GAC013 AE2 Draft: Case Study Investigation

Compare and Contrast Two

Scientific Advances

Student’s Name: Wonsuk Kim

Student ID#:

Teacher : Elmer Kang

Due Date: 19 July 2012

Word Count: 1185

Table of Contents
Abstract.................................................................................................................................................................................. 1
1.0 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................. 1
2.0 Methodology ................................................................................................................................................................ 1
3.0 Findings .......................................................................................................................................................................... 2
4.0 Discussion ...................................................................................................................................................................... 3
5.0 Conclusion and Recommendation ....................................................................................................................... 5
Appendix ............................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Reference List ...................................................................................................................................................................... 6
GAC013 AE2 Kim Wonsuk (No Student ID#)

Abstract

There are two scientific advances researched in this report. One is storage method enhancement for

hydrogen and the other one is changing the medium for transporting energy in batteries from metal

wires to carbon nanotubes. The research was done by using the websites containing information about

the related topics. By comparing and contrasting many aspects of these two topics, it is concluded that

hydrogen storage enhancement contributes more to humans than changing mediums in batteries.

1.0 Introduction

Energy is used in everyday life in huge quantities. However, energy itself cannot be stored.

SoTherefore, many methods are being used in order to store and use energiesit. One of the main Commented [j1]: Use a transition word to mean “for
this reason.”
methods is using batteries. There are many ingredients that can be used when in making batteries such
Commented [j2]: Use a pronoun to rename the
as lithium. However, new methods for making batteries keep on emerging. This research is written in subject.

order to search about the benefits that two new technologies for storing energy achieve for humans.

One The first method is by enhancing storage method for hydrogen. The second method to be Commented [j3]: Use an adjective that means
“coming before all others in order.”
introduced is changing the medium for transporting energy in batteries from metal wires to carbon

nanotubes. It is done in order to enhance the speed of charging batteries and also to increase the

energy storage ability. The hypothesis of this report is that hydrogen storage enhancement contributes Commented [j4]: Separate the next independent
clause to for a new sentence.
more to human lives than changing mediums in batteries into carbon nanotubes.

2.0 Methodology

Information for research was first gathered after choosingfrom two data sources from on the reading

list that was given and then reading them. Then, other sources were found via online research. After

that, they were organized in Microsoft Word in a way that clearly showed the important information

that will later on be used for writing this report. All references were gathered from Science Daily and

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Science News, which are reliable websites that can give clear guidelines to address the research

purpose.

3.0 Findings

The research about efficient hydrogen storage was done by Berkeley National Laboratory and it was

published by Physics & Chemistry on March 2011. That researchIt presents a new scientific advance Commented [j5]: Use a pronoun to rename the
subject.
of in storing hydrogen by using a type of flexible composite in nano-size. On the other hand, the

research about extending battery life for mobile devices was done by Professor Eric Pop and his

research team at the University of Illinois and the research was also published by Physics &

Chemistry on March 2011. It notifies a new scientific advance about in developing a kind of what’s

called “ultra-low-power memory (or battery)” that can be charged much faster and use only a

hundredth of the energy used by current batteries.

The two developments that are mentioned were developed in order to address similar problems; the

problems related to saving certain energy resources. For the first issue, freezing the hydrogen was a

strategy to store it in the past in order to prevent explosions and increase storage. Nevertheless,

storing hydrogen was still dangerous because of the easy explosions and also because ofthe pressure

and the energy needed for extreme temperature changes that was required. For the second issue, Commented [j6]: Unnecessary words omitted.
“Needed” and “required” have the same meaning.
before carbon nanotubes, storing energy was dealt done by using metal wires in batteries and it is still
Commented [j7]: Use a more suitable word that
common in our everyday livesnowadays. HoweverOn the contrary, the lives of batteries in mobile means "completed or finished."

devices are so short that charging needs to be done every day. Fortunately, extending the battery life Commented [j8]: Use an adverb to mean at the
present time.
with new ingredients will seem to solve the people’s wish to have mobile devices with batteries of
Commented [j9]: Use a different transition word to
longer lifespan in everyday lives. avoid redundancy.

Both scientific advances share similar branches of science. They both cover nanotechnology,

chemistry, and engineering. That is because they are both developed in order to enhance engineering

efficiency, by using chemistry that requires access to tiny materials in nanotechnology.

