What is renewable or alternative energy?

Renewable or alternative energy is a concept that we have been hearing for a long time, but many of us do not really know what it is about. It is for this reason that today we bring you everything you need to know about this type of energy so that you can make the right decision and know if you should switch to renewable energy or continue betting on the traditional.

Renewable energy concept

What is renewable energy? It is simply a form of energy that can be obtained from natural sources that can never be exhausted.

These natural sources can be of two types: they regenerate naturally or they have too much energy to be used without any problem.

It is important to mention that this type of energy is completely clean and does not usually have any type of impact on the environment.

Some examples of renewable energies

So that you understand the concept a little better, I bring you some of the most interesting examples of renewable or alternative energy today.

• Solar energy. Solar energy is clearly one of the best known renewable or sustainable energies today and it is very common to see solar panels in houses, homes, factories and companies to reduce energy costs and take care of the environment.
• Wind power. On the other hand we also have wind energy, for this type of energy to work correctly it is necessary to be in areas with high wind force. And it is that wind energy depends directly on the wind moving the mills so that electric generators convert that movement into electrical energy.
• Seawater energy. It is that type of energy that is generated by the strong movement of the waves and the sea.
• Geothermal energy. It is the one that seeks to use the heat or high temperatures that are generated in the lowest part of the earth and then convert it into energy.

There are also other forms of green renewable energy such as biomass, biogas, hydraulic energy, among others.

Characteristics of renewable or alternative energy

The characteristics of renewable energy, which is the energy of the future, are very important and become a great ally for us, for human beings, for our society and even for our planet.

1. They benefit the environment. With renewable energies, the environmental impact is greatly reduced to a point that we could ensure that if millions of people and many countries begin to change the way they consume energy, we could recover the environment and reduce pollution by a high percentage in the coming years. .
2. They are free and do not run out. Clearly, this is one of the most interesting characteristics of renewable energy for human beings, and that is that the cost of obtaining energy is totally free and it never runs out. It is important to understand that an investment must be made to convert renewable energy into electrical energy, but after that first investment, everything else is totally free.
3. They reach the farthest places. There is no need for large wiring installations for renewable energy to reach the most remote points. With a simple installation on site they can have electricity without problems.
4. Energy independence can be achieved. Many countries throughout the world invest large amounts of money annually because they do not have the necessary resources to generate their own energy. Renewable energy is the future because it allows for total energy independence. We invite you to discover the Top 11 countries with the most renewable energy.

Differences between renewable and non-renewable energy

What are the differences between renewable and non-renewable energy? Is it true that there is so much difference between these two types of energy? Let’s learn more about these differences below.

• The renewal time of the energy source. One of the big differences between renewable or alternative energy and non-renewable energy is the time it takes to renew the energy source, and in the case of the former, the resources are not exhausted or are recovered quickly. In the case of non-renewable energy, things are more complex since the resources can run out or take too long to regenerate.
• Limited resources vs unlimited resources. Resources in the case of renewable energy are unlimited or close to unlimited. The problem with non-renewable energy is that these resources are usually limited and not available in large quantities.
• Great damage to the environment vs almost no damage. Clean energy and renewable energy have almost no footprint or damage to the environment, unlike non-renewable energy that leaves a lot of waste that harms our planet.

Advantages and disadvantages of renewable energies

Now let’s learn a little more about renewable energy, its advantages and disadvantages and why many people know it as the energy of the future.

Advantages of renewable energy

1. They are not contaminants. As we have already mentioned, one of the great advantages of these types of energy is that they do not pollute the environment and that they are much cleaner.
2. They do not create waste or residue. Nuclear power creates toxic waste that is very serious for the oceans, for the land and for human beings. This does not happen with renewable energies, since they do not create any type of toxic waste.
3. It is not dependent on others. By betting on renewable energy, we only depend on natural resources and not on any other country that produces what we need to generate energy.
4. They don’t run out. We will not have any type of problem when using this type of energy because the natural resources used to generate it are never exhausted.

Disadvantages of renewable energy

1. They can go up and down. If one day there is less wind, less sun, if the tide is not so strong there may be some ups and downs with renewable energy, that is why it is recommended to always have a backup to save a little energy and be used at these times.
2. They require a significant initial investment. Although they save a lot of money in the future, the initial investment in the case of many of the renewable energies must be quite large.

It can clearly be seen how the comparison between renewable energy and non-renewable energy is clearly won by renewable energy, in the same way, we invite you to learn much more about this type of energy so that, finally, you move to the right side of history and begin to make use of those inexhaustible resources that also help our environment.