What is modern energy? Prospects for modern energy

Problems and prospects of modern energy
Experts have calculated that in the United States, energy consumption is 6 times higher than the world average and 30 times higher than the level of developing countries.

Scientists offer the following food for thought. If developing countries managed to achieve an increase in the consumption of mineral resources to the level of the United States, then proven reserves of oil would be depleted in 7 years, natural gas in 5 years, and coal in 18 years. If we also take into account the potential reserves, which geologists have not yet reached, then natural gas should last for 72 years, oil in conventional wells - for 60 years, and in shale and sand, from where it is extremely difficult and expensive to pump out - for 660 years . Coal - for 350 years.
Let us assume that the entire mass of our planet can be used for energy needs, like oil. If the rate of increase in energy consumption remains the same as today, this “fuel” will be burned entirely in just 342 years.
At the current pace of technological development, energy production on Earth in 240 years will exceed the amount of solar energy falling on our planet, in 800 years - all the energy released by the sun, and in 1300 years it will exceed the total radiation of our entire Galaxy.
However, the main problem of modern energy is not the depletion of mineral resources, but the threatening environmental situation.

Nuclear power
Based on experience, humanity will have to abandon nuclear energy for 4 reasons.
Firstly, every nuclear power plant, regardless of the degree of its reliability, is a stationary atomic bomb, which at any time can be detonated by sabotage, air bombing, rocket fire or conventional artillery shells.
Secondly, using the example of Chernobyl, we have seen from our own experience that an accident at a nuclear power plant can occur due to someone’s negligence. From 1971 to 1984 There have been 151 serious accidents at nuclear power plants around the world, in which there was a “significant release of radioactive materials with dangerous effects on people.” Since then, not a year has passed without a serious accident at a nuclear power plant, and sometimes several accidents, occurring in one country or another in the world.
Thirdly, the real danger is radioactive waste from nuclear power plants, of which quite a lot has accumulated over the past decades, and even more will accumulate if nuclear energy takes a dominant position in the global energy balance. Now nuclear waste is buried deep in the ground in special containers or lowered to the bottom of the ocean. These methods are not safe: over time, the protective shells are destroyed, and radioactive elements enter the water and soil, and then into the human body.
Fourth, atomic fuel can be used with equal efficiency in both nuclear power plants and atomic bombs. The UN Security Council is suppressing attempts by developing totalitarian states to import nuclear fuel supposedly for the development of nuclear energy. This closes the path for nuclear energy into the future as a dominant part of the global energy mix.
But nuclear energy also has important advantages. American experts have calculated that if by the early 90s in the USSR all nuclear power plants had been replaced with coal ones of the same capacity, then air pollution would have become so great that it would have led to a 50-fold increase in premature deaths in the 21st century. in comparison with the most pessimistic forecasts of the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster.

Alternative energy. Theory and practice
Alternative energy is based on the use of renewable (or "clean") energy sources. These include energy-generating devices that operate using the energy of the Sun, wind, tides, sea waves, as well as the underground heat of the planet.

Solar energy
The leading environmentally friendly source of energy is the Sun. Currently, only a small portion of solar energy is used due to the fact that existing solar cells have a relatively low efficiency and are very expensive to manufacture. Experts say that solar energy alone could cover all conceivable energy needs of humanity for thousands of years to come. But it faces many problems associated with the construction, placement and operation of solar power plants on thousands of square kilometers of the earth's surface. Therefore, the overall share of solar energy has been and will remain quite modest.

