C6G-ENERGY RESOURCES

Energy Resources

Energy is required for all activities. It is needed to cook, to provide light and heat, to propelvehicles and to drive machinery in industries.Energy can be generated from fuel mineralslike coal, petroleum, natural gas, uranium andfrom electricity. Energy resources can beclassified as conventional and non-conventional sources. Conventional sourcesinclude: firewood, cattle dung cake, coal,petroleum, natural gas and electricity (both hydel and thermal). Non-conventional sources include solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, biogas and atomic energy. Firewood and cattle dungcake are most common in rural India. According to one estimate more than 70 percent energy requirement in rural householdsis met by these two ; continuation of these isincreasingly becoming difficult due todecreasing forest area. Moreover, using dungcake too is being discouraged because it consumes most valuable manure which could be used in agriculture.

• Energy is required to run machines and vehicles, to cook our food, to light our streets, to warm or cool our houses and offices , and to recycle various materials for further use.
• Energy resources are the chief sources of fuel and power in India.


IMPORTANCE OF ENERGY RESOURCES:
• Power is the main input for agriculture and industry.
• Energy sources are the backbone of economic development .
• The resources which are widely used and constitute the major source of energy are called conventional resources of energy.



NEED FOR CONSERVING CONVENTIONAL ENERGY RESOURCES-
• Conventional sources of energy like coal, petroleum, gas, and wood are limited in supply and cannot be renewed easily. Therefore they need to be conserved.
• Due to population explosion, modernization and industrialization the demand for energy resources is increasing day by day but the reserves of conventional resources are limited. This is leading to ‘energy crisis’. So to avoid or to control energy crisis there is need to conserve conventional energy resources.
• The present efficiency rate specially of thermal power station is very low. On the other hand demand is rising.
Advantages of non-conventional sources:-
* Conventional sources of energy are non-renewable sources of energy, e.g. coal and petroleum whereas Non-conventional sources of energy are renewable sources of energy. E.g solar energy, wind energy
* Conventional sources of energy are going to last just for 100-200 years where as non-conventional sources of energy are going to last forever.
* Conventional sources of energy cause air and water pollution whereas non-conventional sources of energy do not cause any pollution.

ENERGY RESOURCES
• Those resources which can be replaced by human effort or nature are called replaceable resources.
* Pollution free.
* Renewable and cheap.
• Those resources which once used are lost for good and cannot be replaced are called irreplaceable resources.

• Solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy, bio gas and geothermal energy are 4 non-conventional resources of energy.

Need of alternative source of energy:-
• Alternative source of power-
• is called non-conventional energy.
Advantages :
• are available in nature continuously, therefore, they are inexhaustible.
• can reproduce themselves in nature and can be harvested continuously through sustained proper planning.
• can be operated not only in the urban areas but also in rural areas.
• Cost of generation and cost of operation are much lower than the conventional sources of energy.
• are non-polluting. In fact, some of the resources like biogas help to destroy excessive garbage and provide manure for crops.
• Conventional resources like coal, and petroleum are exhaustible resources

Solar energy and wind energy are two alternative sources of power that are most promising alternative to conventional sources

Disadvantages of conventional sources of energy:-
• They are non-renewable.
• They are very costly.
• They cause pollution

RENEWABLE OR NON CONVENTIONAL)

NON-RENEWABLE OR CONVENTIONAL
These resources have not been commonly used.
These resources of energy have been used since long time.
Wind, tidel power, geo-thermal energy, biogas, solar energy, are such resources.
Wood, fuel, coal, petroleum gas and water power are such resources.
These are inexhaustible resources.
These are exhaustible.
These resources are eco-friendly and pollution free.
Conventional sources produce smoke on burning which pollute the air we breathe.


HYDRO ELECTRICITY:
Hydro electricity is generated by fastflowing water, which is a renewable resource.India has a number of multi-purpose projectslike the Bhakra Nangal, Damodar Valleycorporation, the Kopili Hydel Project etc.producing hydroelectric power.


HYDEL POWER:
• The power generated from water is called hydel power.


