Alternative & Renewable Energy

 

Download the Alternative & Renewable Energy Lecture Presentation

 

Watch the Lecture Videos

Click on the icon in the upper right hand corner to view all of the videos in the Youtube playlist.

 

Additional Resources:

PBS Frontline | 2008 | HEAT | Chapter 7: Two Instructive Lessons from the Past on Corn-based Biofuel | Watch: 1:22:50 – 1:31:00 Minutes

Description: “A far-reaching investigation into America’s energy landscape and what can be done to save our planet – and what it will take.”

 

EIA | 2016 | U.S. Energy Mapping System | U.S. Energy Information Administration

Description: “Welcome to the U.S. Energy Mapping System. Please explore all of the options available to you within the map above. There are many features and options available through the “Layers/Legend” menu including our recommended map views on a variety of subjects as well as the ability to customize mapping layer options that may better suit your energy needs.”

 

Karim Nice and Jonathan Strickland | September 18, 2000 | How Fuel Cells Work | HowStuffWorks.com

Description: “You’ve probably heard about fuel cells. In 2003, President Bush announced a program called the Hydrogen Fuel Initiative (HFI) during his State of the Union Address. This initiative, supported by legislation in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT 2005) and the Advanced Energy Initiative of 2006, aims to develop hydrogen, fuel cell and infrastructure technologies to make fuel-cell vehicles practical and cost-effective by 2020. The United States has dedicated more than one billion dollars to fuel cell research and development so far.”

 

DNews | 2015 | How Hydrogen Fuel Is Made | YouTube | 3:45 Minutes

Description: “Is hydrogen fuel the future of car fuel? How is it made?”

 

ScienceFix | 2010 | Water Electrolysis  | YouTube | 2:58 Minutes

Description: “Two simple demonstrations of water electrolysis. The first demonstration was learned at the 2010 CSTA Conference at Tara Krisch’s (Orange Grove Middle School) presentation on compounds.”

 

Clarity Fuel Cell | Honda

Description: “The Clarity Fuel Cell is the first of three vehicles debuting in the Clarity family. Upcoming models will also include dedicated electric and plug-in hybrid versions”

 

PBS Frontline | 2008 | HEAT | Chapter 8: Carbon Free Power  | Watch 1:31:00 – 1:43:12 Minutes

Description: “A far-reaching investigation into America’s energy landscape and what can be done to save our planet – and what it will take.”

 

Jeff Brady Leigh Paterson, and Lauren Sommer | April 5, 2016 | Solar And Wind Energy May Be Nice But How Can We Store It? | NPR | 4:07 Minutes

Description: “Renewable energy like solar and wind is booming across the country as the costs of production have come down. But the sun doesn’t always shine, and the wind doesn’t blow when we need it to. This challenge has sparked a technology race to store energy — one that goes beyond your typical battery.”

 

NREL | 2014 | Solar Photovoltaic Technology Basics | National Renewable Energy Learning

Description: “Solar cells, also called photovoltaic (PV) cells by scientists, convert sunlight directly into electricity. PV gets its name from the process of converting light (photons) to electricity (voltage), which is called the PV effect. The PV effect was discovered in 1954, when scientists at Bell Telephone discovered that silicon (an element found in sand) created an electric charge when exposed to sunlight. Soon solar cells were being used to power space satellites and smaller items like calculators and watches.”

 

About NREL | National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Description: “At NREL, we focus on creative answers to today’s energy challenges. From breakthroughs in fundamental science to new clean technologies to integrated energy systems that power our lives, NREL researchers are transforming the way the nation and the world use energy.”

 

Mannvit Engineering | 2009 | Nesjavellir Geothermal Power Plant  | YouTube | 4:04 Minutes

Description: “The Nesjavellir geothermal field is a high-enthalpy geothermal system within the Hengill area of SW-Iceland. Construction of the geothermal power plant began in 1987 and the first stage of the thermal plant was commissioned in 1990, following an intensive drilling and testing phase in the 1980s. The last 30 MWe turbine generator unit was commissioned in 2005. Mannvit Engineering of Iceland played a leading role in the design & development of the Nesjavellir Geothermal Power Plant, a combined heat and power plant.”

 

WINDExchange | 2016 | Installed Wind Capacity | U.S. Department of Energy

Description: “This page has maps of the United States that show installed wind capacity by state and its progression.”

 

U.S. NRC | 2016 | Operating Nuclear Power Reactors (by Location or Name) | United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Description: “A power reactor is a facility that makes electricity by the continuous splitting of uranium atoms (i.e., a nuclear reaction). This facility is often referred to as a nuclear power plant. To find information about a particular operating nuclear power reactor that NRC regulates, select that reactor from the map […], or from the Alphabetical List of Operating Nuclear Power Reactors by Name.”

 

DNews | 2014 | Where Do We Store Nuclear Waste? | YouTube | 3:26 Minutes

Description: “Nuclear energy is one of the most efficient forms of energy, but it is also very dangerous. Where do we store the radioactive waste? Trace explains where we store it, and if our current method of storage is safe.”

 

DNews | 2013 | The New Solution To Our Nuclear Waste Problem | YouTube | 2:58 Minutes

Description: “According to some scientists, we must begin using more nuclear power in order to prevent global warming from accelerating. But that creates a huge nuclear waste problem. But scientists at the University of Sheffield think they might have found a very unique way of handing it that could make nuclear waste a problem of the past.”

 

Author Unknown | 1956 | Celilo Falls | Wikimedia Commons | Public Domain | 0:35 Minutes

Description: “Celilo Falls and the Dalles Dam. Excerpt from News Magazine of the Screen Vol. 7 No. 2.”

 

HanfordSite | 2011 | The Hanford Story: Overview | YouTube | 16:43 Minutes

Description: “This is the Emmy Award-winning first chapter of The Hanford Story, a multimedia presentation that provides an overview of the Hanford Site—its history, today’s cleanup activities, and a glimpse into the possibilities of future uses of the 586-square-mile government site in southeast Washington State.”

 

National Centers for Environmental Information | 2016 | Climate Change: Frequently Asked Questions | National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationJustin Gills | November 28, 2015 | Short Answer to Hard Questions About Climate Change | The New York Times

Description: “The issue can be overwhelming. The science is complicated. Predictions about the fate of the planet carry endless caveats and asterisks. We get it. So we’ve put together a list of quick answers to often-asked questions about climate change. This should give you a running start on understanding the problem.”