Wind energy
According to the World Meteorological Organization, the global wind energy potential is 170 trillion kWh per year.
Wind energy has several significant disadvantages that make it difficult to use. First of all, it is highly dispersed in space, so it is necessary to build wind power plants that can constantly operate with high efficiency.
The wind is very unpredictable: it often changes direction, suddenly calms down even in the windiest areas of the globe, and sometimes reaches such strength that it breaks windmills. Wind power plants are not harmless: they interfere with the flights of birds and insects, make noise, and reflect radio waves with rotating blades. But wind energy has a main advantage - environmental friendliness. In addition, the disadvantages can be reduced, or even eliminated.
Wind power plants have been developed that can operate efficiently even in the lightest breeze. The pitch of the propeller blade is automatically adjusted so that the maximum possible use of wind energy is always ensured, and if the wind speed is too high, the blade is also automatically moved to the feathering position, so that an accident is avoided.
So-called cyclonic power plants with a capacity of up to one hundred thousand kilowatts have been developed and operate, where warm air, rising in a special 15-meter tower and mixing with the circulating air flow, creates an artificial “cyclone” that rotates the turbine. Such installations are much more efficient than both solar panels and conventional wind turbines.
To compensate for wind variability, huge “wind farms” are built. Wind turbines there stand in rows over a vast area and take up a lot of space. In Denmark, a “wind farm” was placed in the shallow coastal waters of the North Sea, where it does not bother anyone, and the wind is more stable than on land.
A positive example of the use of wind energy was shown by the Netherlands and Sweden (the latter decided during the 90s to build and place 54 thousand highly efficient power plants in the most convenient places).
There are now more than 30 thousand wind turbines of various capacities operating in the world. Germany gets 10% of its electricity from wind, and throughout Western Europe wind provides 2,500 MW of electricity.

Hydropower
Hydroelectric power stations are another energy source that claims to be environmentally friendly. At the beginning of the 20th century, the world's large and mountainous rivers attracted attention, and by the end of the century, most of them were blocked by cascades of dams that provided cheap energy.
However, this led to enormous damage to agriculture and nature: the lands above the dams were flooded, in the areas below, groundwater levels fell, huge expanses of land were lost, going to the bottom of giant reservoirs, the natural flow of rivers was interrupted, water in reservoirs rotted, and fish stocks. On mountain rivers, all these disadvantages were minimized, but one more was added: in the event of an earthquake capable of destroying the dam, the disaster could lead to thousands of casualties. Therefore, modern large hydroelectric power plants are not truly environmentally friendly. However, the disadvantages of hydroelectric power stations gave rise to the idea of ​​mini-hydroelectric power stations, which can be located on small rivers or even streams, and their electric generators are capable of operating with small differences in water or being driven only by the force of the current. These same mini-hydroelectric power plants can also be installed on large rivers with relatively fast flows.
Centrifugal and propeller power units of hose portable hydroelectric power plants with a capacity from 0.18 to 30 kW have been developed in detail. In the continuous production of unified hydraulic turbine equipment, mini-hydroelectric power plants are able to compete with maxi-variants in terms of cost per kilowatt-hour. Also an undoubted advantage is the ability to install them even in the most inaccessible corners of a particular country: all equipment can be transported on one pack horse, and installation or dismantling takes only a few hours.
Another very promising development that has not yet received widespread use is the recently created Gorlov helicoidal turbine, named after its creator. Its peculiarity is that it does not require strong pressure and works effectively using the kinetic energy of a water flow - a river, an ocean current or a sea tide. This invention changed the usual idea of ​​a hydroelectric power station, the power of which previously depended only on the force of water pressure, that is, on the height of the hydroelectric dam.

Energy of ebbs and flows
An incomparably more powerful source of water flows is the ebb and flow of the tides. Tidal hydroelectric power station projects have been developed in detail in engineering terms and have been experimentally tested in several countries, including the Kola Peninsula in Russia. Even a strategy for the optimal operation of the power plant has been thought out: to accumulate water in the reservoir behind the dam during high tides and use it to produce electricity when the “peak consumption” in unified energy systems occurs, thereby easing the load on other power plants.
Today, PES are not competitive compared to thermal energy.
In practice, the construction of a tidal power station at the most favorable points of the sea coast, where the difference in water levels ranges from 1-2 to 10-16 meters, will take decades or even centuries. But PES should begin to contribute interest to the global energy balance throughout the 21st century.
The first tidal power station with a capacity of 240 MW was launched in 1966 in France at the mouth of the Rance River, which flows into the English Channel, where the average amplitude of tides is 8.4 m. Opening the station, French President Charles de Gaulle called it the outstanding structure of the century. Despite the high cost of construction, which is almost 2.5 times higher than the cost of constructing a river hydroelectric power station of the same capacity, the first experience in operating a tidal hydroelectric power station turned out to be economically justified. The power plant on the Rance River is part of the French energy system and is being used efficiently.
There are projects of large TPPs with a capacity of 320 MW (Kola) and 4000 MW (Mezen) on the White Sea, where the tidal amplitude is 7-10 m.
It is also planned to use the huge energy potential of the Sea of ​​​​Okhotsk, where in some places, for example, in Penzhinskaya Bay, the height of tides reaches 12.9 m, and in Gizhiginskaya Bay - 12-14 m. Favorable preconditions for the wider use of the energy of sea tides are associated with the possibility of using helicoidal Gorlov turbines, which allow the construction of tidal power plants without dams, reducing construction costs.

