Conventional and Non-conventional Sources of Energy

The word 'Energy' defines the capacity or ability to do work. Energy exists in many forms,
including Kinetic Energy, Electrical Energy, Thermal Energy, Potential Energy, Chemical Energy,
Nuclear Energy, etc. Motion is associated with all forms of energy. For example – any object or
body in motion has Kinetic Energy associated with it. According to the principle of Conservation
of Energy or the first law of Thermodynamics, energy can neither be created nor destroyed but can
only be changed from one form to another. There are two prime sources of energy, namely, the
Conventional Sources of Energy, and the Non-conventional Sources of Energy.

Energy is a major part of life and not only just the economic infrastructure and hence this being
the basic energy needed for almost all the needs in life it is true that the energy is being exhausted
as days go by. Those energies that are continuously being formed in nature are termed
nonconventional energy or also called renewable energy sources. These are of various types
depending on their sources. Conventional energy on the other hand is based on fossils and hence
these are possibly going to be extinct quite soon. Due to the energy sources being extinct quite
soon it has become an important matter on how to save these energies.

Understanding the Conventional Sources of Energy

The Conventional Sources of Energy are also known as the non-renewable sources of energy,
which are present in a limited quantity and are being consumed by human beings for many years
now. These non-renewable sources of energy are the decaying matters, which take over hundreds
of years to form, for example, coal, petroleum, etc. So, if they are depleted once, they can never
be generated at a speed or pace, which could sustain their rate of consumption.

The conventional sources of energy can be further classified into two types, namely, the
commercial energy sources and the non-commercial energy sources.

What are Commercial Energy Sources?

Commercial energy sources are those energy sources for which the consumer needs to pay the
price for the consumption. For instance - coal, petroleum, oil, natural gas, and electricity.

Coal: Without any second thoughts, coal is indeed the most vital source of energy. The formation
of coal takes place when dead plant matter decays into peat (accumulation of partially decayed
organic matter or vegetation) which is converted into coal by pressure and heat over millions of
years. Coal is mostly composed of Carbon. It has variable amounts of other elements also, like
Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Sulphur, and Oxygen.
Natural Gas and Oil: Natural gas is one of the most crucial sources of energy in the world whereas
oil is considered to be liquid gold. Oil is formed from a large number of tiny animals and plants,
which when die, get trapped at the bottom of the sea under multiple layers of sand and mud, and
get exposed to heat and pressure. It is widely used in trains, ships, automobiles, and planes. Natural
gas is formed when several layers of decomposing animal and plant matter are exposed to intense
pressure and heat over millions of years under the surface of Earth. It is used for various purposes,
including cooking, heating, and electricity generation.

Electricity: Electricity is a form of energy, in which there is a flow of electrons (electric charge)
in one direction. Electricity can be produced using fossil fuels (coal and petroleum), nuclear power,
and renewable alternatives (solar, wind, or hydropower). As a common source of energy,
electricity is commonly used for commercial and domestic purposes. The electricity is primarily
utilized in electrical appliances, including refrigerators, air conditioners (AC), TV, and washing
machines.

The Prime Sources of Power Generation are as follows

Nuclear Power

Hydro-electric Power

Thermal Power

Thermal Power: By utilizing coal and oil, thermal power is generated at several power stations.
The production of thermal power is the conversion of fuel into heat. It is generated using thermal
generators and specifically designed furnaces. A thermal power plant burns fuels for boiling water
and making steam. The steam produced then spins a turbine connected to a generator that weaves
electricity.

Hydroelectric Power: Hydroelectric power is generated or produced with the help of constructing
dams above the flowing rivers, for example, Bhakra Nangal Project and Damodar Valley Project.
Flowing water creates energy that can be further captured and eventually turned into electricity.
Water is released from the reservoir and then flows through a turbine. The turbine spins the water
and activates a generator, which produces electricity.

Nuclear Power: Nuclear power plants use uranium and plutonium as fuel, which is less expensive
than coal. The vast majority of electricity from Nuclear Power is produced via nuclear fission,
nuclear fusion, and nuclear decay reactions.
Understanding the Non-Conventional Sources of Energy

Also referred to as the renewable sources of energy, the non-conventional sources of energy refer
to those energy sources, which are replenished by natural processes, that too continuously. The
non-conventional sources of energy can’t be exhausted easily and can be generated at a constant
rate for their use over and over again. Furthermore, these energy sources do not pollute the
environment and natural surroundings and require less expenditure. A few examples of non-
conventional sources of energy include wind energy, tidal energy, solar energy, geothermal
energy, and biomass energy. The reason why they are also called renewable sources of energy lies
in the fact that they can be produced or generated through natural processes, at a rate greater than
or equal to the rate of their consumption.

