Can 100% renewable energy power the world? - Federico Rosei and Renzo Rosei

Prevodilac: Ema Maričić Lektor: Tijana Mihajlović

Every year, the world uses 35 billion barrels of oil.

Svake godine svet iskoristi 35 milijardi barela nafte.

This massive scale of fossil fuel dependence pollutes the Earth

Ova zavisnost od fosilnih goriva zagađuje Zemlju u ogromnim razmerama

and it won't last forever.

i ona neće večno trajati.

Scientists estimate that we've consumed about 40% of the world's oil.

Naučnici procenjuju da smo potrošili oko 40% svetske nafte.

According to present estimates,

Prema aktuelnim procenama,

at this rate, we'll run out of oil and gas in 50 years or so,

ovom stopom ćemo ostati bez nafte i gasa u narednih pedesetak godina,

and in about a century for coal.

a bez uglja do kraja veka.

On the flip side, we have abundant sun, water, and wind.

Sa druge strane, imamo na pretek sunca, vode i vetra.

These are renewable energy sources,

To su obnovljivi izvori energije,

meaning that we won't use them up over time.

što znači da ih nećemo vremenom istrošiti.

What if we could exchange our fossil fuel dependence

Šta ako bismo mogli da zamenimo našu zavisnost od fosilnih goriva

for an existence based solely on renewables?

postojanjem zasnovanim isključivo na obnovljivim izvorima?

We've pondered that question for decades,

Razmišljali smo o ovom problemu decenijama,

and yet, renewable energy still only provides about 13% of our needs.

a ipak obnovljiva energija zadovoljava svega 13% naših potreba.

That's because reaching 100% requires renewable energy that's inexpensive

Razlog je što dostizanje 100% zahteva obnovljivu energiju koja je jeftina

and accessible.

i pristupačna.

This represents a huge challenge,

Ovo predstavlja ogroman izazov,

even if we ignore the politics involved and focus on the science and engineering.

čak i kada zanemarimo politiku koja je uključena u to

i usredsredimo se na nauku i inženjerstvo.

We can better understand the problem by understanding how we use energy.

Bolje ćemo razumeti problem ako bolje razumemo kako koristimo energiju.

Global energy use is a diverse and complex system,

Globalna upotreba energije je raznolik i kompleksan sistem,

and the different elements require their own solutions.

a različiti elementi zahtevaju sopstvena rešenja.

But for now, we'll focus on two of the most familiar in everyday life:

Zasad ćemo se usredsrediti na dva najpoznatija u svakodnevnom životu:

struju i tečna goriva.

electricity and liquid fuels.

Electricity powers blast furnaces, elevators, computers,

Struja pokreće visoke peći, liftove, računare

and all manner of things in homes, businesses, and manufacturing.

i sve slično u domaćinstvima, preduzećima i proizvodnji.

Meanwhile, liquid fuels play a crucial role

Sa druge strane, tečna goriva imaju ključnu ulogu

in almost all forms of transportation.

u gotovo svim oblicima transporta.

Let's consider the electrical portion first.

Hajde da prvo razmotrimo struju.

The great news is that our technology is already advanced enough

Sjajne vesti su da je naša tehnologija već dovoljno napredna

to capture all that energy from renewables,

da svu tu električnu energiju dobija iz obnovljivih izvora

and there's an ample supply.

i da postoji velika zaliha.

The sun continuously radiates

Sunce konstantno emituje

about 173 quadrillion watts of solar energy at the Earth,

oko 173 kvardiliona vati solarne energije na Zemlju,

which is almost 10,000 times our present needs.

a to je gotovo 10 000 puta više od naših trenutnih potreba.

It's been estimated that a surface that spans several hundred thousand kilometers

Procenjuje je se da bi površina od oko nekoliko stotina hiljada kilometara

would be needed to power humanity at our present usage levels.

bila dovoljna za snabdevanje trenutnih potreba čovečanstva.

So why don't we build that?

Zašto ne bismo to napravili?

Jer postoje druge prepreke na tom putu,

Because there are other hurdles in the way,

like efficiency

poput efikasnosti

and energy transportation.

i transporta energije.

To maximize efficiency,

Da bi se maksimalno povećala efikasnost,

solar plants must be located in areas with lots of sunshine year round,

solarne elektrane moraju biti u predelima sa mnogo sunčanih dana tokom cele godine,

like deserts.

poput pustinja.

But those are far away from densely populated regions

Ali, one su predaleko od gusto naseljenih regiona,

gde je potražnja za strujom velika.

where energy demand is high.

There are other forms of renewable energy we could draw from,

Postoje drugi oblici obnovljive energije koje možemo da koristimo,

such as hydroelectric,

poput hidroelektrične,

geothermal,

geotermalne

and biomasses,

i energije iz biomase,

but they also have limits based on availability and location.

ali su i sve one ograničene dostupnošću i lokacijom.