Wave energy
Already today, highly economical wave power plants have been developed and experimentally tested, capable of operating efficiently even in low seas or even in complete calm. A vertical pipe is installed at the bottom of the sea or lake, in the underwater part of which a “window” is made, entering which a deep wave (and this is an almost constant phenomenon) compresses the air in the mine, which turns the generator turbine. During reverse movement, the air in the turbine is rarefied, driving the second turbine. Thus, the wave power plant operates continuously in almost any weather, and the current is transmitted to the shore via an underwater cable. Some types of wind farms can serve as excellent breakwaters, protecting the coast from waves and thus saving on the construction of concrete breakwaters.
Specialists from the Laboratory of Water and Wind Energy at Northeastern University in Boston (USA) have developed a project for the world's first ocean power plant. It will be built in the Strait of Florida, where the Gulf Stream originates. At its exit from the Gulf of Mexico, the power of the water flow is 25 million m3/sec, which is 20 times higher than the total water flow in all rivers of the globe. According to experts, the funds invested in the project will pay off within five years. This unique power plant will use a Gorlov turbine to produce 38 kW of current. This helicoidal turbine has three spiral blades and, under the influence of water flow, rotates 2-3 times faster than the current speed. Unlike multi-ton metal turbines used at river hydroelectric power plants, the dimensions of the Gorlov turbine made of plastic are small (diameter - 50 cm, length - 84 cm), and its weight is only 35 kg. The elastic coating of the surface of the blades reduces friction with the water and eliminates the adhesion of seaweed and shellfish. The efficiency of a Gorlov turbine is three times higher than that of conventional turbines.

Geothermal energy
The planet's underground heat is a fairly well-known and already used source of “clean” energy. In Russia, the first geothermal power plant with a capacity of 5 MW was built in 1966 in the south of Kamchatka, in the valley of the Pauzhetka River. In 1980, its capacity was already 11 MW. In Italy, in the areas of Landerello, Monte Amiata and Travele, there are 11 such plants with a total capacity of 384 MW. Geothermal power plants also operate in the USA (California, Valley of the Great Geysers), Iceland (near Lake Mývatn), New Zealand, Mexico and Japan. The capital of Iceland, Reykjavik, receives heat exclusively from hot underground springs.
Geologists have discovered that massifs heated to 180°-200°C at a depth of 46 km occupy most of the territory of Russia, and with temperatures up to 100°-150°C they are found almost everywhere. In addition, over several million square kilometers there are hot underground rivers and seas with a depth of up to 3.5 km and a water temperature of up to 200 ° C (under pressure, of course), so that by drilling a well, you can get a fountain of steam and hot water.

Hydrothermal energy
In addition to underground heat, there is also water heat, which is not so common as an energy source. Water is always at least a few degrees warmer, and in summer it heats up to 25°C. To use this heat, you need an installation that operates on the “refrigerator in reverse” principle. If you pass water through a refrigeration device, then heat can also be taken from it. The hot steam that is formed as a result of heat exchange condenses, its temperature rises to 110°C, and then it can be directed either to the turbines of power plants or to heat water in central heating radiators to 60°-65°C. In response, for every kilowatt-hour of energy expended on this, nature returns 3 kilowatt-hours. The same principle can be used to generate energy for air conditioning in hot weather.
Such installations are most effective at large temperature differences. All necessary engineering developments have already been carried out and tested experimentally.

