Energy and Environment: Progress and Existence
Energy Provides Existence and Is Cause for Change (hopefully Progress)
Energy is possessed (thus equilibrium property) by material systems and redistributed (transferred) between and within system(s), due to systems' non-equilibrium, via forced-displacement interactions (process) towards the equilibrium (equi-partition of energy over mass and space); thus energy is conserved (the 1st Law) but degraded (the 2nd Law). Effects are consequences of Causes except at Equilibrium they are equal (reversible). [by M. Kostic].

Kostic's Energy Summary (S) and answers to questions related to the Fundamental Laws of Nature: #1 * #2 * mass-energy equivalence * Mass, momentum, and energy *
"We may only succeed by leading with ingenious educative activities and innovative application activities, and not only by following others in acquiring their existing technology." by M. Kostic

• Plenary Lecture: Kostic, M., World Energy and Future (Related Reference&PPT), EEESD'08-The 4th IASME/WSEAS International Conference on ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, ECOSYSTEMS and SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, Algarve, Portugal, June 11-13, 2008. (PDF)

• Plenary Lecture: Kostic, M., Uniqueness and Universality of Heat Transfer (Related Reference&PPT), HMT'08-The5th WSEAS International Conference on HEAT and MASS TRANSFER, Acapulco, Mexico, January 24-27, 2008.

► An Energy/Resource Conservation and Environmental Sustainability Initiative ► NIU Strategic Concept Papers * NIU Strategic Planning
► NIU Energy Initiatives: Importance and Freedom Field Potentials ► NIU Energy Initiatives: Coal “Clean Energy” by Enhancing Thermodynamic Reversibility and Capturing and Recycling of Carbon-dioxide (PPT)
►Northern Today (Kudos 1/14/2008 and Kudos 4/21/008) and ME News: CEET's Milivoje M. Kostic to deliver a Plenary Lecture at WSEAS-HMT'08 International Heat Transfer Conference. ►ME News (9/12/2007): www.ceet.niu.edu/depts/me/News/newsKostic2.htm
►Northern Today (9/24/2007): Kudos: www.niu.edu/northerntoday/2007/sept24/kudos.shtml ►Northern Today (4/19/2004): Kudos: www.niu.edu/northerntoday/2004/april19/kudos.shtml       

DEFINITION of ENERGY: "Energy is a fundamental property of a physical system and refers to its potential to maintain a material system identity or structure (forced field in space) and to influence changes (via forced-displacement interactions, i.e. systems' re-structuring) with other systems by imparting work (forced directional displacement) or heat (forced chaotic displacement/motion of a system molecular or related structures). Energy exists in many forms: electromagnetic (including light), electrical, magnetic, nuclear, chemical, thermal, and mechanical (including kinetic, elastic, gravitational, and sound); where, for example, electro-mechanical energy may be kinetic or potential, while thermal energy represents overall potential and chaotic motion energy of molecules and/or related micro structure.
"... Energy is the ‘‘building block’’ and fundamental property of matter and space and, thus, the fundamental property of existence. Energy exchanges or transfers are associated with all processes (or changes) and, thus, are indivisible from time." (by M. Kostic)

DEFINITION of ENTROPY: "Entropy is an integral measure of (random) thermal energy redistribution (due to heat transfer or irreversible heat generation) within a system mass and/or space (during system expansion), per absolute temperature level. Entropy is increasing from orderly crystalline structure at zero absolute temperature (zero reference) during reversible heating (entropy transfer) and entropy generation during irreversible energy conversion, i.e. energy degradation or random equi-partition within system material structure and space." (by M. Kostic)

M. Kostic: Work, Power, and Energy article in the Academic Press/Elsevier's Encyclopedia of Energy (C.J. Cleveland, Editor-in-Chief), Volume 6, pp. 527-538, ISBN: 0-12-176480-X, Elsevier, 2004.
M. Kostic, Energy: Global and Historical Background  (Abstract); and Physics of Energy (Abstract), In Encyclopedia of Energy Engineering and Technology (B. L. Capehart, Editor),  ISBN: 978-0849336539, Taylor & Francis/CRC Press, 2007. [Amazon]
NOTE: If PDF file appears blank, use <BACK then FORWARD> browser key to display it, or copy PDF file and then display it!

(wikipedia*discussion1&2&2b*history*popular)*ThermoQuotes*HT(100+)*QnAs

Energy Future Outlook: The two things are certain in not distant future: (1) the world population and their living-standard expectations will substantially increase, and (2) fossil fuels’ economical reserves, particularly oil and natural gas, will substantially decrease. The difficulties that will face every nation and the world in meeting energy needs over the next several decades will be more challenging than what we anticipate now. The traditional solutions and approaches will not solve the global energy problem. New knowledge, new technology, and new living habits and expectations must be developed to address both the quantity of energy needed to increase the standard of living world-wide and to preserve and enhance the quality of our environment. However, regardless of imminent shortages of fossil fuels the outlook for future energy needs is encouraging. There are many diverse and abundant energy sources with promising future potentials, so that mankind should be able to enhance its activities, standard and quality of living, by diversifying energy sources, and by improving energy conversion and utilization efficiencies, while at the same time increasing safety and reducing environmental pollution.

