Energy Technology and Directions for the Future

Hardcover  491 pp  ISBN 0122482913      £59.00

• Presents the fundamentals of energy production for engineers, scientists, engineering professors, students, and anyone in the field who needs a technical discussion of energy topics.
• Provides engineers with a valuable expanded knowledge base using the U.S. National Academy of Sciences content standards.
• Examines the energy options for the twenty-first century as older energy sources quickly become depleted.

The technical level of presentation presumes that readers have completed college level physics with calculus and mathematics through calculus of several variables. The selection of topics is designed to provide the reader with an introduction to the language, concepts and techniques used in all major energy components that are expected to contribute to the 21st century energy mix. Future energy professionals will need to understand the origin and interactions of these energy components to thrive in an energy industry that is evolving from an industry dominated by fossil fuels to an industry working with many energy sources.

Readership: undergrad science and engineering students (w/ completion courses in physics and calculus); graduate students and working professionals, esp. engineers & scientists in the energy industry (oil & gas, nuclear, solar, geothermal, etc.)

Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Author

1. Introduction
1.1 Units and Dimensional Analysis
1.2 A Brief History of Energy Consumption
1.3 Energy Consumption and the Quality of Life
1.4 Mechanical Energy
1.5 Dynamics and Energy Transformations
1.6 Energy Professtionals

2. Electric Power Generation and Distribution
2.1 Historical Development of Electric Power
2.2 Electromagnetism
2.3 Elements of Alternating Current Circuits
2.4 Electric Power Generation
2.5 Electric Power Distribution
2.6 Distributed Generation

3. Heat Engines and Heat Exchangers
3.1 Temperature and Composition
3.2 Thermodynamic Systems and States
3.3 Laws of Thermodynamics
3.4 Equilibrium Conditions in the Absence of Gravity
3.5 Heat Engines
3.6 Heat Transfer
3.7 Heat Exchangers

4. The Earth and Geothermal Energy
4.1 Formation of Celestial Objects
4.2 Kant-Laplace Hypothesis
4.3 Evolution of the Primordial Earth
4.4 Radioactivity
4.5 Plate Tectonics
4.6 Fluids in Porous Media
4.7 Equilibrium Conditions in the Presence of Gravity
4.8 Geothermal Energy

5. Origin of Fossil Fuel
5.1 Models of the Atom
5.2 Molecular Biology
5.3 What is Life?
5.4 Spontaneous Generation
5.5 The Miller-Urey Experiment
5.6 Photosynthesis
5.7 Origin of Fossil Fuels

6. Fossil Energy
6.1 The History of Fossil Fuels
6.2 Coal
6.3 Petroleum Fluids
6.4 Petroleum Exploration
6.5 Petroleum Production
6.6 Reservoir Management
6.7 Nonconventional Fossil Fuels

7. Solar Energy
7.1 Nuclear Fusion: The Source of Solar Energy
7.2 The Life of a Star
7.3 Solar Energy
7.4 Passive Solar
7.5 Active Solar
7.6 Solar Power Plants

8. Solar Electric Technology
8.1 Heisenberg€s Uncertainty Principle
8.2 Bohr€s Complementarity and Wave-Particle Duality
8.3 Born€s Probabilistic View
8.4 Nonrelativistic Schroedinger Equation
8.5 Path Integral Formalism
8.6 Tunneling: A Quantum Mechanical Phenomenon
8.7 Interpretation of Quantum Theory
8.8 Photovoltaics

9. Mass-Energy Transformations
9.1 Einstein€s Relativity
9.2 Invariance, Symmetry, and Relativity
9.3 An Illustration from Particle Physics
9.4 Scattering
9.5 The Particle Zoo
9.6 Time
9.7 Relativistic Path Integral Formalism
9.8 Relativistic Quantum Theory
9.9 GUT and TOE

10. Nucleosynthesis
10.1 The Expanding Universe
10.2 Cosmic Radiation
10.3 Astronomical Distances
10.4 The Standard Cosmological Model
10.5 Cosmological Parameters
10.6 The Big Bang

11. Nuclear Energy
11.1 History of Nuclear Energy
11.2 Nuclear Stability and Decay
11.3 Applications of Nuclear Energy
11.4 Availability of Nuclear Fuel
11.5 Environmental and Safety Issues

12. Alternative Energy: Wind and Water
12.1 Fluids in Motion
12.2 Wind
12.3 Hydropower
12.4 The Ocean
12.5 Fractals and Geographical Lengths

13. Alternative Energy: Biomass and Synfuels
13.1 The Synthetic Theory of Evolution
13.2 Evolution: Gradualism or Punctuated Equilibrium?
13.3 Evolution of Humans
13.4 Modern Taxonomy
13.5 Population Models
13.6 Populations and Chaos
13.7 Biomass
13.8 Synfuels

14. Energy, Economics, and Environment
14.1 Energy Conservation and Cogeneration
14.2 Energy and the Environment
14.3 Economics
14.4 Life Cycle Analysis
14.5 Sustainable Development: A Compelling Scenario
14.6 Energy and Ethics
14.7 Energy and Geopolitics

15. The Twenty-First Century Energy Mix
15.1 Hydrogen and Fuel Cells
15.2 The Hydrogen Economy
15.3 Summary of Energy Options
15.4 Forecast Methodologies and Forecasts
15.5 What Does the Future Hold?

Appendices
References
Index