Connections PDF - Electricity and Energy Production

# CONNECTIONS ## HANDOUT - STEM: Electricity and energy ### ELECTRICITY PRODUCTION (examples of emerging technologies) 1. **Microbial fuel cells** - When bacteria "breathe" a chemical reaction takes place which combines oxygen at the chemical level, which causes a flow of electrons. - Thi...

# CONNECTIONS ## HANDOUT - STEM: Electricity and energy ### ELECTRICITY PRODUCTION (examples of emerging technologies) 1. **Microbial fuel cells** - When bacteria "breathe" a chemical reaction takes place which combines oxygen at the chemical level, which causes a flow of electrons. - This can be harnessed to generate electric power. - This process is known to create the MFC (microbial fuel cell). 2. **Betavoltaics** - Nuclear waste is generally considered to be extremely dangerous and not very useful. - However, nuclear particles produced by this waste can be used to capture electrons to generate electricity. - This process is slow, but long-lasting. - For example, one betavoltaic cell can last as long as 30 years, however it will only produce a small amount of energy. 3. **Printable organic solar cells** - Semi-conductor inks can be economically printed directly on a wide variety of objects and irregular surfaces. - This printing is paper thin and can be made using a special printing machine. - These very light organic solar cells also perform better in low light conditions than traditional cells. 4. **Vertical wind turbines** - Roadside turbines can capture the waves of air made by passing vehicles (or regular wind) and produce electricity from it. 5. **Floating solar and wind power** - Electricity can be generated on large bodies of water without having to build supports that are normally required to anchor to the ground. - This way electricity production can be increased by going off-shore. ## SOCIAL and HEALTH considerations - Renewable energy production has the least negative social impacts, and the least environmental impacts. - Non-renewable sources of energy production (fossil fuels and nuclear) pollute the environment and affect local populations. - Renewable energy can provide local employment (economic benefit), better health, energy security, consumer choice, improvement of life standard, community development, job creation and opportunities. - Energy is used to deliver key public services, health and education, improve household well-being, time savings, communication and investments. - Electromagnetic fields (EMF) are produced when electrical energy is transported using high voltage power lines. - Many studies are finding that this kind of energy emitted by various electrical devices and high power transmission can affect human cells and processes in the body. ## STORING ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES 1. **Powerwalls** - Tesla has developed the "Powerwall" which stores energy for later use and provides energy monitoring and metering for power consumption. 2. **Ultracapacitors** - Storing and recovering energy from batteries is a slow process, but by using capacitors, energy can be stored and released very quickly. - This can "smooth out" power delivery during brief surges in demand, where battery energy would respond too slowly. - Therefore, smaller power grid systems can also be effective because of this. 3. **Gravity storage technology** - Pump water into a reservoir using energy (raise the water up against gravity). This energy is now stored in potential energy where gravity can be used to release this energy (by releasing the water) when needed. 4. **Storing energy as heat** - For example, sunlight during the day can be focused and used to heat and melt many tons of salt. - During the night, this stored heat can be used to generate electricity. 5. **Solid state batteries** - Much more energy can be stored this way, instead of using traditional lithium ion batteries. Lithium ion batteries have liquid electrolytes (fluid that allows electrons to flow in them), unlike solid state. - This liquid can be toxic and unsafe as the batteries heat up, and may catch fire. - Solid state batteries are more energy dense, and are a much safer choice, and appear to be in the future for newer electric vehicle (EV) technology. ## ENERGY and SUSTAINABILITY - Sustainable energy is power which can be replenished indefinitely while causing no long-term damage to the environment. - Sustainability can be determined in different ways: - **Environmental sustainability**: means that it doesn't do harm to the environment. - **Social sustainability**: allows for healthy ways of living and decent wages. - **Economic sustainability**: something is practical enough to be worth doing money-wise. - Some examples of sustainable practices involves buying more efficient equipment and devices, which use less energy.