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Conservation of energy essay
The greenhouse effect impact
The greenhouse effect impact
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Renewable Energy Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but it can be transformed: the first law of conservation of energy. Since the earliest days of human history, man have always been looking forward to control energy. But it wasn't until the nineteenth and twentieth centuries that humanity finally learned to harness the high concentration of energy existent in fossil fuels. (''Why Sustainable Energy Matters,''Learning Space). Even though humans achieved to apply the first law of conservation of energy/matter, they failed to understand the principle. That is that energy/matter cannot be created or destroyed. Missing this premise and walking society towards modernization, humanity has been destroying the environment with contamination and misuse of the natural resources of the Earth. This is when we came to problems such as global warming and natural resources depletion. For this reason, engineers have been given the task of finding the solutions for these problems before they become irremediable. They have gotten to the conclusion that renewable energy is the only way out, because it is the safest, most suitable and promising resource of energy. ( ''Renewable Energy,'' American Green). Renewable energy is the safest resource of energy because it is environmentally friendly. According to the Association of Energy Engineers, renewable resources of energy are the efficacious counteraction of the ''greenhouse effect.''( ''Why Sustainable Energy Matters,''Learning Space). For instant, fossil fuels such as coal and crude oil are highly pollutant, while generators of renewable energy such as wind towers and solar panels do not emit any gas or produce waste. (Darvill.clara.net and Renewable Energy for America). At the time more ... ... middle of paper ... ...w.darvill.clara.net/altenerg/wind.htm>. ''Vehicle Technology and Program Market Data,'' Advance Vehicle and Fuels Research. National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Web. 04 Oct. 2011. . ''U.S. Energy Consumption by Energy Source,'' U.S. Energy Information Administration. Aug. 2011. Web. 4 Oct. 2011. . ''Renewable Energy,'' American Green. 2011. Web. 04 Oct. 2011. . ''Updated Biodiesel Guide Helps Ensure Optimum Performance,'' Advance Vehicle and Fuels Research. National Renewable Energy Laboratory. 20 Oct. 2008. Web. 04 Oct. 2011 . ''UKWED,'' British Wind Energy Association. 2010. 04 Oct. 2011 .
We are dependent on energy for almost everything in our lives. When the outside temperature rises a little, we immediately switch on the air conditioner to keep our house cool. This is using up of energy. We have starting taking things for granted and we have started wasting energy unnecessarily. Energy is limited and hence to maintain the quality of life, it is important that we use our energy resources wisely. If we do not conserve energy, the energy will exhaust and we will have nothing to use.
U.S. Energy Information Administration. Independent Statistics & Analysis: U.S. EIA. March 15, 2012. http://www.eia.gov/countries/index.cfm?view=consumption (accessed March 16, 2014).
www.fueleconomy.gov: The official U.S. Government Source for Fuel Economy Information. U.S. Department of Energy, 5 Jan 2012. Web. 5 Jan 2012.
With a gasoline-fueled vehicle, buying gas to operate your car is a never-ending process. With the high price change of gasoline and oil, operating a gasoline-fueled vehicle tends to be very costly. While there are some types of small gasoline vehicles that get much better gas mileage than larger vehicles, even the most powerful gasoline cars will normally desire a contribution every month. According to some experts the only way a mainstream market for green vehicles wills materlize is with a pronounced and prolonged rise in fuel prices. (Buss, 4)
Energy is the basic necessity of daily life. Nowadays, dependence on fossil fuels for energy needs becoming lower in numerous countries due to the potential of renewable energy to supply sustainable energy to the huge populations in many developing countries who are short of clean and continues energy. Generally, renewable energy can be defined as energy that is derived from natural resources which are constantly replenished and theoretically inexhaustible. Fossil fuels on the other hand can be described as energy that cannot be renewed and will eventually diminish. Thus, in many developing countries renewable energy is the alternative energy to replace non-renewable energy or commonly known as fossil fuels. In addition, according to Sorensen (2004), there is a greater demand for renewable energy sources nowadays due to the uncertainty of fuel price rise in living expenses. Commonly, there are many types of renewable energy available in our world such as wind power, biomass energy, solar energy, hydroelectric power and geothermal energy. However, the main three example of renewable energy are hydroelectric power, solar and biomass energy (Refer to Figure 1 in Appendix 1).
In the debate of traditional energy vs. renewable energy the clear winner is renewable energy. Renewable energy is vastly superior over traditional energy because it decreases dependence on foreign resources, produces no emissions, and is not limited in quantity. Opponents of renewable energy are likely to argue that this is not the case and that instead, traditional energy is better because it creates job growth, is reliable during all hours and climates, and comes with a lower cost. These advantages however are either misconstrued or hardly outweigh the long-term positive benefits of renewable energy.
