Energy, a Vital Part for Nowadays and Future

I. Energy Problems
As we know, the status of energy is getting more and more serious. The price
of crude oil even reached 70 dollars per barrel last year in the international
market. This is a complex phenomenon. On one hand, the OPEC wants to
hold on the price for their own benefits. One the other hand, with the rapid
development of China and India, their crude oil consuming ability also raise
fast. So the price stays at high level for a long time. But these are not the
reason in essence. The point is fossil fuels are limited. They are unable to
satisfy our dramatically rising energy need in the near future.

The other problem caused by over-consuming fossil fuel needed paying more
attention is pollution. Countless cars run through the highways across the
world, which is driven by the gasoline. After combustion, CO2, NOX, SO2 are
given out from vent-pipe, although we have Pt-Pd-Rh, the three way catalyst to
solve the problem.

CO2 has become a real trouble for our environment system. Global Warming is
threatening those cities which located along the coastlines. And it is said that it
snowed frequently in Shanghai when the winter comes even 15 years ago,
however, it becomes a miracle now. (Some expert insists that it is the weather
changing period, not the CO2 dominate the process of Global Warming, hoping
that is right.)

II. Way to Rush Out

Most fossil fuels will not sustain our consuming for over 100 years. So it is
urgent to find a substituted form of energy.

1. Oil from plants

This is a splendid plan to get oil from reproducible way rather than
non-reproducible way, however, which does not transcend the old system. It
still produces CO2 during the combustion. The other problem is that how much
land we need for these plants to satisfy our energy need. Actually the fossil
fuels underground accumulated for thousands of years, whether the amount
comes from green plants is enough is still in doubt.
2. Water Power
This is also a good way with adequate attention paid to the design of dams.
Any artificial building in the river is a change to this area, which may cause an
earthquake or environmental disaster. In 1980s with the completion of GeZhou
Dam across the Yangtze River, some experts predicted the extinction of
Yangtze River dolphin, and it comes true now.
3. Solar Cell
As we know, all the energy we currently using comes from the sun except for
nuclear energy and terrestrial heat energy. So the best way to get energy is
from the sunshine. Nowadays studies on solar cell are hot. As long as we are
able to raise the transforming efficiency of the cell, this kind of energy form is of
great potential. Energy from wind is of bright future as well.
4. Lithium Battery
We can get energy from wind or solar, that is fine. If it rains today without wind,
what shall we do? So I do think the lithium battery would play an important role
in the future energy system for storage. If we are able to use Li metal as
cathode, materials with high capacity as anode, combined with high
conductivity polymer electrolyte or ion liquid, the foreground is still great.
5. Fuel Cell
For the high efficiency of energy usage, it is also a way to rush out.

III. Another eye on the old system

This is significant to China, even all the developing countries. We are short of
energy on one hand, on the other hand we do not make full use of resources
we have. Like the coal, it is wasteful just to combust. Coals contain much more
than carbon, which also contain benzene and other chemical raw materials. If
we transform the solid coal into gas (CO, H2) or liquid (F-T synthesize), the
problem of energy resources is partly solved.

Since Stone Age mankind learnt to use fire, the first form of energy we can
control, it has been thousands of years, yet we still have a long way to go, still
have a lot to find from the nature.