Energy: Developing a Sustainable Future - page 3
Keywords: Energy- Sustainable energy-crude oil -
By wali on 11/12/2008
Level: Foundation Degree
Page Number: 3 of 5 pages: 1 2 3 4 5
using the intermediate bio-mass oil product, it becomes more economically practical to store, transport, and use the bio-mass product (Brammer, Lauer, & Bridgwater 2006, p.2871). Biomass also suffers from the fact that most of the production would take place in agricultural rich areas and may become as politically concentrated as the current petroleum situation. However, the ability to make a clean burning fuel from renewable sources that requires very little change in the current transportation systems assures that it will continue to receive a great amount of public attention.
Some of the greatest sources of untapped energy come from the inherent energy contained in the earth. Ocean wave technology and geothermal energy are forces that reside on the planet and only need to be harnessed to be useful. The energy potential is massive and Evans (2007, p.108) reports that as much as 90 kilowatts of energy could be extracted from one meter of ocean wave energy. Typically, the movement of the ocean and the waves are used to rotate turbines which generate electricity. One of the greatest challenges presented to ocean wave technology is the physical size of the construction. It must be done at sea, underwater, and be able to withstand the continued force of the ocean as well as occasional storms (Evans 2007, p.109). Geothermal energy extracts the heat from the earth and uses it directly as heat or is converted to electricity. Geothermal energy is unevenly accessible around the world and the United States produces less than 0.5 percent of their electricity from it, while the Philippines produces over 22 percent of their electrical needs (Evans 2007, p.111). As with ocean wave technology, harnessing geothermal energy can be expensive to do efficiently when the energy is not readily available as surface steam (Evans, 2007, p.112). Both of these sources of energy are sustainable and are available on a massive and widely distributed area.
Two alternatives to fossil fuels that are currently in use are nuclear and hydrogen. There has been a lot of optimism expressed in the resurgence of nuclear power's acceptance as a safe source of energy. Recent developments in safety technology and France's long standing safety record have brought about some reason for hope. Recent advances in nuclear power plant design make it possible to generate all the world's electricity from nuclear. However, the industry is impacted by a long held negative public perception on the
Last 5 comments…
There have been no comments posted for this article, but you need to register if you want to be the first!