Chapter 19

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY: THE KEY TO EVERYTHING

Environmental Chemistry, 9th Edition

Stanley E. Manahan
Taylor and Francis/CRC Press
2010
For questions, contact:
Stanley E. Manahan
manahans@missouri.edu

19.1. THE ENERGY PROBLEM

Given sufficient energy
Water: Wastewater and saline water can be converted to water pure
enough to drink
Food: Marginal land can be reclaimed, water can be pumped long
distances, greenhouses for growing vegetables can be heated
Wastes: All hazardous wastes converted to benign forms
Transportation: Electrified railways and vehicles can be used for
most land transportation
Fuels: Biomass sources of fixed carbon can be converted to
hydrocarbon fuels to be used in applications for which there are no
viable alternatives (such as aircraft) without emitting net amounts of
carbon dioxide

19.2. NATURE OF ENERGY

Energy is the capacity to do work (move matter)
Heat is energy in the movement of atoms and molecules
Kinetic energy is contained in moving objects
Flywheels used for energy storage
Potential energy is stored energy
Water in a reservoir that can be used in turbines
Chemical energy released in chemical reactions
Electrical energy in charged capacitors
Mechanical energy in a spinning turbine and generator armature
Electrical energy converted from mechanical energy in a generator

Units of Energy and Power

The joule (J) is the standard unit of energy
4.184 J raises temperature of 1g of liquid water 1C
4.184 J = 1 calorie (cal)
Energy often expressed in kilojoule
1 kJ = 1000 J
Food energy commonly stated in units of 1000 cal, commonly called
calories
1 food calorie = 1000 cal

Power
Power is energy per unit time
Watt = 1 joule per second (JS-1)
A typical compact fluorescent light bulb is 21 watts
A large electrical power plant is typically 1000 megawatts (mw)
Very large amounts of power in gigawatts (1 gw = 109 w)

Thermodynamics

Thermodynamics deals with energy in its various forms and with

work
First law of thermodynamics states that energy is neither created nor
destroyed
Law of conservation of energy
The first law of thermodynamics is important in green science and
technology the best practice of which requires the most efficient use
energy to thermodynamic laws only a fraction of chemical energy
ofAccording
can be converted to heat energy and then mechanical energy (as
occurs in an internal combustion engine)
Typically, the unused energy is dissipated as heat
Green technology utilizes this energy for heating

19.3. SOURCES OF ENERGY USED IN THE ANTHROSPHERE

Before 1800 most energy from renewable sources
Biomass sources
Wood for heating
Food for animals and humans
Wind-driven sailing ships and windmills
Wind from solar heating of air masses
Water-driven waterwheels
Water from solar driven hydrologic cycle
Shift to coal energy in 1800s
Steam engine from around 1800
Development of petroleum energy during 1900s
Natural gas a major energy source since around 1950
Hydroelectric a significant source by around 1950
Nuclear energy a significant source by 1975
Some geothermal energy
Small but growing solar and wind energy

Figure 19.1. Sources of Energy

U.S.

World

Figure 19.2. Original Amounts of World Fossil Fuels

Relative Amounts of Water Produced Per Atom of Fossil Fuel

C burned
Larger amounts of water produced per carbon atom burned reflect less
greenhouse gas carbon dioxide released per unit energy produced
Natural gas, CH4, produces the most H2O per C atom burned
CH4 + 2O2 CO2 + 2H2O + energy
Petroleum, approximate simple formula CH2, produces half as much
H2O per C atom burned as does natural gas
CH2 + 3/2O2 CO2 + H2O + energy
Coal, approximate simple formula CH0.8, produces the least H2O per
C atom burned of all fossil fuels
CH0.8 + 1.2O2 CO2 + 0.4H2O + energy
Biomass, approximate simple formula {CH2O}, produces the same
amount of H2O per C atom burned as does petroleum, but the C was
recently removed from the atmosphere by photosynthesis, so there
is no net addition of CO2 to the atmosphere
{CH2O} + O2 CO2 + H2O + energy

Figure 19.3. Examples of Energy Conversion Devices

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Figure 19.4. Energy

Conversion Efficiencies

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Figure 19.5. Steam Turbine, a Heat Engine for Conversion

of Heat to Mechanical Energy

The Carnot equation expresses the efficiency by which heat energy is

converted to mechanical energy

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Figure 19.6. An Internal

Combustion Piston
Engine
Higher compression, as in a
diesel engine, yields higher
peak temperatures and
greater efficiency

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Figure 19.7. Fuel Cells Produce

