Renewable Energy

Recycle Your Mobile Phone

Farah — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:00:00 +0000

Thank God, for some environmental sense that has taken over mobile companies of the world. All of these companies now offer their customers a chance to have their mobile phones recycled against a payment. This means that if you happen to have a classic phone that you would want to dump or sell off, then STOP! You can go to the specific company’s dealer and ask them to pay you the amount for giving the cell phone for recycling.

According to statistics that was held in 2005, 15 million cell phones were discarded in the US alone! And out of that only an approximated value of 4% of them were recycled, with the rest of the cell phones going to the dumps. The point to worry here is that cell phones contains dangerous substances such as Cadmium, Rhodium, Palldium, Beryllium etc which happens to poison the land fill site or even the sea, when garbage is dumped there. On the contrary if the cell phones are recycled, then the very parts could be used to make even more advanced versions of a phone.

Many schemes and methodologies have been set up to recover various parts of a mobile for gaining precious substances back. For example the metal used in the cell phones are quite precious to be wasted.

If a cell is grinded back to the powdered form the very same metal could be recycled and used to create another beautiful cell. In this way the Earth’s resources could be saved, the lands would be free from poisonous substances and even the public could earn an amount of cash by simply recycling! So many advantages over one simple act.

Depending upon the condition of the cell phone it is recycled into four categories. If it is in excellent condition then it is donated to charitable organizations where the poor and the needy would be very glad to receive a cell phone. Regular cell phones are refurbished and distributed throughout the country and some are also exported to other under developed countries. Finally if cell phones are too damaged they are grinded and precious metals are extracted. So no matter what your cell phone’s condition is, you can always have it recycled for a better use.

You can also search for legitimate online companies that provides users with the option of recycling their phones in return for some good cash. If you live anywhere besides the US or the UK then look up to the mobile company’s franchise in your city or country and visit them for a detailed information on how much you can gain on giving the cell phone for recycling. Do not sell away your phones to unauthorized dealers as that would do you no good.

Even in this century of touch phones, there are many classic phones that were strong, portable and pretty popular amongst the masses. Those classic phones are now a treasure for mobile companies. If they gain such a phone which apparently is in good condition they can pay you a very good amount for it. Do your self and your planet a service by recycling as many products as possible.

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10 Ways To Go Green

dnelle — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:03:15 +0000

Margaret Meade once said ‘‘We won’t have a society if we destroy the environment.” Truer words were never spoken. We owe our mere existence to the environment. Without it providing us resources we would have gone extinct years ago. Therefore, it becomes our duty to take care of it and not continue with the pattern that we have been following which has endangered the environment.

Here are a few suggestions:

Reduce air pollution and save car fuel by driving less. Try not to drive within the 5km radius of your home. Instead walk or take you bi-cycle. It will prove to be a good exercise also.
Using stairs instead of the elevator can not only be good for your health but the environment also.
When you are stuck in a traffic jam, turn your car off. It uses up more fuel.
During summer, the use of air conditioner can use up to 20% more fuel. So turn the air conditioner off when the car gets cool enough. Also make sure that the coolant I recyclable.
Try servicing your car on a regular basis. A car can use up to 50% more fuel and give off 50% more carbon if not tuned properly.
Instead of using your car daily try joining a car pool. It’s less fuel-consuming.
Grow your own food. Not only is it much healthier but food transportation, which is the reason for greenhouse gas emissions will automatically decrease.
Be kind not only to the environment but to the creatures in it. Try not eating endangered animals/birds/fish.
When visiting your local coffee café, take your own mug/flask instead of using their unrecyclable cups.
When grocery shopping, take your own cloth bag or basket and not use their plastic or paper bag. And if you do use them then save them n reuse them.
Adopt the key word: Recycle. From cans to bottles, papers, glass etc. keep on recycling.
When your not in a room or leaving the room, remember to trun off the lights, fans, switches or any other electrical items that are not in use.
During the day, instead of turning on the lights just draw the curtain and take advantage of the natural light at our disposal: the sun.
In winter, instead of using the heater try closing the windows and wearing warm clothes indoors as well as outdoors.
In summer, use the air conditioner to cool the room for half an hour and then let the ceiling fan take over. This way you’re saving the environment and your electricity bill.
If you do not have a full load of dishes or laundry, do not start your washing machine or your dish washer.
Save water by taking short showers and turning off the tap when brushing your teeth.
At work too you can do your bit by printing only those that needs to be printed. Turning off your computer, printer, and fax machine etc when you’re not using it.
For your garden, use a push lawn mower than an electric or gas one. Water the grass or plants in the morning or late evening and not in the afternoon when the sun is at its peak and can absorb more water.
Try and grow more trees. Trees absorb carbon and give out oxygen.
True happiness is in giving. So if you feel you no longer need something like your toys, or books, or clothes, give it up for charity instead of throwing it away.

