Preparing for The Future of Renewable Resources

Introduction

In order to change and start preparing for the future, we need to know about the past and the present. Currently, non-renewable resources include earth minerals, fossil fuels, and earth ores. Many of these non-renewable resources were discovered in the beginning if civilization. The discovery of these resources lead to many years of innovation, the start of the oil economy, and the industrial revolution. Although fossil fuels are still in use today, these fuels create problems for health and the environment. Additionally, we are depleting these resources to their extinction.

Future Transition to Renewable Resources

Since the problems fossil fuels present can be detrimental to humanity, the switch from non-renewable resources to renewable resources is critical to our future on this planet. Every person is affected by the availability of fossil fuels. If change is not made now, there will be no future or survival of humanity. Once we have secured our immediate existence, we can prepare for the future. Preparation includes research, engineering, and the study of future endeavors.

These steps of preparation have been in process for many years. However, the treats of survival from current methods have pushed the envelope. Organizations around the world are working effortlessly to further advance the implementation of new alternative energies. The formulation of new alternative energies creates many problems. These problems can include capital cost, engineering setbacks, and stipulations enforced by the government. Although we are preparing for the future, we can learn how this predicament came to be.

From the begging of time, non-renewable resources have been the main source of energy for many years. Gold Price, a gold investment website, states, “In 3,600 BC, Egyptian goldsmiths learned to derive precious metals (earth minerals) from earth ores.” This area of work is called metallurgy. From metallurgy, gold was produced as well as copper and lead. During these times, gold was not considered rare or finite. In other words, gold held no monetary value, however, gold did display a position in society. Another earth mineral was lead. Lead was used during these times to make water pipes and lining for the inside of tubs. Since lead is not as malleable and sturdy as copper, Egyptians used copper to form garden tools, cooking utensils, and weapons. Despite how useful theses metals were, early people did not value gold, copper, or lead as we do today.

Fossil Fuels: From Discovery to Depletion

Included in the non-renewable resource spectrum are fossil fuels. Fossil fuels were produced unintentionally by fossilized organic matter. Much of this organic matter comes from the dinosaurs, plants, and marine fossils that became fossilized during the Paleogene extinction event. The main resources derived from fossils fuels include coal, petroleum, and natural gas. These three fossil fuels are commonly used today, but, according to Eric McLamb, the CEO and President of Ecology communications states, “...these three fossil fuels had been discovered by the Chinese between the years 981BC-500BC.”

Coal was the first discovered fossil fuel. The Kentucky coal education project, an informational website on the history of coal, mentions, “coal was man’s earliest source of heat and light. The Chinese were known to have used coal more than 3,000 years ago. The first discovery of coal in this country [United States] was by the French explorers on the Illinois river in 1679...commercial mining occurred near Richmond, Virginia, in 1784.” After the commercial mining of coal had formulated, the industrial revolution had taken place. Coal had now provided energy for steamships, railroad engines, the formation of iron, and steel. By the late 1800’s coal was used to make electricity and by the early 1900’s coal had become America’s primary source of energy. Coal had remained as the primary form of energy until the petroleum had made an appearance in the mid 1900’s.

Petroleum was the second discovered fossil fuel in the world, according to Ekinteravtive, an interactive, petroleum educational site, declares “The Chinese had discovered oil in 600 BC, and transported the oil by bamboo pipelines...In America, Colonel Drake Herald had discovered petroleum in Pennsylvania in 1859.” Now with the discovery of oil, an oil economy had come to fruition. Oil had changed everything, machines became faster, engines became stronger, and cars were provided with a new form of fuel. The earliest oil production came in the form of kerosene. Kerosene had replaced “coal-oils” that had previously fueled lamps and by the year 1919, Automobiles, ships, and engines had made the switch to gasoline. Gasoline is the remains of heated petroleum (oil).

The last fossil fuel discovered would be natural gas. According to, natgas, “It wasn’t until 500 BC that the Chinese had discovered the potential to use these fires to their advantage... Britain was the first country to commercialize the use of natural gas. Around 1785, natural gas was used to light houses, and streetlights. Manufactured natural gas of this type was first bought to the United States in 1816, and was used to light the streets of Baltimore, Maryland.” Natural gas primarily contributed to heating homes, lighting streets, houses, and also created a continual flame for the stove and water heater. Also, the Bunsen burner was invented with the help of natural gas. Although we know that petroleum and coal can provide the same equivalencies of natural gas, natural gas provides a cheaper and more affordable fuel than that of petroleum and coal.

Fossil fuels and earth ores are considered non-renewable resources because once we use these resources there is no way to reobtain or reform them back into their previous state. Fossil fuels, as we already know, were deposited into the earth’s crust millions of years ago from the extinction of dinosaurs. Earth ores on the other hand have been in the earth since its formation. Although both fossil fuels and earth ores are considered non-renewable resources, fossil fuels are used as a form of energy while earth ores are used for the formation of jewelry, conduction products, or status symbols (fortune, marital status, engagement, promises, etc....).

