Energy: Management, Supply and Conservation

Clive Beggs

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9781136440281
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Construction & Architectural Engineering
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Energy – its source, security, price, and the efficiency of its use, are increasingly important issues for a diverse range of people.

'Energy: Management, Supply and Conservation' is a comprehensive text dealing with the theory and practice of the supply of energy, energy management and auditing, and the design of sustainable energy facilities. It considers the systems needed to create low-energy, sustainable buildings, including passive solar design, energy-efficient heating and air-conditioning, and combined heat and power. In addition the book includes substantial sections on renewable energy, transport energy, and energy economics. This new edition includes the latest in alternate-energy technology, for example wind turbines and solar panels as well as updating important energy values and statistics.

The book's readable style, along with its many figures, tables and worked examples make it an ideal text for courses on energy management, environmental engineering, architectural engineering and building services engineering. It will also be useful as a definitive handbook for professionals in the environmental, construction, utilities and facilities management sectors, as well as being of interest to those involved in sustainability economics and environmental policy making.

Clive Beggs is Professor of Medical Technology at the University of Bradford. He is both a mechanical engineer and a biomedical scientist, who for many years has had an interest in ways in which energy is utilized and consumed. He is an expert in the fields of energy management and low energy building design, with many years experience of the design and installation of mechanical services within the construction industry. He is a well known international speaker and is author of many scientific papers on low energy and environmentally friendly building design. He is a holder of the CIBSE Carter Bronze Medal for his work on desiccant cooling.

Chapter 1

Energy and the Environment

Society in the developed world is built on the assumption that energy is both freely available and relatively cheap. However, there are environmental costs associated with the continued use of fossil fuels and these are causing a reappraisal of the way in which energy is used. This chapter investigates the global use of energy and its impact on economies and the environment.

1.1 Two Worlds

Those of us who live in developed countries take energy very much for granted. Although we may not understand exactly what it is, we certainly know how to use it. Indeed, never before has there been a society, which is as reliant on energy as our own. Consider for a moment the number of everyday items of equipment, tools and appliances that run on electricity – lamps, washing machines, televisions, radios, computers and many other ‘essential’ items of equipment – which all need a ready supply of electricity in order to function. Imagine what life would be like without electricity. Both our home and our working lives would be very different. Indeed, our high-tech, computer-reliant society would cease to function; productivity would fall drastically and gross domestic product (GDP) would also be greatly reduced, a fact highlighted by the power cuts that brought California to its knees in 2001 [1]. Similarly, if oil supplies ceased, then the fabric of our society would very quickly fall apart. Those living in the UK may remember the events of September 2000, when a relatively small number of ‘fuel protesters’ managed to almost stop petroleum supplies to the UK’s petrol stations, resulting in the economy grinding to a halt within days; people could not get to work and the supermarkets ran out of food. Those in the UK with longer memories might also recall how a combination of striking coal miners, power workers and crude oil price rises in the 1970s brought the UK to a standstill; electricity power cuts were commonplace, vehicle speed restrictions were introduced, and ultimately the government was forced to introduce a three-day working week in order to save energy. Clearly, although all too often taken for granted, cheap and available energy is essential to the running of any advanced industrialized society. Understanding the nature of energy, its supply and its utilization is therefore a subject of great importance. For without energy we in the developed world face an uncertain future.

To some reading this book, the society that has just been described may seem alien. Those living in developing countries will be all too aware that energy is a very finite resource. In many poorer countries, electricity is supplied only to major towns, and even then, power cuts are commonplace. This not only reduces the quality of life of those living in such countries, but also hampers productivity and ultimately ensures that those countries have a low GDP. If you live in one of these poorer nations, then you are in the majority – a majority of the world’s population that consumes the minority of its energy. This is indeed a great paradox. One-third of the world’s population lives in a consumer society which squanders energy all too easily, while the other two-thirds live in countries which are often unable to secure enough energy to grow economically – a fact highlighted by the USA which consumes approximately 21% of the all world’s primary energy [2], while having only about 4% of the world’s population.

