by Rik DeGunther

WILEY

Wiley Publishing, Inc.

Table of Contents Introduction 7

About This Book 1 Conventions Used in This Book 3 What You're Not to Read 3 Foolish Assumptions 4 How This Book Is Organized 4

Part I: The Basic Facts of Energy Life 5 Part II: Digging Deeper into the Current State of Affairs 5 Part III: Alternatives — Buildings 5 Part IV: Alternatives — Transportation 6 Part V: The Part of Tens 6

Icons Used in This Book 6 Where to Go from Here 7

Parti: The Basic Facts of Energy Life 9

Chapter 1: What a Mess! 11 Understanding Where Society Is and How It Got Here 12

Historical trends of energy use 12 Energy use today 13 Looking ahead to more energy use and waste 15

Putting Society Over a (Oil) Barrel: Problems in the Current System.... 16 Overreliance on fossil fuels 16 Declining supplies 17 Getting better at finding and using fossil fuels 17

Rising to the Challenge: Balancing Fossil Fuel Use with Appropriate Alternatives 19

Looking at the local impact 19 Adding up the alternatives 20 Evaluating the alternatives 22

Chapter 2: What Energy Is and How It's Used (Politically and Practically) 25

Defining Energy: Grab Your Hats, Folks 25 Life itself is energy 26 Energy is order 27 From simple to complex: The evolution of energy 29

Alternative Energy For Dummies

Trying to Tap into and Refine an Infinite Energy Supply 30 Refining ordered energy 30 Bridging the gap between policy and pollution 31 Getting energy leads to energy consumption 32

Reshaping Energy Policy to Include Alternatives 33 Political posturing over energy policy 33 What America's policy needs 34 The argument for alternatives 34 Looking at alternative, renewable, and sustainable

energy sources 35

Chapter 3: Putting Together Each Piece of the Energy Puzzle 37 Wrapping Your Mind Around the Metrics of Energy 38

Understanding energy versus power 38 Common measurements 39 Energy and volume density measurements 39 Types of efficiencies 41

The Fundamental Laws Governing Energy Consumption 43 First law of thermodynamics 43 Second law of thermodynamics 44 Carnot's law 46

Understanding Electrical Energy 49 A short primer on electricity 49 Producing electrical power efficiently and safely 49

Tracking the Real Cost of Power 51 Raw fuel costs 51 Looking at conversion costs 52 Capital equipment costs 53 Energy utilization 54 Putting it together in practical terms 54

Part 11: Digging deeper into the Current State of Äffairs 57

Chapter 4: Developing a Snapshot of Fossil Fuel Use and Availability 59

A Quick Look at Fuels from the Fossil Fuel Era and Beyond 59 The evolution of energy use 60 Petroleum products 60 Natural gas 61 Coal 61 Nuclear 62 Hydropower (dams) 62

Table of Contents

Biomass (firewood and other natural sources) 63 Geothermal 63 Wind 63 Solar 64 Electricity 64

Energy Consumption Trends 65 Global energy consumption and use 65 Energy consumption in growing economies 67 Energy consumption in the U.S 68

Looking at Current Availability and Cost 69 Global availability of fossil fuels 69 The U.S. and fossil fuels 70 The real cost of fuel 71

Chapter 5: Burning Up with Conventional Energy Sources 73 Combustion Processes 73

Hydrogen and carbon content in fossil fuels 74 Efficiency limitations of fossil fuels 76

Common Combustion Sources 76 Coal 76 Crude oil 78 Natural gas 80 Liquid petroleum gas (LPG) 81 Home heating oil 82 Wood 82

Processing Raw Fuel into Useable Power 83 Converting energy for heating 83 Powering engines for transportation 86 Utility scale power plants 91

Chapter 6: The First Alternative-Energy Sources: Efficiency and Conservation 95

Efficiency, Consumption, and the Energy Market 96 Efficiency increases demand 96 Price increases and decreased energy use 99

Big-Picture Strategies for Reducing Energy Consumption 101 Dealing with peak-demand problems 101 Dealing with urban sprawl 101 Promoting green communities 102 Making transportation more efficient 104

Efficiency and Conservation Changes You Can Make in the Home 108 Seal and insulate your home 108 Tune up your heating and air-conditioning system 108 Use efficient bulbs 109 Reduce water consumption 109

Alternative Energy For Dummies

Use appliances more sensibly 109 Exploit sunlight 110 Use ventilation, fans, and air filters I l l

Chapter 7: Understanding the Demand For Alternatives 113 Environmental Primer 113 Global Warming 115

Increasing carbon dioxide levels 115 Understanding the impacts of global warming 116 Combating global warming 118

Other Pollution Problems 119 Smog 119 Acid rain 121

Increasing Demand and Dwindling Supplies 122 Political Movements and Political Ramifications 123

