physics

Renewable thermal energy

Renewable thermal energy is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Renewable thermal energy rather than just read about it. In short: Renewable thermal energy is the technology of gathering thermal energy from a renewable energy source for immediate use or for storage in a thermal battery for later use. The most popular form of renewable thermal energy is the sun and the solar energy is harvested by solar collectors to heat water, buildings, pools and various processes.

Key takeaways

Renewable thermal energy belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Renewable thermal energy to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Renewable thermal energy from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Renewable thermal energy is the technology of gathering thermal energy from a renewable energy source for immediate use or for storage in a thermal battery for later use. The most popular form of renewable thermal energy is the sun and the solar energy is harvested by solar collectors to heat water, buildings, pools and various processes. Another example of Renewable Thermal is a Geothermal or ground source Heat Pump (GHP) system, where thermal stored in the ground from the summer is extracted from the ground to heat a building in another season. This example system is "renewable" because the source of excess heat energy is a reliably recurring process that occurs each summer season.

History of Renewable Thermal Systems Solar energy has been in use for centuries for heating dwellings and to produce hot water before low cost natural gas was discovered. It gained attention during and after the oil embargo of 1973 as engineers investigated ways to produce thermal energy from a renewable source instead of fossil fuels. The history of utilizing the ground as a heat source is more recent and has gained prominence in recent years especially in rural areas where natural gas heating may not be available. The outer crust of the Earth is a Thermal Battery that maintains a median temperature which is the same as the average air temperature at that location. This "average ground temperature" is a combination in balance of solar gain from the sun, thermal gain from the core of the earth, and heat loss due to conduction, evaporation, and radiation. The graphic at the right shows a map of the "average ground temperature" at locations within the United States.

Types

Solar-based Renewable Thermal

Ground-based Renewable Thermal

Season thermal energy storage

Policy by geography

New York State The state of New York took a big step in September 2015 when it created a new office titled Director of Renewable Thermal. The NY Director of Renewable Thermal will oversee a team to help companies develop and implement renewable, low-carbon cooling and heating systems. NY State considers this initiative a critical component of NYSERDA's strategy to enable net-zero energy buildings, which produce the same amount of energy as they consume. It also will further advance New York's progress toward creating self-sustaining energy markets for clean, renewable technologies. Renewable Thermal has been a core resource in many states Renewable Portfolio Standards. The report says: "State Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) programs have historically focused on electricity generation. However, some states have started incorporating renewable thermal power for heat generation into their RPS as a way to support the development and market growth of solar thermal, biomass thermal, geothermal, and other renewable thermal technologies." The plan focuses on "Renewable thermal energy has many of the same benefits as other renewable technologies, including improved air quality, economic development and job creation, and the promotion of regional energy security." An industry public described on-site combustion as :responsible for 35 percent of fossil fuel greenhouse gas emissions in New York State. "

See also Thermal energy storage Seasonal thermal energy storage system Solar air heat Geothermal heat pump

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Renewable thermal energy

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Renewable thermal energy claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Renewable thermal energy before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Renewable thermal energy ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Renewable thermal energy

In research: Renewable thermal energy appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Renewable thermal energy in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Renewable thermal energy is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Energy storage, Renewable energy, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Renewable thermal energy outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Renewable thermal energy in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Renewable thermal energy means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Renewable thermal energy out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Renewable thermal energy in simple terms?

Why does Renewable thermal energy matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Renewable thermal energy?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Renewable thermal energy.