UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Division of Information Technology, Engineering and the
Environment
School of Engineering
MENG 5005 – Energy and Society
Assignment 1
Group 1
Students:
Course Coordinator: Dr Alemu Alemu
Due Date: 29/04/2016
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Abstract
Enhancements made by human civilisation in the twentieth century have been primarily fuelled by
energy sourced from non-renewable, carbon rich sources. This energy has allowed for an
unprecedented rate of development in affluent countries. However the impact that has resulted
from our dependence on non-renewable energy has created consequences of which many are still
unknown. Vaclav Smil’s article “Energy in the Twentieth Century: Resources, Conversions, Costs,
Uses and Consequences” provides an overview of the evolution of humans and their relationship
with energy. In addition, it outlines how we have used energy, as well as how the use of energy has
affected the economic, environmental and social aspects of our world. The decisions made by past
generations have left a legacy that places a large burden on the present and future generations to
resolve. Major changes are required to reverse the anthropogenic effect humanity has placed on the
earth. However, the unsustainable benchmark has already been set by developed nations for
acceptable standards of living and quality of life. As developing countries strive for this same quality
of life, the utilisation of energy will increase dramatically. Without addressing this fundamental
issue, past trends will be exacerbated and the strain we place on the earth will grow. The potential
to reduce and even reverse the impacts of past unsustainable energy consumption still exists
through technological advancements, economic transformations and social adjustments. Although
positive movement in these areas is visible, the rate of change may still not be enough to avoid
irreversible damage to our world.
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Contents
1. Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………1
2. High-Energy Civilisation (Torrin) ………………………………………………………………………………………..1
3. Energy Sources: Appraisals and Production (Torrin) …………………………………………………………….1
4. Conversion and Distribution Techniques (Josiane)……………………………………………………………….2
5. Changing Energy Uses (Josiane)…………………………………………………………………………………………2
6. Energy and the Economy (Liam) ………………………………………………………………………………………..3
7. Energy and the Environment (Liam) …………………………………………………………………………………..3
8. Social Consequences (Nirbachan)………………………………………………………………………………………4
9. The Century’s Legacy (Nirbachan/Torrin) ……………………………………………………………………………4
10. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4
11. References ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….5
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1. Introduction
Since the industrial revolution, humans have been increasingly reliant on energy. Cheap sources of
energy such as coal and oil continue to be exploited in pursuit of higher Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) and standards of living to the detriment of the environment. By 2035, Poinsott et al. (2015)
predicts that energy consumption will increase by roughly 50%, exacerbating the current effects of
energy consumption globally. Smil (2000) explores the relationship humans have with energy,
providing a broad overview of the evolution of energy in society to help explain how energy has
shaped our past and will shape our future. The article discusses the history of various energy
sources, conversion techniques and energy uses. In addition, it explores the links energy has with the
three pillars of sustainability, namely the economy, environment and society. Key concepts
identified in Smil (2000) are explored below, expanding on similarities and differences between the
article and external literature. The conclusion will summarise the relevance of this article in current
literature, and propose potential gaps in the literature that may require further analysis.
2. High-Energy Civilisation (Torrin)
The twentieth century brought about a significant increase in energy use. This was primarily due to
the emergence of fossil fuels that have resulted in an extraordinary growth of both energy
production and consumption. Rapier (2012, p. 18) states that the world became heavily reliant on
petroleum due to its affordability, convenience and energy content. A key factor for the sustained
growth in consumption was due to the technical advances made to increase the efficiencies of
energy converters. Herring (2006, p. 13) provides an example of how replacing carbon filaments with
tungsten in light bulbs cut electricity consumption by 75%.
The United States, Japan and China were three countries in which energy supply surged. According
to Rapier (2012, p. 4), energy was fundamental in developing their economies, with China continuing
to develop substantially. Key outcomes of the development of civilisation due to energy include a
significant increase in personal travel, expanding international trade and faster delivery of
information. Information delivery was significantly influenced by the rise of the Internet in the
1990s, with computers continuing the growth of energy consumption (ed. Clark 2013, p. 33).
Energy has had a hugely positive influence on shaping today’s civilisation. However, further technical
advances are needed in order to reduce reliance on petroleum and continue to develop as a society.
3. Energy Sources: Appraisals and Production (Torrin)
Concerns regarding the continuing availability of fossil fuels were raised on numerous occasions
during the twentieth century. However, new resources, particularly in the Middle East, were
discovered and forecasts regarding reserves were repeatedly increased. In addition, the supply of
fossil fuels increased as methods of extraction became more economical. This view is supported by
Mercure and Salas (2012, p. 332), who state that fossil fuel reserves are known to continuously
expand, even though they are gradually consumed.
In the early 1900s, oil production rapidly increased as new processes were developed, with crude oil
today being the most massively traded global commodity. In addition, the development of pipelines,
natural gas extraction and export has also sustained this increase from the 1980s. Interestingly, coal
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accounted for a 95% share in the global fuel supply in 1900, yet only accounted for 30% in 2000. An
exception to this trend was China, with Lin, Liu and Yang (2012, p. 137) stating that China had
experienced rapid growth and was now the world’s largest coal consumer.
