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--></style><title>Prof. N. Lewis (Caltech)
Seminar</title></head><body>
<div><font color="#000000"><b>THE LABORATORY FOR ENERGY<br>
AND THE ENVIRONMENT (LFEE)<br>
AND<br>
THE DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY<br>
PRESENT<br>
<br>
Nathan S. Lewis<br>
</b>Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering<br>
California Institute of Technology<br>
<br>
<i>Scientific Challenges<br>
in the Development of Sustainable Energy<br>
</i><b>Thursday, May 27, 2004<br>
11:00 am<br>
<font face="Times">66-110</font></b></font></div>
<div><font face="Times" color="#000000"><b><br></b></font></div>
<div><font color="#000000"><br>
Please contact Gretchen for information or appointments.</font></div>
<div><font color="#000000">(guidess@mit.edu or 617 253
9385) </font></div>
<div><font face="Times" color="#000000"><b><br>
</b></font><font color="#000000">This presentation will describe and
evaluate the challenges, both technical, political, and economic,
involved with widespread adoption of renewable energy technologies.
First, we estimate the available fossil fuel resources and reserves
based on data from the World Energy Assessment and World Energy
Council. In conjunction with the current and projected global primary
power production rates, we then estimate the remaining years of supply
of oil, gas, and coal for use in primary power production. We then
compare the price per unit of energy of these sources to those of
renewable energy technologies (wind, solar thermal, solar electric,
biomass, hydroelectric, and geothermal) to evaluate the degree to
which supply/demand forces stimulate a transition to renewable energy
technologies in the next 20-50 years. Secondly, we evaluate the
greenhouse gas buildup limitations on carbon-based power consumption
as an unpriced externality to fossil-fuel consumption, considering
global population growth, increased global gross domestic product, and
increased energy efficiency per unit of globally averaged GDP, as
produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). A
greenhouse gas constraint on total carbon emissions, in conjunction
with global population growth, is projected to drive the demand for
carbon-free power well beyond that produced by conventional
supply/demand pricing tradeoffs, at potentially daunting levels
relative to current renewable energy demand levels. Thirdly, we
evaluate the level and timescale of R&D investment that is needed
to produce the required quantity of carbon-free power by the 2050
timeframe, to support the expected global energy demand for
carbon-free power. Fourth, we evaluate the energy potential of various
renewable energy resources to ascertain which resources are adequately
available globally to support the projected global carbon-free energy
demand requirements. Fifth, we evaluate the challenges to the chemical
sciences to enable the cost-effective production of carbon-free power
on the needed scale by 2050 timeframe. Finally we discuss the effects
of a change in primary power technology on the energy supply
infrastructure and discuss the impact of such a change on the modes of
energy consumption by the energy consume and additional demands on the
chemical sciences to support such a transition in energy
supply.</font></div>
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