Energy today and tomorrow
Today, about half of the world's energy balance comes from oil, about a third from gas and nuclear power (about one-sixth each), and about one-fifth from coal. Only a few percent remains for all other energy sources. But where possible, alternative energy sources should be introduced.
It should be noted (and SiN has repeatedly reported this) that, for example, Belarus already has some experience in using wind energy.

Modern economic development has acutely revealed the main problems in the development of the energy complex. The era of hydrocarbons is slowly but surely coming to its logical conclusion. It should be replaced by innovative technologies that are associated with the main energy prospects.

Problems of the energy complex

Perhaps one of the most important problems of the energy complex can be considered the high cost of energy, which, in turn, leads to an increase in the cost of manufactured products. Despite the fact that in recent years, developments have been actively carried out that could allow the use of hydrocarbons, not a single one of them is currently capable of completely displacing hydrocarbons from the world energy arena. Alternative technologies are a complement to traditional sources, but not a replacement, at least for now.

In Russian conditions, the problem is further aggravated by the state of decline of the energy complex. Electricity generating complexes are not in the best condition; many power plants are physically destroyed. As a result, the cost of electricity does not decrease, but constantly increases.

For a long time, the global energy community relied on the atom, but this direction of development can also be called a dead end. In European countries there is a tendency towards a gradual abandonment of nuclear power plants. The inconsistency of atomic energy is further emphasized by the fact that over many decades of development it has never been able to displace hydrocarbons.

Development prospects

As already noted, energy development prospects, first of all, are associated with the development of effective alternative sources. The most studied areas in this area are:

• Biofuel.
• Wind power.
• Geothermal energy.
• Solar energy.
• Thermonuclear energy (FN).
• Hydrogen energy.
• Tidal energy.

None of these directions is capable of solving the problem of the energy crisis, when simply supplementing old energy sources with alternative ones is no longer enough. Developments are carried out in different directions and are at different stages of their development. However, it is already possible to outline a range of technologies that can make a start:

• Vortex heat generators. Such installations have been used for quite a long time, finding their application in heating homes. The working fluid pumped through the pipeline system heats up to 90 degrees. Despite all the advantages of the technology, it is still far from being fully developed. For example, recently the possibility of using air rather than liquid as a working medium has been actively studied.
• Cold nuclear fusion. Another technology that has been developing since about the late 80s of the last century. It is based on the idea of ​​obtaining nuclear energy without ultra-high temperatures. So far, the direction is at the stage of laboratory and practical research.
• At the stage of industrial designs there are magnetomechanical power amplifiers that use the Earth's magnetic field in their operation. Under its influence, the power of the generator increases and the amount of electricity received increases.
• Energy installations based on the idea of ​​dynamic superconductivity seem very promising. The essence of the idea is simple - at a certain speed, dynamic superconductivity arises, which makes it possible to generate a powerful magnetic field. Research in this area has been going on for quite some time, and considerable theoretical and practical material has been accumulated.

This is only a tiny list of innovative technologies, each of which has sufficient development potential. In general, the global scientific community is capable of developing not only alternative energy sources, which can already be called old, but also truly innovative technologies.

It should be noted that in recent years, technologies that until recently seemed fantastic have increasingly appeared. The development of such energy sources can completely transform the familiar world. Let's name only the most famous of them:

• Nanoconductor batteries.
• Wireless energy transfer technologies.
• Atmospheric power generation, etc.

It should be expected that in the coming years other technologies will appear, the development of which will allow us to abandon the use of hydrocarbons and, importantly, reduce the cost of energy.

The energy problem is one of the most important problems that humanity has to solve today. Such achievements of science and technology as instant communications, fast transport, and space exploration have already become commonplace. But all this requires huge amounts of energy. The sharp increase in energy production and consumption has brought forward a new acute problem of environmental pollution, which poses a serious danger to humanity.