Currently, the world as a collective, we use fossil fuels as our primary source of energy. In comparison to other forms of energy, “fossil fuels make up 85.8 % of the worlds energy”, this is in tangent to, BP’s statistical review of world energy 2018. With this information provided, this means only 14.2 % of the world’s energy is renewable, this goes to show how significant fossil fuels are in our everyday life. So although fossil fuels do supply the world with energy, they also supply an array of problems for the future and the present.

Looking into the future, fossil fuels are depleting with no way to replenish them fast enough. Tibia Puiu, a science author, states, “...oil will run out in 53 years, natural gas in 54, and coal in 110 years.” At this rate of depletion there will be no more fossil fuel (energy) to power fossil fueled houses, cars, factories, businesses, hospitals, or anything that requires these types of fuel. This can prove to be very catastrophic for many people who thrive off the use of fossil fuels, whether it’s for their businesses, fuel for transportation, or energy required to run health equipment, all energy-based equipment will be rendered useless.

Present Problems: Global Warming and Environmental Impact

Since we can now see the future of fossil fuels, let’s talk about the present problems we face concerning fossil fuels. Presently, the use of fossil fuels brings us the epidemic of global warming. Global warming is a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth’s atmosphere due to the greenhouse effect caused by the increased levels of carbon dioxide and other pollutants. Fossil fuels are what we call hydrocarbons, hydrocarbons are a carbon based compound that produce carbon dioxide as a byproduct. With hydrocarbons being the primary source of energy and its byproduct, carbon dioxide, carbon dioxide produces the largest greenhouse gas affecting global warming (climate change). If the use of hydrocarbons are not reduced, our ozone layer will gradually begin to deteriorate. After the ozone layer is completely gone, UV rays will be able to penetrate earth at a stronger frequency causing infant deformities, cancer, and a variety of health problems, alongside these problems, we will have temperatures ranging from 120 degrees Fahrenheit – 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Remember, water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit, this is 32 degrees Fahrenheit away from waters boiling point.

Future Solutions: Implementing Renewable Resources

Now that we have discussed fossil fuels and the problems they present, we can now talk about earth ores and how they can affect the present and the future. Earth ores are almost never seen in their natural state of matter unless we mine for them. We normally see earth ores in the form of earth minerals, earth minerals are elements derived from earth ores. For example, how many people have seen the earth ore Bauxite? Probably no one! But if we were to ask, who has seen the earth mineral, aluminum? Almost everyone would agree they have seen some form or shape of aluminum. Aluminum is an earth mineral (earth element) derived from the earth ore, Bauxite, through the processes of mining, refining, and disposal.

Earth minerals such as gold, copper, and lead do not pose such a detrimental effect on the global environment as fossil fuels do. However, the process in which we acquire earth minerals dose pose a threat to immediate environmental surroundings. We acquire earth minerals through the processes of mining, refining, and disposal. Each process creates a specific problem depending on the mineral. The first process, mining, is the physical removal of sub-earth ores. Mining procedures include the use of heavy machines that open large holes in the earth. This procedure harms thriving ecosystems in the immediate area of the mining site. While the mining procedure has taken place and the earth ore is extracted, the refining process takes place. Refining is the isolation process of earth minerals from earth ores. This process uses acidic concentrates to acquire desired minerals. After the desired product is acquired, counter parts need to be disposed creating the “disposal process”. The disposal process consists of disposing of debris at mining sites, acidic solution byproducts, and metal particles from the refineries. These three byproducts, when poorly disposed of, contaminate water sources. According to MIT, an educational institute of technology in Massachusetts, quotes, “Water is contaminated by three ways: sedimentation, acid drainage, and metal deposition”.

In order to avoid global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions, depletion of fossil fuels, water contamination, and health issues, we need to implement renewable resources. We can implement renewable resources into the future; some of the ones that are used today include wind energy, biomass, hydro power, and solar energy. These resources provide an alternative form of energy which can replace the non-renewable forms that we use today. This renewable energy can be produced in many different ways.

The conversion to alternative energy’s is the best way to save the future environment. According to Enerdata, a global statistics website, their world energy consumption chart for 2018 shows that 26% of world energy is renewable. This includes solar energy, hydro energy, wind energy, and biomass fuels. Solar energy uses the nuclear fusion power from the sun and the use of photovoltaic cells to produce electricity. Although solar energy is very promising, initial cost of the product are very high. This can prove to be troublesome for most people. Hydro power, another renewable energy, uses the circulation of water and a pump like mechanism to produce electricity. Even though hydro power does create a lot of electricity, it also endangers wildlife habitats, fish migration, and water quality. Wind energy, the most advanced renewable resource, uses windmills to generate electricity. However, windmills are known to be very noisy and causes a high mortality rate in bats and birds. The last of the four renewables is, biomass fuels. Biomass fuels are produced from the process of photosynthesis from organic matter. Ethanol, a fuel we use for our cars, is a product of a biomass fuels. This fuel is very environmental friendly but does take time to create, this can prove to be an issue when you have millions of cars and trucks needing fuel.

