Alternative Energy Resources The Quest for Sustainable Energy [Hardcover]

A balanced introduction to tomorrow's energy sources


Over the course of the next fifty years, there will be a shift in the quest for sustainble energy, including a major change in transportation from internal combustion engines burning petroleum-derived fuels to newer technology engines using new transportation fuels. Alternative Energy Reources examines our options for energy sources with a focus on hydrogen as a large-scale, secondary energy vector parallel to electricity.

As the price of petroleum products increases, the world is scrambling to find a suitable replacement energy source. In this comprehensive primer, Professor Paul Kruger examines energy use throughout history and the exponential expansion of our energy use beginning with the Industrial Revolution through the present day. The book then analyzes the various alternative energy sources available, including renewable energy (hydroelectric, solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal), nuclear, and hydrogen. He addresses each energy source's pros and cons based on our needs, availability, and environmental impact aspects. Finally, Dr. Kruger proposes the use of hydrogen as a fuel to sustain our energy supply produced by appropriate technology mixtures of renewable and nuclear energy.

Foreword xxi

Preface xxiii

1 Human Ecology on Spaceship Earth 1

1.0 Introduction 1

1.01 Axiom 1 2

1.02 Axiom 2 5

1.03 Axiom 3 6

1.04 Philosophical Questions for the Quest 9

1.1 Development of Human Ecology 9

1.11 Major Ages in Human History 10

1.12 The Biosphere: ‘‘Spaceship Earth’’ 10

1.13 Limits to Growth 11

1.2 Summary 13

References 14

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