In principle, a connected electrical energy network

U principu, mreža električne energije

with power lines crisscrossing the globe

koja se prostire čitavom planetom

would enable us to transport power from where it's generated

omogućila bi nam da transportujemo struju od mesta nastanka

to where it's needed.

do mesta potražnje.

But building a system on this scale faces an astronomical price tag.

Međutim, izgradnja sistema tih razmera imala bi ogromnu cenu.

We could lower the cost by developing advanced technologies

Mogli bismo da smanjimo cenu razvijanjem napredne tehnologije

to capture energy more efficiently.

koja bi stvarala struju efikasnije.

The infrastructure for transporting energy would also have to change drastically.

Infrastruktura prenosa struje bi morala da se drastično promeni.

Present-day power lines lose about 6-8% of the energy they carry

Današnji dalekovodi gube između 6 i 8% struje koje prenose

because wire material dissipates energy through resistance.

zbog otpora materijala od kojeg su žice napravljene.

Longer power lines would mean more energy loss.

Duže žice znače veći gubitak energije.

Superconductors could be one solution.

Superprovodnici bi mogli da budu rešenje.

Such materials can transport electricity without dissipation.

Takvi materijali prenose struju bez gubitaka.

Unfortunately, they only work if cooled to low temperatures,

Nažalost, to rade samo na jako niskim temperaturama,

which requires energy and defeats the purpose.

a to zahteva energiju za hlađenje i gubi se smisao.

To benefit from that technology,

Da bismo imali dobiti od toga,

we'd need to discover new superconducting materials

morali bismo da nađemo novi materijal za superprovodnike

that operate at room temperature.

koji bi radili na sobnim temperaturama.

And what about the all-important, oil-derived liquid fuels?

A šta ćemo sa veoma važnim, tečnim naftnim derivatima?

The scientific challenge there is to store renewable energy

Tu se naučnici susreću sa izazovom skladištenja obnovljive energije

in an easily transportable form.

u oblik u kom bi se lako transportovala.

Recently, we've gotten better at producing lithium ion batteries,

U poslednje vreme smo postali bolji u proizvodnji litijum-jonskih baterija

which are lightweight and have high-energy density.

koje su lake i imaju gustinu za skladištenje struje.

Ali, čak i one najbolje skladište oko 2,5 megadžula po kilogramu.

But even the best of these store about 2.5 megajoules per kilogram.

That's about 20 times less than the energy in one kilogram of gasoline.

To je oko 20 puta manje od energije u jednom kilogramu benzina.

Da bi zaista mogle biti konkurencija, baterije automobila morale bi da skladište

To be truly competitive, car batteries would have to store much more energy

mnogo više energije bez dodatne cene.

without adding cost.

The challenges only increase for bigger vessels, like ships and planes.

Izazovi su izraženiji kod većih vozila, poput brodova i aviona.

To power a cross-Atlantic flight for a jet,

Da bismo pokretali let mlaznjaka preko Atlantika,

we'd need a battery weighing about 1,000 tons.

bila bi nam potrebna baterija mase oko 1 000 tona.

This, too, demands a technological leap towards new materials,

To takođe zahteva napredak tehnologije ka novim materijalima

higher energy density,

sa većom gustinom energije

and better storage.

i boljim skladištenjem.

One promising solution would be to find efficient ways

Obećavajuće rešenje je nalaženje efikasnih načina

to convert solar into chemical energy.

konvertovanja solarne u hemijsku energiju.

This is already happening in labs,

Ovo se već radi u laboratorijama,

but the efficiency is still too low to allow it to reach the market.

ali je efikasnost suviše mala da bi se probila na tržište.

To find novel solutions, we'll need lots of creativity,

Da bismo našli nova rešenja, trebaće nam mnogo kreativnosti,

innovation,

inovacije

and powerful incentives.

i moćnih podsticaja.

The transition towards all-renewable energies is a complex problem

Prelaz na sveobuhvatnu obnovljivu energiju je kompleksan problem,

involving technology, economics, and politics.

koji uključuje tehnologiju, ekonomiju i politiku.

Priorities on how to tackle this challenge depend on the specific assumptions

Određivanje prioriteta pri rešavanju ovog problema

zavisi od specifičnih hipoteza

we have to make when trying to solve such a multifaceted problem.

koje moramo da napravimo kad želimo da rešimo višestruk problem.

But there's ample reason to be optimistic that we'll get there.

Međutim, postoji dobar razlog da verujemo da ćemo stići do cilja.

Top scientific minds around the world are working on these problems

Najbolji naučnici širom sveta rade na ovim problemima

and making breakthroughs all the time.

i sve vreme dolaze do otkrića.

And many governments and businesses are investing in technologies

Mnoge vlade i firme ulažu u tehnologiju

that harness the energy all around us.

koja bi koristila energiju sveta koja se nalazi svuda oko nas.