Student: Colin Carver
Graduation date: May 2015
Type: Area of Interest (double major)
Date approved: October 2014
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Summary
Meeting humanity’s rising demand for energy may well prove to be one of the greatest challenges of this century (Dincer 2000, IEA 2014, Nozik and Miller 2010) . Increasing population, urbanization, development in the global south and many other factors contribute to the immense scale and complexity of this issue. Further, the dominant methods of energy production, namely the combustion of fossil fuels, are both environmentally detrimental and unsustainable on a long term basis (Lewis & Nocera 2006). Although many alternative sources of energy exist most are currently economically uncompetitive with fossil fuels on a large scale and are therefore unsuitable to provide the majority of our energy (Lewis & Nocera 2006, IEA 2014). This concentration is seeking to examine how scientific research is developing economically competitive alternative sources of energy. These alternatives include photovoltaic solar cells, fuel cells, wind, and bioenergy. Each of these fields has the potential to provide a large portion of the world’s existing and projected energy needs (IEA 2014, Lewis & Nocera 2006, Hammarstrom 2012). However, the methods and techniques involved must be developed further so that the efficiency is increased, the use of scarce and/or expensive materials is minimized, and technology developed in laboratories can be implemented into production version that are generally available and economically viable (WEC 2008).
The aim of this concentration is to examine the development of various alternative sources of energy, identify limitations and advantages of each, and understand their likely role within the energy landscape of the future. The scope and variety of sources for renewable energy is very diverse. As a result, various technologies are more suited to specific uses than others. It is true that while some sources of renewable energy are unique suited to be efficient in heavy industry, while others are better for in-home use and still others may be best utilized in developing countries (IEA 2014). However, during the research and design process of advanced technologies, they are developed within research centers primarily located in developed nations. The small scale experiments conducted in these centers are then scaled up to production levels and the technology is exported to where it is most suited.
References
Dincer, Ibrahim. “Renewable Energy and Sustainable Development: A Crucial Review.” Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 4, no. 2 (June 2000): 157–75. doi:10.1016/S1364-0321(99)00011-8.
International Energy Agency (IEA). “Key World Energy Statistics.” Accessed October 7, 2014. http://coprocem.org/documents/key_stats_2007.pdf.
Hammarström, Leif. “Overview: Capturing the Sun for Energy Production.” Ambio 41 (January 1, 2012): 103–7.
Lewis, Nathan S., and Daniel G. Nocera. “Powering the planet: Chemical challenges in solar energy utilization.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 103, no. 43 (October 24, 2006): 15729-35.
Nozik, Arthur J., and John Miller. “Introduction to Solar Photon Conversion.” Chemical Reviews 110, no. 11 (November 10, 2010): 6443–45. doi:10.1021/cr1003419.
World Energy Council (WEC). Energy Efficiency Policies around the World: Review and Evaluation. London: World Energy Council, 2008.
Questions
- Descriptive: What anthropogenic processes consume the majority of energy? How is energy consumption expected to change within the foreseeable future?
- Explanatory: Where does the application of renewable energies stand to have the greatest impact? What are the major challenges in doing this?
- Evaluative: Why is it instrumental to shift methods of energy production to sustainable sources? How can renewable energies be used to mitigate the effects of climate change?
- Instrumental: What impacts do current chemical process progress trends stand to make in the future of renewable energies?
Arts and humanities courses
- PHIL 215 (Philosophy and the Environment, 4 credits). Pre-approved A&H course; no justification required.
- Hist 298 (Modern Environmental History of West Africa, 4 credits), spring 2015. This course covers the recent environmental history of West Africa. As an area with high population growth in a relatively short amount of time, many of the environmental issues in West Africa involve the lack of proper energy infrastructure and availability. Many rural communities have limited or no access to reliable sources of energy for even basic daily functions such as cooking. A better understanding of the environmental history of this region can help highlight ways in which conventional methods of energy production are often inadequate and how alternative sources could change the energy landscape of West Africa.