1. By: Jack Philbin Dr Unfried APES 2/9/10

2.  a measure of energy produced compared to energy consumed.  Our current energy technologies are extremely inefficient and much potential energy in fuels is wasted.  Conservation is the best way to alleviate these issues

3.  production of both electricity and steam in the same plant.  Increases efficiency by 50%  One of the fastest growing energy sources

4.  The amount of solar energy reaching the earth's surface is approximately 10,000 times all the commercial energy used each year.  Passive Heat Absorption- Using natural structures just to gather and store heat  Active Solar Systems- Pump a heat-absorbing fluid through a small collector

5.  Parabolic mirrors aew curved reflecting surfaces that collect light and focus it into a concentrated point  These are used in High- Temperature Solar Energy, as a fluid is run through a central tube to the collector.

6.  Capture Solar Energy and convert it directly to electrical current Separate electrons from Parent Atoms, and accelarate them across an electrostatic barrier

7.  Electrical energy is difficult and expensive to store.  Different Batteries have different drawbacks, from corosive acid to lifespan, to storage capacity.  The Sodium-Sulfur battery has potential for large-scale storage, but are extremely expensive

8.  Devices that use ongoing electrochemical reactions to produce an electrical current.  Provides direct-current electricity as long as it is supplied with hydrogen and oxygen.  When run on pure oxygen, waste is minimal.

9.  Plants capture about 0.1% of all solar energy that reaches the earth's surface.  Wood provides less than 1% of the energy in the United States  Overall, United States wood burning has increased, though it is inefficient and has a high level of pollution

10.  In countries with wood shortages, Animal Manure is burned  When it is burned, more than 90% of the potential heat and most of the nutrients are lost.  Burning methane extracted from Dung is much more efficient, less of a pollutant, and can help fertilize land.

11.  Ethanol and methanol are produced by anaerobic digestion of plant materials with high sugar content.  Biofuel is a mixture of gasoline and ethanol, and is often used in automobile engines

12.  Water power is about 25% of total electrical generation  Currently, we use only about 10% of the available water power.  Dams produce most of the Hydropower in the United States  Micro-hydro generators are able to power single homes when submerged in current

13.  Wind power has the capacity to produce 50 times the world nuclear generating capacity.  Endless resource, does little damage  Concentrated in large collections of wind turbines known as Wind farms

14.  The earth's internal temperature can provide a useful source of energy  Has been used in industrial processes, agriculture, and sometimes aquaculture  No mining or transportation of fuels, and little waste disposal.

15.  Similar to Hydroelectric Dams  Major environmental impact concern, as it disrupts aquatic habitats to a great extent  Ocean Thermal Electric Conversion- uses heat from sun warmed upper ocean layers to evaporate a working fluid.  Cost, Saltwater corrosion, and ecological destabilization are the downsides

16.  None of the energy sources mentioned will completely replace fossil fuels  Renewables provide about 40% of the energy produced in the U.S.(World Energy Council 2007)  By the end of the 21 st century, Renewables should make up all of our energy production, according to the same council

17.  http://www.wec.cz/en/documents/20wec2007 /2007%20Survey%20of%20Energy%20Resour ces%20Executive%20Summary.pdf  (World Energy Council Summary)  Cunningham & Co’s Environmental Science: A Global Concern: Ninth Edition