Through a process called nuclear fusion, the sun releases a large amount of energy every second. In fact, it releases more energy per day than the planet uses in a year. However, only a small part of the sun's energy reaches the earth's surface. However, this amount of energy is significant, so the sun offers great potential for generating electricity on Earth. About 30% of solar energy that reaches Earth is reflected back into space, while the remaining 50% is absorbed by land and oceans. The rest of the solar energy is absorbed by the Earth's atmosphere and clouds, a phenomenon called the greenhouse effect.
As with most things in life, using solar energy has numerous advantages and disadvantages.
For example, solar energy is a relatively clean energy source because it has a very low carbon footprint and produces no greenhouse gas emissions. However, building large-scale solar systems requires the destruction of soil, vegetation and animal habitats. This can promote soil compaction and erosion (thus disrupting local ecosystems). At the same time, floating PV plants can have a negative impact on marine life as the construction of the plants can lead to water pollution, while the plants can also affect water temperatures (shading and increased evaporation). Less makes the water cooler.
Interestingly, there appears to be a connection between solar panels and bird deaths. The American news platform Wired published an article on this topic at the end of 2020:
“In 2016, a first-of-its-kind study estimated that hundreds of large solar farms in the United States could kill up to 140,000 birds per year. That's less than a tenth percent of the estimated number of birds killed by fossil fuel power plants (due to accidents, electrocutions and poisonings), but researchers predict the number will triple when planned solar farms come online. The connection between solar objects and the death of birds is not yet clear. One of the most popular theories is that birds mistake the glow of solar panels for the surface of a lake and are attracted to land, with deadly consequences. “But this hypothesis starts from a human perspective,” said Misti Sporer, a senior environmental scientist at Duke Energy, an energy company in North Carolina. “Do birds see the same things as humans? We need to collect more data to build a complete picture."
Furthermore, highly toxic materials such as cadmium, lead and arsenic are used in the production of solar panels. These toxic materials can be released into the environment during manufacturing or end up in landfill when panels are disposed of after reaching the end of their useful life. The problem is that the process of recycling solar panels is not yet widespread and is not economically advantageous.
Secondly, another advantage of solar energy is that it reduces the electricity bills of industries and families who have installed these photovoltaic panels. Furthermore, the maintenance costs of solar energy are relatively low. In other words, you'll enjoy cheaper electricity for a long time (today's standard photovoltaic panels typically last 20 to 30 years, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)).
On the other hand, the initial cost of solar panels is quite high due to the costs of solar panels, inverters, batteries, wiring and installation (although prices may decrease in the future due to the constant development of the technology ).
Third, solar energy can be used for various purposes (to generate electricity or heat) in remote areas (so no connection to the larger grid is needed). All you need is sunlight and a panel. This allows energy to be generated on mountaintops, in the middle of the ocean, and even in space (for satellites and spaceships). A feeling of independence from third parties arises.
However, solar energy is highly dependent on weather conditions. Solar energy cannot be collected at night. So unless solar energy collected during the day is stored in expensive batteries, this means the energy must be used immediately (or excess energy can be fed into the grid). Otherwise it's a waste. However, since most people (and especially businesses) typically use more energy during the day, this should still save you a lot of money. Even if cloudy and rainy days affect the efficiency of the photovoltaic system, in these conditions solar panels can still produce electricity. For example, a family or business may use solar energy during the day but use electricity from the grid at night.
Fourth, sunlight, a not scarce resource, is available virtually everywhere during the day. This can encourage countries to become independent of oil, gas or coal imports. Many countries do not have large quantities of oil, gas and coal beneath the surface of their land or waters (or do not have the capital, technology, skills and investment environment necessary to realize this potential) and therefore do reliance on fossil fuel transportation. by accessing it. satisfy national energy needs. This has negative side effects. In the case of Indonesia, for example, expensive crude oil and fuel imports put pressure on the country's trade balance, current account balance, foreign exchange reserves and the rupee exchange rate. Furthermore, because some common fuels are partially subsidized by the public budget, this means that opportunities for social and economic development in Indonesia are missed, as there is less public money available to invest in more productive sectors of the economy.
Overall, if energy becomes cheaper for society in the future due to the availability of renewable energy sources, logistics costs should be significantly reduced, thus promoting a more efficient economy. People's purchases. Force.
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What will the future of renewable energy look like in Indonesia?
