ADAPTING TO FACE THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS

SANCHIT SHARMAPUNE UNIVERSITY, INDIA.

EMAIL : SANCHITMANIA@GMAIL.COM

DISASTER : The acute shortage of energy after the exhaustion of fossil fuels.

AREA : Disaster Adaption

Whether you can observe a thing or not depends on the theory which you use. It is the theory which decides what can be observed. - Albert Einstein

Earthquakes, cyclones, tsunamis, floods, and other known disasters have two things in common : Firstly, their consequences are grave, and secondly, they are all un predictable.

This is how we identify a disaster, as this is what we have learned about them. The unpredictability of a disaster compels us to remain ever-prepared. We cannot tell when the next cyclone will occur , or whether it will occur at all in the future.

Actually, there is a chance that these disasters may never occur in the future, because we simply cannot detect their next occurrence. But that is just a chance, same as the chance of their occurrence.

However, there is one disaster that will occur in all certainty, within the next 2 or 3 decades, a disaster that we have been ignorant about, until now.

What can be called a disaster?

The un-predictability of a Disaster

An impending and un-avoidable disaster

THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS : AN UN-AVOIDABLE DISASTER

• By all estimates, fossil fuels will not last more than 3 to 4 decades, and our dependence on them has created a situation where the exhaustion of these fossil fuels will be nothing less than a disaster.

• 70% of all the energy produced today, comes from fossil fuels. Also, many other products of fossil fuels have become an indispensible commodity ( e.g. Plastic).

Consequences :

Petrol and diesel, the fuels of any economy, will become un-available. A majority of automobiles and industrial processes run on these fuels. Of course, we can use electric cars, but they need electricity, which is again

obtained from fossil fuels.

Electricity will become a rare commodity, as nearly 70% of the electricity in the world is produced from fossil fuels. Its difficult to imagine even one day without the services of electricity.

THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS : AN UN-AVOIDABLE DISASTER

Will electricity totally disappear with the exhaustion of fossil fuels ?

NO, but its availability will drastically reduce, and the cost

will also rise unbearably.. The non-conventional resources like Solar energy, Wind Energy , Nuclear Energy etc., although promising, are not capable of replacing the fossil fuels, and thus, there will be an acute shortage of energy in the future, and if we do not start consciously reducing our use of it, then the demand will continue to rise.

This leads to a situation where production will decrease, and demand will increase, thus pushing prices higher and availability lower. This may affect its availability in the way we are accustomed to, today.

THE PRESENT SITUATION, AND WHAT LED US TO IT

• The mindless race to exploit the fuel deposits so as to ‘Revolutionize’ our lives has left a serious impact on the environment.

• Fossil fuels are the primary cause of all the raging discussions about green house gasses and global warming, thee ozone hole, and consequently about Kyoto protocol and other such disputed efforts to reduce the impact of fossil fuels on the environment.

• Today, its hard to cope with the fact that these fuels will be gone in less than half a century, and we have no idea about how will our huge requirements will be met after these are gone.

THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS : IS IT MANAGEABLE?

• We know that we are going to face this situation, and we need to prepare for it NOW.

• Technological advancements have improved the alternative sources of energy like solar and nuclear energy, and hopefully, new alternatives will be discovered in near future, which will solve this crisis puzzle to some extent.

• But, there are some measures that we, the common people can adopt, which can enable us to solve this puzzle in our own capacities.

• We have grown accustomed to consume far more electricity than is actually required, in day-to-day activities, and each one of us can voluntarily take active measures to reduce our usage of conventional energy.

A SOLUTION TO THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS

• Energy is going to be scarce in the future, and it would be best for us to prepare and learn to live without excessively depending on it, and the best time to do so is NOW, when we afford to make mistakes and learn from them, and develop concrete solutions to this problem, as opposed to starting later, when we are forced to undergo a sudden transition.

• We, as responsible consumers, need to take voluntary measures to reduce our daily energy needs, and lead a more eco-friendly life.

• The steps may be as simple as minimizing the use of home appliances and gadgets and machines that run on electricity or conventional fuels, or using public transport wherever feasible.

A SOLUTION TO THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS• It would be even more efficient if we could tackle the problem from both

ends, i.e., reduce our consumption of conventional energy, and also produce clean energy by ourselves.

• It is possible to generate some amount of clean electricity by harnessing the energy that we spend in our daily activities like walking, exercising etc.

• A few innovative design changes can enable us to achieve the above stated objective.

• Techniques : • 1) PIEZO-ELECTRICITY

Piezo-electricity offers limitless opportunities to harness energy that we spend in walking.

A SOLUTION TO THE FUTURE ENERGY CRISIS

• Another technique could be the use of smart speed-breakers that convert the weight of the passing vehicles into electricity.

• Even an activity as simple as entering a door can produce clean electricity, by mounting a generator overhead, and coupling it to the axis of the revolving door.

CONCLUSION AND REFERENCES• A combination of such techniques, when implemented on a large scale,

hold the promise to produce considerable amounts of clean energy from the energy that we spend in our daily routine work.

• A determined effort to voluntarily and consciously reduce our dependence over fossil fuels, and simultaneously generate clean energy ourselves, can be immensely helpful in coping with this looming disaster of energy crisis in the future.

REFERENCES : • 1) HTTP://WWW.IMAGES.GOOGLE.COM• 2) Key World Energy Statistics Report, International Energy Agency.

Thank you.