Besides this, you can do your part by spreading the awareness word around. Get your family, friends and others involved because it takes one person to make a start and a whole lot of people can make a difference.

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Benefits of Bio-fuels

dnelle — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:17:24 +0000

It’s a well known fact that fossil fuels have toyed with our environment and this has resulted in pollution and global warming besides many other issues. Now with the awareness of environmental hazards and the entire world going green, the popularity of Bio-fuels is growing by the day

Biological Fuels or Bio-fuels are prepared from reusable or recycled materials. And thanks to the modern-day scientific research, bio-fuels are playing a vital role in contributing to the world a number of benefits. Below are just some of the benefits illustrated.

It’s unavoidable that the need for fossil fuel is increasing with its supply decreasing. This is where bio-fuels steps in. Because it is made up from recycled material, it works as a sustainable alternative for fossil fuel.
Bio-fuels emit less carbon when in use as compared to the fossil fuels. In this way it reduces greenhouse gas, toxins and air pollution as well.
Most of the ingredients that go into the making of bio-fuels are ‘waste products’ for example corn stalks and other agricultural bi-products. Thus solving the problem of waste material storage.
Bio-fuels contain biodegradable material. This makes it less hazardous to our health and environment. And incase of a leakage, it becomes very easy to clean up. Plus it costs less.
Bio-fuels put less strain on the earth because it is made up of recycled material. As compared to fossil fuels like coal and oil which has to be extracted from the earth’s crust by digging deep.
With the development of bio-fuels comes the decrease in unemployment. From farming right till the transportation industry, the demand for employees would increase.
Each and every country is capable of their very own bio-fuel production. This will decrease the country’s amount of dependence on other countries.
3. One of the advantages of bio-fuel is the cost. Unlike fossil fuel, its prices won’t fluctuate and it won’t be too expensive
4. Farmers worldwide could also reap the benefits of bio-fuels since bio-fuels are made up mostly of crop’s waste. Farmers along with their crop production could also increase their prices to match the growing demand.

So let us all do our bit to save our environment and our planet by switching to bio-fuels.

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Pedal Powered Laptops in Afghanistan

Qurat -ul- Ain — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 05:21:13 +0000

A laptop is personal computers designed for mobile use and small and light enough to sit on a person’s lap while in use. A laptop integrates most of the typical components of a desktop computer, including a display, a keyboard, a pointing device, speakers, and usually including a battery, into a single small and light unit. The rechargeable battery is charged from an AC adapter and typically stores enough energy to run the laptop for three to five hours in its initial state, depending on the configuration and power management of the computer.

There are solar powered laptops as well that will allow a computer to be powered. This simply means that regular laptops will be charged with solar powered batteries through the use of a solar charger. But poor people can not afford it. There was always the need of such technology which poor people can also afford and they are also benefited from the uses of a computer. And can use easily in very remote areas. So, the solution is “pedal powered laptops”.