Electricity Directly by the
Reaction 2H2 + O2 H2O +
electrical energy

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19.5. GREEN TECHNOLOGY AND ENERGY CONVERSION

EFFICIENCY
Increased efficiency of chemical energy heat energy mechanical
energy
Much of the gain due to increased peak temperatures in heat engines
Carnot equation
Improved materials and lubricants to withstand higher temperatures
Computerized control has greatly improved internal combustion
engine efficiencies
Ignition timing Valve timing Fuel injection

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19.6. ENERGY CONSERVATION AND RENEWABLE

ENERGY SOURCES
Figure 19.8. Oil required per $1000 gross domestic product showing
increased efficiencies of energy utilization

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Figure 19.9. Illustration of earlier gains in fuel economy in the

U.S. followed by a lack of progress as fuel economy standards
were not tightened
Fuel economy standards tightened in 2007

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Figure 19.10. The hybrid vehicle is a major advance in energy

conservation

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19.7. PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS

Liquid petroleum occurs in porous rock formations
Primary petroleum recovery is only about 30%
Much greater recovery with secondary and tertiary techniques
Shale oil cooked from organic-bearing oil shale is a potential
petroleum substitute
Severe environmental effects
Natural gas (CH4) is a fossil fuel source that produces minimal
greenhouse gas CO2

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19.8. COAL
Coal is a carbon-rich fuel, approximate formula CH 0.8
Coal is an abundant fossil energy resource, but has a number of
adverse environmental effects
Coal conversion can be used to convert coal to more environmentally
friendly liquid and gaseous fuels and raw materials
Sequestration of byproduct CO2 in coal conversion

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Figure 19.11. Routes to Coal Conversion

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19.9. CARBON SEQUESTRATION FOR FOSSIL FUEL

UTILIZATION
Trapping CO2 before it can enter the atmosphere enables utilization of
fossil fuels without adding greenhouse gas to the atmosphere
Potential sinks for carbon dioxide
Oceans, potential problems from lowering pH
Deep saline water aquifers
Porous sedimentary formations
Sequestration easiest from concentrated sources
Fermentation to make ethanol
Coal conversion

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Figure 19.12. Coal Conversion with Carbon Sequestration

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19.10 INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY FOR ENERGY AND

CHEMICALS

Fig 19.13 The Great Plains Coal Gasification Plant in North Dakota is
an example of industrial ecology applied to energy conversion

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19.11. NUCLEAR ENERGY

From splitting of uranium-235 or plutonium nuclei
Uranium-235 is only 0.7% of naturally occurring uranium
Figure 19.14. Fission of a uranium-235 nucleus with production of
energy and neutrons that sustain fission

Despite problems, nuclear energy may be the best source of

sustainable electrical energy

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Figure 19.15. A Typical Nuclear Fission Plant

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Nuclear Fusion Energy from Fusion of Lighter Nuclei

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Despite its high potential, practical production of energy from nuclear

fusion has not been accomplished

26.12. GEOTHERMAL ENERGY

From underground steam, hot water, hot rock
First utilized for energy at Larderello, Italy, in 1904
Now being developed in many areas including
Iceland Japan Russia New Zealand Phillipines
Geysers in northern California

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19.13. THE SUN: AN IDEAL, RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCE

Sunlight is an ideal source of energy
Unlimited supply Widely available Non-polluting
Does not add to Earths total heat burden
Relatively small fraction of land area could provide for all of Earths
energy needs
1/30 - 1/10 Arizona land area for U.S. needs
Sunlight utilized by
Photovoltaic cells
Parabolic mirrors that focus sunlight onto heat collectors
Solar heated Stirling engines
Intermittent nature of solar energy requires energy storage
Example: Superheated supercritical fluids stored underground

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Figure 19.16. A Photovoltaic Cell

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Figure 19.17. High-Efficiency Thin-Film Solar Photovoltaic

Cell Using Amorphous Silicon

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19.14. ENERGY FROM MOVING AIR AND MOVING WATER

The Surprising Success of Wind Power
Long history for grain drying and water pumping
Wind energy is
Completely renewable
Non-polluting
Indirect way of utilizing solar energy
Wind energy can be used to generate elemental H2 and O2
Used to make synthetic fuels from biomass and NH3 fertilizer
Many areas of he world are suitable for generating wind energy

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Figure 19.18. Representation of a Wind Farm

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Energy from Moving Water

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Waterwheel has been used since ancient times

