Chemical Energy

"This lower-elementary book lays the foundation for readers to understand the form of energy that holds together the atoms in all molecules: chemical energy. After presenting the basics of energy, including how energy systems work and how energy changes form, the text explores chemical energy in-depth in an approachable way that will engage even reluctant readers. Vocabulary boxes throughout define difficult terms, while Think About It and Compare and Contrast boxed features encourage readers to think critically and engage with content, both within and beyond the text."

This book is a beginners introduction to chemical thermodynamics for engineers. In the textbook efforts have been made to visualize as clearly as possible the main concepts of thermodynamic quantities such as enthalpy and entropy, thus making them more perceivable. Furthermore, intricate formulae in thermodynamics have been discussed as functionally unified sets of formulae to understand their meaning rather than to mathematically derive them in detail. In this textbook, the affinity of irreversible processes, defined by the second law of thermodynamics, has been treated as the main subject, rather than the equilibrium of chemical reactions. The concept of affinity is applicable in general not only to the processes of chemical reactions but also to all kinds of irreversible processes. This textbook also includes electrochemical thermodynamics in which, instead of the classical phenomenological approach, molecular science provides an advanced understanding of the reactions of charged particles such as ions and electrons at the electrodes. Recently, engineering thermodynamics has introduced a new thermodynamic potential called exergy, which essentially is related to the concept of the affinity of irreversible processes. This textbook discusses the relation between exergy and affinity and explains the exergy balance diagram and exergy vector diagram applicable to exergy analyses in chemical manufacturing processes. This textbook is written in the hope that the readers understand in a broad way the fundamental concepts of energy and exergy from chemical thermodynamics in practical applications. Finishing this book, the readers may easily step forward further into an advanced text of their specified line. - Visualizes the main concepts of thermodynamics to show the meaning of the quantities and formulae. - Focuses mainly on the affinity of irreversible processes and the related concept of exergy. - Provides an advanced understanding of electrochemical thermodynamics.

This book explains the conversion of solar energy to chemical energy and its storage. It covers the basic background; interface modeling at the reacting surface; energy conversion with chemical, electrochemical and photoelectrochemical approaches and energy conversion using applied photosynthesis. The important concepts for converting solar to chemical energy are based on an understanding of the reactions’ equilibrium and non-equilibrium conditions. Since the energy conversion is essentially the transfer of free energy, the process are explained in the context of thermodynamics.

Commercial development of energy from renewables and nuclear is critical to long-term industry and environmental goals. However, it will take time for them to economically compete with existing fossil fuel energy resources and their infrastructures. Gas fuels play an important role during and beyond this transition away from fossil fuel dominance to a balanced approach to fossil, nuclear, and renewable energies. Chemical Energy from Natural and Synthetic Gas illustrates this point by examining the many roles of natural and synthetic gas in the energy and fuel industry, addressing it as both a "transition" and "end game" fuel. The book describes various types of gaseous fuels and how are they are recovered, purified, and converted to liquid fuels and electricity generation and used for other static and mobile applications. It emphasizes methane, syngas, and hydrogen as fuels, although other volatile hydrocarbons are considered. It also covers storage and transportation infrastructure for natural gas and hydrogen and methods and processes for cleaning and reforming synthetic gas. The book also deals applications, such as the use of natural gas in power production in power plants, engines, turbines, and vehicle needs. Presents a unified and collective look at gas in the energy and fuel industry, addressing it as both a "transition" and "end game" fuel. Emphasizes methane, syngas, and hydrogen as fuels. Covers gas storage and transport infrastructure. Discusses thermal gasification, gas reforming, processing, purification and upgrading. Describes biogas and bio-hydrogen production. Deals with the use of natural gas in power production in power plants, engines, turbines, and vehicle needs.

This volume contains a series of papers originally presented at the Symposium on Polymer Gels organized and sponsored by the Research Group on Polymer Gels,The Society of Polymer Science of Japan and co-sponsored by the Science and Technology Agency (ST A) and MIT!, Japan. The Symposium took place at Tsukuba Science City on 18th and 19th September, 1989. Recognized experts in their fields were invited to speak and there was a strong attendance from government, academic and industrial research centers. The purpose of the Symposium was to review the state of the art and to present and discuss recent progress in the understanding of the behavioral properties of polymer gels and their application to biomedical, environmental and robotic fields. Most of the papers and related discussions concentrated on the swelling behavior of hydrogels and chemomechanical systems, both artificial and naturally occurring, in which external stimuli of a physical or chemical nature control energy transformation or signal transduction. The recent great interest in chemomechanical systems based on polymer gels has stimulated considerable effort towards the development of new sensors and actuators, controllable membrane separation processes, and delivery systems in which the functions of sensing, processing and actuation are all built into the polymeric network device. Artificial chemomechanical systems, through the use of environmentally sensitive polymer gels, are emerging as interesting materials for mimicking basic processes previously only confined to the biological world, and commercially viable applications are also foreseen in the not-too-distant future.

Energy – in the headlines, discussed controversially, vital. The use of regenerative energy in many primary forms leads to the necessity to store grid dimensions for maintaining continuous supply and enabling the replacement of fossil fuel systems. Chemical energy storage is one of the possibilities besides mechano-thermal and biological systems. This work starts with the more general aspects of chemical energy storage in the context of the geosphere and evolves to dealing with aspects of electrochemistry, catalysis, synthesis of catalysts, functional analysis of catalytic processes and with the interface between electrochemistry and heterogeneous catalysis. Top-notch experts provide a sound, practical, hands-on insight into the present status of energy conversion aimed primarily at the young emerging research front.

Thermal, Mechanical, and Hybrid Chemical Energy Storage Systems provides unique and comprehensive guidelines on all non-battery energy storage technologies, including their technical and design details, applications, and how to make decisions and purchase them for commercial use. The book covers all short and long-term electric grid storage technologies that utilize heat or mechanical potential energy to store electricity, including their cycles, application, advantages and disadvantages, such as round-trip-efficiency, duration, cost and siting. Also discussed are hybrid technologies that utilize hydrogen as a storage medium aside from battery technology. Readers will gain substantial knowledge on all major mechanical, thermal and hybrid energy storage technologies, their market, operational challenges, benefits, design and application criteria. Provide a state-of-the-art, ongoing R&D review Covers comprehensive energy storage hybridization tactics Features standalone chapters containing technology advances, design and applications