Today over ninety-eight per cent of our energy comes from fossil fuels; coal, oil and natural gas. But coal and oil are not only fuels. They are also important raw materials for our chemical industries. People now think we should limit their use as fuel, otherwise the worlds supply will soon run out. Consequently, much research is being done into the practical use of the sun for heating buildings. The less fossil fuel we use now, the more we will have for the future.
Solar energy is transmitted from the sunthrough spaceto earth by electromagnetic radiation. It must be converted to heat before it can be used. Various types of solar energy collectors are used to convert the suns radiation to heat. Solar-heated hot water provides not only the buildings hot-water requirements, but space-heating as well. This solar system, based on water-heating, works like this. Each of its collectors, placed on the roof, consists of a shallow fiberglass tray that holds a number of copper tubes under a special glass cover. The tubes are, in turn, fixed to a blackened metal surface which absorbs energy from the sun. The suns rays, passing through the glass, heat the water in the tubes.
Since the energy is available only during the day and only then when there is not a great deal of cloud cover, the heat must be stored. This can be done in water, or in rock or pebble beds. The energy is stored in the hot water in the pipes.
21. Solar energy was first used_______.
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