Global Warming: Electricity Generation from Fossil Fuels - Report Example

Global Warming Electri production from fossil fuel power plants is the largest single source of carbon dioxide emissions that cause global warming. Since there is no immediate alternative to using fossil fuels, there is the need to adopt energy conservation habits, especially in the advanced economies of the world. Improvements in efficiency in power generation and utilization create reduced emissions and these technologies need to be used to retire and replace older power plants. Since solar and wind power technologies are still not comparable in cost and reliability with fossil power, there is the need to examine whether nuclear power can provide a workable solution, despite the other hazards associated with it. Keywords: Global warming, CO 2 emissions, electricity generation 1. Electricity Generation from fossil fuels Global warming is caused by the emission of greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. This warming can cause major changes to weather patterns such as rainfall, snow cap melting and rise in sea level, changes to agricultural harvests and certain species becoming extinct (Markham, 2009). Electricity production accounts for 40 % of CO 2 emissions in the US (EPA, 2013). The fossil fuels coal (42%) and natural gas (26%) are the major sources for electricity generation. Nuclear power plants contribute 19% and the growing renewable energy sources account for 12%. By the year 2035, the US will need to add 957 billion kWh of electricity production over the present capacity of 4,000 billion kWh and the bulk of this new capacity will continue to be from coal and natural gas (Avro, 2012). Though there are other sources of greenhouse gas emissions to worry about, notably from petroleum fuels used automobiles and other transportation vehicles and from industrial processes, this paper focuses on the emissions from the power generation industry and outlines three possible steps that could be taken to reduce the impact. The US already consumes 13,394 kWh of electricity per capita which is significantly higher than the per capita consumption in UK (5,736 kWh), Germany (7,215 kWh) and Japan (8,394 kWh). China at present uses only 2,944 kWh per capita and India a low 616 kWh (World Bank, 2013). The economic growth in these high population countries and other developing regions of the world will create demand for electricity and that would cause more fossil fuel power plants to be built. The US and the other developed countries therefore need to create technologies and practices to permit economic growth without proportionate damage to the environment. 2. Conservation as a measure of reducing electricity demand The typical break-up of energy use in a household is shown on the chart on the left and the break-up for commercial buildings on the right. Space heating and water heating make up 63% of energy usage in household electricity consumption. Lighting is the largest energy user in commercial buildings with 27% and space heating and cooling, together make up another 27%. There are opportunities for energy savings in both areas. Energy audits of typical US homes show that up to 20% reduction in energy costs is possible by reducing the heat lost through exterior walls, the ceiling, the attic and the basement by applying thermal insulation. Heat loss through windows can be reduced by double glazing. Air leaks around windows, doors and at entry of pipes or cables into the house is another source of heat loss. Most of these problems can be set right at relatively low costs (Energy, 2012). Low cost (about $ 60) programmable thermostats can help regulate heating loads based on the residents’ pattern of use. In place of keeping the whole house at a higher temperature, supplementary local heating devices where needed can help save energy. Commercial buildings can be designed to maximize sunlight harvesting to reduce electric lighting. Permanent lighting is needed only for aisles and passage ways and individual switches can turn on lights over workspaces. Switching off a light when not needed should become as instinctive as closing a water tap after washing. Most manufacturing processes use water, compressed air, gas or steam which are produced and distributed using electricity. A simple walk-through of a plant often highlights savings opportunities (Lydon, 2012). Industry associations also encourage the sharing of success stories and benchmarking studies by which a manufacturing industry can compare its electricity use with other comparable industries to identify opportunities for savings. 3. Increased efficiency equipment to lower emissions While an emphasis on energy conservation is important to create awareness of the global warming problem, most environmental scientists believe increased efficiencies in power generation and utilization will be the largest single factor for reduction in CO 2 emissions in the next 25 years. The development of coal fired power plants operating at higher temperatures and pressures called super-critical and ultra super-critical has increased operating efficiency as shown in the chart to the left. Each 1% increase in efficiency leads to 2-3% reduction in emissions. The need therefore is to retire older coal based power plants and replace them with the newer technology plants (World Coal Report, 2013). Similar efficiency improvements are being achieved with advanced technology gas turbines used to produce power from natural gas where the latest turbines provide a thermal efficiency of over 60% which was earlier considered impossible as seen in the chart on the right (Cogeneration, 2010). The Energy Star rating program of the US Environment Protection Agency (EPA) helps benchmark products for energy efficiency and this helps the buyer to choose a more energy efficient product for his needs, both for the home and at his workplace (Energy Star, 2013). The International Energy Agency forecasts that efficiency improvements will account for 72% of all CO 2 abatement measures until 2020 and would still be a significant 44 % even in 2035. 