New and Emerging Energy Supply Technologies - Essay Example

New and Emerging Energy Supply Technologies The necessity to create and develop new and cleaner supply of energy is both an imperative of environmental conservation and economics. The urgency of creating and developing new energy supply is urgent due to the damage wrought by the excessive carbon emission of the past and present energy technologies that caused irreversible climate change and other irreversible damage to the environment.. According to Michael Pollan, we have to act now to arrest the present rate of our carbon emission before we face another kind of planet1. The documentary of Nick Miller entitled “An Inconvenient Truth” articulated that global warming precipitated the climate change that have disastrous consequences have been proven to be right with series of climate disturbances that flooded cities and region beyond regions which never happened before2. The growing need of energy also compels us to develop new supply energies that would lessen, if not totally depart our dependency towards fossil fuels whose stability of supply and price is subjected to a myriad of factors that ranges from the political factors to deliberate contraction of supply by the OPEC3. These factors that caused disturbance in terms of supply and price are often beyond the control of dependent economies to fossil fuels yet they are affected by it due to the heavy dependency of its economy to oil. Exporting countries of oil may have nothing to do with the conflict in the Middle East yet they are still severely affected when the political instability in the region contracts the supply that would precipitate the spike on the price of oil that fuels our energy source. The spike in price of oil in turn reflects in every goods and services that we purchase due to our dependency to energy that make such goods and services to become available. Such, the development and creation of new energy supply source is not just a matter of technological musing but an imperative of conserving our already degraded environment and to ensure that there is a stable and sufficient supply of energy that is clean, cheap that could meet our energy demands. There are emerging technologies which are directed at producing energy source that intends to make energy supply cleaner and hopefully, cheaper with the ultimate objective of weaning away from the dependency to carbon based energy sources that cause excessive CO2 emission. These emerging technologies ranges from making the existing energy source more efficient that would significantly reduce its CO2 emission to the point that it is already negligible such as carbon capturing sequestering4 to technologies that virtually emits no CO2 such as hydrogen fuel whose byproduct is only a vapor. The harnessing of nature to produce electricity such as the usage of Dinorwig's reversible pump/turbines also proves to a reliable source of energy5. The obstacles in making these emerging energy technologies viable on a mass scale will also be tackled including the ones that are already in used right now either as a pilot study or in experimental phase. One of the most popular emerging technology in supplying energy is the use of hydrogen fuels because of its clean emission. The technology is made possible by combining hydrogen and oxygen to form water where the chemical reaction during the process creates electrical energy. The technology that controls the combination of these two gases to produce the electrical energy are the fuel cells. This is envisioned to be used in fuel cell powered vehicles that will be virtually CO2 emission free because the only byproduct of the technology is water vapor6. While this technology can virtually wean our dependence on oil, the cost of the technology is just too prohibitive (its very expensive) and unreliable to make it available on a mass scale. Storing and transporting hydrogen can also be a challenge because it needs to be compressed to thousands of pounds per square inch (psi). At present, automative producers are using storages in their model vehicles that can stock hydrogen at 5,000 to 10,000 psi which is impractical for mass use because of its high cost. For the technology to become viable on a large scale, a cheaper and safer infrastructure for distribution should be in put in place for these vehicles to become available on a mass scale which can prove to be cost and engineering challenge7. The process in producing hydrogen as an energy source is also challenge because hydrogen is not intrinsically an energy source by itself. Unlike oil where it is already an energy source by itself that only needs to be refined, hydrogen has to be exracted from other compounds such as natural gas or water which also pose a technological challenge that adds up to cost. In addition, the technology and process itself has to be improved because the process of of extracting hydrogen from natural gas which is done by exposing natural gas to steam under high temperature under the presence of a catalyst for the hydrogen to be extracted also produces high amount of carbon dioxide. Currently, the technology is already used in a limited number of cars with few fueling stations to support these experimental vehicles. Hydrogen fuel cell technology is also envisioned to power commercial and residential buildings by putting a fuel input like natural gas and use the emitted heat to warm the residence or commercial buildings. While the technology could be very efficient in providing the energy and heating need of a building, the cost and current engineering remains prohibitive. Another emerging technology used to make the existing usage of energy source more efficient with lesser CO2 emission is the advance coal technology. This technology is important because carbon emission from coal accounts for one third of the total carbon pollutant. The new technology being developed in this category is for the increased efficiency in in the process of generating electricity by safely separating, capturing and storing the carbon emission before it is discharged in the atmosphere. The current technology being developed to achieve this end is through the pulverization of coal by “incorporating “ultrasupercritical” boilers capable of operating at extremely high temperatures and pressures” that would make the capturing and storage of CO2 more efficient that could reach up to 45% which could be later converted into electricity. This technology however needs more research and development because the process of transforming captured and stored carbon into electricity still has a wastage of 30% thus only accounting a net diverted electrical