Bulletin of the American Physical Society
APS April Meeting 2010
Volume 55, Number 1
Saturday–Tuesday, February 13–16, 2010; Washington, DC
Session K6: Energy Research and Applications: Sustainability and the Environment |
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Sponsoring Units: GERA Chair: Claudio Pellegrini, University of California, Los Angeles Room: Washington 5 |
Sunday, February 14, 2010 3:30PM - 4:06PM |
K6.00001: The Sustainable Energy Challenge Invited Speaker: The dependence on oil and fossil fuels for over 80{\%} of our energy and the continued emission of carbon dioxide threatening stable climate are captured in a single term: sustainability. Although we generally agree that sustainability is valuable, there is less agreement on how much sustainability is necessary or desirable. In this talk, three criteria describing increasingly strict features of sustainability will be presented and applied to evaluate the alternatives to oil and carbon dioxide emission, such as tapping unused energy flows in sunlight and wind, producing electricity without carbon emissions from clean coal and high efficiency nuclear power plants, and replacing oil with biofuels or electricity. Implementing these more sustainable alternatives requires new materials of increasing complexity and functionality that control the transformation of energy between light, electrons and chemical bonds at the nanoscale. Challenges and opportunities for developing the complex materials and controlling the chemical changes that enable greater sustainability will be presented. [Preview Abstract] |
Sunday, February 14, 2010 4:06PM - 4:42PM |
K6.00002: The Sustainable Nuclear Future: Fission and Fusion E.M. Campbell Logos Technologies Invited Speaker: Global industrialization, the concern over rising CO$_{2}$ levels in the atmosphere and other negative environmental effects due to the burning of hydrocarbon fuels and the need to insulate the cost of energy from fuel price volatility have led to a renewed interest in nuclear power. Many of the plants under construction are similar to the existing light water reactors but incorporate modern engineering and enhanced safety features. These reactors, while mature, safe and reliable sources of electrical power have limited efficiency in converting fission power to useful work, require significant amounts of water, and must deal with the issues of nuclear waste (spent fuel), safety, and weapons proliferation. If nuclear power is to sustain its present share of the world's growing energy needs let alone displace carbon based fuels, more than 1000 reactors will be needed by mid century. For this to occur new reactors that are more efficient, versatile in their energy markets, require minimal or no water, produce less waste and more robust waste forms, are inherently safe and minimize proliferation concerns will be necessary. Graphite moderated, ceramic coated fuel, and He cooled designs are reactors that can satisfy these requirements. Along with other generation IV fast reactors that can further reduce the amounts of spent fuel and extend fuel resources, such a nuclear expansion is possible. Furthermore, facilities either in early operations or under construction should demonstrate the next step in fusion energy development in which energy gain is produced. This demonstration will catalyze fusion energy development and lead to the ultimate development of the next generation of nuclear reactors. In this presentation the role of advanced fission reactors and future fusion reactors in the expansion of nuclear power will be discussed including synergies with the existing worldwide nuclear fleet. [Preview Abstract] |
Sunday, February 14, 2010 4:42PM - 5:18PM |
K6.00003: Alternate Energy for National Security. Invited Speaker: Recent price fluctuations at the gas pump have brought our attention to the phenomenal increase of global energy consumption in recent years. It is now evident that we have almost reached a peak in global oil production. Several projections indicate that total world consumption of oil will rise by nearly 60 per cent between 1999 and 2020. In 1999 consumption was equivalent to 86 million barrels of oil per day, which has reached a peak of production extracted from most known oil reserves. These projections, if accurate, will present an unprecedented crisis to the global economy and industry. As an example, in the US, nearly 40 per cent of energy usage is provided by petroleum, of which nearly a third is used in transportation. The US Department of Defense (DOD) is the single largest buyer of fuel, amounting to, on the average, 13 million gallons per day. Additionally, these fuels have to meet different requirements that prevent use of ethanol additives and biodiesel. An aggressive search for alternate energy sources, both renewable and nonrenewable, is vital. The presentation will review national and DOD perspectives on the exploration of alternate energy with a focus on energy derivable from the ocean. [Preview Abstract] |
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