: Alan John Sangster
: Energy for a Warming World A Plan to Hasten the Demise of Fossil Fuels
: Springer-Verlag
: 9781848828346
: 1
: CHF 85.50
:
: Wärme-, Energie- und Kraftwerktechnik
: English
: 178
: Wasserzeichen/DRM
: PC/MAC/eReader/Tablet
: PDF

'Energy for a Warming World' challenges the commonplace notion that the amount of power which mankind can potentially harness from renewable resources is more than large enough to assuage future demand levels.

By examining the renewable issue from an electrical engineering perspective, and exercising due regard for the limited capability of current and future electrical generation and transmission systems, this book attempts to provide more realistic statistics for the levels of power which could be extracted from sustainable resources in the critical time frame of 30 to 40 years. The engineering logic leads inexorably to the importance of taking a global outlook on the switch to renewable power supply and transmission - an outlook which has some surprising and uncomfortable ramifications for mankind.

'Energy for a Warming World' provides a new perspective on renewable resources for academics and researchers in environmental or electrical power engineering, as well as to students in related areas.



Alan J. Sangster is an electrical engineer and professor at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK.
Preface6
Contents10
Chapter 1 The Context and Corollaries12
1.1 Weather Warnings12
1.2 Unstoppable12
1.2 Unstoppable12
1512
1.3 Eye of the Beholder19
1.4 Techno-fix Junkies24
1.5 Dearth of Engineers29
Chapter 2 Energy Conversion and Power Transmission34
2.1 Energy Conservation34
2.2 Power and Entropy35
2.3 Gravity36
2.4 Electricity38
2.5 Generators44
2.6 The Grid48
2.7 The Power Leakage Dilemma53
Chapter 3 Limits to Renewability56
3.1 Power from the Sun56
3.2 Hydro-power59
3.3 Wind Power64
3.4 Wave Power68
3.5 Tidal Power73
3.6 Solar Power76
3.7 Geo-thermal Power85
3.8 The End of an Illusion88
Chapter 4 Intermittency Buffers92
4.1 Energy Storage92
4.2 Pump Storage93
4.3 Compressed Air96
4.4 Flywheels99
4.5 Thermal Storage104
4.6 Batteries107
4.7 Hydrogen113
4.8 Capacitors118
4.9 Superconducting Magnets122
4.10 Nuclear Back-up126
4.11 The Ecogrid129
Chapter 5 Known Knowns and the Unknown136
5.1 Diverging Supply and Demand136
5.2 The Transport Crunch141
5.3 Towards a Wired World149
5.4 The Unknowable155
Glossary158
References and Notes162
Index176