energy of 15%8. Another use of coal to another form of energy is through the coal gasification technology where coal is converted into gas (which is called syngas) before it is being burned. It allows the easy separation of carbon dioxide before the energy is being generated. This is being used by IGCC (Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle) plants which allows a higher efficient use of coal. Another method of burning coal efficiently and with less carbon dioxide emission is through the use of of oxygen instead of air which the current technology is using. This method allows the separation and isolation of carbon dioxide. The separated CO2 is then sequestered by injecting the carbon pollutant to geologically sealed formatoins such as oil and gas reservoirs, unmineable coal seams, and deep saline aquifers. The reliability of this technology however still needs further study because it is not yet proven if such huge amount of CO2 can be effectively stored in such geological formations for a very long time. Considering the volatile price and supply of the traditional oil, several unconventional source of petroleum is also being considered by the emerging technologies. This is the extraction of oil from shale (rocks that emits petroleum like produce), tar sands (black oils mixed with sand, clay and water) and heavy crude (the thicker version of the conventional petroleum oil). This is being considered in the United States due to its high reserve of these three unconventional sources in the regions of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming which has oil shale that is aprroximately three times the known oil reserves of Saudi Arabia. Canada and Venezuela has also the world’s largest deposit of tar sands that is estimated to be at 5 trillion barrels. Heavy crude oil deposits can also be found at Venezuela which is estimated to be at 235 billion barrels9. While the development of these emerging unconventional petroleum sources can wean other countries from the dependency of oil from the Middle East (which can dictate the price of petroleum through OPEC), the process of exracting these alternative petroleum sources are costly, energy intensive and emits excessive CO2 in the process compared to the traditional drilling of conventional oil. For example, the process of mining and refining oil shale and tar sands requires significant disturbance of the land, in addition to the heavy use of water and excessive emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere before these deposits can be processed into a usable oil. It is however being considered due to the continuous rise of the cost of the conventional oil not to mention the intermittence of its supply. Currently, Canada is already using these alternative source of petroleum oil producing more than one million barrels of oil from its tar sands. One of the energy source being encouraged is the use of clean non-carbon energy source derived from biological materials. Biofuels are being considered as one of the most appealing energy source because it is sustainable and emits very low greenhouse gas compared to the convenitional petroleum oil. Ethanol, or oils derived from corn are already being used. It is however not considered as a permanent energy source because the production of its raw material also requires a lot of energy and resources during the process of growing the corn. In addition to the carbon emitted during the process of growing the corn and producing the ethanol, the land and water used for growing the corn competes with the land that is also used for growing foods. In total, the net clean energy derived from ethanol is only about one third of its total energy value because two thirds of it were used during the growing and production process of ethanol. Despite of the energy intensive cost of producing ethanol, this emerging technology is still promising because when this technology will already allow other raw materials such as grass and tress to be processed to produce ethanol, biomass fuels could be an effective alternative to the conventional fuel oil10. In line with this, research is already on its way to include algae, sugar and starches as a raw material that will produce biodiesel and biobutanol. Fuels derived from algae, sugar and starches which are biodielsel and biobutanol is more advantageous than ethanol because the present infrastructure of transporting fuels can be used to for its distribution unlike ethanol which needs to be transported by trucks and barges11. One of the existing energy source that is being considered as one of the future’s energy source is the development of “Generation IV” nuclear power systems. The Generation IV system which is an improvement of the earlier designed Generation III+ nuclear power plants in the 1990s was to improve its “economics, safety, fuel-cycle waste management, and proliferation resistance of nuclear reactors, as well as widen their applications. The Next Generation Nuclear Plant program is already being pursued by the United States Department of Energy which is expected to become operational by 202112. Public acceptance of the program remains to be seen considering the recent nuclear contamination that resulted from the Fukushima accident. Other emerging technology in energy supply is the usage of batteries and electrical storage of utility companies. Currently, utility companies use simple sing cycle gas turbines to meet the peak demand. This is however inefficient compared to the plants because of old coal fired technology being used (which emits high amount of CO2) in addition that it is only being used for few hours a week. To address this, research has already undergone for the effective storage of electricity on a large scale utility storage that would bridge the demand of the peak season and do away with the coal fired turbines. The same technology can also be used for storing energies in a large scale from other renewable sources such as wind and solar power. This technology could also be used to power cars which we already see the prototypes albeit the technology to miniaturize storage of electricity still needs to be developed. In the area of lighing solid state lighting are being developed as an alternative to the traditional incandescent bulbs. The typical incandescent bulb which has been the source of light in residences, industry and offices is not inefficent because it typically convert only 5 percent of their energy into visible light and thus, much electricity has been put to waste. Solid state lighting on the other hand has a conversion efficiency of 50 percent or more. In addition, this emerging technology also