Pedal power laptop is a pedal powered machine that uses nothing but pedal power to operate the laptop. The system is set up so that just about anyone with two legs would be able to power the laptop and they claim that even a third grader can step up to the pedal power laptop computer and get to work with no problems. This type of laptops is best for poor countries like Afghanistan.

The model is called XO and it uses a hand crank to power the system. It needs no additional power sources at all and it easily transported through the countryside and rural areas where people may not have access to a computer or the power sources to run one traditionally. It is meant to allow children in schools to be able to have computer access. The prototype is hooked up so that the hand crank generator is underneath the desk for the children to use while they are seated at their desk. In addition, they are using software that would enable the students to basically be on a common server.

The model is presently under observation and there are about 2,500 of the prototype computers in circulation in different parts of Kabul, Heart and Jalalabad. The success of the system will be assessed and tweaked as required, to create a successful learning environment without the need for power.

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Algae, Second-Generation Biofuel

Qurat -ul- Ain — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 13:52:48 +0000

Algae fuel, also called as algal fuel or second-generation biofuel, is a biofuel which is derived from algae. During the process of photosynthesis, algae and other photosynthetic organisms capture carbon dioxide and sunlight and convert it into oxygen and biomass. Biofuel from algae could be a meaningful part of the solution in the future because of its potential as an economically viable and low emissions transportation fuel.

High oil prices, competing demands between foods and other biofuel sources, and the world food crisis, have ignited interest in alga culture i-e, farming algae. Algae fix the sunlight and carbon dioxide into energy very speedily. Algae are more suitable over other bio-fuels because algae can grow anywhere. Practically they can grow anywhere, in sea-water or salty water or polluted water or even in sewage. Even they have the ability to bear extreme temperature.

Algae can grow on waste land, they multiply very fast. They can double their weight many times in a single day. Algae produce oil as a byproduct of photosynthesis and can produce fifteen times more oil per acre than other plants such as corn and switch grass. The two main advantages of algae as biofuel are that these plants grow well where CO₂ is in excess and secondly they can grow in sewages.

Algae can grow well on industrial solids, where carbon dioxide is available in excess; it can be helpful in dealing with industrial solids. Otherwise cleaning industrial solids is very costly. Algae can also be used to minimize the emissions of carbon dioxide of coal plants

Naturally grown algae yield less oil, around one percent by the weight of the algae. So, if more carbon dioxide and organic material would be available to the algae, oil yield can be increased to as much as 40% by weight.

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Mobile Phone Chargers Go Green

Qurat -ul- Ain — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 13:52:28 +0000

Mobile phone chargers are not really chargers, only adapters that provide a power source for the charging circuitry which is almost always contained within the mobile phone. Nowadays mobile phones are essential part of life and it is one of the most important modes of communication.

Mobile phones are the cause of eco-pollution that comes from large number of still-in-use cell phones and out-of-use cell phones. The need is to curtail the use of cell phones. Toxic products like lead, mercury, cadmium and other materials pose a real threat to our ecosystem. Handset manufacturers are very interested and showing emphasis on manufacturing not only environmentally-friendly handsets but also eco-friendly chargers.

Mobile communication to go green has brought forward innovative new designs with latest technology and skills to please customers. Solar energy, wind energy and kinetic energy are energy sources that will be harnessed to power the handsets. India has largest markets for mobile phones and it has proposed plans for mobile towers that will be powered by solar energy. China mobile is the leading Chinese telecommunication operator and has already setup the world’s biggest solar energy powered base station in China.

Nokia, mobile phones manufacturer is trying to manufacture such cell phones that will use ambient radio waves. This type of mobile phones prototype can harness 50mW of power from radio waves which is ample to power the cell-phone in standby mode. Cell-phone manufacturing industry is busy in introducing solar-powered cell-phones. Pop by LG, Blue-earth by Samsung and two other Sharp Models are new prototypes using solar power.

Eco-friendly mobile phones are gaining popularity and now mobile phone chargers are also going green. Many chargers will be made with environmentally friendly materials and will be powered by renewable energy sources. As solar power is unavailable at night time, so the idea of using kinetic energy to generate electrons is now being explored.