4. Renewable Energy technologies The long term solution to containing carbon emissions from electricity generating plants is to substitute renewable energy sources for fossil power plants. The US Environment Information Administration (EIA) estimates that 23% of the global energy generation will be from renewables by 2035 (EIA, 2011). Solar and wind energy plants have the problem of significantly higher capital cost and the power generation being sporadic depending on sunshine and wind. They can therefore serve only as auxiliary power sources to a fossil fuel based power source. Hydro power, though capital intensive, is attractive. The major hydro power resources in the advanced economies have already been exploited and the opportunity will be mainly in Africa and Latin America. Nuclear power was expected to provide an alternative to fossil fuels. Nuclear power plants have no carbon emissions, though they have other types of hazards relating to the radioactive fuel. The 2011 Fukushima reactor meltdown has caused a major setback to the nuclear power industry, but Jeffrey Sachs, the Earth Institute Director maintains that “nuclear energy will be the only practical solution to climate change due to the present immaturity of the renewable energy industry” (Harvey, 2012). One interesting new possibility is the development of mini-reactors that are small enough to be shipped on a truck, contained in a sealed casing which would melt into an inert mass if there is a problem with the reactor. These mini-reactors are expected to be capable of producing 50 to 100 MW of power and can be installed and operated without major safety requirements (Bradford, 2013). 5. Conclusion Electricity generation will need to increase around the world to sustain the lifestyle in the advanced economies and to lift people out of poverty in the developing economies. This electricity generation will continue to be from the burning of fossil fuels that cause the emission of greenhouse gases and aggravate the problem of global warming. It will be very difficult for the world to continue accepting high levels of energy usage in the advanced economies while asking the poorer countries to slow their development or to avoid using high emission power generation technologies. There is need for a major campaign in the advanced economies to promote awareness of energy conservation measures and perhaps for a progressive increase in energy costs to ensure reduced usage. In addition, the development of new technologies for increased efficiency in power generation and utilization needs encouragement and support. To encourage the poorer nations to adopt the new technologies that reduce global warming, perhaps there needs to be a way to subsidize the cost of these new technologies in the interest of reducing global emissions. The long term measure for control of greenhouse gas emissions is clearly the increased use of renewable energy. Since solar and wind energy generation is non-continuous and hydro-power resources are limited, there seems to be the need to use nuclear power despite the hazards of radioactive contamination. Perhaps the global community can work out a process of constructing and operating nuclear plants as assets common to all humanity so that issues with nuclear proliferation and spent fuel disposal are not subject to global political issues. The inescapable conclusion is that the world cannot continue to consume electricity as it does now and generate that from fossil fuel power plants. * * * * References: 1. Avro, S.R., (2012). “How much can renewables bite out of the coal pie?”, Energy Trends Insider, 21 Feb 2012. Retrieved from http://www.energytrendsinsider.com 2. Bradford, B., (2013). “Are mini-reactors the future of nuclear power?” NPR, 4 Feb 2013. Retrieved from http://www. npr.org 3. Cogeneration, (2010). “Gas turbines breaking the 60% efficiency barrier”, Cogeneration Magazine, 5 Jan 2010. Retrieved from http://www.cospp.com. 4. EIA, (2011). “Renewable energy shows strongest growth in global electric generating capacity”, 28 Sept 2011. Retrieved from http://www.eia.gov. 5. Energy, (2012). “Tips: Your home’s energy use”, 24 Aug 2012. Retrieved from http://energy.gov. 6. Energy Star, (2013). “About Energy Star”. Retrieved from http:// www.energystar .gov. 7. Harvey, F., (2012). “Nuclear power is only solution to climate change, says Jeffrey Sachs”, The Guardian, 3 May 2012. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk. 8. Lydon, B., (2012). “Exploit ‘low hanging fruit’ energy conservation opportunities”, InTech, Jan / Feb 2012. Retrieved from http://www.isa.org. 9. Markham, D., (2009). “Global warming effects and causes: A top 10 list”, Planetsave, 7 June 2009. Retrieved from http://www.planetsave.com. 10. World Bank, (2013). “Electric Power Consumption (kWh per capita)”. Retrieved from http://data.worldbank.org. 11. World Coal Association, (2013). “Improving Efficiencies”. Retrieved from http://www.worldcoal.org. Read More