Sustainable Energy
Chapter 2
Past, Present
and Future
World Energy
Use
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Learning Objectives
The energy needs of humanity throughout history.
The current energy distribution and relationship to
economic, geographical, climate, and industrial factors.
The principles of exponential growth.
The Hubbert model of resource utilization.
Resource limitations to energy production and use.
Limits of technology on energy production and use.
Economic factors that limit energy use.
Social factors affecting energy production.
Environmental aspects of energy use.
Political factors affecting energy use.
The integration of new energy technologies with existing
technology.
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Average power consumption per capita
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Breakdown of primary energy sources
in the United States
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Primary U.S. energy sources
Major energy source
Wood until late 1800s
Coal late 1800s to about 1950
Petroleum since 1950
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Energy use per capita in different countries
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Factors affecting energy use
Direct relationship between per capita GDP and per capita
energy use
Other factors affecting per capita energy use
Climate
Population density
Types of industry
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Annual energy use in the United States
Breakdown of primary energy sources and end use
Note: almost 60% of primary energy is lost due in conversion
processes (mostly due to efficiency of heat engines)
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Per capita primary energy use
Typical single family (two individuals) primary energy use
(typical of Northern United States)
gasoline for transportation 9.81010 J
oil for residential heating 1.041011 J
electricity (at 40% efficiency) 1.11011 J
This gives a total average power consumption per person of
5.0 kW
This is less than 1/2 of the actual number
Remainder is used by industry/business/government etc.
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Growth
In order to extrapolate energy use into the
future we need to understand how to model
growth.
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Linear growth
Linear growth is described as
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Exponential growth
Exponential growth is described as
This may be integrated to give
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Exponential growth
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Semi-log plot of exponential growth
It is often convenient to present a quantity that grows
exponentially on a semi-log plot
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Doubling time
For exponential growth the doubling time is expressed as
For small growth rates the growth rate (in % per unit time)
may be expressed as
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Examples of growth rates and doubling times
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Some examples of growth
World population since year 1000
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Extrapolation of world population
Assuming exponential growth at 1.6% per year
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Sustainable world population
Current world population is about 7 billion
Estimates of sustainable world population, probably not
much more than 10 billion
Current growth rate cannot continue for very long
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Actual population growth
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Future world energy use
Increase in world energy use is due to
increase in world population
increased per capita energy use
Exponential growth of world population cannot continue at
the same rate.
Increased per capita energy use is due mostly to increase
in developing countries.
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Predicted energy trends in some
countries
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Energy use
in OECD and non-OECD countries
OECD includes (U.S., Canada, U.K, Japan, France, Germany, etc.)
non-OECD includes (China, India, Russia, Brazil, etc.)
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Hubbert model
Developed by M. King Hubbert in 1956
General assumptions
When it is first realized that a resource is useful, the
utilization of that resource begins slowly. This is because
efficient procedures for utilizing the resource and an
appropriate infrastructure need to be developed.
Once the appropriate infrastructure has been developed,
resource utilization increases.
When the resource becomes scarce, utilization decreases
and eventually stops.
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Quantity if resource used per unit time
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Total quantity of resource used
Total quantity used is the integral of the quantity per unit time
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Challenges for sustainable energy
development
Availability of the necessary resources.
Availability of the necessary technology.
Consideration of economic factors.
Consideration of social factors.
Environmental impact.
Consideration of political factors.
Ability to integrate new technology with existing technology.
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Availability of the necessary
resources
A number of alternative energy technologies require
materials with limited availability.
Some examples of materials that may be a concern are
Lithium for fusion energy
Lithium for rechargeable batteries
Rare earth elements for generators
Indium, gallium and selenium for photovoltaic cells
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Materials production for photovoltaics
Comparison of current annual production of some materials of
relevance to photovoltaic cells and requirements to fulfill world
energy needs
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Availability of the necessary
technology
Development of high temperature superconductors for
generators and power distribution lines is an example of a
new technology that is important for alternative energy
technologies.
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High temperature superconductors
High temperature superconducting wire for power distribution
or superconducting magnet use
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Some technological challenges for
alternative energy production
New organic photovoltaic cells that are reasonably efficient
and are much more cost-effective than conventional
semiconductor based materials (Chapter 9).
Suitable economical membranes for the exploitation of
salinity gradient or osmotic energy (Chapter 14).
Methods for production of cellulosic ethanol (Chapter 16).
Efficient non-lithium-based secondary batteries that will
provide a cost-effective basis for widespread electric
vehicle development (Chapter 19).
Economical and efficient methods for direct hydrogen
production (e.g., solar hydrogen, Chapter 20).
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Consideration of economic factors
Commercialization of energy technologies requires a
consideration of economics.
Ultimately technologies must be competitive in order to
be attractive to producers and consumers.
Cost per unit electricity generated must include three
components
Cost of fuel
Cost of infrastructure operation and maintenance
Initial infrastructure cost amortized over its lifetime
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Fuel and operating costs
Fuel and operating cost are more significant for some
technologies than others.
For example: fuel cost is important for coal, natural gas
and nuclear but is not a factor for hydroelectric, wind and
solar.
Operating costs are relatively low for technologies such as
hydroelectric but can be significant for example for nuclear
(where waste disposal is an important factor).
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Infrastructure costs
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Overall cost per kWh
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Electricity cost in some countries
Variations
between countries
can result from
different
generating
methods and also
from national
economics.
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Consideration of social factors
Public opinion can influence the development of certain
technologies and government energy policy.
Nuclear energy has generated more public interest than
most other energy approaches.
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Public approval of nuclear power
in the U.S.
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Effects of nuclear incidents on public
opinion
Public approval of nuclear power generally diminishes
after an incident
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Importance of different factors in
forming public opinion
Cost is a major factor for public opinion
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Public preference for energy
technologies
Despite the importance
of cost, public opinion
favors solar energy
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Environmental impact
Renewable energy sources can contribute to greenhouse
gas emissions in two ways
During the processing of materials and manufacture
of the infrastructure. This can be substantial
because of the low energy density of most
renewable sources.
During the operation of the facility. This is usually
small.
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Greenhouse gas (CO2) emissions from
different energy sources
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Consideration of political factors
National energy policies generally deal with issues such as
A description of national policies concerning energy
generation, transmission and use
The establishment of energy efficiency and
environmental standards related to energy use
The specification of energy-related fiscal policies,
including subsidies, incentives, tax exemptions, and
the like, to promote improved energy utilization
The participation in funding programs for energy-related
research and development
The development of energy-related treaties and
agreements with other countries
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Factors influencing energy policy
Details of energy policies depend on such factors as
Economy.
Climate.
Geography.
Natural resources.
Population.
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Ability to integrate new technology
with existing technology
Development of new technologies requires development of
new infrastructure.
Transitions between technologies need to avoid disruptions.
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Distribution infrastructure
Particularly important for transportation technologies
Electric vehicles require charging stations
Hydrogen vehicles require hydrogen fueling stations
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Summary
Human energy use has increased over the years
Traditionally wood was the source of energy and this was replaced
first by coal and then by petroleum
Per capita energy consumption is directly related to per capita GDP
About 60% of primary energy is rejected as waste heat
Human population has grown exponentially but the growth rate is
declining
The greatest increase in energy use at present is in developing
countries
The Hubbert model describes the utilization of a limited resource
Development of new energy sources needs to consider
o Resource limitations
o Technological limitations
o Economic factors
o Social factors
o Environmental factors
o Political factors
o Integration with existing technology
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