• Covers all principal sources of renewable energy currently being exploited.
• The interdisciplinary approach considers economic, social, environmental and policy issues.
• Detailed colour illustrations, together with tables of data, support comprehensive analysis of the relevant disciplines.

New to this edition

• Updated treatment of integration of renewables into existing energy systems.
• Updated throughout to reflect new data, advances in technology and new developments around the world.
• Reflects increased appreciation of the economic, social and environmental impact of renewables.
• End-of-chapter summaries consolidate information.
• Expanded appendices on unit conversions and costing analysis.

The provision of sustainable energy supplies for an expanding and increasingly productive world is one of the major issues facing civilisation today. Renewable Energy examines both the practical and economic potential of the renewable energy sources to meet this challenge. The underlying physical and technological principles behind deriving power from direct solar (solar thermal and photovoltaics), indirect solar (biomass, hydro, wind and wave) and non-solar (tidal and geothermal) energy sources are explained, within the context of their environmental impacts, their economics and their future prospects.

Together with its companion volume, Energy Systems and Sustainability, this book provides both perspective and detail on the relative merits and state of progress of technologies for utilizing the various ’renewables’. The analysis considers emissions, sustainability, cost implications and energy security, as political and economic pressures move society towards a low-carbon future. From an overview of basic energy conversion processes, through a discussion of the individual renewable sources, to a concluding examination of the prospects for their integration into national and international networks, this book provides a valuable insight into prospects for the renewables.