Renewable solutions to electricity problems (Curitiba, Brazil)
The problem
Brazil will get plenty of rain and can store plenty of water in its extensive system of reservoirs, but repeated years of drought have introduced new uncertainty. The Paraná River and its tributaries have been a major source of hydropower since the 1970s. Brazil and Paraguay jointly operate the Itaipú hydroelectric power plant, which is the largest in the region and the second-largest in the world. Brazil has more than 50 large dams and reservoirs throughout the Paraná River Basin, which together can produce a huge volume of electricity and store a massive amount of water. According to the Energy and Climate Partnership of America, this year, though, the water in storage dropped to an unprecedented low of 17% as the overall average in the basin. The lack of rain throughout most of this year has led Brazil to increase its use of thermal power, which costs more to produce than hydroelectricity. This has resulted in fuel surcharges added to customers’ electric bills. Due to frequent droughts, the city has to rely on fossil gas and coal plants to supplement energy shortages, and the level of reduced CO2 is growing and polluting the environment(C40 Cities organization). This has a bad effect on people's health because of the polluted air they breathe and the food they eat.
This problem connects to the following environmental and economic reasons because The energy spot market has been “crazy,” sometimes fluctuating wildly from one week to the next depending on whether it’s raining or not. That kind of volatility makes it hard for the market to determine the cost of energy, Boschin said, which makes energy suppliers reluctant to offer long-term contracts. For large industrial customers that purchase energy directly from generation companies, that complicates planning and makes it hard to raise investment capital. Excess electricity from fossil fuel countries is sold to Brazil, which is willing to pay high prices for it. Moreover, the main source of electricity generation in the Brazilian state of Paraná was hydropower, and biomass played a very small role in electricity supply. However, after major droughts, the government was forced to use biomass as a source of electricity for the state. Biomass, in turn, has a bad impact on the environment due to the air emissions it produces.
Since we already know that hydro power is more dependent on natural processes, it has caused high volatility in the price of electricity on the spot market. Solar energy is produced in any weather, and solar panels will not be the only common source for all families, but a separate source for each family. That is, people will not depend on spot market prices, and their country will not have to buy surplus electricity from others at insanely high prices to provide all its residents with a normal amount of electricity.
Since we already know that hydro power is more dependent on natural processes, it has caused high volatility in the price of electricity on the spot market. Solar energy is produced in any weather, and solar panels will not be the only common source for all families, but a separate source for each family. That is, people will not depend on spot market prices, and their country will not have to buy surplus electricity from others at insanely high prices to provide all its residents with a normal amount of electricity.
Solution
The solutions that solve the problem are to use solar panels instead of hydropower
Solar energy is more inexhaustible and independent than hydropower. The main problem of our city is the lack of water for electricity generation, i.e. due to droughts, reservoirs are not filled with water and there is not enough water to produce electricity. Because of this, the authorities decided to use fossil fuels, which have a bad impact on the environment. Solar panels will solve this problem. Sunlight is everywhere in the world UV penetrates any crevices and cavities. Especially it relates to Curitiba city because it gets 1800 hours of sunlight per year. Solar panels produce energy even without direct sunlight, and they collect energy in cloudy weather. Thus, the city will always be supplied with electricity, even in the face of climate change. In addition, solar panels are a good solution for the environment, as one panel can work for up to 40 years. Since we already know that hydropower is more dependent on natural processes, it has caused high volatility in the price of electricity on the spot market. Solar energy is produced in any weather, and solar panels will not be the only common source for all families, but a separate source for each family. That is, people will not depend on spot market prices, and their country will not have to buy surplus electricity from others at insanely high prices to provide all its residents with a normal amount of electricity.
How would it work?
Curitiba receives an average of 150 hours of sunlight each month, which is about 5 hours daily. Solar panels need 4 to 5 hours of sunlight per day to work well(JFK Electrical Solar & Air). I decided to install monocrystalline solar panels. They are not the cheapest option because they are made of the most efficient material that converts sunlight into energy. Monocrystalline solar panels (or mono panels) are made from monocrystalline solar cells, and with monocrystalline cells, you are guaranteed decent levels of efficiency in all weather conditions. These panels have the highest level of efficiency and operate for a long period, with manufacturers providing a 25-year warranty. They also perform better in low levels of sunlight, making them ideal for cloudy areas(The Renewable Energy Hub). Solar panels produce about 2 kilowatts of electricity every day(Melissa Brock). This is 60 kilowatts per month from one panel. One house needs 20 solar panels, so each house will consume 1200 kilowatts of electricity per month (according to electronics manufacturer "Anker" an average household needs about 1000 kilowatts of electricity per month). In addition, the performance of solar panels is highly dependent on their location. Thus, it will be a better option than hydropower because of the independence of solar energy, i.e. each house and each family will not depend on one common source of electricity, they will have their source of energy.
Benefits and Limitations of Solar Energy
Benefits(pros)
- Solar energy is an inexhaustible resource, the sun is the main factor in this type of energy: day after day, year after year, it is and will always be there, always the same.
- Solar energy is everywhere, even in places where there is no infrastructure or connection, meaning that the fact that solar energy may not be available at all is simply impossible.