Factors needed for installing a hydroelectric project:-
• A mountainous area or an upland region, where water falls from a height. Force of the falling water moves the turbine to generate electricity.
• The climate should be temperate so that there is a continuous flow of water and the water does not get frozen because of severe cold.
• should be free from impurities or silt.
• Flow of streams should be uniform. This is possible by building storage dams and artificial reservoirs for regulating the flow.
• To regulate the flow of water, provisions should be made to store water in artificial reservoirs.
• Rivers should be perennial.
• Suitable sites must be there for building dams.
• Industrial zones must be located in the close vicinity of the hydroelectric project so as to reduce the loss of electricity in the transmission.

Salient features of hydroelectricity generation:-
• Hydroelectricity is a renewable or inexhaustible source of energy.
• Its production is cheaper than that of thermal power.
• It is a clean and non-polluting source of energy.
• Arrangement and construction of initial infrastructure required for the production may be costly but afterwards it becomes inexpensive as it does not consume any fuel.
Main causes for the low production of Hydel power:-
• The reasons for the low production of hydel power are-
• Underutilization of the rated capacity in the existing units.
• Delay in the construction of several new power units.
• Loss of power during transmission.


The Shivasamudram hydel station is the first hydroelectric centre developed as early as 1902 in Karnataka


Advantages of producing electricity from water:-
• Hydroelectricity causes no pollution.
• It is renewable, no wastage and free from residues.
• The source of hydel power , i.e. water, is inexhaustible and renewable

Advantages of the hydel power in India:-
• India has mountainous regions where there are a number of natural waterfalls which is favourable for the hydel power generation.
• Many of the rivers in India are perennial so they provide sufficient water for the generation of hydel power projects.

Factors that favour the production of Hydel Power in the region around the Western Ghats.
• The Western Ghats are high and a number of swift flowing streams that flow down give rise to waterfalls which are ideal for Hydel Electric Power.
• The region receives heavy rainfall from the South West monsoons which adds water to the rivers and also that the water is silt free.
Difficulties in setting water power projects in India:
• It needs constant supply of water.
• The climate should not be too cold where the water freezes and power cannot be generated.
• The water should fall from a certain height, so the area should be hilly.
• The water should be clean because dirty water spoils the turbines.

BHAKRA NANGAL PROJECT
• It is the highest dam in Asia.
• This project is 226 metres high and 518 metres long.
• It supplies hydroelectric power to Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi.
• ii. Hydel power station of Bhakra Nangal project is Ganguwal/Kotla/Bhakra.
• iii. Govind Sagar lake is a man-made lake associated with this project.
• iv. Bhakra Nangal Project is built on River Sutlej.
• Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh.
•


In October, 1963 at the ceremony to mark the dedication of the Bhakra –Nangal Project to the Nation, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said- “This dam has been built with the unrelenting toil of man for the benefit of mankind and therefore is worthy of worship. May you call it a Temple or a Gurdwara or a Mosque, it inspires our admiration and reverence”
for more information click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhakra_Dam


DAMODAR RIVER VALLEY PROJECT:

- first multi=purpose project constructed after Independence.
- a joint venture of former Bihar and West Bengal
- River Damodar rises in the Chotanagupur Plateau of Jharkhand
- its floods caused a lot of destruction in West Bengal.
- called 'SORROW OF BENGAL'.
- objectives of this project were to control floods, provide navigation, hydro-electiricity, fish culture, recreational facilities, afforestation and prevention of soil erosion.
- it has 2,495 km length of canals and 4.5 lakh hectares of land under irrigation.
- dams are constructed across river Damodar and its tributaries at Tilaya, Konar, Maithon and Panchet hill.
- Thermal power stations are constructed at Bokaro, Chandrapur and Durgapur.
- Jharkand and West Bengal benefit from this project.



KOSI PROJECT:-
* MAIN objective of this project is to control floods.
* Kosi was called the 'SORROW OF BIHAR'.
* it is a joint venture of INDIA and NEPAL.
* it is constructed across river Kosi at Hanuman Nagar on the borders of India and Nepal.
* provides irrigation to about 8.75 lakh hectares of land.
* 50% of the hydro-electricity produced by this project i suuplied to Nepal


HIRAKUD PROJECT:
- Flood control, irrigation and production of hydro-electricity are main purposes
- this project is constructed across the river Mahanadi at a distance of 10kms from Sambalpur in Orissa.
- river Mahanadi was called the "Sorrow of Orissa".
- the Hirakud project has the longest dam in India with a length of 4,801 mts
- irrigates almost 2.54 lakh hectares of land
- Orissa, Bihar, Chhattisgarh are provided with irrigation and hydro-electricity.