Every renewable energy produces some problem, we need to better our current renewables or introduce some new forms. Although the renewables we have now can be stronger and more efficient, they will still always have their minute problems. Introducing other renewables, that have not yet been implemented, can prove to be beneficial to our survival and the environment. Futuristic forms of energy that can be developed and eventually used include space-based solar power, hydrogen power, and nuclear waste power. Although there are many other forms of energy that can be introduced, these three forms could have the biggest impact on our energy composition and produce no greenhouse gases or pollution.

Potential of Future Energy Sources

Futuristic energy can generate power for the world without harming the environment. The most progressed renewable of the future is, space-based solar. Space-based solar, according to Jeff Desjardins, the chief editor of Visual Capitalist, is, “...fleets of satellites with large reflectors or inflatable mirrors could be spread out in space, directing solar radiation onto solar panels.” Space-based solar would not emit any danger because it’s in space away from ecosystems and produces no byproducts. This new form of energy would be great, but it has a major flaw. The main flaw in this invention is transmitting collected energy back to earth. After engineers can create a receiver powerful enough to receive this energy from great distances, space-based solar will be the world’s source of electricity.

Although we have the possibility to obtain electricity thru space-based solar, other forms of energy will be required. Hydrogen power can generate the power for vehicles, cars, and aircrafts. According to Jeff Desjardins, hydrogen power is, “Fuel cell devices that convert hydrogen to electricity...provide power for vehicles, aircrafts, homes, and buildings.” We know ethanol is a renewable gas, but ethanol needs organic matter in order to be made. However, on the other hand, hydrogen power can produce the same results with the use of the most abundant element on earth, hydrogen. Although hydrogen power has this unique ability to power vehicles and airplanes, hydrogen is only found in a mixture of oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon; scientist is working on ways to obtain mass amounts of hydrogen from this mixture of elements without releasing carbon during the derivation process.

If any alternative resource inventions fall through, we can proceed with other possible inventions. This last alternative energy comes from waste products produced by nuclear energy. Nuclear energy, a powerful non-renewable energy, leaves behind a byproduct which will last for a lifetime (nuclear waste). Nuclear waste power, according to Jeff Desjardins, is the process of, “Fast reactors, an existing technology, can harness up to 95% of the energy nuclear waste generates.” Nuclear waste energy produces the same energy as is original form but does not leave behind a waste product that last for thousands of years. Although there is still a byproduct left behind, this process can be repeated until all byproducts are depleted. Much research is still needed to implement this process as an alternative research.

The switch to renewable resources is inevitable if we desire to exist on planet earth. So how do we preserve the future of humanity? We can preserve the future of humanity by making the switch to renewable resources today! Change will not happen overnight, but we can at least try; we can switch to solar energy, drive electric cars, switch to ethanol fuel, and, avoid the usage of fossil fuels. After protecting our immediate presence, we can start to work on solutions for the future.

Conclusion

Solutions for the future include many prototypes, ideas, and possibilities. Many of the alternative energy ideas for the future have been constructed into small-scale prototypes. Although many prototypes do succeed, they fail when real-life expectations are in place. For example, space-based solar is the most prominent, futuristic form of energy; however, engineers have not passed the distance threshold (space to earth). This will create the need for time and an engineered solution to achieve the required distance needed to make this form of energy viable. After solutions to these problems are applied, then can we preserve the future of humanity.   

Works Cited

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2. Gold Price. (n.d.). The History of Gold. Retrieved from https://www.goldprice.org/history-of-gold.html
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5. natgas. (n.d.). Natural Gas History. Retrieved from https://natgas.info/history/
6. Tibia Puiu. (2020). 3 Fossil Fuels That Will Be Gone by 2070. Retrieved from https://www.zmescience.com/ecology/fossil-fuels-204770123/
7. MIT. (n.d.). Environmental Impact of Hydroelectric Power. Retrieved from https://web.mit.edu/12.000/www/m2016/finalwebsite/solutions/hydro.html
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9. MIT. (n.d.). Environmental Impact of Biomass Fuels. Retrieved from https://web.mit.edu/12.000/www/m2016/finalwebsite/solutions/biomass.html
10. Desjardins, J. (2019). The Future of Energy: Alternative Energy Sources. Visual Capitalist. Retrieved from https://www.visualcapitalist.com/future-energy-alternative-sources/