Why don’t we cover the desert with solar panels? - Dan Kwartler

Prevodilac: Jovana Babic Lektor: Ivana Korom

Every day, the sands of the Sahara Desert reach temperatures up to 80° Celsius.

Svaki dan, temperature peska u Sahari dostižu 80 stepeni celzijusa.

Stretching over roughly nine million square kilometers,

Prostirući se preko površine od devet miliona kilometara kvadratnih,

this massive desert receives about 22 million terawatt hours of energy

ova ogromna pustinja prima oko 22 miliona teravat sati energije

from the Sun every year.

od Sunca svake godine.

That’s well over 100 times more energy than humanity consumes annually.

To je preko 100 puta više od godišnjih potreba čovečanstva.

So, could covering the desert with solar panels solve our energy problems for good?

Dakle, da li pokrivanje Sahare solarnim pločama može rešiti energetsku krizu?

Solar panels work when light particles hit their surface with enough energy

Solarne ploče prorade kada fotoni udare njihovu povšinu sa dovoljno energije

to knock electrons out of their stable bonds.

i izbace elektrone iz stabilnih veza.

On their journey back to stability, these electrons produce electricity.

Pri povratku u stabilan položaj ovi elektroni proizvode struju.

However, there’s a limit to how much power panels can generate.

Ipak, kapacitet solarnih ploča za proizvodnju energije je ograničen.

Solar panels can only interact with certain wavelengths of light,

Njih aktiviraju samo određene talasne dužine svetlosti,

making it impossible to convert over half the sunlight they receive.

što znači da se više od pola svetlosti koje prime ne pretvara u energiju.

And even light particles they can convert often bounce off them

Čak i fotoni koji bi mogli biti izvor energije se često odbijaju od njih

without ever hitting an electron.

bez pogađanja elektrona.

But thanks to clever scientists and engineers

Opet, uz pomoć pametnih naučnika i inženjera

and substantial government investment,

i značajnih vladinih investicija

solar panels are generating more electricity than ever.

solarne ploče sada proizvode više energije nego ikad ranije.

Anti-reflective coatings and patterns on the panels’ surface

Anti-reflektivne prevlake i šare na površini ploča

create more opportunities for incoming light particles to hit electrons.

povećavaju verovatnoću da se fotoni i elektroni sudare.

These techniques have increased commercial solar panel efficiency

Ove metode su povećale efikasnost solarnih ploča za komercijalnu upotrebu

from the low-teens to 25%,

sa 10-15 procenata na 25 procenata,

with experimental models reaching up to 47%.

a kod eksperimentalnih modela taj broj dostiže čak 47 procenata.

What’s more, solar has gotten 89% cheaper over the last decade,

Štaviše, solarna energija je 89 posto jeftinija u odnosu na prethodnu deceniju

thanks in part to global supply chains for other technologies

delimično zahvaljujući globalnim lancima snadbevanja za druge tehnologije

that use the same materials.

koje se prave od istih materijala.

Together, these factors have made solar power

Svi ovi faktori su učinili solarnu energiju

the cheapest source of electricity on Earth.

najjeftinijim izvorom energije na planeti.

Countries including India, China, Egypt, and the US,

Zemlje poput Indije, Kine, Egipta i SAD-a

have already taken these new panels into the desert.

su već postavile ovaj novi tip ploča u pustinje.

Their massive solar farms range from 15 to 56 square kilometers,

Njihove ogromne solarne elektrane

se prostiru na površini od 15 do 56 kvadratnih kilometara

and when the sun is high in the sky,

i kada je Sunce u zenitu

these plants can provide energy

ove ploče mogu da obezbede energiju

for hundreds of thousands of local residents.

za stotine hiljada okolnih stanovnika.

But these farms also get extremely hot.

Ipak, u okolini ovih elektrana može biti veoma vruće

Light that solar cells don’t convert or reflect is absorbed as heat,

jer se svetlost koja se ne konvertuje ili reflektuje, apsorbuje kao toplota

which reduces a panel’s efficiency.

što smanjuje efikasnost ploča.

And the cooling systems employed by many farms can use huge amounts of energy

Sistemi za hlađenje, koje koriste mnoge farme, mogu trošiti puno energije

powering fans or moving water to maintain optimal temperatures.

za napajanje ventilatora ili pokretanje vode, da bi održali optimalnu temperaturu.

