Energy: Developing a Sustainable Future - page 2
Keywords: Energy- Sustainable energy-crude oil -
By wali on 11/12/2008
Level: Foundation Degree
Page Number: 2 of 5 pages: 1 2 3 4 5
rays over a large area to be efficient (Evans 2007, p.82). This makes the large scale production and centralized distribution of solar electricity almost impractical. However, on a local level, such as an individual house, solar power can contribute to heating, lighting, and electrical power. New breakthroughs in photovoltaic technology have raised hopes that the current efficiency of 15 percent could be raised to as high as 93 percent (Green 2003 , p.1) This translates to smaller cells and collectors and a reduced cost of production. Large scale solar farms are still in the research and development stage, but ultimately solar may provide a significant portion of the global energy needs.
Wind energy is another natural resource that is abundant, widely distributed, and inexpensive. Wind has been harnessed for energy for centuries and has recently seen a renewed interest in its application. In the United States wind power ranks second behind hydro-electric power as a source of electricity, and Denmark produces 20 percent of their electricity through wind power (Evans 2007, p.94). However, wind suffers some of the same drawbacks that impact solar energy. Though it is widely distributed, it is not evenly distributed. Some areas may be able to better utilize wind as a resource. In addition, it has the drawback of being inconsistent. Improved turbine designs and electric storage systems have made wind power more efficient, but it only contributes less than 0.5 percent of the total global energy demand (Evans 2007, p.95). Improved local wind generators and efficient battery storage systems may eventually be able to raise the worldwide total output.
One of the world's oldest renewable fuel, biomass, is also one that has been receiving greater public attention. The conversion of grains, such as corn, into ethanol holds some promise of the move away from fossil fuels. Biomass technology can potentially convert sugar cane, grasses, grains, and a wide range of organic material to the petroleum substitute ethanol. However, using the agricultural areas to produce biomass for fuel will result in higher food and commodity prices around the world. In addition, the production of ethanol is energy intensive. A study by Pimentel and Patzek in 2005 reported that the ethanol energy output was significantly less than the fossil fuel input required for production (cited in Evans 2007, p.103). This negative effect can be overcome by converting existing equipment to run on bio-oil, a diesel product. By
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