Materials issues in renewable energy power generation

Rapid increases in power generation from renewable sources are being advocated as part of the global strategy to reduce CO2 emissions. Renewable energy technologies range from the well established, such as hydropower, to the emergent, such as biomass gasification. Each technology has its own individual materials requirements, to permit reductions in capital costs, to increase longevity in harsh environments, or to enable generating efficiency to be increased. The status of all of the major renewable energy technologies is briefly reviewed with particular emphasis on the structural materials issues and advances pertinent to their further development. The technologies covered include wind, hydro, wave and tidal, waste and biomass combustion and gasification, geothermal, solar thermal, and solar photovoltaic.