Part II: Energy Options (continued)

Sorry for the long delay...before I get into any more discussion about energy options, check out the Energy Information Administration. The EIA is Department of Energy resource with substatial information about all types of energy production.

Another good resource for alternative methods of energy production is Ze-gen, Inc.'s blog, Rethink. Ze-gen is renewable energy company that I currently work for, developing waste gasification technology.

Solar

I had an interesting discussion a couple of weeks ago with someone at work about how all the energy we produce and consume comes from one of two sources: the sun or a nuclear reaction. You might be thinking, "you just wrote about wind, what about that?". In fact, the power stored in wind is actually built up solar energy. As solar radiation reaches the surface, the temperatures of air along the ground rise. Since warm air rises, this pocket of air moves up into the atmosphere creating a pressure difference, and wah-lah, you have wind.

Long story short, the sun is the primary source of energy for our planet. It is what allows life on this planet to grow. Without it, we wouldn't be here right now. So one would think we should be able to capture and use all this solar energy, right? But, in 2008, less than 1% of the U.S.' consumed energy was supplied by solar power. Let's look into some solar power options that are currently being developed...

As of now there are two methods of utilizing solar energy for power: solar thermal and photovoltaic.

We've all heard a lot about solar photovoltaics, but a different solar technology grabs my interest more: Concentrated Solar Thermal or CST. CST doesn't get as much press as photovoltaics, but I think it has great potential in industrial and residential energy markets. Solar thermal energy production concentrates direct heat from the sun, generating useful heat at desired temperatures. Air or water can then be heated, making CST an interesting option for industries or commercial and residential buildings. For any area that requires a large volume of hot water (i.e. laundromats, restaurants, schools), solar thermal energy would be a cost-effective approach.

An issue with solar energy in general is the need to transport the energy from the sunny areas to the not-so-sunny but high energy density areas. However, solar thermal systems can be used to thermo-chemically alter or produce liquid fuels that can be more easily transported to areas in need.

We don't hear too much about solar thermal systems, but they clearly are an economically and environmentally efficient solution of the future.