Flashcards
Conventional sources of energy
Natural gas, coal, and oil are conventional sources of energy used to heat homes.
Renewable energy sources
Biomass energy uses organic material which is burned to create energy.
Methane is a naturally occurring byproduct of decaying plant and animal material. Methane gas is burned to produce electricity.
Hydroelectric power is typically associated with large dams. It uses falling water to produce power, which is moved through a turbine, causing it to spin. The spinning turbine is coupled with a generator, which produces energy.
Solar Energy can be used to heat homes through solar panels. Solar power uses photovoltaic panels to convert sunlight directly into electricity. The panels can be added together to create large systems.
Wind power is growing in popularity in many parts of the U.S. Wind turbines are tall (100 feet plus) in order to catch the wind more efficiently. Wind farms made up of wind turbines built close together. They can be found in coastal, mountain, or other regions with a constant wind supply.Distributed wind energy systems are small residential wind turbines with capacities of up to 100kW and are designed for on-site consumption. Utility scale turbines are designed to generate power which can be contributed to the energy grid. Offshore wind energy is a subset of utility scale turbines. The cost of developing offshore is higher due to complexity and material requirements to operate offshore.
Energy Efficiency
In order to make a building more energy efficient, builders use insulation. Insulation allows for more efficient heating of a building. Insulation is rated in terms of thermal resistance, called R-value. This indicates the resistance to heat flow. The higher the R-value, the greater the insulation. A minimum R-value of 20 is recommended for residential use.
Reducing a thermostat one degree will result in money savings of between 1-3%, according to energystar.gov.
In order to reduce the cost of lighting homes, incandescent light bulbs can be replaced with fluorescent or sodium bulbs.
Indoor air quality has become a significant issue in recent years. Indoor air pollution is caused by tobacco smoke, building materials, cleaning fluids, pesticides, and other substances. The two air pollutants that are of most concern to the EPA are tobacco smoke and radon.
Wind energy
Wind energy has the strongest potential in the Great Plains, but also has potential across the nation. A Planner’s role in wind energy includes regulations and land-use plans that can impact the ability to develop wind energy. For example, wind farms comply with land use districts, setback requirements and height limitations. Ordinances regulating wind energy should address setbacks, tower height, visual appearance, sound, and design review for turbine design.
Solar energy
Solar energy availability varies over the course of the day and time of year based on the earth axis, weather conditions, and position of the sun in the sky. Solar energy is measured in kilowatt-hours per square meter (kWh/m2) relating to electricity production and in British thermal units per square foot (Btu/ft2) which relates to heat production. The suitability of a location for solar development will depend in large part of the site conditions. With proper site and building design solar can be utilized in most locations.
Zoning controls the location of solar resources, for example through setbacks, height and lot coverage restrictions. For example, most communities would not allow solar panels as an accessory structure in the front yard. Development regulations should be structured to allow solar by right where appropriate and to have the appropriate development controls where needed. For example there could be competing interests between tree preservation and solar energy production.
Passive Solar Design
Passive Solar Design mitigates the building’s energy needs. Buildings are sited to maximize the light and space heating based on the location. The goal of passive design is to maximize the amount of direct sunlight available to each building - for example orienting streets and front lot lines along the east-west axis. In colder climates windows facing the southern direction can capture solar energy for day time heating.
Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems
Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems use photovoltaic cell technology to capture radiant energy from the sun creating electricity. These photovoltaic cells are placed on panels that are then placed on rooftops or mounted on the ground. These cells can operate at the residential to the utility scale.
A number of states have regulations in place that support renewable energy. Some states also offer tax credits or other tax incentives to encourage the development of renewable energy resources.