The greens 123 Practical political advantages of alternative energy 124

A Final Thought on Fossil Fuel Use 125

Part 111: Alternatives — Buildings 127

Chapter 8: Going Nuclear 129 Getting to Where We Are Now 130

Nuclear power: The early years 130 Protests and accidents in the '60s and 70s 130 The situation today 132

The Fundamentals of Nuclear Power 133 Atoms 133 Isotopes 134 Atomic weight 135 Ions 135

Nuclear Power Today: Fission 136 How nuclear reactors work 136 Radioactive decay 137 Nuclear waste 139 Uranium mining 140 The design of today's reactors 141

Hydrogen Fusion: Nuclear Power of the Future 144 The process at a glance 144 Advantages and disadvantages of fusion 146

Issues Impacting the Move toward Nuclear Energy 147 The fear factor 148 Economics of nuclear power 149

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Chapter 9: Harnessing the Sun with Solar Power 151 Turning Sunlight into Energy: The Basics of Solar Technology 152

Understanding light 152 The PV cell: Generating electricity from sunlight 153 Current and future efficiency ratings of solar panels 155

Challenges Facing Solar Power 156 Technological limitations 157 Weather and temperature considerations 157 The variability of sunlight 158 Getting enough power 161

The Economics of Solar Power 162 The dollars and sense of solar power 163 Looking at solar adoption, sector by sector 163 Looking at infrastructure 164 Comparing cost: Solar versus fossil fuels 165 The economics of net metering 165

Government Incentives for Solar Power 166 Federal tax credits 167 State incentive programs 167 Arguments against subsidies and tax breaks 168

Looking at the Full Range of Practical Solar Options 169 Passive solar 169 Solar PV 170 Solar hot water systems 171 Solar water purification systems 172 Utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) plants 172 Large-scale solar condenser power generators 173

Future Prognosis of PV 174 Financing through utility companies 174 Leasing schemes 174 Buying into solar farms 174 Mandating and amortizing 175

Chapter 10: Treading Water with Hydropower 177 The Hydropower Story 177

Hydropower history 178 Global trends 178 A quick look at hydropower systems 179

Impoundment Systems — The Big Kahuna 181 Advantages of impoundment systems 182 Environmental impacts of impoundment dams 183 Impound advantages over diversion and run-of-river systems... 185

Small-Scale Hydropower Generators 185 The good and bad of small-scale systems 186 Choosing to use small-scale hydropower 187

Alternative Energy For Dummies

Oceanic Energy Sources 187 Tidal power generators 188 Wave power generators 189

Chapter 11: Blowing Away with Wind Power 191 The Back Story of Wind Power 191 Growing Markets for Wind Energy 192

Wind markets at a glance 193 Economics of wind power 194 Tracking wind power around the world 195

Wind Farms: Utility Scale Electrical Production 196 Large-scale wind power technology 197 Picking the right spot 199 The pitch of the blades 200 Other things to know about wind farms 201

Small-Scale Wind Power 203 Stand-alone systems 204 Intertie systems 204 Advantages and disadvantages of small-scale wind power 204

Chapter 12: Digging into Geothermal 207 Geothermal Energy Basics 207

Where you can find geothermal energy 208 Geothermal uses 209 Economics of geothermal energy 210

Creating Electrical Power with Geothermal Sources 211 Types of electricity-generating systems 212 Things to know about geothermal power plants 213

Using Geothermal Energy Directly: Heat Pumps 214 What direct-source systems need 215 How heat pumps work 216 Types of heat pumps 217 The efficiency of heat pumps 219 Advantages of heat pumps 220

Chapter 13: Exploring Biomass 221 Biomass Basics 221

Biomass uses 222 Converting waste to energy 223 Growing energy: Fuel crops 224 The benefits of biomass 225 Looking at the future of biomass 226

Large-scale Biomass Power 227 The process of turning biomass into power 227 Advantages and disadvantages of biomass power plants 228

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Biomass Fuels 229 Ethanol 229 Biodiesel 231

Small-scale Biomass for the Masses 232 Getting the lowdown on biomass stoves 232 Choosing a fuel 233

Chapter 14: Burning Wood 235 What the Blazes! Cleaner and More Efficient Ways to Burn Wood 236

Increasing demand, improving economics 236 Improving efficiencies 236

Open Fireplaces: Cozy and Costly 237 Wood-burning Stoves: An Efficient Alternative to Fireplaces 238

Comparing open- and closed-vent systems 238 Free-standing stoves and inserts 239 Types of wood stoves 239

Important Points about Burning Wood Efficiently 241 Enhancing efficiency by burning the right wood 241 Avoiding problems by burning the wood right 243 Maintaining a wood stove 243 Getting the hot air where you want it 245