TUNGABADRA PROJECT:

- MAIN purpose - irrigation and generation of hydro-electricity



- joint venture of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh
- dam constructed across the river Tungabhadra near Hospet in Bellary district of Karntaka

- reservoir is caled 'PAMPA SAGARA'.

- provides irrigation to about 5.5 lakh hectares of land in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh

- also supplies hydro-electricity.

for more information, click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tungabhadra_River


NAGARJUNA SAGR PROJECT:


- dam constructed across river Krishna near Nandikonda village in Andhra Pradesh
- LARGEST MULTI-PURPOSE RIVER VALLEY PROJECT in India.

- main purposes of this project are to provide irrigation, generation of hydro-electricity

- irrigates almost 8.30 lakh hectares of land.
for further information, click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nagarjuna_Sagar_Dam


CHAMBAL PROJECT:
- joint venture of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan

- main purposes- to prevent soil erosion, generate hydro-electricity, provide irrigation.
- three reservoirs are constructed.
- they supply water to about 5.60 lakh hectares of land in Madhya Pradesh and Rajashthan.



for more information,, click: http://waterresources.rajasthan.gov.in/4chambal.htm

UPPER KRISHNA PROJECT:

- Is an irrigation project of Bagalkot and Gulburga districts of Karnatka

- is constructed across the river Krishna near Almatti in Bagalkot district
- it aims at providing irrigation to 1.43 lakh hectares of land in Bijapur, Raichur, Bagalkot and Gulburga districts.
- another dam is constructed across river Krishna at Narayanpur in Gulburga district.


for more information, click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_Krishna_Project




NARMADA RIVER VALLEY PROJECT:

- idea of constructing dam across the river Narmada was initiated even during the British period.
- the irrigation committe of 1901 announced the construction of a project across river Narmada but somehow it did not materialise during the British period.
- In 1961, Pandidt Jawaharlal , laid foundation for the constructionn of a dam at Bharut.
- But from the beginning, this project has faced a lot of opposition and in 1969 the river water tribunal was appointed to settle the disputes betsween Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat over the distribution of water from this project.
- The Narmada project which consists of 23 dams includes Sardar Sarovar, Narmada Sagar and Narmada upper project.
- on completion, these dams will provide irrigation and hydro-electricity to North Gujarat, Saurashtra and some parts of Maharashtra.
for more information, click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narmada_River

THERMAL ELECTRICITY:
Thermal electricity is generated by using coal, petroleum and natural gas. The thermal power stations use non-renewable fossil fuels for generating electricity. There are over 310 thermal power plants in India.

NUCLEAR OR ATOMIC ENERGY:

India is deficient in petroleum and coal resources. So there is a great need for the use of other sources of energy. India has small deposits of nuclear minerals. India has also developed the technology for producing atomic energy. Uranium, thorium, plutonium and berilium are the important minerals used for the production of atomic energy.

Nuclear or Atomic Energy is obtained by altering the structure of atoms. When such an alteration is made, much energy is released in the form of heat and this is used to generate electric power. Uranium and thorium, which are available in Jharkhand and the Aravalli ranges of Rajasthan are used for generating atomic or nuclear power. The Monazite sands of Kerala is also rich in thorium.

The first nuclear plant was set up at Tarapur in Maharashtra in 1969. The other nuclear plants that were set up later are at Ranapratap Sagar in Rajasthan, Kalpakam in Tamil Nadu, Narora in Uttar Pradesh and Surat in Gujarat. Recently nuclear plants were set up at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh and Kaiga in Karnataka.

