Generating a Greener Future
By Lee S. Langston
Combined cycle gas turbines are advancing electrical energy production.
This Article From Issue
March-April 2021
Volume 109, Number 2
Page 80
Powering the world while preserving the planet is a mounting concern. In an effort to decarbonize the production of electrical power, nations and large regions have recently added substantial amounts of wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass power. But these forms of renewable power take time to scale and likely cannot do so quickly enough for rapid decarbonization.
QUICK TAKE
- A fuel’s carbon dioxide emissions are determined by the ratio of the mass of CO2 produced to its heat content. Lower emissions can help slow global warming.
- Coal-fired plants accounted for 76 percent of the U.S. electric power sector’s CO2 emissions in 2014. Natural gas produces significantly lower emissions.
- Combined cycle gas turbines driven by natural gas can reduce carbon emissions today, and they could be adapted to burn emission-free hydrogen in the future.
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