Hidden energy

• Autores: Fred Pearce
• Localización: New scientist, ISSN 0262-4079, Nº. 3051, 2015, pág. 37
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Pearce talks about the problems of hidden energy. Energy is most obvious when it is kinetic, producing a visible effect such as when people kick a ball or wrench open a door. But energy is also needed to make things, and is locked up, or "embodied," in all sorts of manufactured matter, from a metal pipe to a slice of pizza. Take buying a car--a big purchasing decision that could have a more significant impact on people's carbon footprint than most. Say they've decided to swap their old petrol-powered banger for a new, fuel-efficient version. If their current car was manufactured a decade ago, it might typically pump out about 1.8 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, if they drive an average sort of distance of 12,000 kilometers. If they were to buy the most fuel-efficient model they can find on garage forecourts today, and drive a similar sort of distance, they'd emit about 1 tonne annually, according to company-declared emissions at least.