Science Of Climate Change And How Combined Cycle Power Plants

Climate change is the most serious issue humankind is facing in the 21th century. Future generations depend on our ability to make the necessary social changes, before reaching the tipping point of irreversibility, which will lead the planet into a catastrophe incompatible with life.

Fossil fuels and other power generates are slowly changing the world. Alternative power sources are slowly becoming more popular in everyday life while the technology progresses. Using these power sources that don’t pollute the atmosphere could be the change in the world that completely changes the way the world uses energy. Engineers and technicians have been producing these alternative ways for years and years. A few, but not limited to consist of: Solar panels, Wind turbines, Wave tech and much more.

Global warming and climate change attributed to increased emission of greenhouse gases have continued to be pressing issues in today’s society since they threaten the stability of the climate, population, and economy of the world (“Meeting the Energy Challenge”, 2007). The challenges associated with global warming and climate change is attributed to the fact that 75 percent of world’s carbon dioxide

As we go throughout life, we use various kinds of energy sources for our needs. Whether it be from solar energy to wind energy, there is a multitude of sources that allow us to do the things we do each and every day. Throughout the world, however, coal and nuclear power have risen to the

Have you heard what is happening to the environment? Like how Greenland loses is 286 Gigatonnes of ice per year! And as of January 22, 2017, it has lost 3778.7 Gigatonnes since 2002! Why you ask? It’s due to Climate change. Climate change is a serious problem in our world, It can either end it or make it prosper that is why I chose to research it. Climate change won’t just effect on a country or continent, it will affect the whole world, and we are a part of that world. So, I decided to research it to see what we as humanity can do about climate change. To help I asked myself more questions such as “What will happen if we don’t intervene?”, “What is the source of the problem?”, “What are our choices as humanity?” After my research, I believe that there is a way to stop climate change and to do that we as humanity need to work together.

Furthermore, generating hydroelectricity does not produce any kinds of greenhouse gases or smog emissions. Finding the balance between an efficient energy source that does not produce any greenhouse gases are crucial, especially in this day and time, where climate change is prominently becoming a large issue not just in Canada but all over the world. Between 1990 and 2013 Canada’s increase in emissions were caused by fossil fuels. Fortunately, there was a slight reduction from 2005 to 2013 and that was from the public electricity sector, for example, by using hydroelectric stations. If canada increased the percentage in which the hydroelectric stations supplied energy to, Canada could potentially cut down on greenhouse gas emissions and smog.

On the same note, the energy revolution spoken of above brings forth another advance in the ongoing global climate situation. The nature of the Kyoto Protocol calls for nations to increase research and eventually semi-convert their energy usage to accommodate for cleaner energy. Products such as solar power, wind power, biomass, geothermal power, and hydropower are now widely being studying to create processes that use less coal, oil, and natural gas in production. Altogether the results have

While this is great to the consumer, the renewable sector’s growth was more stagnant. Attention was diverted to use another greenhouse producing fossil fuel rather than a clean renewable. A trend in U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (2017) data showed renewable sector’s power production since 2008 grew only 5.7% as compared to natural gas production 18%. Another disadvantage to the diversion from renewables is the additional carbon dioxide generated from these additional plants operating. “About 24 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions are related to natural gas in 2011” (Natural gas prices. (n.d.)). The replacement of coal-fired power plants with natural gas has let to a decrease of the green house gases, mainly particulate matter and sulfur dioxide emissions. “Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions produced in the generation of electricity at power plants in the United States declined by 73% from 2006 to 2015, a much larger reduction than the 32% decrease in coal-fired electricity generation over that period.” U.S. Energy Information Administration (2017). This shows that more efficient control equipment can be used to almost eliminate the trace amounts of sulfur dioxide in natural gas.

Efficiency at a power plant is determined by energy conversion rate. This is rate is measured by the input energy source, in this case coal, in proportion to the output, which is the power generated. The less fuel that is required for power generation, the more efficient it is. Efficiency is very sensitive in relation to the amount of carbon dioxide emitted. A single percentage increase in the efficiency of a coal fired power plant yields a 2-3% reduction in the carbon dioxide levels emitted by this plant. The power stations on the upper side on the scale of efficiency may emit up to 40% less carbon dioxide than the average power stations currently installed. The efficiency of power plant improvements include the most cost effective and shortest lead time actions for reducing emissions from coal fired electricity. This is especially true in developing and lower-economy countries

It has been observed through various researches that in the last century, average temperatures across the globe increased by over 1.3°F with an increase of more than two times in the Arctic. (Bates, Kundzewicz, Wu, & Palutikof, June 2008). The results of climate change can also be seen in changing precipitation patterns, increases in ocean temperatures, changes in the sea level, and acidity and melting of glaciers and sea ice (USEPA, 2014).

An  increasing  global  demand  for  energy  is  an  immense  challenge  for  power  producers  around  the   world.   The   International   Energy   Agency   (IEA)   forecasts   that   the   world   economy   will   demand   at   least  40%  more  energy  by  2030.  As  a  result  of  the  fast-­‐‑growing  power  needs  in  emerging  markets   and   new,   cheaper   methods   of   extracting   natural   gas:   the   gas   turbine   market   is   expected   to   rise   substantially  to  accommodate  this.  Recent  studies  from  the  Federal  Energy  Regulatory  Commission   (FERC)   have   indicated   that   natural   gas-­‐‑fired   power   plants   utilizing   land-­‐‑based   gas   turbine   equipment  (known  as  combined  cycle  plants)  are  to  account  for  46%  of  the  new  power  generation   capacity  additions  through  2035  in  the  US  economy.

CO2 is the most significant greenhouse gas, which mainly comes from the use of fossil fuels. Many people feel that content of CO2 in the atmosphere is the main reason for manmade global warming. The main sources of CO2 emissions involve electricity generation, industrial processes, fumes from transportation and commercial buildings and use. Emissions of greenhouse gases, such as CO2, to the atmosphere are expected to cause even more of a significant change in global climate (Davison, 2007). The main focus to try to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is to reduce the amount that is released from coal-fired power plants. Greenhouse gas emissions that involve the productions of electricity come from natural gas production and coal-fired power plant operations. Natural gas production accounts for twenty-four percent and coal-fired power plant operations accounts for seventy-five percent, while the other one percent is caused by other electricity generation operations. The main reason why coal-fired power plants have a higher percentage of emissions is because the sulfur content of coal is much higher than that of other fossil fuels (Jarmaillo et al., 2007). This proves that there is a great need to find an alternative fossil fuel to use instead of coal. Although coal is easy to mine, transport and process for the electricity generation process, it is also the

Carbon Dioxide is the main contributor to greenhouse gases in the global climate change. CO2 is released from power plants and vehicles all over the world. Approximately 62 million cars are registered in the US alone, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. There are also 2,775 power plants in the US alone. 30,000 parts per million of Carbon Dioxide are released from the 700-degree Fahrenheit fumes into the atmosphere from the turbines at Moss Landing power plant along the California coast is an example of the amount of CO2 released from one single power plant. This new idea of technology would reduce the amount of the greenhouse gas CO2 being released into the atmosphere and would capture and store it in cement.

People are inflicting major damage to the Earth's environment, and if we don't do anything to stop the destruction soon, the results could be devastating. Most people know about global warming and think it may be a serious problem in the future. What most people don't understand is that global warming is happening now, and we are already feeling some of its destructive power. Because of the dangerous effects of global warming, alternative energy sources need to be aggressively pursued. Finding and utilizing alternative energy sources may be the only way to combat the increase of global warming.

Also, it has been established that carbon emissions have the major contribution, together with energy, on the process impact in terms of global warming potential