There are some other plans on the anvil e-g, fuel cells which can generate power from water; generating power from sources that are unconventional like cold drink or alcohol. So the day is not so far when the mobile communication will totally goes green and it will use only power made from renewable energy.

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Acid Rain, Causes And Effects

Qurat -ul- Ain — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 17:26:18 +0000

Rain is the great blessing of God. When it rains it is said that God is showering all his love and blessings on mother nature. However when it is acid rain, God is cursing the cruel manner in which man is exploiting the nature. Acid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, i.e. elevated levels of hydrogen ions. This can occur due to volcanoes and lightning strikes but the major cause of acid rain is the release of high levels of harmful gases by vehicles and factories. Acid rain is caused by emissions of compounds of ammonium, carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur which react with the water molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.

The damaging effects of acid rain are seen on the forests, soil, and flora fauna and on human health. It is also one of the main reasons of extinction of certain life forms. There are two forms of acid disposition

Wet deposition: It occurs when any form of precipitation i-e rain, snow, etc. removes acids from the atmosphere and transfers it to the Earth’s surface. This can result from the deposition of acids produced in the raindrops or by the precipitation removing the acids either in clouds or below clouds.
Dry deposition: It occurs through dry deposition in the absence of precipitation.This can be responsible for as much as 20 to 60% of total acid deposition. This occurs when particles and gases stick to the ground, plants or other surfaces.

Harmful effects of acid rain are as follows:

Acid rain corrodes the protective covering of leaves of the plants, which affects the photosynthesis of the plants. Due to lack of nutrition, plants become vulnerable to diseases.

Lack of nutrition for trees may be due to acid rain getting absorbed by the soil. The harmful acids can have hazardous effects on the roots of the trees.

Soil has abundant amount of various metals and minerals, when these metals come in contact with acid rain there can be some harmful chemical reactions and leads to soil erosion.

Acid rains affect the pH level of the water which reduces the absorption capacity of essential nutrients of the aquatic life. This also hampers the reproduction process in fish leading to weak or brittle eggs.

Acid rains can pollute the drinking water which leads to various health hazards. The release of various gases in the atmosphere leads to lung problems. Some scientists have related the cause of premature death to environmental pollution.

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Things To Know About Nuclear Power

Qurat -ul- Ain — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 12:32:22 +0000

Nuclear power is produced by controlled nuclear reactions, which are non-explosive in nature. Commercial and utility plants currently use nuclear fission reactions to heat water to produce steam, which is then used to generate electricity. Nuclear fusion reactions are safer and generate less radioactive waste than fission. These reactions appear potentially viable, though technically quite difficult and have yet to be created on a scale that could be used in a functional power plant.

There are plenty of misconceptions regarding the use of nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is not renewable like other alternative sources, but it is cleaner than coal. In fact, nuclear power plants actually produce less radiation than coal-powered plants. Some things to know about nuclear power are:

Nuclear reactors produce nuclear energy which produce heat in the same way as boiler is used to generate energy in a coal or gas fired power plant. This heat turns water into steam and drives the generators that produce electricity. The thing that makes nuclear energy is uranium; it uses uranium to produce heat.
Uranium is a naturally occurring element found in soil, rocks, animals and plants even in humans. Uranium is a weak radioactive element, to use uranium as a fuel for nuclear reactors; its natural concentration is increased from 1% to 5%. The increase in concentration of uranium is called uranium enrichment.
Uranium ranks 48 among the world’s most abundant elements and is 40 times more abundant than silver. Uranium is heavy and is approximately twice the density of lead. One pound of uranium is about the size of a walnut and uranium the size of baseball weighs about eight pounds.
96% of used nuclear fuel is recyclable. Recycled nuclear waste can be reduced to 20 percent of its original volume and 10 percent of its level of toxicity. Nuclear power plants have maintained a relatively clean safety record.
Nuclear power plants do not emit greenhouse gases, like CO2 or methane, which contribute to global warming. Nor do they produce sulfur and nitrogen oxides, both of which can contribute to acid rain.
Nuclear energy is only dangerous to humans who are directly exposed to uranium. The majority of uranium that enters the body will pass through leaving only trace amounts in the bloodstream. A person would have to live near a nuclear power plant for more than 2,000 years to be exposed to the same amount of radiation as they would receive from a single medical x-ray. France is currently the largest user of nuclear energy in the world, relying on nuclear power for nearly 80% of the country’s total energy.