The inequalities between developed and developing countries are real and should be cause for great concern to the whole world. Unfortunately, political self-interest is often much stronger than altruism, and the gap between the rich and the poor nations has widened in recent years. However, when confronted with unpalatable facts about gross inequalities between rich and poor nations, our usual response is to assume that the problem is altogether too large to solve and to forget about it. After all, most of us have many other pressing needs and problems to worry about. This, of course, is a very understandable response. However, forgetting about the problem does not mean that it will go away. In fact, the reality is that as the economies of the developing world grow, so their demand for energy will also grow. This will increase pressure on the Earth’s dwindling supply of fossil fuel and will also increase greenhouse gas emissions and atmospheric pollution in general. It is worth remembering that the Earth is a relatively small place and that atmospheric pollution is no respecter of national boundaries. Indeed, issues such as climate change and third-world debt are now impinging on the comfort and security of the developed world. Indeed, it is the perceived threat of global climate change that has been the driving force behind all the intergovernmental environmental summits of the late twentieth century. In historical terms, the summits at Montreal, Rio and Kyoto were unique – never before had so many nations sat down together to discuss the impact of humans on the environment. In fact, it could truthfully be said that never before in the history of the world have so many sat down together to discuss the weather! Collectively these summits produced protocols which set targets for reducing ozone depletion and greenhouse gas emissions, and have forced governments around the world to reappraise policies on energy supply and consumption. The collective agreements signed at these summits have impacted, to varying degrees, on the signatory nations and manifest themselves in a variety of ways. For example, in the UK, a large proportion of the electricity supply sector has switched from coal, a high carbon intensity fuel, to natural gas, which has a much lower carbon content. In the construction industry, so-called ‘green buildings’ are being erected which are passively ventilated and cooled with the express intention of minimizing energy consumption and eliminating the use of harmful refrigerants. In addition, the high-profile nature of the various intergovernmental summits has meant that concern about energy and its utilization is now at the forefront of public consciousness.

Because most lay people focus on the consumption of energy it is often forgotten that the supply of energy is itself a large and important sector of the world’s economy. For example, the energy industry in the UK is worth 5% of GDP and employs 4% of the industrial workforce (1999 data) [3], making it one of the largest industries in the UK. The energy supply sector is also very multinational in nature. For example, crude oil is transported all around the globe, with a total of 52,561 barrels being transported daily in 2006 alone [2]. Similarly, large quantities of natural gas are piped daily over long distances and across many international borders, and electricity is traded between nations on a daily basis. Given the size of the energy supply industry, its multinational nature and its importance to the world economy, it should come as no surprise that many parties have a vested interest in promoting energy consumption and that this often leads to conflict with those driven by environmental considerations.

1.2 Politics and Self-Interest

Any serious investigation of the subject of energy supply and conservation soon reveals that it is impossible to separate the ‘technical’ aspects of the subject from the ‘politics’ that surround it. This is because the two are intertwined; an available energy supply is the cornerstone of any economy and politicians are extremely interested in how economies perform. Politicians like short-term solutions and are reluctant to introduce measures that will make them unpopular. Also, many political parties rely on funding from commercial organizations. Consequently, political self-interest often runs counter to collective reason. For example, in many countries (although not all), politicians who put forward policies which promote congestion charging, or petrol price increases, become unpopular, and are soon voted out of office. As a result, measures which might at first sight appear to be extremely sensible are discarded or watered down due to political self-interest. It is of course far too easy to blame politicians for hypocrisy, while ignoring the fact that we as individuals are also often culpable. Consider the case of a rapidly growing large city which has traffic congestion problems; journey times are long and air quality is poor. Clearly the quality of life of all those in the city is suffering due to the road congestion. The solution is obvious. People need to stop using their cars and switch to public transport. If questioned on the subject, car drivers will probably agree that the city is too congested and that something should be done to reduce the number of cars on the roads. However, when it is suggested that they, as individuals, should stop using their own cars, then self-interest tends to win over reason; objections are raised, sometimes violently, that such a measure is too extreme and that the freedom of the individual is being compromised. From this we can only conclude that it is impossible for politicians alone to bring about changes in ‘energy politics’ without changes in public opinion. In many ways it is true to say that we all get the leaders we deserve!

