Non-renewable Energies Oil, Gas & Coal

Major Sources of Energy Solar Capital: Almost all of energy that heat the earth comes from the sun, without solar energy or solar capital the earth’s temperature would be -240 C. Solar energy produces several other form of renewable energy such as wind, hydropower, and biomass. Commercial energy: it comes from extracting and burning non-renewable energy resources mainly from carbon-containing fossil fuels such as oil, natural gas, and coal. Net energy is the amount of high-quality usable energy available from a resource after the amount of energy needed to make it available is subtracted

Commercial energy About 82% of the commercial energy comes from non-renewable energy resources, 76% from fossil fuels (33% oil, 22% coal, 21% natural gas) and 6% from nuclear power. The remaining 18% comes from renewable energy resources (11% biomass, 4.5% hydropower, 2.5% geothermal, solar and wind)

Oil Oil is now the single largest commercial energy in the world In 2007 the worlds three largest oil users were: The United States: Using 24% of all oil produced, China: 8% and Japan: 7% OPEC is the main International oil organization composed of 13 countries which have at least 60% of oil reserves and 43% global oil production (2007) Due to secrecy by countries, no one knows the real size of the world proven oil reserves. However, Saudi Arabia is believed to have the largest portion of crude oil reserves (25%) , followed by Canada (15%)

Oil 75% of the world oil reserves are controlled by government- owned companies. Thus, private sectors play the marginal role in this field. The proven oil reserves has increased by 15% percent between 1996 – 2006. However global oil production has decreased since 2005 and led to oil price surge from 50$ to 140$ As unconventional resource it can be found in the form of oil sands and oil shales

Pros and Cons on Oil Price Surge Some optimists believe the sharp rise of oil price will finally lead to the use of renewable energies which are more friendly environmental energies. The pessimistic views say the rise of oil price will lead to sharp rise of oil- dependent products and foods, food production may become localized and it thus has a negative effect on global food trade, demand for air travelling and automobiles will decline.

Advantages of Conventional Oil Use The enough supply for 42-93 years Low cost High net energy yield Easily transported within and between the countries Low land use The existence of well developed technology Efficient distribution system

Disadvantages of Conventional Oil Use Need to find substitutes within 50 years Large government subsidies Artificially low price encourages waste and discourages search for alternatives Environmental costs not included in market price Pollutes air when produced and burned Releases CO2 when burned Can cause water pollution

Natural Gas The more friendly environmental energy in comparison with oil Can be converted to LNG made for rapid and easy transportation. LNG can be derived for the use in areas where the pipelines are not in access. Russia (27%), Iran (15%) and Qatar (14%) are the biggest owners of natural gas reserves in the world. U.S. has just 3% of gas reserve but uses about 27% of the world annual production.

Natural Gas By 2025 the US will be the largest importer of LNG, however LNG has a low net energy yield compare to oil. Some believes it can not be an economical alternative for conventional Gas Clean burning energy to run medium-size turbines that produce electricity. As unconventional resource it can be found in methane hydrate and in coal beds

Advantages of Conventional Natural Gas Sufficient supplies High net energy yield Low cost Less air pollution than other fossil fuels lower CO2 emission than other fossil fuels Easily transportation by pipeline Low land use Good fuel for fuel-cells, gas turbine and motor vehicles

Disadvantages of Conventional Natural Gas Non-renewable resource Releases CO2 when burned Government Subsidies Environmental costs not included in market price Methane ( a greenhouse gas) can leak from pipelines Difficult to transfer from one country to another Can be shipped across ocean only as highly explosive LNG

Coal Comes in several forms and is burned mostly to produce electricity 2100 power plants in the world are using coal and generate 40% of world electricity. U.S. has 25% world proven coal reserves, followed by Russia 15%, India 13%, China 13%, Australia 8% and South Africa 7% China, U.S. and India are the three largest coal- burning countries in the world.

Coal In U.S., coal produces 49% of the electricity. By 2025 China is expected to burn twice as much coal as U.S. From 2006 to 2031, India's use of coal is projected to quadruple. 25% of world CO2 emission is resulted from coal- burning power plant and 40% such emission in U.S.

Advantages of Coal Ample supplies ( 225-900 years) High net energy yield Low cost Well- developed technology Air pollution can be reduced with improved technology

Disadvantages of Coal Severe land disturbance, air pollution and water pollution Severe threat to human health when burned Environmental costs not included in market price Large government subsidies High CO2 emission when produced and burned Radioactive particle and toxic mercury emission.

Renewable Energies

Advantages of Nuclear Energy Large Fuel Supply Low environmental impact ( without accidents) Emits 1/6 as much CO2 as coal Moderate land disruption and water pollution (without accidents) Reasonable land use Low risk of accident because of multiple safety system

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy Can not compete economically without huge government subsidies Low net energy yield High environmental impact ( with major accidents) Environmental costs not included in market price Risk of catastrophic accident No widely acceptable solution for long-term storage of radioactive wastes

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy Subject to terrorist attacks Spreads knowledge and technology for building nuclear weapons

Solar Energy Advantages: Disadvantages: Moderate net energy Moderate environmental impact No CO2 emission Fast construction Costs reduced by natural gas turbine backup Disadvantages: Low efficiency High cost Environmental cost not included in market price Needs backup or storage system Need access to sun most of the time Vulnerability to sabotage May disturb desert areas

Large- scale Hydropower Advantages: Moderate to high net energy High efficiency (80%) Large available potential Low-cost electricity Long life span No CO2 emission Flood control Provide irrigation water Create reservoir useful for fishing and recreation

Large- scale Hydropower disadvantages: High constriction costs High environmental impact from flooding land to form reservoir Environmental costs not included in market price High CO2 emission in tropical reservoir Danger of collapse Uproots people Decreases fish harvest and flow of natural fertilizers to land below dam

Wind power Advantages: Disadvantages: Moderate to high net energy yield High efficiency Moderate capital cost Low electricity cost Very low environmental impact No CO2 emission Quick construction Easily expanded and can be located at sea Disadvantages: Steady winds needed as well as backup system Plastic components come from oil Environmental cost not included in market price High land use for land farm and visual and noise pollution

Energy efficiency Improving energy efficiency can save the world at least a third of the energy it uses, and it can save the United States up to 43% of the energy it uses. How can we cut energy waste? We have a variety of technologies for sharply increasing the energy efficiency of industrial operations, motor vehicles, appliances, and buildings. Energy conservation is a decrease in energy use based on reducing unnecessary waste energy. Energy efficiency is the best way to improve the energy conservation and is the measure of how much work could get from each unit of energy

Example for Energy efficiency in USA Energy inputs: Fossil fuels 85% Nuclear 8% Renewable 7% Energy outputs: Unavoidable energy waste 41% Unnecessary energy waste 43% Useful energy 9% Unnecessary energy waste costs in US is an average of 570000$ per minute

Reducing Energy Waste resulted: Prolongs fossil fuel supplies Reduces oil imports and improve energy security Very high net energy yield Low cost Reduces pollution and environmental degradation Buys time to phase in renewable energy Creates local jobs

Transition to more sustainable energy To improve energy efficiency To use a mix of renewable energy resources To include environmental costs in the market price of all energy resources