Stove Safety Guidelines 245 Ensure proper installation and venting 245 Bring an existing chimney up to date 246 Follow manufacturer's instructions 247

Chapter 15: Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technologies 249 The Basics of Hydrogen Technology 249

Sources of hydrogen 250 Extracting hydrogen 251 How a fuel cell works 253

Practical and Pie-in-the-Sky Applications 254 Fuel cell-powered vehicles 255 Small-scale fuel cell electric power 256 Hydrogen-powered home of the future 258

The Future of Fuel Cells 259

PartlV: Alternatives— Transportation 261

Chapter 16: Alternative Transport Technologies 263 Turning the Pages of Alternative Vehicle History 263

The glory days of steam 264 Electric-powered vehicles 264 Hybrids enter the scene 265

Alternative Energy For Dummies

Evolving from Mechanical to Electrical 266 Watching the rise of silicon 266 Decreasing demand for mechanical controls 267 Getting efficient: Same power, less weight 267 Recognizing the car of the future 268

Coming Full Circle — and Back to Electric 269

Chapter 17: Alternative-Fuel Vehicles 271 Natural Gas in the Tank 271

Advantages to natural gas 272 Producing natural gas 272 Natural gas vehicles 273

Flex Fuels for Vehicles 275 Sources of ethanol 275 Producing ethanol 276 Flex fuel vehicles 276

Clean Diesel and Biodiesel Vehicles 278 Diesel then and now 278 Clean diesel engines 279 Biodiesel 280 Clean diesel and biodiesel engines 281

Chapter 18: Plugging In: Electric Vehicles 283 A Drive Down Memory Lane 284

Early electric cars, circa 1900 284 Modern electric vehicles: 1960s to today 286

Basic Operation of an Electric Vehicle 288 Batteries 289

Lead-acid cell battery 289 Nickel-based batteries 290

Practical Concerns of Electric Cars 290 Performance 291 Service and maintenance 292 Battery charging and replacement 292 Environmental impact 293 Electric car safety 294 Economics of electric cars 295

Chapter 19: Hybrid-Electric Vehicles 297 History of Hybrids 297

Witnessing the fall of hybrid hoopla 298 Watching hybrid research pick up 298 The first modern hybrids 299 Gaining popularity 299

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Two Key Hybrid Features 300 The onboard ICE and battery combo 300 Regenerative braking 301

Hybrid Technologies: Series and Parallel 301 Series design hybrid vehicles 302 Parallel design hybrids 302

Driving and Owning a Hybrid 303 Performance and handling 303 Maintenance 304 Environmental impacts 305 The economics of hybrids 305 Buggaboos and boogeymen: Unwarranted fears 306

Chapter 20: Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Vehicles 307 Fuel Cell Fundamentals and Challenges 308

Dealing with hydrogen 308 The high cost 309 Benefits of hydrogen and fuel cells 310

Hydrogen-Powered Vehicles 310 Hydrogen fuel vehicles 311 Fuel cell vehicles 312

A Hydrogen Future 312

Chapter 21: Exotic Propulsion Systems 315 Supercapacitors 315 Solar-Powered Vehicles 316 Flywheels 318 Hydraulic Accumulators 319 Magnetic Levitation Trains 319

Using magnets 320 Bullet trains 320

Nuclear-Powered Ships 322 Efficiency and environmental impact 322 Performance and maintenance 323 Safety issues 323

Part V: The Part of Tens 325

Chapter 22: Ten or So Myths about Energy 327 The World Is Doomed to a Gloomy Future 327 We Can Legislate Our Way Out of the Mess 328 The Electric Car Was Deliberately Killed 329 Conservation and Efficiency Can Save the World 329

)С(/Щ Alternative Energy For Dummies

There's an Energy Shortage 330 Nuclear Power Plants Are Ticking Time Bombs 330 Electric Cars Will Displace All Others 331 Anything Labeled "Green" Is Green 331 Waste is Bad 332 Solar Power Can Provide All Our Electrical Needs 333 Burning Wood is Bad For the Environment 333 If Global Warming Isn't Our Fault, We're Off the Hook 334

Chapter 23: Ten-Plus Ways to Invest in an Alternative-Energy Future 335

Performing an Energy Audit of Your Home or Business 335 Installing a New Stove 336 Using Solar 337 Using Biofuels to Power Your Car 338 Driving a Hybrid 339 Installing a Geothermal Heating and Cooling System in Your Home 339 Driving with Diesel (Without the Stink) 340 Installing a Windmill in Your Own Backyard 340 Moving into a Smaller, Energy-Efficient Home 341 Living in an Urban Environment 341 Investing in Energy Stocks 342 Driving Less 342

Index 343