- Reduces carbon emissions. It creates no carbon emissions or other heat-trapping “greenhouse” gases. It avoids the environmental damage associated with mining or drilling for fossil fuels.
- Solar panels have low maintenance costs. Between their low maintenance costs and average lifespan of 25 years, it can be easy to get your money’s worth when investing in solar panels. (Constellation)
- Less Electricity is Lost During Long-Distance Transport. Some of the energy, around 3-5%, is lost during transportation and distribution. The longer the distance between the production and the supply points, the more energy is lost. Those losses might not seem significant but they can influence the performance of the installation in regions with high population density.
Limitation(cons)
- The high initial costs of installing panels. The initial cost to buy and install the equipment is not cheap. If you do choose to buy, you will need to live in your home for several years before the system pays for itself. It’s a long-term investment better suited to property owners than renters.
- Solar doesn’t work for every roof type. Not every room will work well with solar panels. Orientation matters. If your roof doesn't face the sun, you won’t be able to capture enough solar energy. Roofs that angle into the sun tend to work better than flat roofs.
- Environmental Impact of Manufacturing. The production of solar technology has its environmental downsides, as the mining of materials and manufacturing of solar panels creates a considerable amount of greenhouse gas.
- Scarcity of Materials. Sunlight may be unlimited, but the materials required to manufacture solar technology are not. The availability of the raw materials required to produce solar products may not be sufficient to meet future demand and the options for mining these materials can have a significant environmental impact.
Final judgment
Taking into account all the facts we learned earlier: the city's climate, hours of sunlight, and the features of the selected solar panels, solar energy is the best option. We will provide our small community with electricity converted from solar energy. Taking into account all the disadvantages of solar energy, I decided to install 18-20 panels per roof, pre-arranged for easy installation and efficient operation of the panels, in the most favorable place for maximum sunlight collection. Each family can have an energy source and use it as they see fit. We will do the same with the roofs of multi-story buildings, but we will install about twice as many solar panels. To supply the stores with electricity, we will create a single common source of energy. We already know that when solar energy is transported over long distances, a smaller amount is lost in comparison, so we can install the sources of electricity much further away from the stores themselves, i.e., install it in a place that receives the most sunlight (most likely a suspended surface and more to the east). Of course, the solar panels I chose - monocrystalline - are quite expensive, but isn't it worth it? Monocrystalline panels are a great option for our city. Despite the sunshine in Curitiba, there are plenty of cloudy days. Monocrystalline panels work even better in low sunlight, which means that some percentage of energy will always be generated. Also, due to the high efficiency of these panels, they can produce a large amount of energy during peak sunlight hours and enough for use during periods when the sun is inactive (this is very useful for shops). To save money, we will buy the number of solar panels we need in bulk, because the number of panels we need is more than 300, and over time the cost of the panels will pay for itself. All disadvantages can be corrected!
Sources
—Cities, C40. “Curitiba: From Landfill to Solar Revolution.” C40 Cities, 22 May 2023, www.c40.org/news/curitiba-from-landfill-to-solar-revolution/. Accessed 5 Nov. 2023.
“Drought and Hydropower along the Paraná.” ECPAmericas, 16 Dec. 2021, ecpamericas.org/newsletters/drought-and-hydropower-along-the-parana/. Accessed 5 Nov. 2023.
Gerson M. Tiepolo, Jair Urbanetz Junior, Osiris Consiglieri Junior, Trajano Viana. “Renewable Sources Potential Analysis in the Electrical Matrix of Paraná State – Brazil”. CEt Chemical Engineering Transactions, January 2014,
(PDF)
Renewable Sources Potential Analysis in the Electrical Matrix of Paraná State – Brazil . Accessed 5 Nov. 2023.
Anker. “How Much Energy Does an Average House Use? Power Consumption.” Anker, 2 June 2023, www.anker.com/blogs/home-power-backup/electricity-usage-how-much-energy-does-an-average-house-use. Accessed 19 Nov. 2023.
Brock, Melissa. “How Much Energy Does a Solar Panel Produce?” Www.quickenloans.com, 15 Nov. 2022, www.quickenloans.com/learn/how-much-energy-solar-panels-produce#:~:text=How%20much%20power%20does%20a. Accessed 19 Nov. 2023.
Constellation. “The Advantages and Disadvantages of Solar Energy.” Www.constellation.com, Constellation, 2023, www.constellation.com/energy-101/energy-innovation/solar-energy-pros-and-cons.html. Accessed 21 Nov. 2023.
Lyons, John. “How Much Direct Sunlight Do Solar Panels Need? -.” Jfkelectrical.com.au, 21 June 2022, jfkelectrical.com.au/does-solar-panel-need-direct-sunlight/#:~:text=The%20average%20sunlight%20needed%20to. Accessed 19 Nov. 2023.
Ridcharson, Janet. Monocrystalline Solar Panels. 3 Oct. 2023, www.renewableenergyhub.co.uk/main/solar-panels/monocrystalline-solar-panels#:~:text=They%20have%20the%20highest%20level,making%20them%20ideal%20for%20cloudy. Accessed 21 Nov. 2023.
About the creator
This website was created as a final product for an electricity project in Science by 8 grader of the International School of Prague. The article collected information from different sources and has a solution that the creator has made.