The road congestion example discussed above is a good illustration of the contradiction between reason and self-interest, which is often manifest within individuals. However, exactly the same contradiction is often all too evident at a governmental and international level. When it comes to environmental issues, governments often refuse to implement sound policies because in so doing they might inhibit economic growth. To those concerned with environmental issues, the idea of putting national ‘self-interest’ before the environmental health of the planet might seem absurd. However, the issue is not as clear-cut as it would appear at first sight. There is a strong link between energy consumption and GDP. Without a cheap and available energy supply, the economic growth of many nations will be restricted. Consequently, any enforced reduction in GDP due to environmental control measures is going to be much more painful to the inhabitants of poorer countries than an equivalent cut in a developed country. Indeed, to many poorer nations, the notion of rich, developed countries telling them to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is hypocritical; after all, the advanced nations of North America and Europe only became rich through intensive manufacturing. Since the eighteenth century, the developed countries have consumed large amounts of primary energy and produced high levels of pollution. So in the twenty-first century when – having created many environmental problems – these same nations turn to their poorer neighbours and expect them to restrict economic growth in the name of environmentalism, it is not surprising that to many in the developing world this approach appears high-handed. Therefore, perhaps it is up to those of us in the developed world to lead by example and alter our approach towards energy consumption.

1.2.1 Human Nature

From the discussion above it is clear that the management and conservation of energy is strongly influenced by the collective mindset of society. With respect to this, we cannot ignore the role played by human nature, as it influences both politicians and consumers alike, and does not necessarily lead to outcomes that benefit either society or the environment. Consider, for example, the case of Easter Island, a small and remote rocky outcrop in the Pacific Ocean. As one commentator has aptly pointed out:

The Easter Islanders, aware that they were almost completely isolated from the rest of the world, must surely have realized that their very existence depended on the limited resources of a small island. After all, it was small enough for them to walk round the entire island in a day or so and see for themselves what was happening to the forests. Yet they were unable to devise a system that allowed them to find the right balance with their environment. [4]

Faced with dwindling timber resources, the ancient tribal groups on Easter Island fought each other for control of supply and ultimately consumed all the timber on the island, with disastrous consequences for their society. Unfortunately, rather than acting cooperatively, societies, groups and individuals tend to act out of self-interest and consume as much as they can. This has led some to postulate that all societies evolve to degrade as much energy as possible. Consequently, governments, societies and individuals tend to use their power (be it political, military or financial) to maximize their consumption of energy and other finite resources. One only has to look at the global conflicts of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries to see that many have considered scarce commodities well worth fighting over. Indeed, in 1999 US Secretary of Energy, Bill Richardson, stated:

Oil has literally made foreign and security policy for decades. Just since the turn of this century, it has provok...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Chapter 1: Energy and the Environment
• Chapter 2: Utility Companies and Energy Supply
• Chapter 3: Competition in Energy Supply
• Chapter 4: Energy and Transport
• Chapter 5: Renewable Energy
• Chapter 6: Energy Analysis Techniques
• Chapter 7: Energy Audits and Surveys
• Chapter 8: Project Investment Appraisal
• Chapter 9: Energy Monitoring, Targeting and Waste Avoidance
• Chapter 10: Energy Efficient Heating
• Chapter 11: Waste Heat Recovery
• Chapter 12: Combined Heat and Power
• Chapter 13: Energy Efficient Air Conditioning and Mechanical Ventilation
• Chapter 14: Energy Efficient Electrical Services
• Chapter 15: Passive Solar and Low Energy Building Design
• Appendix 1
• Appendix 2
• Appendix 3
• Index