ENGR40 – Clean Energy Course Introduction

Overview

• Course goals• How we got here

– Fossil fuel dependence

• Consequences of inaction– Economic, energy security, environment

• Technology solutions• Systems and wedges• Takeaways => insights and skills

Course Goals

• Understand the nature of global energy technology, systems, economics => today

• Understand the drivers for change

• Evaluate / design clean energy solutions

• Recognize power system technology

• Perform basic energy audit/benchmarking– Take the first step to becoming an energy

professional => training for an ESCO

How we got here…

• From agrarian to the industrial age– wood => charcoal => coal => oil => gas– energy was abundant, cheap, easy to get to

• Significant population rise 1750 to 2000

• Significant rise in wealth and energy use

• Dependence on fossil fuels (80% primary)

• We are out growing hunter-gatherer model

Income and Energy Use

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_energy_consumption

Projected World Energy Use

Consequences of Inaction

• Peak (conventional) oil production– Price spikes, supply interruption, recession

• GHG interactions– Radiative forcing and ocean acidification

• Resource wars – Military intervention and geopolitics

• Continued investment in old models– Hunter-gatherer dependence on fossil fuels

Rise in Carbon Emissions

http://www.globalwarmingart.com/wiki/Image:Global_Carbon_Emission_by_Type_png)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_change

Vostok Ice Core Data•A perfect correlation between CO2, temperature, and sea level•For every one ppm CO2, sea level rises 1 meter, temp rises .05 C (global)•Process takes 100 years to add 1 ppm CO2, and reach thermal equilibrium

This is not just a correlation, this is a complex and dynamic process, with multiple inputs. Touching one input affects all other inputs, and increases in temperature becomes a further feedback and multiplier of these inputs.

Drivers for Clean Energy

• Economic– Price stability / predictability– Balance of payments (trade)

• Environmental– Water, air, soil (extraction and combustion)– GHG / carbon cycle interactions

• Energy Security– Predictable and assured supply

Technology Solutions

• ‘Renewable Energy’ (RE)– Solar PV and CSP, Wind, and Geothermal

• Transportation solutions– EVs, advanced biofuels, high efficiency ICE

• Building energy and electrical efficiency• Energy storage and conversion• Smart grid (DG/MG) infrastructure• Nuclear technology (III/IV)

Quadrants of Technology

• Renewables– Solar– Wind– Geothermal

• Transportation– Efficiency (mpg)– EV technology– Charging network

• Advanced biofuels– Cellulosic ethanol– Algal (biodiesel / JP4)– Yeast (petroleum)

• Smart energy– Energy efficiency– Smart Grid (AMI)– Active management

MIT Wedge Model

• Carbon Mitigation Initiative (Princeton) stabilization (wedge) concept (game)

• http://cmi.princeton.edu/wedges/

• 15 technology solutions to achieve significant GHG reduction by 2050

• Each wedge lowers GHGs by 1B tons

• Independent solutions approach– Doesn’t require synergy / technology

Stabilization Path to 2050

Systems Thinking

• Electron Economy model– Integrated energy services

• Electricity holarchy / application platform

• Systemic energy principles– Clean generation, smart distribution, and

efficient end use (GE ecomagination®)

• Integrated energy design model– Buildings, industrial process, transportation

NASA Sustainability Base

Concentrating Solar Power

Ridesharing Culture

Social technology for a world with fewer cars, less petroleum, and a genuine desire to collaborate

Impediment to Change

• Fossil fuel is institutionalized– Carbon economy and political lobby

• Energy systems are based on ‘heat’– Legacy of steam engines prevails today

• Electricity (EVs) and RE are ‘alternative’– Need to develop mainstream ‘electron’ mindset

• Biofuels face a scaling problem

• GHG forcing models not fully understood

Course Takeaways

1. We are really in crisis => economic, resource, environment. Hunter-gather model is broken.

2. Fossil fuel dependence is a choice, it is an ‘addiction’, and we can choose a new path.

3. We have the technology to make this transition => building blocks of a clean energy system.

4. It takes time to change and implement => we need to start immediately to reach key goals.

5. Failure to act could be disastrous => catastrophic6. A clean energy future enables real prosperity

Assignments / Projects

• Weekly (short) writing assignments

• Current events (sharing)

• Take home exercises (calculations)

• Midterm (concepts and vocabulary use)

• Final project / writing assignment– Hands-on building / community project– Energy system analysis / design

Summary

• Course provides an overview of modern energy systems, and the current ‘situation’

• Introduces clean energy technology, (RE) Renewable Energy, and how each works

• Systems thinking is essential in design and implementation to meet key goals

• There are numerous/key challenges and careers that need your engineering skills!

Let’s get started and make this happen!

Contact Information• Robert D. Cormia

– rdcormia@earthlink.net – Office 4131 650.949.7456

• Jamie F. Orr– jamie.f.orr@gmail.com– Adjunct office / phone contact

• http://fgamedia.org/faculty/rdcormia/ENGR40

• Lecture meets Tuesday from 6 to 9ish

• Lab meets Tuesday from 1:30 to 4:30