Even with these systems, solar panels in the desert absorb far more heat

Uprkos pomoći ovih tehnologija, solarne ploče u pustinji apsorbuju više toplote

than the natural sandy environment.

nego prirodno peskovita životna sredina.

This hasn’t been a problem on the scale of existing solar farms.

Ovo do sada nije predstavljalo problem zbog veličine solarnih farmi,

But if we tried to cover the Sahara,

ali ako bismo pokrili celu Saharu

this effect could create massive changes in the region's climate.

regionalna klima bi mogla drastično da se promeni.

Constructing solar farms already disrupts local ecosystems,

Solarne farme već remete lokalne ekosisteme,

but a plant of this scale could dramatically transform

a elektrana ove veličine bi značajno promenila

the desert landscape.

pustinjske predele.

Thankfully, solar panels aren’t our only option.

Srećom, solarne ploče nisu naša jedina opcija

And some of the largest solar plants in the world are trying a new approach:

i neke od najvećih svetskih solarnih farmi pokušavaju novi pristup problemu:

giant mirrors.

ogromna ogledala.

Morocco’s Noor Power Plant,

Solarna elektrana Noor u Maroku,

which will eventually cover roughly 30 square kilometers of the Sahara,

koja će zauzimati oko 30 kvadratnih kilometara u Sahari,

is a concentrated solar power plant.

je koncentričnog oblika.

This design reflects light onto a receiver,

Ovakav dizajn omogućava refleksiju svetlosti ka prijemniku,

which converts that energy to heat, and then electricity.

koji pretvara tu energiju u toplotu, pa onda u struju.

These mirrors still create a dangerous temperature shift for local wildlife,

Iako i ova ogledala prave opasnu promenu temperatute koja utiče na floru i faunu

but they have less potential to transform the landscape.

ipak imaju manji potencijal da transformišu predeo.

And since it takes time for the materials being heated to cool off,

Pošto zagrejanim materijalima treba vremena da se ohlade

these plants often continue producing electricity past sunset.

ovaj tip elektrana može da proizvodi struju i nakon zalaska Sunca.

Whether they use panels or mirrors,

Bilo da koriste ploče ili ogledala,

industrial solar farms are often easy to fit into existing energy infrastructure.

industrijske solarne farme je lako ubaciti u postojeću energetsku infrastrukturu.

However, getting their electricity beyond local power grids is much more difficult.

Opet, korišćenje njihove energije na veće udaljenosti je mnogo teže.

Some countries are working on ways to connect electric grids across the globe.

Neke zemlje pokušavaju da povežu električne mreže šitom sveta.

And many farm store energy in massive batteries,

Mnoge elektrane čuvaju energiju u ogromnim baterijama

or convert their electricity into clean gas that can be used later.

ili pretvaraju struju u čist gas koji se može kasnije koristiti.

But right now, these techniques are still too expensive and inefficient to rely on.

Na žalost, ove tehnike su trenutno preskupe i neefikasne za upotrebu.

Worse still, industrial renewables can share some of the same problems

Da stvar bude još gora, obnovljivi izvori energije mogu imati iste probleme

as fossil fuels,

kao fosilna goriva,

relying on destructive mining operations and carbon-emitting global supply chains.

jer se oslanjaju na rudarstvo i globalne lance snadbevanja koji su štetni

za životnu sredinu.

Fortunately, solar can exist on many scales,

Srećom, solarne ploče se mogu naći u različitim veličinama,

from industrial solar farms to smaller installations

od industrijskih solarnih farmi do manjiih individualnih instalacija

that power individual buildings and rural communities.

za napajanje zgrada i ruralnih zajednica.

These projects can supplement energy use or provide a passive source of energy

Ovi projekti mogu postati pasivan izvor energije i pospešiti elektrodistribuciju

for regions off the grid.

u udaljenim regionima.

And since solar panels rely on a few simple components,

Pošto se solarne ploče sastoje od nekoliko jednostavnih delova

they’re quick to install and relatively easy to update.

lako ih je sastaviti i unaprediti.

In fact, it’s this flexibility that enabled solar

Upravo je ova fleksibilnost omogućila solarnim pločama

to become so cheap and ubiquitous over the last decade.

da postanu toliko jeftine i sveprisutne tokom protekle decenije.

So if we want to keep up with humanity's rising energy use,

Dakle, ako želimo da idemo u korak sa stalno rastućom potrebom za energijom

we'll need answers both big and small.

potrebna su nam i velika i mala rešenja.