Chu Solar to Chem Energy 3-28-05

8/9/2019 Chu Solar to Chem Energy 3-28-05

1/38

Sustainable, CO 2-neutral

Source of Energy


2/38

http://www.energycommission.org/


3/38

In the last 100 years, the Earth warmedup by ~1 C

100 years is nothing by geological time scales!


4/38

Temperature over the last 420,000 yearsSource: Working Group I of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change


5/38

Shouldntwe beworriedabout anew iceage?

ForgetaboutGlobalwarming!


6/38

Previous ice ages arethought to be caused bychanges in the orbit andinclination of the Earth.

but there is somethingnew happening!


7/38


8/38Predictions are hard to make, especially about the future.

We continue to refine the predictions of Global Warming

The great Americanphilosopher of the 20 th century


9/38

Climate change dueto natural causes(solar variations,volcanoes, etc.)

Climate change dueto natural causes

and humangeneratedgreenhouse gases

Can we predict the past?


10/38

CO 2 Concentration, Temperature, and Sea LevelContinue to Rise Long after Emissions are Reduced

100 years

1,000 years

Sea-level rise due to icemelting: severalmillennia

Sea-level rise due to

thermal expansion:centuries to millennia

Temperature stabilization:a few centuries

CO 2 stabilization:100 to 300 years

CO 2 emissions

CO 2 emissions peak0 to 100 years

Today


11/38

The possibility / likelihood of global warming

is disturbing

but there may be a bigger problem!

Chu


12/38

Consumption of Energy Increased by 85%Between 1970 and 1999

20202015201020051999199519901985198019751970

700

600

500

400

300

200

100

0

Quadrillion Btu

History Projections

By 2020, Consumption will Triple

Chu


13/38


14/38

Global Energy Consumption, 1998

Total: 12.8 TW U.S.: 3.3 TW (99 Quads)

4.52

2.72.96

0.286

1.21

0.286

0

1

2

3

4

5

TW

Oil Coal Biomass

Gas HydroRenewable

How long will our fossil fuels last?

Courtesy Nate Lewis


15/38

M. King Hubbert Predicted in 1959 that U.S.Domestic Production would Peak in 1970 .

Chu

Production in the Lower 48 StatesPeak discovery: 1930Peak production: 1972

Discov

eries, Gb/a

Production, Gb/a


16/38

World production of oil and gas is predicted to peakwithin 10 - 40 years

2010


17/38

Energy conservation and

efficiency can buy time(a factor of ~2)

but the fundamental problem remains


18/38


19/38

EnergyCosts

0

24

6

8

1 0

1 2

1 4

$ /G

C o a l O il B io m a s s E

B r a z

i lE

u r o p e

$0.05/kW-hr

www.undp.org/seed/eap/activities/wea

Courtesy Nate Lewis


20/38

Potential Sources of Energy whenFossil Fuels Run Out

Nuclear Fission

Magnetic PlasmaConfinement,Inertial Fusion

Waste &Nuclear Proliferation

Nuclear Fusion

10 TW = 10,000 new 1GW reactors: i.e., a new

reactor every other day for the next 50 years


21/38

Solar Energy

We do not know how to store electricalenergy on a massive scale


22/38


23/38

Nature has found a way to convert

sunlight, CO 2, water and nutrientsinto chemical energy


24/38

Photosynthesis Photovoltaic andelectricity to

chemical

H O

O H

2

22

sc M

e

sc

e

M

CO

Sugar

H O

O

2

2

2

Solar to Chemical Energy

Semiconductor/liquid junctions


25/38

Energy gained in corn ethanol production


26/38

Total CO 2 emissions


27/38

From Summary of Renewable Fuel Options(NCEP)

Unlike corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol haspotential to achieve near-zero net carbonemissions.

Cultivation of cellulosic feedstocks requiresvery low energy inputs and, if sustainablymanaged, the carbon released during fuelcombustion is reabsorbed by the growth of new feedstocks.


28/38

~ 450 M acres of land under cultivation in the US


29/38

Land with Crop Production Potential, 1990: 2.45x10 13 m2

Cultivated Land, 1990: 0.897 x10 13 m2

Additional Land needed to support 9 billion people:

0.416x10 13 m2

Remaining land available for biomass energy: 1.28x10 13 m2

Courtesy Nate Lewis

Biomass resources estimate


30/38

Photosynthesis:the creation of chemical energy from CO 2,

sunlight, water and nutrients


31/38

Engineering microbes to produce drugs

Malaria is caused by asingle-cell protozoan Transmitted by Anopheles

mosquito

Destroys red blood cells 1.5-2.7 million people die of

malaria every year 90% of the victims are

children 40% of the worlds

population is at risk


32/38

Artemisinin-based drugs

The current cost for an artemisinin-based drug is approximately $2.25. Artemisinin generally adds $1.00-1.50 to the

cost for drugs Most developing countries spend less than

$4/person/year on health care

As many as 10-12 treatments areneeded for each person annually

World Health Organization estimatesthat 700 tons will be needed annually

S h i Bi l


33/38

Synthetic Biology: Production of artemisinin in bacteria Jay Keasling

Identify thebiosynthesispathways in A. annua

Can synthetic organisms beengineered to produce

methane from sunlight, CO 2,

water and sustainable sourcesof nutrients?


34/38

Hybrid Devices

Integration of many disciplines will be needed

New ideas

Chemical Fuel From Solar Energy

ComputingSciences

MaterialsScience

Physics,Chemistry

LifeSciences

Nanoscience


35/38

A solution may lie at the interface of biologyand

the physical sciences at the nano-scale

A diversified portfolio of investments is needed


36/38

National Concerns

Sustainable, CO 2 neutral energy

which is intimately tied toenergy security

1) National security

3) The environment

2) Economic prosperity


37/38


38/38

Lawrence Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley

Who will keep the lights on after we run out of fossil fuel?

Chu Solar to Chem Energy 3-28-05

Documents

Transcript of Chu Solar to Chem Energy 3-28-05