What are Non-Commercial Energy Sources?

In general, non-commercial energy sources are those energy sources that are freely available, and
the consumers don't need to pay the price for their consumption. A few examples of non-
commercial energy sources include firewood, straw, dried dung, etc.

Solar Energy: Solar energy is the energy produced or generated by sunlight. Based on the form
of energy that needs to be produced or generated, the photovoltaic cells are exposed to sunlight.
Solar energy is widely utilized for the distillation of water and cooking purposes.

Wind Energy: Wind energy is the energy generated or produced by harnessing the power of the
wind. It is widely utilized in the operation of water pumps for irrigation purposes. India is the
second-largest producer of wind power in the world.

Tidal Energy: Tidal energy is the energy produced or generated by exploiting the tidal waves of
the sea. As a non-conventional source of energy, tidal energy is still left to be tapped due to the
lack of cost-effective technology.

Advantages of Non-Conventional Energy over Conventional Energy

Nonconventional energy also called the renewable source of energy is an indigenous source that
is available and has a significant impact on local and regional economic industries. There is also a
huge scope of research in the nonconventional energy source sectors regarding its future and its
utilization in science and other applications. The power plants that are based on nonconventional
energy do not have much high fuel cost and are hence much more affordable for people and
industries. Renewable energy has low energy density and is also helpful in reducing pollution and
providing a sustainable environment to live in.

It requires a short gestation period and a low amount to be invested.

What is an Electric Power System?

An electric power system or electric grid is known as a large network of power generating plants
which connected to the consumer loads.

As, it is well known that “Energy cannot be created nor be destroyed but can only be converted
from one form of energy to another form of energy”. Electrical energy is a form of energy where
we transfer this energy in the form of flow of electron. So, electrical energy is obtained by
converting various other forms of energy. Historically, we have done it from chemical energy
using cells or batteries.

However, as the invention of generator had occurred, it became the technique to first convert some
form of energy into mechanical form of energy and then converting it into electrical form of energy
using generator. Generators produce two type of power AC and DC. Nevertheless, 99% of the
present power systems use AC generators.

Electrical energy has grown immensely over two centuries because the flexibility it provides for
its use. The variety of use has led its demand to increase monotonously. However, as the load or
demand has increased practically one requirement is consistent. That is, we must generate the
amount required by the load at that very instant because this large amount cannot be stored for
delivering this high amount of demand.

Therefore, the generation of electrical energy is happening simultaneously as we use it. In addition,
our demand is always varying. Therefore, the generation is also varying with it. Apart from varying
demand, the type of current we consume also varies. These variations put many constraints and
conditions. This is the reason of the complex and big control rooms across the whole power system.

The lines network between Generating Station (Power Station) and consumer of electric power
can be divided into two parts.

Transmission System

Distribution System
We can explore these systems in more categories such as primary transmission and secondary
transmission as well as primary distribution and secondary distribution. This is shown in the fig 1
below (one line or single line diagram of typical AC power systems scheme).

It is not necessary that the entire steps which are sown in the blow fig 1 must be included in the
other power schemes. There may be difference. For example, there is no secondary transmission
in many schemes, in other (small) schemes of power system, there is no power transmission, but
only distribution.

The main objective of an electric power system is to obtain electrical energy and make it reachable
safely to the load point where it is being used in usable form. This is done in five stages namely

Generating Station
Primary Transmission
Secondary Transmission
Primary Distribution
Secondary Distribution
After these five levels, the energy must be available as the stated form in terms of voltage
magnitudes, frequency and consistency. Generation means the conversion of a form of energy into
electrical energy. Transmission implies the transport of this energy to very long distance with very
high amount of voltage magnitude. Moreover, distribution is fulfilling the demand of the
consumers at certified voltage level and it is done in terms of feeders. Feeders are the small-small
chunks of load distributed at different places, physically.
Combined Process of Power System

The entire structure of the power system is consisting of the source (Generating station), transfer
(Transmission and Distribution) and the load (Consumer). The objectives are:-

Rated voltage and frequency to the load centres.

Reliability of the system so that power delivery is continuous.

Flexibility of the system so that the power is available at different voltage levels

Faster clearance of faults so that the runs well for longer time and it life elongates

The cost of power must be as low as possible

The losses in the system must be as low as possible