First hydroelectric powerplant in the U.S. in 1882
By 1980 hydroelectric was 25% of world electricity and 5% of total energy
Chinas enormous Three Gorges powerplant will generate 22.4 gw
Hydroelectric is renewable and free but has some environmental
problems
Impoundment of streams for hydroelectric power has caused problems

19.15. BIOMASS ENERGY

Biomass from photosynthesis could provide a large fraction of fuels
and feedstocks now made from petroleum
Biomass energy offers some definite advantages
Renewable
Locally available, such as in agricultural areas of the U.S.
Some plants produce hydrocarbons directly
Biomass energy has some problems
Photosynthesis is inefficient energy production
Land used to produce fuels is not used to produce food
Annual world production of biomass is around 146 billion metric tons
2 metric tons per acre per year for terrestrial plants
Larger production of biomass from algae
Biomass has heating value of 5000-8000 Btu/Lb, about half of coal

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Ethanol Fuel
Produced by fermentation of sugar from cornstarch, but with little
overall gain in energy
Fermentation of sugar from cane sugar in tropical regions, such as
Brazil, yields much more energy than that used in production
Efforts to utilize fermentable sugars from crop byproduct biomass
have not proven practical
Diversion of corn to ethanol production has greatly distorted
agricultural markets in the U.S.

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Biodiesel Fuel
Original diesel engines ran on vegetable oils
Problem with oil solidification at colder temperatures
Petroleum-based diesel fuels became standard
Now, biodiesel fuels are being synthesized by esterification of
vegetable oils

Large areas of rain forest are now being used for growing palm oil
and other biodiesel feedstocks causing food shortages and
environmental problems

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The Unrealized Potential of Lignocellulose Fuels

Crop byproducts, such as wheat straw, and other plant biomass are
composed of complex lignocellulose material
Perennial plants, such as switchgrass, can be used for lignocellulose
fuel
The U.S. and many other countries could probably produce all their
fuel and organic raw materials now provided by petroleum from
lignocellulose sources

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Production of Fuels and Feedstocks from Lignocellulose

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Direct combustion to produce heat and to raise steam to generate

electricity
Fermentation to produce ethanol (from sugar) or methane
Pyrolysis to yield gaseous fuels (particularly methane), liquids
(including hydrocarbons and oxygenated species), and solid carbon
Thermochemical gasification to produce CO, H2, CH4, byproduct
liquids, and solid carbon
Fischer-Tropsch synthesis of hydrocarbons from CO and H2 derived
from biomass
Hydrogenation of oxygenated liquids from biomass to produce
hydrocarbons
Methyl esterification of oils to produce methyl ester biodiesel fluids

Biogas
Anoxic fermentation of organic matter, {CH2O}
2{CH2O} CH4 + CO2
In rural China backyard digesters generate methane from a variety of
materials
Animal wastes Human wastes Vegetable and crop wastes
Buried in ground with surface solar heated to accelerate fermentation
Especially useful for cooking fuel

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19.16. HYDROGEN AS A MEANS TO STORE AND UTILIZE

ENERGY
H2 gas is an ideal fuel that produces only H2O as a combustion
product
Most of the 6 million tons of H2 produced in the U.S. each year is
made by steam reforming methane gas followed by reaction of CO
with steam
CH4 + H2O 3H2 + CO
CO + H2O CO2 + 2H2
The CO2 can be sequestered
A more sustainable source of H2 is the electrolysis of water made
conducting by dissolved salts
2H2O + electrical energy 2H2 + O2
H2 can be used as a fuel in piston engines or gas turbines or
combined with oxygen in a fuel cell to generate electricity directly

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19.17. COMBINED POWER CYCLES

Figure 19.19. Illustration of a Combined Power Cycle in Which Fuel is
Used with Maximum Efficiency

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19.18 A System of Industrial Ecology for Methane

Production
Reactions Involved in Gasification of Biomass with
Carbon Sequestration (assuming sequestration of all CO2)
Heat production: {CH2O} + O2 CO2 + H2O + heat
Partial oxidation: {CH2O} + 1/2O2 CO + H2O + heat
Pyrolysis: {CH2O} + heat C + H2O and {CH2O} + heat CO + H2
CO/H2 mixture is synthesis gas
Hot carbon + steam synthesis gas: C + H2O + heat CO + H2
Water-gas shift to increase H2/CO: CO + H2O + O2 CO2 + H2
Methanation: CO + 3H2 CH4 + H2O
Fischer-Tropsch hydrocarbon synthesis:
8CO + 17H2 C8H18 + 8H2O
(Similar reactions to make methanol and ethanol)

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Fig 19.20 An Industrial Ecosystem Based upon Biomass

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