SOLAR ENERGY

• DIRECT SOLAR HEATING

• FOCUSSED AND UNFOCUSSED

• PHOTOVOLTAICS

• VISIBLE AND INFRA RED

THE SUN

• 80% H2, 20% He, at 1,000,000K• 4H – He + 2 neutrinos + gamma radiation• Gamma rays, x-rays, visible radn etc• Loses mass at 4 million tonnes per second• Takes 8 mins to reach Earth (150 million

km)• Power level about 1.3kW per m2 above

Earth

SOLAR ENERGY

• PHOTOVOLTAICS

NUCLEAR FUSION

• www.jet.efda.org• STRIP ELECTRONS FROM LIGHT

ATOMS• COMPRESS NUCLEI TOGETHER

USING MAGNETIC FIELD• EXTRACT POWER USING WATER• STEAM TURBINE GENERATES

ELECRICITY

NUCLEAR FISSION

• SEE WWW.DTI.GOV.UK/ENERGY/NUCLEAR/TECHNOLOGY/REACTORS.SHTML

• WATER COOLED OR GAS COOLED• NEED TO SLOW DOWN NEUTRONS USING

MODERATOR• THERMAL NEUTRONS• FISSION PRODUCTS ARE RADIOACTIVE

MAGNOX REACTOR

AGR ADVANCED GAS COOLED REACTOR

PRESSURISED WATER REACTOR

CONSERVATION

• BEST THING WE CAN DO

• HUGE SCOPE

• NOT GLAMOROUS

• NIFES

• ENERGY EFFICIENCY OFFICE

• ECA, CARBON TRUST,DTI, ETC

POSSIBLE PROJECTS

• LIQUID ICE

• EXTRUDED ICE

• ICE FOR AIR COOLING

ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

* Energy sources of various kinds heat and power humandevelopment

* Unwanted ‘side’ effects acid rain / global warming

* Need for sustainable development sustainable energy strategy (renewables,

nuclear power, and energy efficiency)

* Conflict with energy market liberalisation

THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPERATIVE

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS GLOBAL WARMINGCLIMATE CHANGE

POLLUTANT EMISSIONS FROM THE ENERGY SECTOR –

Global warming: greenhouse gases- carbon dioxide (CO2): around 95% from the energy sector (in UK)- nitrous oxides (NOx)- water vapour (H2O)

Global/regional cooling- dust particulates; condensation nuclei- sulphate aerosols

Regional acid rain precursors:- nitrous oxides (NOx)- sulphur dioxide (SO2)

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

• Balancing economic and social development with environmental protection

• Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs [Brundtland Report (1987)]

• Sustainable Development versus 'Sustainability'

Process or journey destination

After JONATHAN PORRITT (2000)

'THE NATURAL STEP'

4 'SYSTEM CONDITIONS' FOR ACHIEVING SUSTAINABILITY –

• Condition 1: Finite materials (including fossil fuels) should not be extracted at a faster rate than they can be re-deposited in the Earth's crust

• Condition 2: Artificial materials (including plastics) should not be produced at a faster rate than they can be broken down by natural processes

• Condition 3: The biodiversity of ecosystems should be maintained, whilst renewable sources should only be consumed at a slower rate than they can be naturally replenished

• Condition 4: Basic human needs must be met in an equitable and efficient manner

FOSSIL FUEL DEPLETION

• OIL: OPEC (Middle East) dominated, 20-40 year life

• NATURAL GAS: CIS (Russian) dominated, 40-70 year life

• COAL: Widely distributed, 80-240 year life

* Prices/lifetime/global distribution (insecurity)

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS

•STRATEGIC ENERGY OPTIONS FOR THE UK [HOUSE OF COMMONS ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT COMMITTEE (1999)]

end-use energy efficiency renewables combined heat and power (chp) (low carbon) fossil fuels nuclear power

•ROYAL COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (2000)

reduce CO2 emissions by some 60% from 1997 levels by 2050

•UK GOVERNMENT'S ENERGY REVIEW AND WHITE PAPER (2001-2003)

meeting the challenge of global warming, while ensuring secure, diverse and reliable energy supplies at competitive prices

IMPROVING ENERGY PRODUCTIVITY

•IDENTIFYING PROCESS IMPROVEMENT POTENTIAL(a role for thermodynamics)

ENERGY ANALYSIS: CONSERVATION

EXERGY ANALYSIS: ENERGY (OR HEAT) CASCADING

•"DEMATERIALISATION" OR "FACTOR X" IMPROVEMENTS

FACTOR FOUR: VON WEIZSACKER & LOVINS (1997)

FACTOR TEN: UK FORESIGHT PROGRAMME (2000)

ELECTRICITY GENERATION : IMPROVING EFFICIENCY AND/OR POLLUTANT EMISSIONS

* MODERN PLANT: ‘Recuperative’ combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT), 60% and relatively low pollutant emissions

