Editing Energy development (section)

===Renewable energy===
{{Main article|Renewable energy}}
[[Image:Nellis AFB Solar panels.jpg|thumb|Solar ([[photovoltaic]]) panels at a military base in the US.]]
[[Renewable energy]] has many branches.

====Wind power====
[[Image:WindMills.jpg|right|thumb|[[Wind turbine]]s on [[Inner Mongolia]]n grassland]]
{{Main article|Wind power}}

[[Wind turbine]]s convert wind energy into electricity by connecting a spinning rotor to a generator. [[Wind turbine]]s draw energy from atmospheric currents and are designed using [[aerodynamics]] along with knowledge taken from mechanical and electrical engineering. The wind passes across the aerodynamic rotor blades, creating an area of higher pressure and an area of lower pressure on either side of the blade. The forces of lift and drag are formed due to the difference in air pressure. The lift force is stronger than the drag force; therefore the rotor, which is connected to a generator, spins. The energy is then created due to the change from the aerodynamic force to the rotation of the generator.<ref>{{Cite web|title=How Do Wind Turbines Work?|url=https://www.energy.gov/eere/wind/how-do-wind-turbines-work|access-date=2020-12-10|website=Energy.gov|language=en}}</ref>

Being recognized as one of the most efficient renewable energy sources, wind power is becoming more and more relevant and used in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|title=BiblioBoard|url=https://openresearchlibrary.org/viewer/2071c2d6-8295-4005-ac8f-eba500a6b311/44|access-date=2020-12-10|website=openresearchlibrary.org}}</ref> Wind power does not use any water in the production of energy making it a good source of energy for areas without much water. Wind energy could also be produced even if the climate changes in line with current predictions, as it relies solely on wind.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Ledec, George C.|last2=Rapp, Kennan W.|last3=Aiello, Roberto G.|date=2011-12-01|title=Greening the Wind : Environmental and Social Considerations for Wind Power Development|doi=10.1596/978-0-8213-8926-3 |hdl=10986/2388|isbn=978-0-8213-8926-3 |url=http://hdl.handle.net/10986/2388|language=en}}</ref>

====Geothermal====
{{Main article|Geothermal energy}}

Deep within the  Earth, is an extreme heat producing layer of molten rock called magma.<ref>{{Cite web|title=How Geothermal Energy Works {{!}} Union of Concerned Scientists|url=https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/how-geothermal-energy-works|access-date=2020-12-14|website=www.ucsusa.org|language=en}}</ref> The very high temperatures from the magma heats nearby groundwater. There are various technologies that have been developed in order to benefit from such heat, such as using different types of power plants (dry, flash or binary), heat pumps, or wells.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2012-11-20|title=Geothermal Energy|url=https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/geothermal-energy/|access-date=2020-12-14|website=National Geographic Society|language=en}}</ref> These processes of harnessing the heat incorporate an infrastructure which has in one form or another a turbine which is spun by either the hot water or the steam produced by it.<ref>{{Cite web|last=US EPA|first=OAR|title=Geothermal Energy|url=https://archive.epa.gov/climatechange/kids/solutions/technologies/geothermal.html|access-date=2020-12-14|website=archive.epa.gov|language=en}}</ref> The spinning turbine, being connected to a generator, produces energy. A more recent innovation involves the use of shallow closed-loop systems that pump heat to and from structures by taking advantage of the constant temperature of soil around 10 feet deep.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Where is Geothermal Energy Used?|url=https://www.greenfireenergy.com/where-is-geothermal-energy-used/|access-date=2020-12-14|website=GreenFire Energy Inc.|language=en-US}}</ref>

====Hydropower====
[[Image:Walchenseewerk Pelton 120.jpg|thumb|Building of [[Pelton turbine|Pelton water turbine]]s in [[Germany]].]]
{{Main article|Hydropower}}

Hydropower draws mechanical energy from rivers, [[wave power plant|ocean waves]] and [[tidal power|tides]]. [[Civil engineering]] is used to study and build [[dam]]s, [[tunnel]]s, [[waterways]] and manage coastal resources through [[hydrology]] and [[geology]]. A low speed [[water turbine]] spun by flowing water can power an [[electrical generator]] to produce electricity.

====Bioenergy====
{{Main article|Bioenergy}}
Bioenergy deals with the gathering, processing and use of biomasses grown in biological manufacturing, [[agriculture]] and [[forestry]] from which [[power plant]]s can draw burning fuel. [[Ethanol]], [[methanol]] (both controversial) or hydrogen for [[fuel cells]] can be had from these technologies and used to generate electricity.

====Enabling technologies====

[[Heat pumps]] and [[Thermal energy storage]] are classes of technologies that can enable the utilization of [[renewable energy]] sources that would otherwise be inaccessible due to a temperature that is too low for utilization or a time lag between when the energy is available and when it is needed. While enhancing the temperature of available renewable thermal energy, heat pumps have the additional property of leveraging electrical power (or in some cases mechanical or thermal power) by using it to extract additional energy from a low quality source (such as seawater, lake water, the ground, the air, or [[waste heat]] from a process).

Thermal storage technologies allow heat or cold to be stored for periods of time ranging from hours or overnight to [[Seasonal thermal energy storage|interseasonal]], and can involve storage of [[Sensible heat|sensible energy]] (i.e. by changing the temperature of a medium) or [[latent energy]] (i.e. through phase changes of a medium, such between water and slush or ice). Short-term thermal storages can be used for peak-shaving in district heating or electrical distribution systems. Kinds of renewable or alternative energy sources that can be enabled include natural energy (e.g. collected via solar-thermal collectors, or dry cooling towers used to collect winter's cold), waste energy (e.g. from HVAC equipment, industrial processes or power plants), or surplus energy (e.g. as seasonally from hydropower projects or intermittently from wind farms). The [[Drake Landing Solar Community]] (Alberta, Canada) is illustrative. [[Seasonal thermal energy storage|borehole thermal energy storage]] allows the community to get 97% of its year-round heat from solar collectors on the garage roofs, which most of the heat collected in summer.<ref>Wong, Bill (June 28, 2011), [http://www.districtenergy.org/assets/pdfs/2011Annual_Conf/Proceedings/A24WONG-v03.pdf "Drake Landing Solar Community"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304030520/http://www.districtenergy.org/assets/pdfs/2011Annual_Conf/Proceedings/A24WONG-v03.pdf |date=2016-03-04 }}, IDEA/CDEA District Energy/CHP 2011 Conference, Toronto, pp. 1–30, retrieved 21 April 2013</ref><ref>Wong B., Thornton J. (2013). [http://www.geo-exchange.ca/en/UserAttachments/flex1304_5-%20SAIC-%20Bill%20Wong%202013%20-%20Integrating%20Solar%20and%20Heat%20Pumps.pdf ''Integrating Solar & Heat Pumps.''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015092834/http://www.geo-exchange.ca/en/UserAttachments/flex1304_5-%20SAIC-%20Bill%20Wong%202013%20-%20Integrating%20Solar%20and%20Heat%20Pumps.pdf |date=2013-10-15 }}  Renewable Heat Workshop.</ref> Types of storages for sensible energy include insulated tanks, borehole clusters in substrates ranging from gravel to bedrock, deep aquifers, or shallow lined pits that are insulated on top. Some types of storage are capable of storing heat or cold [[Seasonal thermal energy storage|between opposing seasons]] (particularly if very large), and some storage applications require inclusion of a [[Heat pumps|heat pump]]. Latent heat is typically stored in ice tanks or what are called [[phase-change material]]s (PCMs).