The New Energy Policy Will Focus On The Sun - 959 Words

The new energy policy will focus on the sun, which is a clean unlimited source of energy. The policy focuses on solar energy, more specifically, utilizing, implementing, and lowering the cost of photovoltaic panels, solar concentration systems, and wind turbines. Producing electricity through solar and wind has a positive effect on the environment and the only hurdle for both is cost. Currently, only 1% of all renewable energy comes from solar energy and 9% comes from wind, which is a fraction of what is possible considering the abundant amount of energy we receive from the sun daily. 60% of the budget will be dedicated to solar and the remaining 40% dedicated to wind. Money will go subsidies, programs, and research and development to†¦show more content†¦For wind, its kinetic energy turns rotor blades of the windmill and the rotor turns and shaft connected to a generator. DC output can be stored in battery or converted to AC and fed into a grid. Minimum wind speeds are required to produce electricity and the Midwest and offshore areas provide such conditions (Hinrichs 398). Like most forms of energy, efficient storage is key. Wind is not constant and money would be put towards research and development to find the most efficient way to store wind energy. For solar, photovoltaic cells convert the suns energy directly into electricity. (Hinrchs 375). Photovoltaic cells are made of silicon, which is plentiful. When radiation hits a cell, electrons are knocked free and this photoelectric effect creates a direct current, which is converted to an alternating current (â€Å"Solar Energy†). For solar concentration systems, mirrors are manipulated to redirect the sun’s rays to heat water. The flashing water creates steam and like other energy producing plants, the steam is used to turn a turbine. The mechanical energy is then turned into electrical energy (â€Å"How It Works†). Solar and wind production are not subject to the drastic price swings as you would see with fossil fuels since the source is abundant unlike fossil fuels obtained from foreign sources (â€Å"Benefits of Renewable†). While wind cost 0.04-0.06 cents per kWH, solar cost .25 per kWh to produce