Non-Conventional Sources of Energy
The growing consumption of energy has resulted in the country becoming increasingly dependent on fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas. Rising prices of oil and gas and their potential shortages have raised
uncertainties about the security of energy supply in future, which in turn has serious repercussions on the growth of the national economy. Moreover, increasing use of fossil fuels also causes serious environmental problems. Hence, there is a pressing need to use renewable energy sources like solar energy, wind, tide, biomass and energy from waste material. These are called nonconventional energy sources.
India is blessed with an abundance of sunlight, water, wind and biomass. It has the largest programmes for the development of these renewable energy resources.

Solar Energy
India is a tropical country. It has enormous possibilities of tapping solar energy. Photovoltaic technology converts sunlight directly into electricity. Solar energy is fast becoming popular in rural and remote areas. India has already made progress in the use of solar energy for daily requiremennts. It is a equi-stable energy and can rightly be called the energy of the future, because it is an inexhaustible source of energy. The largest solar plant of India is located at Madhapur, near Bhuj, where solar energy is used to sterlise milk cans. It is expected that use of solar energy will be able to minimise the dependence of rural households on firewood and dung cakes, which in turn will contribute to environmental conservation and adequate supply of manure in agriculture. Solar station at Baramar in Rajasthan was set up to produce large quantities of solar energy.

Solar energy is used as a source of electricity in villages. It is also used in railway signals, lift irrigation and for communication media. Solar cookers and solar heaters are very popular. It is also used in desalination of water and drying of grains. At Gurgao near Delhi, a centre has been opened to carry out special research in solar energy.

WIND POWER

India now ranks as a “wind super power” in the world. The largest wind farm cluster is located in Tamil Nadu from Nagarcoil to Madurai. Apart from these, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashtra and Lakshadweep have important wind farms. Nagarcoil and Jaisalmer are well known for effective use of wind energy in the country.

BIO GAS

Biogas
Shrubs, farm waste, animal and human waste are used to produce biogas for domestic consumption in rural areas. Decomposition of organic matter yields gas, which has higher thermal efficiency in comparison to kerosene, dung cake and charcoal. Biogas plants are set
up at municipal, cooperative and individual levels. The plants using cattle dung are know as ‘Gobar gas plants’ in rural India. These provide twin benefits to the farmer in the form of energy and improved quality of manure. Biogas is by far the most efficient use of cattle dung. It improves the quality of manure and also prevents the loss of trees and manure due to burning of fuel wood and cow dung cakes.

Tidal Energy
Oceanic tides can be used to generate electricity. Floodgate dams are built across inlets. During high tide water flows into the inlet and gets trapped when the gate is closed. After the tide falls outside the flood gate, the water retained by the floodgate flows back to the sea via a pipe that carries it through a power-generating turbine. In India, the Gulf of Kuchchh, provides ideal conditions for utilising tidal energy. A 900 mw
tidal energy power plant is set up here by the National Hydropower Corporation.

Geo Thermal Energy
Geothermal energy refers to the heat and electricity produced by using the heat from the interior of the Earth. Geothermal energy exists because, the Earth grows progressively hotter with increasing depth. Where the geothermal gradient is high, high temperatures are found at shallow depths. Groundwater in such areas absorbs heat from the rocks and becomes hot. It is so hot that when it rises to the earth’s surface, it turns into steam. This steam is used to drive turbines and generate electricity. There are several hundred hot springs in India, which could be used to generate electricity. Two experimental projects have been set up in India to harness geothermal energy. One is located in the Parvati valley near Manikarn in Himachal Pradesh and the other is located in the Puga Valley, Ladakh.

Conservation of Energy Resources
Energy is a basic requirement for economic development. Every sector of the national economy – agriculture, industry, transport, commercial and domestic – needs inputs of energy. The economic development plans
implemented since Independence necessarily required increasing amounts of energy to remain operational. As a result, consumption of energy in all forms has been steadily rising all over the country. In this background, there is an urgent need to develop a sustainable path of energy development. Promotion of energy conservation and increased use of renewable energy sources are the twin planks of sustainable energy. India is presently one of the least energy efficient countries in the world. We have to adopt a cautious approach for the judicious use of our limited energy resources. For example, as concerned citizens we can do our bit by using public transport systems instead of individual vehicles; switching off electricity when not in use, using power-saving devices
and using non-conventional sources of energy. After all, “energy saved is energy produced”.