Get the real answer – is solar renewable or nonrenewable?
Is Solar Energy Renewable or Nonrenewable?
More and more people in the USA are now going for Solar power for their homes and businesses and the question that is often coming up is – is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable? The short answer to this query is, the sun is a renewable energy resource and solar energy is renewable.
Now, why is solar energy renewable? I have, in this post, discussed everything about solar energy to explore what makes solar energy renewable.
For a better understanding of the facts to clarify- is solar renewable or nonrenewable, we first need to know the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources.
What is the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources?
A renewable resource is a term that speaks for itself. It refers to any energy source which is provided by nature and is replenished naturally. These energy sources are sustainable and replenished naturally within a reasonable length of time on a human timescale at a faster rate than they are consumed i.e. using these resources today will not diminish their availability tomorrow. For all practical purposes, renewable energy sources are virtually inexhaustible.
Examples of renewable energy sources are – Sunlight, Wind, Water, Biomass, and Geothermal, which are naturally occurring phenomena and are practically limitless in supply.
Renewable Energy Resources
A nonrenewable energy source is a source of economic value that cannot be readily replaced by natural means at a quick enough pace to keep up with their consumption. Though nonrenewable fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gases also replenish naturally, their formation takes millions of years, which makes them unable to replenish at a sufficient rate in meaningful human time frames. These resources would, therefore, run out one day if they are continually extracted at the rate humans use them today.
Examples of nonrenewable energy sources are Coal, Oil, Natural gas, and Uranium. These resources are consumed by us much faster than nature can create them. Eventually, they will be exhausted altogether sooner or later and hence we cannot sustain our reliance on them indefinitely.
Nonrenewable Energy Resources
Is Solar energy renewable or nonrenewable?
From the definitions of renewable and nonrenewable resources given above it is clear that if using a resource today doesn’t reduce its availability tomorrow, then it is a renewable resource. The sun being an inexhaustible energy source it is apparent that we cannot think of solar energy as anything other than renewable while answering the query, is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable?
It is true that in the final analysis, there is no such thing as pure 100% renewable energy. Almost all renewable energy sources to some extent depend on fossil fuels or other nonrenewable resources.
In the case of solar power, also a range of sophisticated technologies such as solar photo-voltaic, solar heating, concentrated solar power, solar power dish, etc. are used for efficient conversion of solar energy to electricity. These technologies are manufactured in facilities powered primarily by fossil fuels. Again, transportation and installation of these solar kits also need the help of equipment powered mainly by fossil fuels. It is, therefore, not easy to say emphatically that solar energy is renewable while answering whether is solar renewable or nonrenewable. It is rather difficult to assert that solar power, or for that matter production of any form of energy, is entirely renewable.
Nevertheless, scientists believe that in spite of the above facts solar energy can be termed as renewable because solar radiation has grown and extended to a point that the amount of renewable energy it generates much exceeds the amount of nonrenewable energy required for fabrication and installation of technologies required for conversion of solar radiation to usable energy.
Let’s also examine from the point of view of sustainability whether is solar renewable or nonrenewable.
Solar energy is a sustainable energy and is inherently more sustainable than fossil fuel energy sources. According to the United Nations, sustainability means “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Solar energy embodies this widely accepted definition of sustainability because the sun’s radiated energy can be used indefinitely without diminishing its future availability
Solar energy refers to the energy that is harnessed from solar radiation for use as heat and light for useful purposes. Sustainable energy sources meet the needs of the present without diminishing their future availability. Solar energy is sustainable because the sun will keep shining and continue to give light and radiate heat to the earth at least for the next 5 to 6 billion years. Hence, the energy from the sun can be used indefinitely and there is no way we can over-consume this abundant energy source.
Therefore, from the sustainability point of view, there should not be any doubt that by definition solar energy is the world’s fundamental renewable power source and is virtually inexhaustible.
Is sunlight renewable or nonrenewable?
As explained above, at face value, the energy radiated by the sun is totally renewable. Nevertheless, it is also true that the nuclear fusion inside the sun, which produces this energy, cannot continue everlastingly. Therefore, it can not be emphatically answered in a single sentence when people ask – is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable?