World energy needs will increase rapidly in the coming decades. Any one energy source will not be able to provide them, so it is necessary to develop all energy sources and use energy resources efficiently.

At the next stage of energy development (the first decades of the 21st century), coal energy and nuclear energy with thermal and fast neutron reactors will remain the most promising. However, we can hope that humanity will not stop on the path of progress associated with the consumption of energy in ever-increasing quantities.

The word “energy” from Greek means action, activity. The importance of the concept of energy is determined by the fact that it obeys the law of conservation. The idea of ​​energy helps to understand the impossibility of creating a perpetual motion machine. Work can only be performed as a result of certain changes in surrounding bodies or systems (fuel combustion, falling water). The ability of a body, when transitioning from one state to another, to perform a certain amount of work (performance) was called energy. Now, more than ever, the question has arisen: what awaits humanity - energy hunger or energy abundance. Articles about the energy crisis do not leave the pages of newspapers and magazines. The inexorable laws of nature state that usable energy can only be obtained by converting it from other forms. Perpetual motion machines are unfortunately impossible. And today, 4 out of 5 kilowatts of electricity produced are obtained by burning fuel or using the chemical energy stored in it, converting it into electricity at thermal stations. Increased oil prices, the rapid development of nuclear energy, and increasing requirements for environmental protection required a new approach to energy.

It’s not for nothing that they say: “Energy is the bread of industry.” The more developed industry and technology, the more energy they need. There is even a special concept - “advanced development of energy”. This means that not a single industrial enterprise, not a single new city or just a house can be built until the energy source is identified or created anew,

which they will consume. That is why, by the amount of energy produced and used, one can quite accurately judge the technical and economic power, or, more simply, the wealth of any state.

In nature, energy reserves are enormous. It is carried by the sun's rays, winds and moving masses of water; it is stored in wood, gas, oil, and coal deposits. The energy “sealed” in the nuclei of atoms of matter is practically limitless. But not all of its forms are suitable for direct use.

Over the long history of energy, many technical means and methods have accumulated for producing energy and converting it into the forms people need. Actually, man became human only when he learned to receive and use thermal energy. The fire of bonfires was lit by the first people who did not yet understand its nature, but this method of transforming chemical

energy into heat has been preserved and improved for thousands of years.

People added the muscular energy of animals to the energy of their own muscles and fire. They invented a technique for removing chemically bound water from clay using the thermal energy of fire - pottery kilns, in which durable ceramic products were produced. Of course, man only learned about the processes occurring during this process thousands of years later.

Then people came up with mills - a technique for converting the energy of wind currents and wind into the mechanical energy of a rotating shaft. But only with the invention of the steam engine, internal combustion engine, hydraulic, steam and gas turbines, electric generator and engine, did humanity have at its disposal sufficiently powerful

technical devices. They are capable of converting natural energy into other types that are convenient for use and producing large amounts of work. The search for new energy sources did not end there: batteries, fuel cells, solar-to-electric energy converters and, already in the mid-twentieth century, nuclear reactors were invented.

The problem of providing electrical energy to many sectors of the world economy, the constantly growing needs of more than six billion people on Earth, is now becoming more and more urgent.

The basis of modern world energy is thermal and hydroelectric power plants.

However, their development is hampered by a number of factors. The cost of coal, oil and gas, on which thermal power plants operate, is rising, and the natural resources of these types of fuel are declining. In addition, many countries do not have their own fuel resources or lack them. During the production of electricity at thermal power plants, harmful substances are released into the atmosphere. Moreover, if the fuel is coal, especially brown coal, which is of little value for other types of use and contains a high content of unnecessary impurities, emissions reach colossal proportions. And finally, accidents at thermal power plants cause great damage to nature, comparable to the damage of any large fire. In the worst case, such a fire may be accompanied by an explosion, producing a cloud of coal dust or soot.