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Benefits of Renewable Energy

Qurat -ul- Ain — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 18:17:15 +0000

Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable i-e naturally replenished. Renewables (small hydro, modern biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels) accounted for another 2.7% and are growing very rapidly. The share of renewables in electricity generation is around 18%, with 15% of global electricity coming from hydroelectricity and 3% from new renewable.

Renewable energy is also referred as “clean energy” or “green energy”. This is because renewable energy produces minimal amounts of pollution. It is also termed as alternative energy. Renewable energy puts energy in our hands by offering increased local control of energy production, helping to ensure low prices and increase the security of our energy supply. Renewable energy also provides environmental benefits such as helping to improve local air quality and reducing our impact on the land, water and climate system. Increased use of renewable energy will also help boost local economies through job creation.

Though the use of fossil fuel like coal, oil and natural gas to make electricity dirties the nation’s air, consumes and pollutes water, hurts plants and animal life, creates toxic wastes, and causes global warming. Using nuclear fuels poses serious safety risks. The largest external costs from pollution are probably human health costs, in the form of health treatment costs, higher health insurance rates, missed work, and lost life. While renewable energy resources can provide many immediate environmental benefits by avoiding these impacts and risks and can help conserve fossil resources for future generations.

Some renewable technologies are small and modular, they can be sited in or near buildings where energy is used. These distributed generation technologies offer some benefits that utilities have usually not considered. Most importantly, distributed generation technologies can avoid costly expenditures on transmission and distribution. For example, a utility putting distributed generation in a new neighborhood might be able to use smaller transformers or reduce the size or number of power lines going to the neighborhood. Distributed generation reduces the wear and tear on existing distribution equipment, thereby delaying the need to replace or upgrade the equipment.

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Wind Power Popularity Increasing

Qurat -ul- Ain — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 17:58:17 +0000

Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, wind mills for mechanical power, wind pumps for pumping water or drainage, or sails to propel ships. At the end of 2009, worldwide nameplate capacity of wind-powered generators was 159.2 gigawatts. Energy production was 340 TWh, which is about 2% of worldwide electricity usage; and is growing rapidly, having doubled in the past three years.

The first use of wind energy was through wind mills. Wind mills had engines which used to produce energy using wind. This energy was usually used in rural and agricultural areas for grinding, pumping, hammering and various farm needs. Even today, wind energy is used in large scale wind farms to provide electricity to rural areas and other far reaching locations. Wind energy is being used extensively in areas like China, Denmark, Germany, Spain and in some areas of the United States of America.

Wind powering technology is regaining its popularity. There are many regions which has strong wind sources. As the production cost drops, the three-blade turbines that produced tiny volumes of electricity for remote cottages is spreading across. Large-scale wind farms are connected to the electric power transmission network; smaller facilities are used to provide electricity to isolated locations. Companies increasingly buy back surplus electricity produced by small domestic turbines.

Wind energy, is an alternative to fossil fuels, is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, and produces no greenhouse gas emissions during operation. However, the construction of wind farms is not universally welcomed because of their visual impact and other effects on the environment. It not only cuts our dependence on fossil fuels, but also creates new jobs. Some advantages of wind power are as follows:

Wind Energy is ample and renewable.
Wind Energy is widely distributed, cheap, and also reducing toxic gas emissions.
Wind Energy is also helps to diminish the greenhouse effect.
It is readily available around the globe, and therefore there would be no need of dependence for energy for any country.