Compendium of Renewable Energy Technologies

Renewable energy technologies are one of the few low-carbon technologies that have the ability to scale up to a massive scale. In recent years, there has been a fast expansion in the installed capacity, significant advancement in the technology, price, performance, and the emergence of innovative business models, all of which have fueled investment in these systems. Each year, the overall quantity of solar irradiation received by the earth exceeds the entire amount of traditional energy reserves. There are essentially no barriers to renewable deployment. It delivers solutions to various energy needs; PV, wind, and bioenergy provide electricity for small and large scale. Solar thermal technologies and bioenergy can provide heat and electricity for both small and large scales. The present factsheets outline the basics of PV, solar thermal, wind and bioenergy technologies and go on to state the main points to be considered in the design phase; the strengths and challenges in the deployment. The factsheets explored the innovating technologies at the application level, and particular attention was given to small and medium-scale applications. The main objective to bring forth this compendium is to build a stronger foundation in the knowledge and understanding of these revolutionary technologies; this fact sheet serves as a beginning point for understanding these technologies and delving deeper into them using the suggested resources.