Hydropower resources in developed countries are almost completely used: most river sections suitable for hydraulic engineering construction have already been developed. And what harm do hydroelectric power plants cause to nature! There are no air emissions from hydroelectric power plants, but

A way out of this situation was seen in the development of nuclear energy. At the end of 1989, more than 400 nuclear power plants (NPPs) were built and operating in the world. However, today nuclear power plants are no longer considered a source of cheap and environmentally friendly energy. The fuel for nuclear power plants is uranium ore - an expensive and difficult to extract raw material, the reserves of which are limited. In addition, the construction and operation of nuclear power plants are associated with great difficulties and costs. Only a few countries are now continuing to build new nuclear power plants. A serious obstacle to the further development of nuclear energy is the problem of environmental pollution. All this further complicates the attitude towards nuclear energy. Increasingly, there are calls to abandon the use of nuclear fuel altogether, to close all nuclear power plants and return to the production of electricity at thermal power plants and hydroelectric power plants, as well as to use the so-called renewable - small, or “non-traditional” - types of energy production. The latter primarily include installations and devices that use the energy of wind, water, sun, geothermal energy, as well as heat contained in water, air and earth.

Modern electric power industry has many problems, they are caused by the high cost of fuel, negative impact on the environment, etc.

For example, hydropower technologies have many advantages, but there are also significant disadvantages. Overlay, rainy seasons, low water resources during droughts can seriously affect the amount of energy produced. This can become a serious problem where hydropower constitutes a significant part of the country's energy complex, dams cause many problems: displacement of residents, drying out of natural river beds, siltation of reservoirs, water disputes between neighboring countries, and the significant cost of these projects. Hydroelectric power plants on lowland rivers lead to flooding of large areas. A significant part of the area of ​​the reservoirs formed is shallow water. In the summer, due to solar radiation, aquatic vegetation actively develops in them, and the so-called “blooming” of water occurs.

Changes in water levels, sometimes reaching complete drying, lead to the death of vegetation. Dams prevent fish migration. Multi-cascade hydroelectric power stations have already turned rivers into a series of lakes where swamps appear. Fish die in these rivers, and the microclimate around them changes, further destroying natural ecosystems.

Regarding the harmfulness of thermal power plants, when fuel burns in heat engines, harmful substances are released: carbon monoxide, nitrogen compounds, lead compounds, and a significant amount of heat is also released into the atmosphere.

In addition, the use of steam turbines at thermal power plants requires the allocation of large areas for ponds in which the exhaust steam is cooled. Every year, 5 billion tons of coal and 3.2 billion tons of oil are burned in the world, which is accompanied by the release of 2 10 J of heat into the atmosphere. Organic fuel reserves on Earth are distributed extremely unevenly, and at the current rate of consumption, coal will last for 150-200 years, oil for 40-50 years, and gas for about 60 years. The entire cycle of work associated with the extraction, transportation and combustion of organic fuel (mainly coal), as well as the generation of waste, is accompanied by the release of a large number of chemical pollutants. Coal mining is associated with considerable salinization of water reservoirs where water from mines is discharged. In addition, the pumped water contains isotopes of radium and radon. The thermal power plant, although it has modern systems for purifying coal combustion products, emits into the atmosphere per year, according to various estimates, from 10 to 120 thousand tons of sulfur oxides, 2-20 thousand tons of nitrogen oxides, 700-1500 tons of ash (without purification - in 2 -3 times more) and emits 3-7 million tons of carbon monoxide. In addition, more than 300 thousand tons of ash are formed, containing about 400 tons of toxic metals (arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury). It can be noted that coal-fired thermal power plants emit more radioactive substances into the atmosphere than nuclear power plants of the same power. This is due to the release of various radioactive elements contained in coal in the form of inclusions (radium, thorium, polonium, etc.). To quantify the impact of radiation, the concept of “collective dose” is introduced, i.e. the product of the dose value and the number of people exposed to radiation (it is expressed in man-sievert). It turned out that in the early 90s of the last century, the annual collective radiation dose of the population of Ukraine due to thermal energy was 767 people/n and due to nuclear energy - 188 people/n.

