The Tenth IASTED European Conference on
Power and Energy Systems
EuroPES 2011
June 22 – 24, 2011
Crete, Greece
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Global energy review, and the role of future biofuels and surrogate fuels
Abstract
The current global power use is about 15 TW (annual energy use about 500 EJ), and about 14% of this use is for transportation. The global potentials are as follows: 1-2 TW hydroelectric; less than 1 TW wave and tidal; 70 TW wind; well over 100 TW solar photovoltaic; and much larger amounts in geothermal energy. Air, sea, and long-distance land transportation needs require the use of high power-density powerplants, and liquid fuels of energy density similar to current fossil fuels. Only about 25% of future transportation needs can be met with second- and higher-generation biofuels. In the future we will likely generate surrogate liquid fuels from electricity, derived in turn from sustainable energy sources (wind, solar and geothermal). It is concluded that: we have adequate sustainable-energy supply to meet the future global energy demands; and the real threat is future lack of water and food as a result of unsustainable human population growth.
Biography of the Keynote Speaker
Professor Theodosios Korakianitis (a.k.a. Theodosios Alexander) accepted the Chair of Energy Engineering at Queen Mary, University of London in 2006. From 2001-2006 he was the James Watt Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom. Before Glasgow he was on the faculty of the Mechancial Engineering Department at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. His research concentrates in thermal/fluid sciences and applications on the design of power and propulsion systems, energy conversion systems, renewable energy, engineering systems and components, with emphasis on analysis; design; and their steady, unsteady and transient performance. His personal research concentrates on unsteady thermo-fluid dynamics and unsteady transport phenomena within the above themes. He is active in several international consulting activities.
