Blog 5: Climate Change

November 26, 2013

            Recent studies show that global emissions of carbon dioxide is slowing down. Even though carbon dioxide is slowing down, coal burning still continues. The world still remains far from meeting international goals on climate change. It is unclear if the slowdown in emissions might represent the beginnings of a new permanent shift. The global carbon project shows that carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels and production of cement rose 2.1% in 2012. Growth in such emissions have been running above 3% a year since 2000.

            Aggressive climate policies in some countries have also had a factor in this slowdown. Emissions are falling in the United States and Europe. Some of the factors that are causing this are, an abundance of natural gas, which is displaces coal in the generation of power, and tougher mileage standards for new cars.

On a global scale, coal is still being overused and expanded. Coal is associated with one of the highest emissions of greenhouse gas. Some countries have set a goal of limiting global warming to 3.6⁰F of preindustrial level. This will require emissions to peak and begin to decline toward a low level by 2050. Negotiations are going on right now to create a new global climate treaty. These treaties however, aren’t going to go into effect for a couple of years. I think that the coal industry should find another source of emitting energy. A more sustainable source. If the coal industries find a new source, they will be creating new jobs for themselves, rather than just losing them.

ARTICLE HERE

"Slowdown in Carbon Emissions Worldwide, but Coal Burning Continues to Grow ." Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2013. <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/19/science/slowdown-in-carbon-emissions-worldwide-but-coal-burning-continues-to-grow.html>.

 

 

Blog 4 Energy In the News

Maggie Fisher

 Blog 4

            Scientist in China just generated a window that can save and generate energy. The window is called a smart window and could lower costs of electric heating and cooling in home and buildings. The windows cause heat to escape in winter and absorbs rays in the summer. The struggle about creating the windows is creating the transparent look. The windows right now generally regulate the sun rays and do not capture as much energy as they could. Gaus team found that Vanadium oxide can be used to create transparency. “Vanadium oxide can be used as a transparent coating to regulate infrared radiation from the Sun. VO2 changes its properties based on temperature. Below a certain level it is insulating and lets through infrared light, while at another temperature it becomes reflective (Industry Week).”  This will cause the warming and cooling effect in buildings and homes.

            Overall I think this is a good energy discovery. It will save a lot of energy while also lowering the cost of energy bills. What happens if it is winter and there is a randomly warm day? In Kentucky that happens a lot. So will the windows respond that quickly? I also wonder how much money these are going to cost. Another question is if the VO2 is going to cause any harmful side effects. In this article I could not find any harmful emissions or side effects the energy windows might have. I am sure scientist are working on improving the quality of the window so that it is also as energy saving as it is at regulating temperatures.

 

Article Here

Reference:

"Scientists Unveil Energy-Generating Window." IndustryWeek Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2013. <http://www.industryweek.com/research-amp-development/scientists-unveil-energy-generating-window>.