Why are Fossil Fuels Bad? Can Solar Panels Replace Them?
Define: Fossil Fuels are a large problem today for humans and our environment. We want to know if it can be stopped or slowed down to prevent it from taking over. Burning fossil fuels releases a large amount of air pollutants which hurt the environment.
Discover:
Some questions can be:
- How are fossil fuels made?
- Can it be replaced?
- Are solar panels a good alternative?
- Why are solar panels good?
- Why are solar panels bad?
Deliver: There are 4 types of fossil fuels: petroleum, coal, natural gas and Orimulsion. When fossil fuels are exposed to heat, a chain made from hydrocarbon atoms converts the energy made from heat into energy made from electricity or mechanical energy. Inhaling can have negative health effects on humans and animals. These health effects include premature death, acute respiratory illness, aggravated asthma, chronic bronchitis and decreased lung function. Fossil fuels are made for driving engines and giving them power. Some examples of engines that use fossil fuels are cars and jet fuels. But, despite everything I said so far, there are some advantages to fossil fuels. They are very accessible to the public and are sold at a low price. It is also easy to transport.
Solar Panels are a very good alternative to replace fossil fuels. It is renewable at no cost to supply energy infinity. Solar panels absorb the heat energy from the sun and converts it into electricity instead of having to burn fuels and it having to affect the atmosphere. This makes solar panels environment friendly.
Advantages of solar panels:
- Renewable Energy Source. (The most important)
- Reduces electricity bills
- Multiple applications
- Low maintenance costs
- Technology development
- Cost
- Weather dependent
- Solar energy storage is expensive
There are also some disadvantages to solar panels. Land use and habitat loss is the largest problem. Some people have solar panels on the top of their house which takes up not too much space. But, in some areas, there are square kilometers of solar panels which takes up a lot of land and could be possible habitat loss for some animals. In the making of solar panels, hazardous materials are being used while being manufactured.
Debrief: We first had to think of an idea to talk about so we both researched about different things. Then we thought of the idea to talk about solar panels so now we had to think about a question revolving around it. Fossil fuels are taking over and is unhealthy for the environment, so we wanted to compare the two. First, we had to understand what fossil fuels are and what they do, same with solar panels. Then we compared the two; with their disadvantages and advantages. After that, we thought of solutions to solve this problem.
Solution: to help this problem we could try walk also you could ask a friend to carpool or take public transit to get to work, school or anywhere you need to go. Most of the worlds power is generated by coal and natural gas so you could get solar panels installed on your roof. Eletric cars are becoming a lot more popular with how far battery technology has gotten and are becoming more affordable which can prevent fossil fuels.