In developing countries, biomass fuels were essential for heating and cooking. Rapier (2012, p. 28)
argues that wood was the cheapest fuel available. Due to crude oil price surges in the 1970s,
renewable energies such as hydro and nuclear power also developed niches but failed to become
significant electricity sources.
Despite new fossil fuel reserves being discovered, it is vital that the contribution of renewable
energies increase. However, the disadvantages ubiquitous to renewable sources need to be
managed and overcome in order to maximise their potential.
4. Conversion and Distribution Techniques (Josiane)
Society in the twentieth century was characterized by changes in relation to electricity and
combustion engines. These changes occurred mainly after WWII, when for example the first
synthetic fuels were developed (Park 2015). After WWII, and during the oil crisis in the 1970s, some
countries started using technologies in order to substitute petroleum. For instance, Brazil has used
alcohol from biomass sources as a transportation fuel since 1925 (Solomon & Krishna 2011, p. 7424).
During the beginning of this century, steam engines were still a relevant driving force. However,
according to Solomon and Krishna (2011, p. 7423), they have been replaced by internal combustion
engines over the past century. Another innovation was the commercial establishment of nuclear
generation. During the 1970s, experts predicted a significant increase in nuclear energy use.
However, several issues such as radioactive waste, growing technology complexities, high costs and
public opposition made that an exaggerated prediction (Grubler, 2012, p. 9). Despite the
technological advancements made in nuclear energy production since the 1970’s, negative
perceptions are still significant today.
5. Changing Energy Uses (Josiane)
Patterns in world energy use have been affected by the transformation of the modern economy.
Declines in energy prices led to a growing share of household energy use. However, as argued by
Schäfer (2005, p. 431), these trends slowed down after the beginning of the industrial revolution and
development of energy-intensive infrastructure, then rose again during the 1990s. Moreover, during
the last century there has been a rapid increase in the energy use of the service sector due to
increasing demand for services such as transportation and leisure activities. This increase and the
ongoing decrease in the intensity of industrial energy were responsible for a decline in the share of
final energy use by the industrial segment in a post-industrial economy (Schäfer 2005, p. 431).
Energy in modern agriculture was transformed during the 20th century as well, with substantial
improvements in the power capacity of the world’s farm machinery and the increased use of
inorganic fertiliser applications. As a result of the growth in electricity and use of fossil fuels, there
was an increase in the average productivity of the agricultural sector (Eckebil 2000). Because of this,
the daily crop harvest is now enough to supply the world’s food demand. However, many people
face health problems because of malnutrition. By contrast, many other people have health problems
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because of obesity (Miller & Spoolman 2010, p. 209). The main cause of these problems can be
related to the uneven distribution of food.
6. Energy and the Economy (Liam)
Links between energy consumption and the economy exist, yet are difficult to model due to the
number of variables. Energy is linked to the economy through an energy intensity index (EI), tying
GDP to energy use per capita. There is a clear correlation when looking at global EI over time, yet
this is not supported when the scale is localised to a country or region. As the economy becomes
more global, the embodied energy of exported products increases. To increase the validity of
localised EI, the embodied energy of imported products should be subtracted from the producing
country, and added to the consuming country (Hong et al. 2007).
Historic trends suggest that EI rises during industrialisation, then peaks and begins to fall as energy
efficiencies, technical advancements and government policies are introduced. Mulder et al. (2014)
agrees, yet suggests this is localised to manufacturing and has identified a continual increase in EI for
the service sector.
Energy is also linked to the economy through cost, with technical advancements and economies of
scale reducing cost over time. The actual cost of energy excludes health and environmental burdens,
which must be factored in to reflect the real cost of energy (Gaterell & McEvoy 2005). The cost of
energy has often been artificially manipulated by governments and large corporations in order to
benefit the company or the greater economy.
7. Energy and the Environment (Liam)
Non-renewable energy has an adverse effect on the environment, causing issues such as
anthropogenic global warming, increased frequency and intensity of natural disasters, and
acidification of the ocean. Biello (2015) reports that current greenhouse gases are increasing to
levels not experienced for 23 million years. The ocean naturally sequesters roughly 25% of these CO2
emissions, acidifying the ocean and causing severe degradation to carbon rich marine life (Anlauf et
al. 2016).
Continuous burning of fossil fuels raises particulate matter in the air, which is directly related to
higher rates of disease. Technologies and policies exist to reduce the impact of pollutants on the
environment such as legislation, electrostatic precipitators and catalytic converters. Catastrophes
such as the recent oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico also have significant acute and long-term global
effects on the environment, yet recent changes in US law allowing criminal instead of civil
prosecution may be a deterrent for energy suppliers, reducing the likelihood of man-made
environmental catastrophes in the future (Uhlmann 2011).