* COMBINED HEAT AND POWER (CHP) OR CO-GENERATION PLANT, 80%

* NUCLEAR POWER: Share declining as plant are decommissioned (as in the case of Hinkley Point A) to as little as 3% by 2020

ELECTRICITY GENERATION : IMPROVING EFFICIENCY AND/OR POLLUTANT EMISSIONS (Ctd)

* RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES: target of 10% share by 2010. Examples -

energy crops/biomass; a possible prime use of agricultural land

onshore and offshore wind turbine arrays (‘farms’)

small-scale hydropower and in-current turbines

grid-connected photovoltaic solar energy systems

tidal power (such as the Severn Barrage Scheme)

TRANSPORT ENERGY OPTIONS

* NEW TECHNOLOGIES: “The Foresight Vehicle”• Alternative powertrains

medium-term: electric and hybrid vehicles, compressed natural gas longer-term: fuel cells, eventually hydrogen

* INTEGRATED TRANSPORT PLANS (shift to public transport, cycling and walking)• Liveable cities: “Clear Zones”• Better rural access• Green commuter plans

TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE ENERGY STRATEGY

* STRATEGIC ELEMENTS: all the English regions need to make a proportional contribution in the following key areas -

• ENERGY CONSERVATION (in the home and by industry)• RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES• INTEGRATED TRANSPORT PLANNING

* BARRIERS TO ACTION

• THE LIMITED POWERS OF LOCAL /REGIONAL AUTHORITIES• THE CENTRALISED ELECTRICITY SYSTEM (central power

stations feeding the national grid)• CONSUMER/ELECTORATE RESISTANCE (e.g. transport fuel price protests)

ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT ANALYSIS

* Resources used and wastes produced by a defined population are converted to a common basis: the area of productive land and aquatic ecosystems sequestered (in hectares) from whatever source in global terms.

* Consumption patterns in most western lifestyles, such as those in Europe and North America, result in footprints which are far greater than the amount of geographically available land. Overshoot factors for cities -

20 for Bath, 125 for London, 16 for Santiago de Chile, 200 for Vancouver

Sources: Doughty & Hammond (2000), Wackernagel & Rees (1996)

A LONGER-TERM ENERGY FUTURE: POST 2050

ELECTRICITY, H2 AND DME AS THE DOMINANT ENERGY

CARRIERS

* ELECTRICITY

• generated via direct or primary sources : hydro-electric schemes, renewables and, possibly, nuclear

• very clean (and high quality or ‘exergy’) carrier that might, in principle, satisfy all energy needs

• but requires storage to meet demand peaks

A LONGER-TERM ENERGY FUTURE ctd

* HYDROGEN (H2)

• conventionally produced via the steam reforming of natural gas or other fossil fuels : need for carbon sequestration in geological reservoirs

electrolytic hydrogen : much more costly

• large city-gate plants producing electricity as a co-product

• H2 fuel cell vehicles

• H2 in fuel cells for building micro-CHP

A LONGER-TERM ENERGY FUTURE ctd

* DIMETHYL ETHER (DME)

• derived from biomass near-zero CO2 emissions (a

‘superclean’ carbon-based fluid fuel)

• must be stored at modest pressure (in LPG-type canisters)

• ideal cooking fuel

• good energy carrier for combustion-ignition engines; with zero soot formation

• use in fuel cells for stationary or mobile applications

Source: Adapted from Jose Goldenberg et al (2001); winners of the 2000 Volvo Environment prize

CONCLUSIONS 1: ENGINEERING SUSTAINABILITY

• Sara Parkin and Jonathan Porritt believe that thermodynamic principles or laws may act as a guide for engineers in the quest for environmental sustainability

• The 'natural step' system conditions imply a rapid changeover to renewable energy technologies, and conservation of nonrenewable sources (fossil fuels and uranium)

• Timescale for achieving sustainability: 2050-2100, or longer [Parkin (2000)]

CONCLUSIONS 2: ENERGY AND SUSTAINABILITY

* Implications for Energy Policy

- Conserve depleting fuel resources

- Greenhouse gas mitigation strategies

• Energy efficiency (low energy and low carbon strategy)• Renewable energy technologies (near zero carbon / diffuse

and often intermittent source)• Carbon sequestration (low carbon strategy)• Nuclear power (declining output over the next decade due

to decommissioning / uncompetitive in the liberalised energy market / long-term waste storage issue)

CONCLUSIONS 3: THE WIDER HORIZON

Sustainable development must be viewed in a global context

The task facing the nearly 80% of the world population that live in developing countries is daunting, but environmental problems will feed back to industrial countries

Environmental sustainability would be aided by the transfer of best practice, or "leapfrog", energy technologies from the richer to poorer regions

“DON’T TAKE ANYTHING BUT PHOTOGRAPHS,

DON’T LEAVE ANYTHING BUT FOOTPRINTS”

Signpost,Sinharaja Rainforest Reserve,

Sri Lanka