As we begin a new century, world energy consumption is projected to increase by 60 percent from 1997 to 2020. Much of the growth is projected for regions of the developing world. The major bottleneck for the energy sector could result from the future growth of energy demand in the developing countries. Developing countries are experiencing rapid growth in population, energy demand, and the environmental degradation that often results from industrial development. This highlights the paramount need for new energy producing ideas and methods to achieve sustainable energy growth and minimal environmental impact. The oceans of the world represent a relatively untapped resource for both hydrocarbons and renewable sources of energy. Scientists at US Department of Energy at Argonne National Library are answering that call by working to chemically manipulate algae for production of the next generation of renewable fuels.
Many of the world's potential reserves of hydrocarbons lie beneath the ocean. The hydrocarbon industry has developed techniques suited to conditions found in the offshore, both to find oil and gas (known as exploration) and to successfully extract it for human use. The past fifty years have witnessed ever expanding exploration for and exploitation of offshore oil and gas resources. A potential source of hydrocarbon energy from the oceans is methane hydrate, a crystalline solid consisting of methane molecules surrounded by frozen water molecules. This source of natural gas is found in deep ocean sediments and could, according to some estimates, dwarf all the known global reserves of conventional gas. New exploration techniques and energy sources are already improving the scope and success of offshore extraction operations, adding to the world's known resources. While oil and gas represent more than 60 per cent of the world's primary energy supply, advances in renewable energy technologies will continue to play a role in determining the world's energy mix.
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