Category: Energy Matters
The twentieth century way of life has been made available, largely due to the miracle of cheap energy. The price of energy has been at record lows for the past century and a half.As oil becomes increasingly scarce, it is becoming obvious to everyone, that the rapid economic and industrial growth we have enjoyed for that time is not sustainable.Now, the hunt is on. For renewable sources of energy, for alternative sources of energy, for a way of life that is less dependent on cheap energy.Â
admin /11 October, 2008
The burning of fossil fuels — notably coal, oil and gas — has accounted for about 80 percent of the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide since the pre-industrial era. Now, NASA researchers have identified feasible emission scenarios that could keep carbon dioxide below levels that some scientists have called dangerous for climate.
Figure at right: Satellites show sources and sinks of atmospheric carbon dioxide across Earth, measured here in 2003. High concentrations are shown in red and lower concentrations are shown in blue. Credit: NASA. > Larger image
When and how global oil production will peak has been debated, making it difficult to anticipate emissions from the burning of fuel and to precisely estimate its impact on climate. To better understand how emissions might change in the future, Pushker Kharecha and James Hansen of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York considered a wide range of fossil fuel consumption scenarios. The research, published Aug. 5 in the American Geophysical Union’s Global Biogeochemical Cycles, shows that the rise in carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels can be kept below harmful levels as long as emissions from coal are phased out globally within the next few decades.
admin /26 September, 2008
Google and General Electric said on Wednesday that they would work together on technology and policy initiatives to promote the development of additional capacity in the electricity grid and of “smart grid†technologies to enable plug-in hybrids and to manage energy more efficiently. The companies said their goal was to make renewable energy more accessible and useful.
Google’s chief executive, Eric E. Schmidt, and G.E.’s chief executive, Jeffrey R. Immelt, alluded briefly to the partnership in a joint appearance at Google’s Zeitgeist conference, which is taking place at the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, Calif.
admin /26 September, 2008
DEVELOPMENT of alternative energy should create more than 20 million jobs around the world in coming decades as governments adopt policies to address the depletion of resources, according to a UN report.
Some 2.3 million people around the world already work in alternative energy jobs with half of them in biofuels, said the report.
admin /21 September, 2008
From the UK Guardian
The two countries are expected to formally sign an agreement later this month that will earn the state-controlled China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) a fixed price for every barrel it produces in Iraq.
While China opposed the Iraq war and stood back from post-war rebuilding, Beijing has quietly outflanked its global rivals to grab a large slice of Iraq’s oil industry. The pioneers of its overseas quest for fuel are already exploring vast tracts in the Kurdish north of the war-torn nation.
With an extensive foothold in the only part of the country where new oil wells have been built since 2003, Chinese firms are already believed to have more personnel than their American rivals.
America contested every step of China’s drive to expand its oil industry in central Asia and Africa for more than a decade, viewing the push overseas as a boost for Beijing’s diplomatic standing.
admin /21 September, 2008
From Renewable Energy World
While working on his PhD, Jesus Lopez Taberna came up with two protection techniques so that wind generators continue to be operative after breaks in electricity supply.
Industrial engineer and member of INGEPER Research Team at the Public University of Navarre, Jesús López Taberna, wanted to provide a solution to the problems caused to wind turbines by sudden dips in voltage in a part of the electric grid.
Over the past few years, the growth and development of wind energy converters has been slowed by problems that have arisen from the increased numbers of these that are connected to the electric grid. One of the most important problems is the manner in which the wind generators behave during these voltage dips.
admin /21 September, 2008
by Jennifer Runyon, Managing Editor  – RenewableEnergyWorld.com
Navigant Consulting released the results of its new economic study this week indicating that more than 1.2 million employment opportunities and US $232 billion in investment would be supported by the U.S. solar energy sector alone through 2016 if Congress extends the solar investment tax credit (ITC) for 8 years.
For the study, Navigant Consulting estimated the impact that extending the tax credits would have on solar industry domestic employment and domestic investment using data from the three major forms of solar energy technology: Photovoltaic (PV), Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) and Solar Water Heating (SWH).