Currently, 20-30 billion tons of carbon monoxide are emitted into the atmosphere annually. Projections indicate that if this rate continues in the future, by mid-century the average temperature on Earth could rise by several degrees, which will lead to unpredictable global climate changes. When comparing the environmental effects of various energy sources, it is necessary to take into account their impact on human health. The high risk to workers when using coal is associated with its mining and transportation and the environmental impact of its combustion products. The last two reasons relate to oil and gas and affect the entire population. It has been established that the global impact of emissions from the combustion of coal and oil on human health is approximately the same as an accident like Chernobyl, which occurs once a year. This is a “silent Chernobyl”, the consequences of which are directly invisible, but constantly affect the environment. The concentration of toxic impurities in chemical waste is stable, and in the end they will all go into the ecosphere, unlike radioactive waste from nuclear power plants, they decay.

In general, the actual radiation impact of nuclear power plants on the environment is much (10 or more times) less than permissible. If we take into account the environmental impact of various energy sources on human health, then among renewable energy sources the risk from normally operating nuclear power plants is minimal, both for workers whose activities are associated with various stages of the nuclear fuel cycle, and for the population. The global radiation contribution of nuclear energy at all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle is now about 0.1% of the natural background and will not exceed 1% even with its intensive development in the future.

Mining and processing of uranium ores is also associated with adverse environmental effects.

The collective dose received by the installation personnel and the public at all stages of uranium mining and production of reactor fuel is 14% of the total dose of the nuclear fuel cycle. But the main problem remains the disposal of high-level waste. The volume of highly hazardous radioactive waste is approximately one hundred thousandth of the total amount of waste, including highly toxic chemical elements and their stable compounds. Methods are being developed for their concentration, reliable binding and placement in stable geological formations, where, according to experts, they can be kept for thousands of years. A serious disadvantage of nuclear energy is the radioactivity of the fuel used and its fission products. This requires the creation of protection from various types of radioactive radiation, which significantly increases the energy generated by nuclear power plants. In addition, another disadvantage of nuclear power plants is thermal pollution of water, i.e. its heating.

It is interesting to note that, according to a group of British doctors, people who worked in the British nuclear industry between 1946 and 1988 live longer on average, and their mortality rate from all causes, including cancer, is significantly lower. If we take into account the actual levels of radiation and concentrations of chemicals in the atmosphere, we can say that the influence of the latter on the flora as a whole is quite significant compared to the effects of radiation.

The data presented indicate that during the operation of power plants the environmental the impact of nuclear energy is tens of times lower than thermal energy.

The Chernobyl tragedy remains an irreparable evil for Ukraine. But it concerns more the social system that gave birth to it than nuclear energy. After all, at no nuclear power plant in the world, except for Chernobyl, there were no accidents that directly led to the death of people.

The probabilistic method for calculating the safety of nuclear power plants generally shows that when producing the same unit of electricity, the probability of a major accident at a nuclear power plant is 100 times lower than in the case of coal power. The conclusions from such a comparison are obvious.

The growing use of electrical energy and the aggravation of environmental problems have significantly intensified the search for environmentally friendly methods of generating electricity. Methods of using non-fuel renewable energy are being intensively developed - solar, wind, geothermal, wave energy, tidal energy, biogas energy, etc. The sources of these types of energy are inexhaustible, but it should be reasonably assessed whether they can satisfy all the needs of humanity.

The latest research is mainly aimed at generating electrical energy from wind energy. Wind farms are being built mainly with direct current. The wind wheel drives a dynamo - an electric current that simultaneously charges batteries connected in parallel.

Today, wind-electric units reliably provide electricity to oil workers; they operate successfully in hard-to-reach areas, on remote islands, in the Arctic, on thousands of agricultural farms where there are no large settlements or public power plants nearby.

The widespread use of wind-electric units under normal conditions is still hampered by their high cost. When using wind, a serious problem arises: an excess of energy in windy weather and a lack of it in calm periods. The use of wind energy is complicated by the fact that it has a low energy density, and its strength and direction also change. Wind turbines are mainly used in places where there is good wind conditions. To create high-power wind turbines, it is necessary to have large dimensions; in addition, the propeller must be raised to a sufficient height, since at higher altitudes the wind is more stable and has a higher speed. Just one fossil fuel power plant can replace (in terms of the amount of energy produced) thousands of wind turbines.

