文档介绍：Green Energy and Technology
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Efstathios E. (Stathis) Michaelides
Alternative Energy Sources
123
Efstathios E. (Stathis) Michaelides
Department of Engineering
TCU
Fort Worth, TX
USA
e-mail: e.******@
ISSN 1865-3529 e-ISSN 1865-3537
ISBN 978-3-642-20950-5 e-ISBN 978-3-642-20951-2
DOI -3-642-20951-2
Springer Heidelberg Dordrecht London New York
Library of Congress Control Number: 2011942743
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To the memory of my parents
Emmanuel and Eleni
Preface
In the beginning of the twenty-first century, our society is faced with an energy
challenge: as highly populous, developing countries e more affluent and as
the developed nations continue to increase their energy consumption, the energy
demand in the entire world has reached levels that cannot be sustained in the
future. At the same time, fossil fuels, which are currently providing more than 85%
of the total global energy supply, are limited and, in addition, their widespread use
has sig