Physics 161 fourth Homework Assignment

OPTIONAL

If you want to prepare a web page in response to this assignment that would be great. This is not required however.

As always, information relevant to these questions can be found on the World Wide Web. A particularly good search engine can be found at AltaVista - type in a search string in quotes to find exact matches. e.g. "Big Bucks" will return all matches to pages that contain this exact phrase.

Alternatively you could use the library.

Questions:

1. There is a lot of information on the World Wide Web about Wind Energy. Find some places in the country where Wind Energy is now being used in a production mode. How many MegaWatts of power are these facilities generating and what is the rate at which this power is sold to the consumer? (Hint: Try the American Wind Energy Association Web Pages first).

2. There is some potential for GeoThermal Energy production in the US. Go to this site and answer the following questions;

• Approximately how many geothermal facilities are presently operative in the US?
• Where are most of the them located?
• What is the typical power output of a facility?
• What is the estimated US capacity for GeoThermal and how much is presently tapped?

Finally, critically assess whether or not GeoThermal energy is actually a renewable energy source. You may need to consult different information sources to help with this assessment.

3. In recent years, there has been great interest in the use of hemp as a source of energy through biomass burning. In relation to this:

• Find out what the Colorado Hemp Production Act is and when it was enacted.
• Approximately how many pounds of hemp biomass can one acre yield? Is this a profitable venture?
• What are the irrigation and fertilizer requirements for this?

After considering this, assess the net yield of hemp production in terms of the energy it takes to grow it vs the energy it yields. This is not an exact science at all, just estimate it using the information that you found.

4. Find some information on the current performance of electric vehicles in terms of range and power and overall cost. From this information make a determination of the current feasibility of electric vehicles as a transportation alternative. Course Page