Kye Hong Kevin Park
Extra Credit #2
I choose two particular articles that relate to the value of chemistry to the benefit of the environment. One is a short article about a rechargeable battery driven by bacteria. The other article is about how US can be converted to 100 percent renewable energy country. I chose these particular articles because of what I truly take away from the course. Through this course, I learned the value of chemistry to our environment. Chemistry has a tremendous importance and contribution to our environment. In the class, we have discussed the issue of pollution in the world we live today. The two articles articulate how we can save and benefit the environment through the combination of chemistry and modern technology. By continuing to be innovative, scientists are achieving tremendous steps toward creating clean environmental friendly energy. By being aware of these important achievements, we all can do something about to help the environment.
Summary of Article #1 Storing energy can make renewables more reliable, but current technologies such as lithium-ion batteries are limited by safety issues, high costs and other factors. The researchers combined, for the first time, two separate microbial energy systems: one that uses bacteria to form acetate from electricity and one to convert the produced acetate back into electricity. The researchers successfully charged the battery over a 16-hour period and discharged it over the next 8 hours, mimicking the day-night pattern typical for solar energy production. They repeated this cycle 15 times in as many days. With further optimization, they say the energy density of the microbial battery could be competitive with conventional technologies. Someday it could help us store energy from local renewable sources safely and at a lower cost than current options.
Summary of Article #2
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