For centuries, people have speculated about the cause of sea tides. Today we know for sure that a powerful natural phenomenon - the rhythmic movement of sea waters - is caused by the gravitational forces of the Moon and the Sun. Tidal energy is enormous, its total power on Earth is about 1 billion kW, which is more than the total power of all the rivers in the world.

The operating principle of tidal power plants is very simple. During high tide, water, rotating hydraulic turbines, fills the reservoir, and after low tide it leaves the reservoir into the ocean, again rotating the turbines. The main thing is to find a convenient place to install the dam, where the tide height would be significant. Building and operating power plants is a complex task. Sea water causes corrosion of most metals, and parts of installations become overgrown with algae.

The heat flux of solar radiation that reaches the Earth is very large. It is more than 5,000 times higher than the total use of all types of fuel and energy resources in the world.

Among the benefits of solar energy- its eternity and exceptional environmental cleanliness. Solar energy reaches the entire surface of the Earth, only the polar regions of the planet suffer from its lack. That is, almost all over the globe, only clouds and night prevent us from using it constantly. This general availability makes this type of energy impossible to monopolize, unlike oil and gas. Of course, the cost is 1 kWh. solar energy is significantly higher than that obtained by the traditional method. Only a fifth of sunlight is converted into electrical current, but this proportion continues to grow thanks to the efforts of scientists and engineers around the world.

Since solar radiation energy is distributed over a large area (in other words, has low density), any installation for direct solar energy use must have a collecting device with sufficient surface area. The simplest device of this kind is a flat-plate collector; in principle it is a black slab, well insulated at the bottom.

There are power plants of a slightly different type, their difference is that the solar heat focused on the top of the tower drives a sodium coolant, which heats the water to form steam. According to experts, the most attractive idea for converting solar energy is the use of the photoelectric effect in semiconductors. However, the surface area of ​​solar panels to provide sufficient power must be quite large (for a daily output of 500 MWh. A surface area of ​​500,000 m2 is required), which is quite expensive. Solar energy is one of the most material-intensive types of energy production. Large-scale use of solar energy entails a gigantic increase in the need for materials, and, consequently, in labor resources for the extraction of raw materials, their enrichment, obtaining materials, manufacturing heliostats, collectors, other equipment, and their transportation. The efficiency of solar power plants in areas far from the equator is quite low due to unstable atmospheric conditions, relatively weak intensity of solar radiation, as well as its fluctuations due to the alternation of day and night.

Geothermal energy uses the high temperatures of the deep interior of the earth's crust to generate thermal energy.

In some places on Earth, especially at the edges of tectonic plates, heat comes to the surface in the form of hot springs - geysers and volcanoes. In other areas, underwater springs flow through hot underground formations, and this heat can be captured through heat exchange systems. Iceland is an example of a country where Geothermal energy is widely used.

Technologies have now been developed that make it possible to extract flammable gases from biological raw materials as a result of the chemical reaction of the decomposition of high molecular weight compounds into low molecular weight ones due to the activity of special bacteria (which participate in the reaction without access to air oxygen). Reaction scheme: biomass + + bacteria -> combustible gases + other gases + fertilizers.

Biomass is waste from agricultural production (livestock farming, processing industry).

The main raw material for biogas production is manure, which is delivered to biogas stations. The main product of a biogas station is a mixture of combustible gases (90% of the mixture is methane). This mixture is supplied to heat generation plants and power plants.

Renewable sources (except water energy) have a common drawback: their energy is very weakly concentrated, which creates considerable difficulties for practical use. The cost of renewable sources (excluding hydroelectric power stations) is much higher than traditional ones. Both solar and wind and other types of energy can be successfully used to generate electricity in the power range from several kilowatts to tens of kilowatts. But these types of energy are completely unpromising for creating powerful industrial energy sources