Smil (2000) believes that the gradual decarbonisation of the worlds energy supply by 25% has been
caused by a shift from coal to other sources instead of any concerted action to reduce climate
change. However, considerable effort has been placed on creating more renewable energy in recent
times. The South Australian government created RenewablesSA in 2009 to promote the renewable
energy industry (RenewablesSA 2016). In 2014 33% of the electricity produced by SA came from
wind power, and in brief periods of September 2014 over 100% of South Australia’s electricity
requirements were met by renewables (Parkinson 2014).
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8. Social Consequences (Nirbachan)
The availability of energy now covers the majority of the globe, but individual access to energy is not
even. The inequalities of access to energy depend upon socio-economic groups within both affluent
and low-income groups. However, the use of per capita energy consumption should not be used as a
means to determine wellbeing, as there is no straight relationship between the rate of energy and
quality of life. In 1995, polls showed that people in Germany and Thailand (74% satisfaction) were
happier than people in the United States (72%), with per capita energy use in Germany 175 GJ,
Thailand 40 GJ and the United States 340 GJ (Moore & Newport 1995).
At the start of the twentieth century, around 98% of commercial energy was used by Europe and
North America. However, farmers in Asia, Africa and Latin America did not directly use fossil fuels or
electricity. This trend continued until the mid-twentieth century, where 20% of the world population
consumed 70% of global energy; with the United States alone consuming 25% by the end of the
century (United Nations Organisation 1980). Countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, rural parts of India
and Indo-China countries had a much lower share at around 2.5 % of total energy use. Access to
energy within a country was also affected, with a Chinese city household spending 2.5 times more
on energy than the regional north west during 1990 (ed. Sinton 1996).
9. The Century’s Legacy (Nirbachan/Torrin)
The twentieth century delivered huge advances in energy conversion techniques. However, Smil
(2000, p. 46) proposes that the early part of the twenty-first century will not see any significant new
developments. Rather, it is suggested that this century will see a focus on developing countries
increasing their energy use in order to modernise, while developed countries aim to separate energy
and economic growth. However, Rosen and Dincerb (1999, p. 3) warn that despite improvements in
efficiency, energy will continue to be wasted by prosperous nations.
A significant failure left by the twentieth century is the adverse effect on the environment,
particularly the biosphere. Makarieva, Gorshkov and Li (2008, p.282) state that so-called global
change processes have been registered from the second half of the twentieth century and will only
worsen as energy use continues to rise. However, recent renewable energy advancements have
assisted in offsetting some of these concerns. The 1970s oil price peak started a focus on wind
power, which grew significantly in 1995 (Dennis & Leung 2012, p. 1032). Photovoltaic technology
also grew significantly due to space and terrestrial applications. This has supported a 900% increase
in PV capacity in the past decade, with a 100 MW solar power plant removing 3 million tonnes of
CO2 and 140 tonnes of nitrogen oxides when compared with the cleanest combined cycle plants
available today (Blankinship 2003, pp. 1-2).
10. Conclusion
The reviewed article provides a brief and accurate history of energy within our society, predicting
many social and economic directions. Smil (2000, p. 47) hints that the best way to move forward
while still depending on fossil fuels is to reduce the burden on the environment by ruthlessly cutting
energy consumption through technical means. With global energy demand showing no signs of
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slowing down, a balance has to be found between development and the environment. It is of the
utmost importance that further technical advances are made to ensure a positive legacy for
centuries to come.
Although the required directions outlined by Smil (2000) are supported by external literature, the
article may underestimate the potential for technological advancement. Recent trends suggest that
renewable electricity generation costs will continue to drop as economies of scale take effect and
technology advances (Irandoust 2016). In addition, the accessibility, reliability and capacity of
battery storage may provide the technology required to decarbonise transportation through electric
vehicles, and supply sufficient capacity to the existing electricity grid for base load electricity
requirements (Reihani 2016; Tesla Motors 2016).
11. References
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Biello, D 2015, ‘CO2 Levels for February Eclipsed Prehistoric Highs: Global Warming is headed back to
the future as the CO2 level reaches a new high’, Scientific American.
Blankinship, S 2003, ‘A Sunny Outlook for grid connected PV’, Power Engineering, vol. 107, no. 5,
p.32.
Clark, WW II (ed.) 2013, The Next Economics: Global Cases in Energy, Environment and Climate
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Gaterell, MR & McEvoy, ME 2005, ‘The impact of energy externalities on the cost effectiveness of
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Irandoust, M 2016, ‘The renewable energy-growth nexus with carbon emissions and technological
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Lin, B, Liu, J & Yang, Y 2012, ‘Impact of carbon intensity and energy security constraints on China’s
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Makarieva, AM, Gorshkov, VG & Li, B-L 2008, ‘Energy budget of the biosphere and civilization:
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criminal law’, Michigan Law Review, pp.1413-1461.
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