A review of energy consumed by everyday electrical lighting at home by electronics expert Andrew Porter, from halogen to compact flourescent lamps to the all new electron-stimulated luminescence lamps.

Are we at the summit of the oil peak? Is there a finite amount of fossil fuel energy on the planet, and so, are companies like Shell rushing ahead to replace traditional oil and gas with alternative sources of energy production? What is the future of energy? These were among the questions raised at the Shell – Energy Studies Institute Energy Dialogue during the 2009 Singapore International Energy Week.

“Asia’s thirst for power is to be unquenchable.” This statement from the Financial Times Survey in 1995 provides a clear view of the present energy situation in many Asian countries; and it looks that this situation will remain such for many years to come.

Following the huge success with Earth Hour, the WWF is calling on people and companies to continue with progressive environmental commitments that help reduce their energy consumption and carbon footprint.

Currently, more than 55 percent of the energy supplies in the Philippines are derived from geothermal power, hydropower, biomass, natural gas, local coal, local oil and coco diesel. Thirty-four percent come from other countries while the remaining 10 percent are from imported coal.

A study conducted by the Integrated Research and Training Center of the Technological University of the Philippines and Chemrez Technologies Inc. found that the properties of the jatropha biodiesel they produced were within the specifications in EN 14214 (European Biodiesel Standards) and ASTMD 6751 (American Biodiesel Standards). This means that oil extracted from local jatropha seeds can be converted to quality biodiesel.

In an ideal world, all of our electrical energy would be generated from fully renewable resources, the process would be pollution and loss free, and the original source, the sun, lasts forever. However, until we approach this theoretical ideal, it is important to make our domestic electricity consumption as efficient as possible, use our electrical and electronic products in a manner that minimises power use (thus energy), and be aware of where the power losses are taking place. We can make a significant difference by moving on to more energy efficient products, correctly timing when we use certain products and taking advantage of using low-energy products and lower power settings. It also helps to understand the association between energy and power, and energy transfer efficiency.

Buying electrical and electronic products with energy rating is the first smart move to make. Well done! Next, there are ways to trim just that extra bit of power when using these products, simply by the way we use them.

Andrew Porter takes a closer look at how energy travels from the grid to the road, and argues that electric cars are not necessarily more energy efficient compared to fossil-fuel powered cars. Electricity generation needs to be re-examined to gain greater energy efficiencies.

Say the word "biofuels" and most people think of grain ethanol and biodiesel. But there's another, older technology called gasification that's getting a new look from researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory and Iowa State University. By combining gasification with high-tech nano-scale porous catalysts, they hope to create ethanol from a wide range of biomass, including distiller's grain left over from ethanol production, corn stover from the field, grass, wood pulp, animal waste, and garbage.

Here’s an idea – let’s all stay at home do a bit of telecommuting, save on petrol and save the planet. Right? Sadly, it isn’t necessarily so. Because staying at home demands two key things: 1) a computer at home, and b) a supporting external network (the internet). And you probably weren’t aware but on average a home PC will guzzle up more in a year than your shower heater.