The United States currently relies heavily on coal, oil, and natural gas for its energy. While the price of natural gas per barrel continues to plummet, the United States is constantly seeking new sources of renewable energy. Renewable energy consists of any type of natural resource (solar power, ocean power, wind power, rain, snow, etc.). that naturally and automatically replenishes itself. Renewable energy is important because it is infinite and everlasting, meaning our children and our children’s children will be able to utilize these resources long after we are gone.
Energy can be put into two broad categories Renewable energy and none renewable energy. Renewable energy sources can be reused continually as they are abundantly found in nature. All of them are non-polluting but devices used to collect the energy may impact the environment adversely. They are free but producing storage equipment or converting them into another form of energy may be costly.
In the search for alternatives to fossil fuels, scientists and policy makers have focused on three options: nuclear power, energy from biomass; and a combination of wind, water, and solar power. Nuclear power, however, is much more costly and runs the risk of having it fall into the wrong hands where it could be turned into a weapon of mass destruction. The third option entails wind turbines, photovoltaic power plants and rooftop systems, concentrated solar thermal power plants,...
Global heating and cooling has occurred on a cycle for millennia, however in the past thirty years the increased use of energy and fuels by humans has drastically changed this natural occurrence (Juerg, 2007). The largest cause of this warming is the release of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide levels are twenty-five percent higher than they were in 1957 (UCS, 2013). This seemingly insignificant change has caused a myriad of negative effects. The endangerment of species, rising of sea levels, and increased natural disasters are just a few examples of change brought about by global warming (Juerg, 2007). Even though global climate change presents a massive problem there are many proposed solutions to fix or delay it. These theories range from creating a giant sun shield in space to the simple practice of “reduce, reuse, and recycle” (Gray, 2009). However the most effective solution is to find different sources of fuel to power our day to day lives. The earth is in need of renewable, effective, and long lasting fuels. Global warming can be slowed through the use of renewable energy as it is versatile, clean, a good investment, and can easily be put into place in several different climates and environments.
Why do we need to rely on renewable sources? Most of the energy that we use today comes from fossil fuels such as natural gas, coal, and oil. All of these resources are non-renewable, so you can finish one day. In order to have a better world and a healthy environment for the future, people are trying to obtain energy from natural resources instead of non-renewable sources. In the lecture “Renewable energy resources” (2014), Mistry focuses on some advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy.
In chapter thirteen of our book, Environment by Raven and Berg, it shows us just how important renewable energy sources are. Currently the United States of America thrives on the use of fossil fuels and nuclear power. The main problems with these types of fuel are that they are both limited and can be extremely harmful to our environment. They cause global warming, air pollution, acid rain, and oil spills (Environment), and not only that, but in the grand scheme of things, these sources really aren’t even that cheap of a fuel source. There are many alternatives to these all but outdated fuel sources.
With the depletion of fossil fuel resources comes speculations and debates about alternative energy sources. The world, including the Philippines, is practically dependent on a dwindling non-renewable source of energy. Today, experts are debating about and considering three options: Nuclear, Solar, or Wind Energy. Everyone has been accustomed to the bad image of nuclear energy as a result of the Chernobyl and Fukushima incidents above all others. The popular belief is that radiation from a nuclear meltdown is very harmful to humans and other living things—which is true—and that nuclear power plants are very dangerous and not ideal—which is not. According to Smith, et. al (n.d), all the nuclear disasters that ever occurred were caused by human error and natural disasters like tsunamis, not one because of system failure. Putting the false beliefs aside, with proper engineering and adequate maintenance by experts, a nuclear power plant is a very ideal and viable source of energy for the following reasons:
For years man has relied on energy in order to be successful in life. The industrial revolution relied on coal for the new inventions brought into the world. Life as has never been the same since then. However since that time, there has been little done to improve on energy efficiency and humans still primarily rely on fossil fuels for energy. For over a hundred years the Earth has become more polluted and dirtier than ever before. Now, with new, innovative technology there is an opportunity to change that and to rely on renewable, cleaner sources of energy. The main source of energy for the world should be alternative energy instead of energy from fossil fuels.
Using fossil fuels such as coal and oil is inefficient, dangerous, and otherwise a process that is known to eventually fail as a long lasting energy source. Yet, there is hope for the future of energy, this new hope has many shapes and forms, but requires a chance to be fully implemented in our everyday life. Such energy sources like solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, and hydro power are the key to our future. These energy sources are proven to be long lasting, safe, more reliable, and the next innovation. In short, all Americans should switch to renewable energy, resulting in a safer and more efficient world.