Greg, Mike, Trace, Xavier

Research Technologies Outline power production policies Produce a feasible solution for energy production in the U.S.

 Energy Background info: we are running out of fossil fuels Alternate sources of energy

 Internet No independent, dependent, or control

 Lots 238.3 billion 240

 Highly developed.

 Cheap

 Bad for environment

 90% Peak in 2030-2060

Highly developed Economy depends on it

Oil Technology

 $3.50 = $12? No oil = end of the world?

 Disrupts sensitive habitats Toxic wastes Transportation spills

 Huge availability throughout the world. Canada

Fairly well-developed Easy to convert

Natural Gas Technology

 Feasible for heating Could be used for other stuff.

Fossil Fuel Emission Levels - Pounds per Billion Btu of Energy Input

Pollutant
Carbon Dioxide Carbon Monoxide Nitrogen Oxides Sulfur Dioxide Particulates Mercury

Natural Gas
117,000 40 92 1 7 0.000

Oil
164,000 33 448 1,122 84 0.007

Coal
208,000 208 457 2,591 2,744 0.016

Source: EIA - Natural Gas Issues and Trends 1998

 Huge amounts of Uranium, only 1% suitable for fission Technology

 Economically
Expensive

Environmental
Safe Can be disastrous

 16% of global electricity Its in 150 countries Wherever there is flowing water, hydroelectric power can be produced there

 Easy to work with Easy to change the energy output either ramping it up or down Largest hydroelectric plant is in China due to the Three gorges Dam

 Labor cost low 10 megawatts 3-5 cents

 No direct waste Interrupts flow of rivers Displaces people, wildlife, and ecostystems

 Only when the sun is out

 Its advanced now, but will continue to grow. The largest solar plant in California has a total capacity of 354 megawatts. A 550 megawatt solar plant is being built right now Continuing to buold numerous plan s will be built in the future in America

 Only need to pay for equipment- 1.80$/watt Exceptions for air force base-2.2 cents/kwh Financial incentives-feed-in tariff

 Causes no pollution when its doing work Issues come from manufactoring and installing the solar panels
Fossil fuels to start everything up

Photovoltaic cells are harmful to people working by the solar panels

 Endless supply of biomass Can come from garbage, wood, waste, landfill gases, and alcohol fuels

 Can be converted to ethanol and biodiesel for transportation purposes Also can be converted into methane

 The demand for biomass is expanding The cost to manufacture increases the farther away the source is Cheap do get initial material Expensive to clean up air pollution

 Combustion of biomass and biomass derived fuels produce air pollution Black carbon be formed- a pollutant created by incomplete combustion of the biomass The closer a biomass power plant is to the source, the bigger it will be

 How it works
Harvests energy by using turbines driven by undersea tides

Availability
Tidal energy can only be harvested in coastal areas or areas near the ocean.

State of Tech.
Technology fairly well developed Two main types of tidal energy harvesting Very expensive to make; can take up to ten years for construction of one plant Only about a ten hour period for optimal energy harvesting Restricts movement through estuaries Very little pollution Renewable source of energy

Economics

Environmental/Health Considerations

 What is it?
A crystalline solid consisting of gas molecules that are each surrounded by water molecules

Availability
Gas Hydrates occur abundantly in nature and are usually found in Arctic areas as well as marine sediments The worldwide amounts of carbon bound in gas hydrates is conservatively estimated to total twice the amount of carbon to be found in all known fossil fuels on Earth.

State of Tech.
Although there is some progress as far as converting gas or methane hydrates into natural gas, much remains to be understood. Methane is usually released by drilling

Economics
More carbon in hydrates so less has to be mined in order to produce the same amount of energy as fossil fuels such as coal

Environmental/Health Considerations
Methane is 10 times more effective than carbon dioxide in causing global warming

 OTEC (Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion)

Availability
Over 70% percent of the planet is covered in water On an average day, 23 million square miles of tropical seas absorb an amount of solar radiation equal in heat content to about 250 billion barrels of oil.

State of Tech.
As of now there are no permanent, continuously operating OTEC plants

Economics
Not a lot of money is being diverted into developing this as an energy resource at the moment OTEC's greatest potential is to supply a significant fraction of the fuel the world needs by using large, grazing plantships to produce hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol

Environmental/Health Considerations
Very little pollution Mostly thermal pollution

 What do you think we should use as our main sources of energy? Why? Explain your answers with detailed information and clear support. Can we afford to switch economically?

Energy

Natural Gas Solar Wind Oil

Sales

Natural Gas Solar Wind Other

 No oil Solar Use natural gas during transition from oil to solar

 Oil Not much solar Coal

 Economic
Decrease dependence on FF

Environmental
Less pollution from FF

Social
Less terrorism