In the core of the Sun, hydrogen is converted into Helium. This is called nuclear fusion. During this process, some of the mass of the sun is converted into energy and this energy is eventually radiated away in the form of light from the Sun’s surface. Thus the Sun is losing mass steadily by just giving off light and eventually, it will get to the point where energy production will cease.
The life stages of a star depend mainly on one factor – its mass. In an absolute sense, therefore, solar energy could be deemed as nonrenewable because, like all other stars, the sun will become unstable due to the loss of a major portion of its mass and eventually fade away after going through various phases (it will swell up to a red giant and engulf the earth). But this process would take billions of years, and scientists estimate that the expected life of our sun is about 5 billion years. That’s longer than any human can really imagine – thousands of times longer than humans have existed. Thus, the sun will keep shining and radiate heat through sunlight every day and isn’t going to burn out any time soon.
So, although the sun is not truly an infinite resource when people ask – is sunlight renewable or nonrenewable, solar energy radiated by sunlight will be available for many millions of years of generations. Solar energy is, therefore, considered a practically inexhaustible resource in relation to human time’s scale.
Is solar energy renewable from the point of availability?
In spite of its abundance, there is a downside also to this energy source regarding its availability. It is not available on a 24-hour basis because apart from the sun setting at day’s end, the amount of sunlight also varies depending on the weather conditions. But that doesn’t mean it should be labeled as nonrenewable while judging – is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable? It only means that we can’t depend on this resource round the clock in the same manner as we can on the wind, water, and geothermal heat.
Nevertheless, it won’t be such a big issue further down the road because there have been advancements in storage technologies that could harvest solar energy and put it to work throughout the no-sunlight period after sundown. From the above facts, it is easy to infer why is solar energy renewable in every practical sense.
Frequently asked questions
It is hoped that the above discussion would clear any confusion when people ask – is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable? Now let me answer some of the related questions often asked by people:
How does solar energy work?
In the core of the Sun, hydrogen is being converted into helium which is called nuclear fusion. Nuclear fusion inside the sun produces energy.
When sunlight containing this energy, which is composed of minuscule particles called photons, hits the thin layer of semiconductive material of solar cell of solar panels made from silicon, the energy from the photons is transferred to the loose electrons in the silicon atoms. The energized electrons are then able to escape their bond with the atoms. The negatively charged electrons are then attracted to the positively charged side of the cell. This “photovoltaic effect” forms, as a result of the free-flowing electrons within the solar panel. The moving electrons create an electric current which is then harnessed by the wiring connected to the solar panels to produce electricity for use in our homes.
You may also like to read: How solar panels work step by step
What are the uses of solar energy?
Solar energy is generally used for the following purposes:
>For room heating, water heating, and cooking (solar cookers);
>To generate electricity with solar cells to use at home and businesses;
>For de-salting sea water;
>For drying clothes;
What are the disadvantages of solar energy to the environment?
Solar energy itself does not cause any environmental pollution. Rather the use of solar energy to replace other traditional energy sources such as oil, coal, and natural gas, can have positive effects on the environment.
However, the photovoltaic (PV) cells of solar panels which convert sunlight into electricity are made from some toxic materials and chemicals. Also, some solar thermal systems use potentially hazardous fluids to transfer heat. These materials could be harmful to the environment if leaked accidentally into the atmosphere.
How many solar panels are needed to run a house?
The average home in the United States is roughly 1500 square feet. Depending on the type of panel that is used a 1500 square feet house needs about a solar array of 3000 watts. A system of this size will need anywhere from 15-18 solar panels. Of course, the above is an estimated consumption which may vary depending on the provider of your electricity.
Is it bad to live near a solar farm?
No, it is not at all dangerous to live near a solar farm. Electricity from solar panels emits extremely weak electromagnetic fields. It has been studied extensively that there is no evidence that exposure to low-level electromagnetic fields is harmful to human health, according to the World Health Organization (WHO)
Conclusion
It would be evident from the above discussion while answering – is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable that there are enough reasons to justify why is solar energy renewable.
Nevertheless, apart from the fact that almost all renewable energy sources to some extent depend on fossil fuels or other non-renewable resources as explained above, the uncertainty in the question of, is solar renewable or nonrenewable also crops up from a valid point that nuclear fusion inside the sun, which produces solar energy, shall not continue everlastingly.
You may also like to read: Advantages of Solar Energy