World Energy: At present, most of the World energy consumption is supplied by the fossil fuels (about 85%). However, the proven fossil fuel reserves are limited, and if continued to be used at the present rates, it is estimated that the coal (as used under current conditions) will be depleted in about 250 years, oil in 60, and natural gas in about 80 years. We have to keep in perspective that ‘proven reserves’ refers to the customary and economical ‘mining’ and utilization of fuels, but new reserves and more efficient technologies are being discovered, and make new fuel reserves economical. At present, a substantial amount of World electricity is obtained from nuclear and hydro energy, about 17% and 18%, respectively, and use of other renewable energy resources is increasing, namely geothermal, wind, biomass and solar, as well as development of alternative synthetic fuels, including development of hydrogen fuel cells, etc. It is worth noting that some countries produce almost all or most of their electricity from hydro energy (like Norway, Brazil, New Zealand, Austria and Switzerland), and France produces most of its electricity from nuclear fuel (76%). The nuclear fuel reserves are orders of magnitude higher than fossil fuels, and it does not contribute to CO2 and green-house pollution.

... and Kostic's Energy Vision: A probable scenario … in the wake of a short history of fossil fuels’ abundance and use (a bleep on a human history radar screen), the following energy future activities, in order of practical urgency but all (diversity) are critically important:

1. Creative adaptation and innovations, with change of societal and human habits and expectations (life could be happier after fossil fuels’ era).

2. Intelligent hi-tech, local and global energy management in wide sense (to reduce waste, improve efficiency and quality of environment and life).

3. Energy conservation and regeneration have unforeseen (higher order of magnitude) and large potentials, in industry, transportation, commercial and residential sectors.

4. Nuclear energy and re-electrification for most of stationary energy needs.

5. Cogeneration and integration of power generation and new industry on global scale
(to close the cycles at sources thus protecting environment and increasing efficiency).

6. Renewable biomass and synthetic hydro-carbons for fossil fuel replacement (mobile energy, transportation, and chemicals).

7. Advanced energy storage (synthetic fuels, advanced batteries, hydrogen…).

8. Redistributed solar-related and other renewable energies (to fill in the gap…).

Furthermore, advances in energy conversion and utilization technologies and increase in efficiency, including computerized control and management, contribute to energy conservation, increase in safety, and reduction of related environmental pollution. Actually, per capita energy use in the U.S. and other developed countries is being reduced in recent years. However, the increase of World’s population and development of many underdeveloped and very populated countries, like China, India and others, will influence continuous increase of the World energy consumption (by M. Kostic).

• M. Kostic, Treatise with Reasoning Proof of the First Law of Energy Conservation, Manuscript, Northern Illinois University, 2006-2008.

• M. Kostic, Treatise with Reasoning Proof of the Second Law of Energy Degradation, Manuscript, Northern Illinois University, 2006-2008.
          "A new scientific truth does not, generally speaking, succeed because the opponents are convinced or declare themselves educated, however because they die and the new generations from the beginning learn about it as the truth." by Max Planck (+) [at: Electrons.html ]

• Kostic, M., "Work, Power, and Energy," In Encyclopedia of Energy (C.J. Cleveland, Editor-in-Chief), Volume 6, pp. 527-538, ISBN: 0-12-176480-X, Elsevier, 2004.

• Kostic, M., Energy: Global and Historical Background (Abstract), In Encyclopedia of Energy Engineering and Technology (B. L. Capehart, Editor),  ISBN: 978-0849336539, Taylor & Francis/CRC Press, 2007. [Amazon]

• Kostic, M., Physics of Energy (Abstract), In Encyclopedia of Energy Engineering and Technology (B. L. Capehart, Editor), ISBN: 978-0849336539, Taylor & Francis/CRC Press, 2007.  [Amazon]

• Kostic, M., Irreversibility and Reversible Heat Transfer: The Quest and Nature of Energy and Entropy, IMECE2004, ASME Proceedings, ASME, New York, 2004.(ppt)

• Kostic, M., Sadi Carnot’s Ingenious Reasoning of Ideal Heat-Engine Reversible Cycles, EEESD'08-The 4th IASME/WSEAS International Conference on ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, ECOSYSTEMS and SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, Algarve, Portugal, June 11-13, 2008.

Myths, Facts, and Hype Prius*G-Prius HSD* Prius Power Train

Humanity's Top 10 Problems * Toyota PRIUS Myths, Facts, and Hype ...

Kostic's Energy and Environment related activities and initiatives:*
►Plenary Lecture: Kostic, M., World Energy and Future, EEESD'08-The 4th IASME/WSEAS International Conference on ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, ECOSYSTEMS and SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, (PDF)
►Plenary Lecture HMT'08-The5th WSEAS International Conference on HEAT and MASS TRANSFER * www.WSEAS.org * http://www.wseas.org/conferences/2008/mexico/hmt/ * EEESD'08

►Member of the International Scientific Advisory Board for the UNESCO sponsored 4th Dubrovnik Conference on Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems. (related Northern Today news)  
   ►Energy Everywhere Explained (PPT)
   ►Global Energy and Future (* *)* "World Energy and Future"
   ►"Energy Future Outlook: Importance of Renewable Biomass Energy and Bio-Energy Research" (B&W Handout),
   ► An Energy/Resource Conservation and Environmental Sustainability Initiative
   ► NIU Energy Initiatives - Importance and Freedom Field Potentials
   ►Academic Press' Encyclopedia of Energy: Work, Power, and Energy by M. Kostic
   ►Professional review by Kostic of college-level Thermodynamics textbooks for a major publisher
   ►Important Energy/Mass-System Concepts and the Essence of Thermodynamics, Manuscript, NIU.
   ►Main Thermo-Natural Laws * General Conservation Law: Revisiting the Energy Conservation* (Energy-Climate) * Perception
Physics and Reality by Albert Einstein
MacTutor History of Mathematics: http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/
Eric Weisstein's World of Scientific Biography: http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/ 
Science and Technology for Sustainability Forum * The Sustainability of Human Progress