Energy Efficiency Improvement – Petrochemical Industry Energy is the most important cost factor in the U.S petrochemical industry, defined in this course as the chemical industry sectors producing large volume basic and intermediate organic chemicals as well as large volume plastics. The sector spends billions of dollars on fuels and electricity every year. Energy efficiency…
Introduction to Offshore Wind Energy Offshore wind turbines harness the energy of ocean winds and turn it into electricity. Although land-based wind turbines are prevalent in the United States, there are no offshore wind farms in U.S. waters. However, projects are under development in the wind-rich areas of the East Coast, Great Lakes, and Pacific…
Overview of Solar Energy Solar energy is abundant and offers significant potential for near-term (2020) and long-term (2050) climate change mitigation. Solar energy conversion consists of a large family of different technologies capable of meeting a variety of energy service needs. Solar technologies can deliver heat, cooling, natural lighting, electricity, and fuels for a host…
Sustainable Buildings This course presents the sustainable buildings checklist with an emphasis on the major benefits and approaches to green and sustainable building design and construction. The course materials were developed by a countywide committee consisting of city planning and permitting staff, city recycling staff, local architects, nonprofit representatives, and builders. Many items on the…
Small Urban Watershed Restoration Urban watershed restoration has recently evolved into a growing and sophisticated practice. This course introduces the basic concepts and techniques of urban watershed restoration, and sets forth the overall framework we use to evaluate subwatershed restoration potential. It presents the basic concepts used to restore urban streams, and outlines an integrated…
Enhanced Geothermal Systems Creation and Production An Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) is a man-made reservoir, created where there is hot rock but insufficient or little natural permeability or fluid saturation. In an EGS, fluid is injected into the subsurface under carefully controlled conditions, which cause pre-existing fractures to re-open, creating permeability. Increased permeability allows fluid…