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June 2006
Friday, June 16, 2006
7:51:00 PM EDT
Our Energy Future
By Dave Cohen
What needs to be done to assure our energy resources far into the future? Why do we need to do it? What will happen if we do not get our act together?
These are the questions that will affect our future as a thriving industrial economy, our employment, our wealth, our health, our survival, and our grandchildren’s future.
We have built our industrial economy on the basis of the continuous acquisition of cheap energy from the ground. Those resources are called fossil fuel, a legacy of untold millions of years of accumulation of ancient life forms. They supply us with 70% of our electricity, 99% of our transportation fuel such as gasoline and Diesel fuel, most of our heating, cooling, lighting, and means of communication. That energy is critical in the production of our food, clothing, industrial production, and delivery of health services. Our military potential would be helpless without it. In short, if we have a critical energy shortage, our economy will be dead. That will inevitably be followed by a crisis of human survival.
A critical energy shortage is coming. Shortfalls in the production of petroleum and natural gas from known sources will be upon us in about a decade and are projected to have fallen in half by the year 2050. If we combine that with a 50% projected increase in world population, we will find ourselves at the point of no return at that time. An extraordinary population die-off will become inevitable.
Can an economic catastrophe be avoided? The answer is yes, if we change our energy driven infrastructure by that time. This cannot happen over night. We don’t have much time, 30 to 50 years is forecast. In 1935, the country needed rural electrification. A federal commission was set up to accomplish this. It was 98% complete by 1965, a period of 30 years to wire up and supply power to our rural areas. THAT was not even a complicated task.
Some people think that our United States Congress can put together a plan and create a program to save the day. That unfortunately is a dream. If anybody thinks that the 535 members of Congress can agree on what to do or even know what to do, then they are in need of reality counseling. This project should be overseen by a federal commission composed of experts in their respective fields, and are funded and mandated to get it done. I am reminded of the Manhattan Project and the NASA driven space program. A critical need is to be fulfilled by those who know what they are doing.
Can the department of energy do it? If given the objective and staffing to get it done, they are the right agency to lead the project. This requires leadership by seasoned professionals, not bureaucrats.
What technology is required for the US? The answer is 3 trillion watts (terawatts) of renewable or carbon free energy sourced power output capability. That will supply all of our normal and projected electrical needs plus all of our fuel production needs to drive our economy. That energy can be used flexibly or in an “as needed” basis. It is possible to use it to aid in the production of synthetic liquid fuel (syncrude) from coal, oil shale or tar sand. It can be used in the production of hydrogen, ethanol, and bio-diesel or any other biomass type fuel. In short, the power generating facilities capture and deliver the energy needed to keep our industrial economy healthy.
How much renewable power do we have presently? ___ We have about 0.15 terawatts currently or 5% of our future needs.
Do we need more research to accomplish this? ___ No, we know how to do this now. Research should be done to keep learning how to do it better, faster and cheaper. However we do not need it to get started. All the technologies are currently within the known state of the art.
We need carbon free power. The technologies are:
• Wind turbine power systems (many)
• Geo-thermal power plants at known geological hot spots
• Additional hydroelectric power sources if available
• Nuclear power of the breeder type
• Solar energy sourced power
We know how to build all of the types listed. There are no mysteries. We just need to get out there and do it on a sensible schedule to meet our future needs.
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7:51:00 PM EDT
Our Energy Future
Our Energy Future
By Dave Cohen
What needs to be done to assure our energy resources far into the future? Why do we need to do it? What will happen if we do not get our act together?
These are the questions that will affect our future as a thriving industrial economy, our employment, our wealth, our health, our survival, and our grandchildren’s future.
We have built our industrial economy on the basis of the continuous acquisition of cheap energy from the ground. Those resources are called fossil fuel, a legacy of untold millions of years of accumulation of ancient life forms. They supply us with 70% of our electricity, 99% of our transportation fuel such as gasoline and Diesel fuel, most of our heating, cooling, lighting, and means of communication. That energy is critical in the production of our food, clothing, industrial production, and delivery of health services. Our military potential would be helpless without it. In short, if we have a critical energy shortage, our economy will be dead. That will inevitably be followed by a crisis of human survival.
