Renewable energy sources in terms of entropy

A high standard of living causes a large number of irreversible processes, which generate entropy. Energy flow is necessary to remove entropy from the location of generation; commonly this is called energy consumption. The usefulness of an energy flow is defined by its capability of removing entropy from an irreversible process. Fossil energy sources are limited and their use causes ecological damage and conflicts about distribution. As a long-term alternative, energy needs to be obtained from the incoming stream of solar radiation, or indirectly by replacing natural heat engines with artificial ones. Due to the environmental side effects of this replacement, unnecessary artificial entropy production has to be minimized.