Energy is a phenomenon that can address the majority of the earth’s unfriendly components which have become a threat to our ecosystem, as well as in creating sustainable, efficient, renewable, green, and cleaner energy. more information on this later. This energy can be converted into multiple forms, including heat, light, mechanical, etc. Energy is either working energy (kinetic) or stored energy (potential).
Fossil fuels are natural resources that have been utilized by energy systems, these fossil fuels were produced when dead ancient plants and animals gradually died and decayed beneath layers of rock. Based on the mix of organic materials present, the amount of time it was buried, and the temperature and pressure conditions that persisted throughout time, different types of fossil fuels evolved over millions of years. Oil, Coal, and Natural Gas are the three basic energy sources that make up fossil energy. The energy mix is the combination of these three sources that are employed in an energy system. The sector of the fossil fuel business mines or drills for these major energy sources burns them to produce electricity or refines them to be used as fuel for either transportation or home heating. The combustion of fossil fuels was the primary source of over three-fourths of the emissions produced by humanity during the last several decades.
According to the United Nations: Energy is a crucial component, and the percentage of people who have access to electricity worldwide grew from 83% in 2010 to 91% in 2020. During this time, there were 733 million fewer individuals without access to electricity than there were 1.2 billion years before.
Website: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/energy.
With the present energy systems, a shift to a clean, yet efficient and sustainable system to serve this wide population is paramount.
The majority of energy systems such as that of the fossil fuels in use today are unsustainable due to their high carbon intensity. Energy sources must be efficient to serve and meet the needs of a wide range of the world’s population, as the current energy system is responsible for 78% percent of greenhouse gas emissions, which are a major cause of climate change. These emissions are released by both natural processes and majorly human activities (e.g transportation, agriculture, etc.). With the rapid increase in the world’s population, there is a need for more dependable and renewable sources of energy that, when used, unlike fossils can be replenished efficiently within a human lifetime.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it will take roughly ten years to make changes to the global energy infrastructure to limit global warming to 1.5C. Climate change has a growing impact on human health and ecosystem health. This is because CO2 emissions are a threat and have caused variable increases in ozone depletion, in-variation in heating and cooling, economic effects, etc. This may be accomplished by addressing the knowledge gaps and the areas that call for innovation and change.
Some individuals used the following terms:
- Energy System: An energy system is a network that links the many energy sources in our universe and transports us from one energy source to the next. One example of a resource that is harvested and processed is natural gas, which serves as our primary source of energy. By transforming and distributing this unprocessed form of energy, the ultimate form of energy is produced. Final energy is the state it is in after being converted into a “usable” substance, such as fuel or electricity.
- Renewable energy: Power produced from renewable resources like sun, wind, and geothermal energy that can be easily supplied.
- Green Energy: A subset of renewable energy that has little to no emissions and has little impact on the environment, especially the land.
- Clean Energy: is power produced from recycled materials without releasing greenhouse gasses.
- Energy Efficiency: Using less energy to offer an item or service is known as energy efficiency. utilized as a standard for modern use.