A critical energy shortage is coming. Shortfalls in the production of petroleum and natural gas from known sources will be upon us in about a decade and are projected to have fallen in half by the year 2050. If we combine that with a 50% projected increase in world population, we will find ourselves at the point of no return at that time. An extraordinary population die-off will become inevitable.
Can an economic catastrophe be avoided? The answer is yes, if we change our energy driven infrastructure by that time. This cannot happen over night. We don’t have much time, 30 to 50 years is forecast. In 1935, the country needed rural electrification. A federal commission was set up to accomplish this. It was 98% complete by 1965, a period of 30 years to wire up and supply power to our rural areas. THAT was not even a complicated task.
Some people think that our United States Congress can put together a plan and create a program to save the day. That unfortunately is a dream. If anybody thinks that the 535 members of Congress can agree on what to do or even know what to do, then they are in need of reality counseling. This project should be overseen by a federal commission composed of experts in their respective fields, and are funded and mandated to get it done. I am reminded of the Manhattan Project and the NASA driven space program. A critical need is to be fulfilled by those who know what they are doing.
Can the department of energy do it? If given the objective and staffing to get it done, they are the right agency to lead the project. This requires leadership by seasoned professionals, not bureaucrats.
What technology is required for the US? The answer is 3 trillion watts (terawatts) of renewable or carbon free energy sourced power output capability. That will supply all of our normal and projected electrical needs plus all of our fuel production needs to drive our economy. That energy can be used flexibly or in an “as needed” basis. It is possible to use it to aid in the production of synthetic liquid fuel (syncrude) from coal, oil shale or tar sand. It can be used in the production of hydrogen, ethanol, and bio-diesel or any other biomass type fuel. In short, the power generating facilities capture and deliver the energy needed to keep our industrial economy healthy.
How much renewable power do we have presently? ___ We have about 0.15 terawatts currently or 5% of our future needs.
Do we need more research to accomplish this? ___ No, we know how to do this now. Research should be done to keep learning how to do it better, faster and cheaper. However we do not need it to get started. All the technologies are currently within the known state of the art.
We need carbon free power. The technologies are:
• Wind turbine power systems (many)
• Geo-thermal power plants at known geological hot spots
• Additional hydroelectric power sources if available
• Nuclear power of the breeder type
• Solar energy sourced power
We know how to build all of the types listed. There are no mysteries. We just need to get out there and do it on a sensible schedule to meet our future needs.
Written by jdc2485 Blog about this entry |
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1/31/07 2:08 PM
This is a true story. It is how the USA can make an energy gift to the world and to ourselves that has been scientifically proven and then ignored.
Under much of the Western US, Alaska and Hawaii lie in special places beneath the earth, yellow hot magma -- melted rock. Magma that is with in 7 to 10 kilometers of the surface has several energy dimensions that will satisfy most energy requirements and concerns.
One has to get to the magma by drilling 7 to 10 kilometers in a area where testing has shown the high probability of magma.
So what is the big deal? The chemistry of magma at this depth and a temperature of 600 C yields much more that just steam. Why is sewage of interest to an energy site based on magma? It is because the sewage contains about 15 % organic and cellulose materials plus water. Pump the sewage into the magma chamber and let the chemistry magic take over.
All of the water will get converted to hydrogen, a store-able transportation fuel. Most of the cellulose and water combination will get converted to natural gas. The remaining steam will be used to produce about 50 megawatts of electric power. But steam does not stay steam it condenses into pure water -- what does this dessert community need -- pure water.
Listen to what the US Geological Survey has said, "Within 7 to 10 kilometers of the surface there is 500,000 quadrillion BTU of energy in identified magma bodies." This is 4900 years of all types of US energy uses. In 2005 the US used 101.85 quadrillion BTUs, for example.
Adding a new energy resource to the domestic and world picture will also change the geopolitical pressures related to the supply and demand for oil and gas. Magma resources are distributed world wide but geographically different from that of the traditional energy deposits. So some of the have-nots would become haves from magma resources.
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