For all their purported benefits, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin have a serious energy problem. There has been a lot of talk about how much energy Bitcoin mining uses and its potential impact on the environment. Can Bitcoin Energy Problems be Solved with Solar Energy?
At the heart of this cryptocurrency is an army of computers performing cryptographic hashing algorithms around the clock to verify transactions made on the network, a process known as mining.
Energy Required for bitcoin mining?
Not only the Bitcoin cost has been going up over last couple of years, but also its mining energy consumption which has reached to approximately 30.14 TWh per year. It has also been reported that each single Bitcoin transaction consumes around 300KWh of electricity, which is adequate to boil 36,000 kettles full of water. In comparison, it requires only 2% of the total Bitcoin mining electricity in order to process 200 million transactions daily. Even though the electricity consumption of Bitcoin is very high, many experts believe that it’s necessary in order to maintain decentralization.
Rather than turning cryptocurrencies into another major driver of anthropogenic climate change, however, there is a need to harness the power of climate change to mine cryptocurrencies.
Mining bitcoin is often very costly. Not only is the hardware costly to buy, but also the electricity costs which can add financial strain to anyone’s budget. There is a found solution for this problem, by effective use of solar energy.
Solar energy for bitcoin mining purpose
It is only a matter of time until people who mine bitcoin at home will shift towards more energy-efficient solutions. Using regular electricity to generate bitcoin often leads to paying more money than is being earned in the process. Some countries are an exception in this regard due to very cheap electricity. For the rest of us, renewable energy may be well worth looking into.
This concept goes to show solar energy sources have their place within the bitcoin mining ecosystem. As the mining difficulty continues to increase, more electricity – and more efficient hardware – will be needed. Using solar energy takes a load off the power grid and creates exciting new business models.
Considering how large-scale mining farms are moving to hydroelectric power as of late, consumers will make the shift to solar energy. Devices such as a solar mill require no government approval to be purchased or used, although doing so will be the sole responsibility of the consumer. All things considered, this is an intriguing example of how bitcoin mining can be innovated and invigorated.
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