dramatically increases the efficiency of light emission compared to the regular fluorescent incandescent lamps making it an ideal partner of other alternative energy source such as the power or solar powered batteries for it requires minimal energy to emit light13. Currently, solid state lighting are already used in specialized used such lighting roads, traffic signs and others industrial albeit specialized use. In heating, thermoelectric devices are being developed as a simple method to capture waste heat which accounts 55 percent of energy use and later redirect it to its source by converting it to electricity. This is being done by moving electrons from hot to cold regions of a semiconductor to create an electric current that is comparable to the thermal gradient. “The temperature difference between the two regions divided by the distance between them and neither moving parts nor chemical reactions are required to generate the electric current, and the thermoelectric conversion takes place within a homogeneous material. The efficiency of a thermoelectric device is characterized by a figure of merit that depends on the temperature at which the device is operating, its electrical conductivity, its thermal conductivity and a parameter known as the Seebeck coefficient, or thermoelectric power”14. “The figure of merit of the best thermoelectric devices was about unity, relegating them to niche markets and the research laboratory” but recent development in technology allowed rapid advances in nanocomposite materials that “raised the figure of merit to 2.5, corresponding to a thermoelectric conversion efficiency of more than 20 percent, not very different from the internal combustion engine”. The thermoelectric device can also be applied in hybrid cars where it can capture the engine’s waste heat and redirect it as a supply by converting the wasted heat into electricity. Advances in the energy use in transport is not only limited to the procurement of alternative source of fuel such as the usage of hydrogen fuels and the means of storing it, but also includes the lowering of the weight of the vehicle that would increase energy efficiency by 25 percent. This technology is already used in specialty applications where steel is replaced by either aluminum or magnesium thereby reducing the vehicle’s weight for 40 to 60 percent in aluminum and 60 to 75 percent weight reduction in magnesium. Its obvious effect is the reduction of energy required to move the vehicle resulting to efficient use of energy by merely reducing the weight of a vehicle15. The technology is already readily available. Its exorbitant cost however is the biggest factor that holds back manufacturers in producing the vehicles with such material in a large scale due to the cost associated with it. The technology can still be developed however to a point that the usage of composite lightweight materials in building can already be produced in larger scale due to the reduced cost. The full potential for this technology is wide range considering that the technology of composite building is still in its infancy16. In addition to making materials susceptible to efficient energy use such as the reduction of weight, efficiency in energy can also be achieved through the optimization in the use nature through the facilitation of technology. Windows that are exhibit a higher energy gain during winters to allow the solar energy that enters a room to exceed the heat energy that leaves it. These types of window in effect reduce the energy required for heating a room because the solar energy that is provided by the sun is being optimized17. In contrast, having natural ventilation can also minimize the energy required to cool a room by 50 percent. Nanopores materials are now being developed to possibly reduce the thermal radiation and conduction energy that increases heat by having a “thin, rigid, high-R-value insulation panels suitable for retrofitting the interior surfaces of exterior walls in existing homes without requiring a major renovation of the interior geometry”. In effect, this technology will require less energy to cool a room thereby facilitating an efficient use of energy18. The traditional method of supplying our energy needs is not only pollution prone but also wasteful. This is evident with the current climate change and the rising energy costs. Moreover, the increasing population and along with it is its higher demand for energy puts further stress on the environment and drives the cost of energy higher. Thus, the need to explore, create and develop other means of energy, either by optimizing and making the current usage efficient, looking for new source and method or harnessing nature itself is not only an imperative of meeting the rising demand in energy but also to contain the damage wrought by our carbon emission. The traditional method of extracting energy contained in fossil fuels and coals which we later emit into the atmosphere is no longer sustainable means of getting our energy source19. References American Physical Society. Energy Future Think Efficiency: HOW AMERICA CAN LOOK WITHIN TO ACHIEVE SECURITY AND REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING, 2008. http://www.aps.org/energyefficiencyreport/report/aps-energyreport.pdf. [Accessed March 13, 2012]. Costain, “Carbon Capture and Sequestration”, http://www.carbon-capture-and-storage.com/?gclid=CNOUvuPA5K4CFS4NtAodtwwvPw [Accessed March 13, 2012). 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Meyer (eds)], Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/wg3/ar4-wg3-chapter4.pdf [Accessed March 13, 2012] Tanton, Thomas , “Oil and Gas Industry Investments In Alternative Energy, Frontier Hydrocarbons and Advanced End-Use Technologies: An Update”, http://new.api.org/aboutoilgas/upload/Emerging_Technology_Report_Oct_2008.pdf [accessed March 13, 2012] The National Academies, “Advance Nuclear Fission”, http://needtoknow.nas.edu/energy/energy-sources/emerging-technologies/adv-nuclear-fission.php [ Accessed March 13, 2012] The National Academies, “Hydrogen Fuels”, http://needtoknow.nas.edu/energy/energy-sources/emerging-technologies/hydrogen-fuel-cells.php [Accessed March 13, 2012] The National Academies, “Advance Coal Technologies”, http://needtoknow.nas.edu/energy/energy-sources/emerging-technologies/adv-coal-technology.php [Accessed March 13, 201] The National Academies, “Biofuels”, http://needtoknow.nas.edu/energy/energy-sources/emerging-technologies/biofuels.php [Accessed March 13, 2012] National Academy Press, “Technology Deployment Options”, http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12710&page=38 [Accessed March 13, 2012} Read More