Renewable Energy~ Can Stop Global Warming ~

Section AA: Mike Trunkhill, Jeff Devlin, Isao Tamada

Brief HistoryThe first known use of geothermal resources happened over 10,000 years ago. It was used

by the Paleo-Indians as a source of warmth, cleansing, and the minerals were used as a source of healing (eere, 2007). Today geothermal resources are still used for those same reasons but you can now add to the list electricity and geothermal heat pumps. The first geothermal power plant was invented in 1904 by Prince Piero Ginori Conti at the Larderello dry steam field in Italy. Fifty six years later the first US plant was built in Sonoma County, California (REPP, 2007).

Geothermal Power

Dry Steam power plant• Oldest type of Geo power plant• Steam needs to be at least 455F

Flash Steam power plant• Most common type of Geo power

plant• Fluid needs to be at least 360F• Fluid vaporized into steam to turn

the turbine

Binary-Cycle power plant• Future of Geo power plants• Fluid needs to be at least 225F• Heat exchanger passes heat from

ground fluid second fluid• Usually Iso-butane or Iso-pentane• Vaporizes at a much lower temp

Science (REPP, 2007)

Social 　 (eere,2007)

Cost• Near a geyser about $0.03

per KWh• Anywhere else about $0.05

per KWhDirect Use• Used in

homes, greenhouse, gold mining, etc

• Costs 80% less than fossil fuels

Economy• 1996 created 30,00 jobs• 1.5 billion dollar a yea industry

Ethical 　 (Rybach, 2003)

Environmental• CO2 emissions much lower

than fossil fuels• Power plants large and disturb

landscapes• Are very noisy• Re-injection of fluid causes

earthquakes

Iceland 　 (Gunnlaugsson, 2001)• 70% of energy is sustainable• 52% of the 70% comes from

geothermal• 63% of geothermal goes to

space heating• 19% goes to electricity• Iceland saves 100 million in

imported oil

Within 15 years, renewable energy could be generating enough electricity to power 40 million homes and offset 70 days of oil imports.

On average, 16 million tons of carbon dioxide are emitted into the atmosphere every 24 hours by human use worldwide. (U.S. Department of Energy)

World energy consumption is expected to increase 40% to 50% by the year 2010, and the global mix of fuels--renewables (18%), nuclear (4%), and fossil (78%)--is projected to remain substantially the same as today; thus global carbon dioxide emissions would also increase 50% to 60%.

Solar EnergyScientific/Local: GermanySuccess of Feed-in Tariff• Germany generated 2,863 MW using solar

PV power plant, which is almost half of the world total production.(Lothar Wissing, 2006)Government policy helped this result

• In 1999, 100,000 Rooftops Solar Electricity Programs started, and terminated in 2003.

• In 2000, Renewable Energy Sources Act was legislated. (International Energy Agency, 2002)These policies made economic incentive

• The house owners who generate electricity with their own solar panel scan sell electricity to the electric power companies at a high rate, currently about 0.45 EUR/kWh.

• As a result, this Feed-in Tariff system succeeded to build 65,700 systems and to generate 345.5 MW of capacity. (IEA, 2003)

Source: IEA PV Power Systems Programme, 2003

Future of solar PV needs the positive government policies

Ethical/Local: AfricaBetter life by Solar PV

• In African rural areas, electrification levels are lower than national averages, often at 1–2%. (Mathias Gustavsson et al, 2003)

More solar panels should be donated by developed countries from the view of

social justice

Solar PV make their life better

• Only one solar panel is enough to electrify the rural freezers which are necessary to store the vaccine.

• Only one solar panel enables the children to study in their homes.

(Jacobson, 2007)

The problem is cost• Most African people in

rural area cannot afford to buy solar power system. (Otiti and Soboyejo, 2006) Source: Jacobson, 2007

Scientific/Global: Cost and Efficiency

• Solar energy costs 18 to 23 cents per kilowatt-hour to produce. (LA Daily News, 2007)

• Natural gas in some states costs 5 cents per kilowatt-hour to produce. (LA Daily News, 2007)

This cost gap is the barrier for the dissemination of solar PV

Source: IEA PV Power Systems Programme, 2005

• Current highest efficiency is 42.8 percent, which is almost the theoretical maximum efficiency.

(Corcoran, 2007)

All we have to do is to think the way of mass production which

can produce solar cell Cheaply.

Source: International Energy Agency, 2007

Positives Zero Emissions!!! The price of wind energy has decreased

from over 30 cents per kilo watt hour in the 1980’s to just over 5 cents today (AWEA)

No more relying on Middle-Eastern oil No risk of energy price hike Possible to scale up to provide enough

energy for the whole world Self-sufficiency Grazing animals can share the land wind

farms occupy, creating a double duty for the land

　　 Negatives Intermittency of wind power requires

power companies to have back-up sources

Some scientists believe wind power may disrupt weather patters (no hard evidence has been shown to prove this)

Unsightliness Forests may need to be cleared for

installation Noise during construction may disrupt

animals, especially marine animals (Piper)

Denmark Wind Power• Denmark produces over 20% of its energy

from the wind (VoldgadeIf)• The United Stated produces just .4% of our

electricity needs from wind (Hartsook)

Wind Power at Home Wind turbines can be installed on

homes or businesses Owners can actually sell the excess

power they generate back to the power companies

Growth in these kind of systems is at nearly 20% per year (AWEA) Bird Strikes

Local Wind PowerPuget Sound Energy operated a 150-MW plant along Hopkins Ridge and has plans to build a 230-MW plant in the same area (Wind Power Outlook 2006)

• Bird strikes are very rare• On average only one in 10,000 bird deaths are from turbines (Wind Power Outlook 2006)• Turbine blades spin at low revolution

Wind Energy

Source: International Geothermal Association, 2007