Energy in the 21st Century - Sarasota County Extension

Roy Beckford
Agriculture & Natural Resources
Agent III
UF/IFAS, Lee County Extension

Coal
Petroleum
Natural Gas
The Carboniferous Period – 350 Mil yrs. ago
http://www.globalfundexchange.com/resources/sectorfocus/traditional-energy

Since the Industrial Revolution,
humans have greatly increased the
quantity of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere and oceans.
Atmospheric levels have increased
by over 30%, from about 275 parts
per million (ppm) in the early 1700s
to over 390 PPM today.
Scientists estimate that future
atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide
could reach an amount between 450
to 600 PPM by the year 2100.
The major sources of this gas due to
human activities include fossil fuel
combustion and the modification of
natural plant cover found in
grassland, woodland, wetland and
forested ecosystems.

Carbon is stored on Earth in the
following major sinks
(1)as organic molecules l in living
i
and dead organisms found in the
biosphere. Anything with carbon
molecules is an organic molecule
(2)as the gas carbon dioxide id in
the atmosphere
(3)as organic matter in soils
(4)in the lithosphere as fossil fuels
and sedimentary rock deposits
such as limestone, dolomite and
chalk
(5)in the oceans as dissolved
atmospheric carbon dioxide ide
and as calcium carbonate shells
in marine organisms.

The carbon cycle is the set of biogeochemical processes
(such as Photosynthesis th and Respiration) by which
h
carbon undergoes chemical reactions, changes form,
and moves through different reservoirs on earth,
including living i organisms such as plants and animals
Photosynthesis: th energy (sunlight) + 6CO2 + H2O C6H12O6 + 6O2
Respiration: i C6H12O6 (organic matter) + 6O2 6CO2 + 6 H2O + energy

Carbon is the main
component of biological
compounds;
The term ‘organic’
synonymously means
‘containing carbon’
Combined with other
elements, carbon is a major
component of many minerals
The carbon cycle sustains
basic life patterns on Earth

Fossil fuel combustion remains the largest contributor
to increased CO2 releases into the atmosphere
Forest clearing reduces the ability of photosynthesis to
remove CO2 from the atmosphere, also resulting in a
net increase
CO2 increases the atmosphere’s ability to hold heat
Global temperature will increase between 1.4 and 5.8
degrees C over the next century as a result of increases
in atmospheric CO2

The Keeling Curve (above right) has been hailed as the most
rigorous and fundamental measure of global change
Source: http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/ch7s7-3-1-
2.html

(Alternative) Renewable Energy Sources
Hydrogen
Solar
Energy
Tidal
Wind
Energy
Alternative
Renewable
Energy
Geothermal
Biomass
Hydropower
10

With 90 500 l l t 42 000 tt h
With 90,500 solar panels, generates 42,000 megawatt-hours
or enough power to serve about 3,000 homes

Lee County Waste to Energy Facility
The facility processes 1,836 tons-per-day of solid waste while
generating up to 57.3 megawatts of clean, renewable energy with
approximately 50 megawatts sold to Seminole Electric Cooperative.

Marine Turbines

Bio-refineries – Vegetable oil
Bio-production - Ethanol

“The use of Vegetable
oils (Bio Diesel) for
engines may seem
insignificant today. But
such oils may become
in course of time as
important as
Petroleum and Coal
tar products of the
present time" - Rudolf
Diesel, 1912

Biomass and Biofuels
UF/IFAS Lee County Focus
• Camelina (Oil)
• Kenaf (Biomass)
• Jatropha (Oil)

Camelina sativa
• A member of the mustard family, is
a summer annual oilseed plant.
• Intercrops well with Jatropha curcas
• Adapted d to cool arid climates
• Camelina has nearly 40% omega-3
• Produces soy meal quality meal
and canola quality oil
• Meal can be used for special high
omega feed for fish, poultry, beef
and dairy cattle, hogs, goats and
pets

Hibiscus canabanus (Kenaf)
• Four cultivars…fiber used as biomass

Kenaf and Carbon Sequestration
• One acre of Kenaf yields 10 tons of
Fiber
• One acre of Kenaf sequesters almost
10 tons of carbon from the air
• Researcher Bill Loftus patented a
building block from kenaf (9 lbs)
• Block is super insulating and fireproof
(mixed with concrete)
• Pilot projects underway in Haiti and
South Africa

Grows well in tropics
Frost intolerant
Wild varieties invasive
in Florida

Large fruit/seed varieties in Paraguay

Oldest technology on
the Earth
Practiced by indigenous
people worldwide
Pulverized charcoal
identified d as a soil
amendment by south
American Indians
Referred to as ‘black
gold’ by Portuguese
explorers

Biochar is produced using pyrolysis, that is,
biomass is super-heated in the absence of
oxygen at high temperatures (350-700° C) in
specially designed furnaces.
The most sustainable feed stocks are what
are now considered waste: excess manure,
wood debris, construction waste, slash from
forest thinning (or land clearing), food
processing waste, residue from methane
digesters or urban tree trimmings.

In this modern method, volatile gasses,
hydrocarbons and most of the oxygen and
hydrogen in the biomass are burned or driven
off and captured, including greenhouse gases
(GHG's).
These captured emissions are known as syngas
(synthetic gas) and can be used like natural a gas.
Liquids, called bio-oils, are also captured
creating another source of energy, leaving
carbon enriched biochar.
The heat generated during the pyrolysis process
can also generate electricity.

DEFORESTATION
AFFORESTATION
Tropical deforestation is
responsible for approximately
20% of world greenhouse gas
emissions.
The water cycle is negatively
affected by deforestation
Shrinking forest cover lessens
the landscape's capacity to
intercept, retain and transpire
precipitation
Damage to forests and other
aspects of nature could halve
living standards for the world's
poor and reduce global GDP by
about 7% by 2050
Tropical afforestation will
increasingly gysequester and
capture carbon dioxide.
The water cycle benefits from
afforestation
Expanding forest cover
increases the landscape’s
capacity to intercept, retain and
transpire precipitation
Investments in afforestation and
other aspects of nature will
stabilize then improve living
standards for the world’s poor
and increase global GDP by 7%
by 2050

Scientists have
estimated that if
applied on a global
scale, such 'bioenergy
with carbon
storage' (BECS)
systems can bring
atmospheric CO2
levels back to preindustrial
levels by
mid-century (2050).

BECS is a biomass
technology or
approach that removes
CO2 from the
atmosphere and at the
same time deliver CO2
neutral energy carriers
such as heat, electricity
it
or hydrogen to society

Recognize that ongoing g changes in climate
and environment conditions raise new
challenges to agriculture, fishing and
forestry
Elaborate on theoretical messages and
practical measures for sustainable
development of agriculture and forestry
under changing climate and environment
Establish partnership between ‘government’
and ‘nongovernment’ to build new
foundations for environmental law, policy,
education and individual incentives for
addressing change.
Source: http://puspitadewi.com/blog/