Alternative energy in Russia: concept, classification and types, stages of development, necessary equipment and application

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Alternative energy in Russia is practically not developed at the state level. For example, certain attempts were made to develop this direction. After two years (2013–2015), it was determined that solar energy is the most widespread among such sources. However, the government also included such areas as wind energy sources and, to a lesser extent, hydro generation in development documents.

What is alternative energy?

Before moving on to considering alternative energy in Russia, it is necessary to understand what it is in general, as well as what types of it currently exist.

As for the definition, alternative energy is a set of certain measures and methods that will allow you to receive electrical energy from renewable sources of natural origin. These sources include the following:

• wind power;
• water and sun energy;
• geothermal energyor tidal.

This is an incomplete list of sources. However, they are one of the most popular, as well as those that can be used in Russia. Alternative energy is currently developing quite rapidly in many countries of the world. This is due to the fact that everyone is trying as much as possible to reduce the dependence of mankind on non-renewable resources, with the help of which electricity is now produced.

Push to development

For the development of any direction of human activity, a certain impulse is needed. It can be anything, the main thing is that it leads to the development of the desired direction. As for the development of alternative energy sources, intensive research began after 1973, when the well-known oil crisis was observed. It was at that time that it became especially noticeable how much humanity depends on non-renewable natural resources.

As for the development of this direction in the territory of the Russian Federation, here this process is perhaps the slowest. This is due to the fact that the country has vast reserves of natural resources that can be used for traditional methods of generating electricity. In other words, there is no necessary impetus for development. In addition, the slow growth rate is also due to the fact that there is no good government support for such projects.

Bioenergy

Alternative energy in Russia in this direction canactively develop in such regions as the Krasnodar Territory, the south of Siberia, the central part of Russia.

In this case, the main resource is biomass - these are energy carriers of plant origin. It is worth noting here that some resources in this area have been used for quite a long time: wood, sawdust, and so on. If we talk specifically about the development of alternative energy in this area in Russia, then plants and agricultural waste can be used as fuel. In order to process the mass, there are two main methods of incineration:

• use of high pressure units, but process efficiency is only 40-50%;
• the use of gas turbines is much more profitable, since the efficiency will be 93%.

For maximum cost savings when using this method of generating energy, it is necessary to locate waste processing sites near their receipt. In other words, it is best to install gas turbines near farms or other agricultural enterprises. They are the main supplier of biomass. In this way, you can get a large amount of energy by spending a small amount of material resources.

Wind energy

Wind is great for generating energy in an alternative way. To produce it, it is necessary to install special equipment for alternative energy - air windmills. The best place is the coastline - at least 10 km from the sea. Speaking of territoryRF, the best region is the Far East, as well as the Far North.

Hydrogen energy

Hydrogen can be used to generate energy in an alternative way. There are several ways to get the required resource:

• from natural gas or light oil;
• the way water is broken down into its constituents;
• from enzymes or microorganisms.

Here it is very important to pay attention to the fact that the hydrogen engine is about 2 or even 3 times more efficient than the internal combustion engine. This suggests that the development of alternative hydrogen-type energy can be the most effective way both throughout the world and on the territory of the Russian Federation.

Geothermal energy source

This method allows you to use the heat of the earth's crust to obtain the necessary energy. However, there are some limitations here. They are connected with the fact that the use of this type of energy from an economic point of view is relevant only in some parts of the planet. Currently, geothermal stations are available only in countries such as the USA, Italy, New Zealand.

Today, alternative energy and ecology are two concepts that are most important for humanity. The Russian Federation in this case produces approximately 10% of all energy of this type worldwide. However, this is not enough, and this direction should be developed as actively and further as possible. The potential of the geothermal direction on the territory of the Russian Federation is huge. According to expert estimates, Kamchatka alone is capable of producing 5,000 MW of energy per year. In comparison, there are currently about 19.3 thousand MW of geothermal energy produced worldwide.

Sun Energy

The most promising direction for the development of alternative energy today is solar. This is due to the fact that the sun is the most powerful source of energy. It will be enough to solve the problems associated with the energy of the entire planet. In addition, there is no doubt about the environmental component of this type of resource, since it is completely natural.

Currently, special photocells are installed all over the world. They can be used to collect solar energy. Space stations also possess solar cells to provide this natural power source. To obtain such energy, special solar stations are installed. They are placed in places where there is a large number of sunny days.

The biggest problem faced by experts in this field is the low efficiency of photovoltaic cells used on the ground. At best, it reaches 23%. However, this applies only to earth stations. Batteries installed on space stations have a much higher coefficient. In addition, another problem was the inconsistency of the production of such energy. The sun does not shine around the clock, and can also be hidden behind clouds. In addition, forDeploying enough photocells needs a lot of empty space.

If we talk about alternative energy on the territory of the Russian Federation, then the best regions for placing solar cells are the Krasnodar Territory, Kuban, Primorye, as well as Eastern Siberia.

Fusion energy

Controlled thermonuclear fusion is the most promising direction in the development of energy. With its help, you can completely solve the problem of energy production not only for a particular country, but for the whole of humanity. This direction has three undeniable advantages. The first is an inexhaustible source of energy, the second is the environmental safety of the process, the third is high economic efficiency.

However, to date, there is still not a single thermonuclear station that would be economically beneficial. It should be noted that the first stages of development of this direction began in the 1950s in the USSR. The most promising program for the development of this direction is the international program ITER. According to experts, the first serious results should be obtained in 2040-2050. As for Russia, it is a country participating in this program.

General development in RF

The development of alternative energy sources in the Russian Federation was greatly hindered by many problems. Due to the collapse of the Soviet Union, many research programs were discontinued in whole or in part. The first attempts to revive the development of alternative energy directionswere undertaken in the 2000s. The regions were identified in which the development of a particular industry was considered the most promising. However, all programs were quickly curtailed. At that time, there was a high price of oil and there was simply no need for alternative sources.

Development Issues

Companies do almost nothing for alternative energy in Russia. First of all, it is economically unprofitable. There are also other negative aspects. Problems arise, in particular, due to the fact that there is no state support for such projects. There is a complete lack of a regulatory framework for this type of activity.

It is unprofitable to develop any of the directions due to the fact that the competitiveness of alternative energy sources is currently too weak in relation to traditional methods. In addition, the lack of personnel for the development of this type of activity, especially highly qualified ones, greatly hinders the development.

Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that alternative sources need to be developed. They are more environmentally friendly and safer for people. To do this, they need strong support from the state. Without it, you can only successfully create alternative energy at home, for example, install small solar panels for a frequent home or arrange biomass processing if we are talking about a farm outside the city.