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Each of tThe scientific advances each havehas its own contribution to human progress. For the first Commented [j10]: Each is always followed by a
singular verb.
advanceirst, hydrogen storage enhancement develops more environmentally friendly technologies for

generating and storing energy than the modern fossil fuel based technologies by creating significantly

lesser pollution. To explain in details, Figure 1 shows that hydrogen fuel causes no carbon based

pollution. On the other handIn addition, efficiency enhancement in batteries can cut energy Commented [j11]: Use another transition word to
introduce additional information.
consumption and improve any areas that require battery charging.

Figure 1: Emission of carbon pollution by each energy sources.

Reference: “With choices like Biodiesel and Ethanol, what’s the best fuel for your vehicle?” Green Econometrics. Green
Econometrics, 3 October 2007. Web. 18 July 2012.

4.0 Discussion

By comparing the two scientific enhancements, it can be seen that the hydrogen storage enhancement Commented [j12]: Insert a definite article here.

contributes more to human lives than changing mediums in batteries into carbon nanotubes. One

reason is because hydrogen storage enhancement leads to much lesser pollution than nowadays while

enhancing battery mediums can’t do much work in that area. In figure 1, it is clearly shows shown that

hydrogen creates no carbon pollution. This can significantly decrease global warming because much

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GAC013 AE2 Kim Wonsuk (No Student ID#)

of it is created by carbon dioxides from automobiles and other vehicles. By doing that, John Andrews Commented [j13]: This noun doesn’t have a plural
form.
of the School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, at RMIT University says

that "Yet increasing reliance on inherently intermittent and variable renewable will intensify the need

for some kind of energy storage to ensure continuity of supply." What he means is that we need

energy sources that can be continuously supplied without having risks of it running out. Hydrogen is

the best resource for this requirement. That is because hydrogen is the most abundant element in the

universe. It can be easily collected from outer space.

Meanwhile, there have been problems in operating batteries using carbon nanotubes. According to the Commented [j14]: Use an article to introduce names
of institutions.
National Institute of Standards and Technology, there have been continuous failures in the networks of

carbon nanotubes. SoHence, the reliability of this scientific advance is being questioned, making it Commented [j15]: Use a transition word that means
“for this reason.”
hard to identify whether it can bring contributions to human lives.

What’s important is that they each effect quiteaffect different areas of energy storage. Hydrogen Commented [j16]: Use a verb to mean “to have an
influence on someone or something.”
storage development has a larger scale than the changes in mediums of batteries. Not only does

hydrogen storage enhance storage abilities like the second one, but it also creates a new path of

gaining energy. What it means is that battery medium enhancement only increases the efficiency of

using only one source of energy. However, when a the critical point of hydrogen storage technique is

reached, it creates an innovation in the human progress. Suddenly, pollution by fossil fuels can

decrease significantly, solving the many problems that global warming kept on creating. Even mobile

batteries can be changed into hydrogen batteries, making the other scientific advance of this report

become useless. Innovations like those cannot be created by simply enhancing the capacity of

batteries. It might may not seem to be significant in our daily lives. HoweverStill, on the long run, it is Commented [j17]: Use the present tense of the
modal verb.
clear that hydrogen storage development is much more beneficial than enhancing the medium of

batteries.

Accessing data from simply typing words in search engines was inefficient. So,In order to enhance the

effectiveness of the research, all sources except for graphs, were brought derived from Science Daily Commented [j18]: Use a more suitable word that
means "to get or obtain something."

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and Science News. After that, the information was easily found.

5.0 Conclusion and Recommendation

In conclusion, hydrogen storage enhancement contributes more to human lives than changing

mediums in batteries into carbon nanotubes. It is mainly because of the larger scale of benefits that

hydrogen storage enhancementthe former can give than changing mediums in batteriesthe latter. Also, Commented [j19]: Use another noun to rename the
subject that means "the first of two people, things, or
another reason is because hydrogen storage enhancement is better on the long run. It can even solve
groups previously mentioned."
problems outside of engineering problems such as air pollution from due to increased carbon dioxide. Commented [j20]: Use an adjective that means
“because of.”

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Appendix

Figure 2: Energy that each source can make (not the same when considering the storage density in vehicles)
Reference: “With choices like Biodiesel and Ethanol, what’s the best fuel for your vehicle?” Green Econometrics. Green
Econometrics, 3 October 2007. Web. 18 July 2012.

Reference List

“Berkeley Lab scientists achieve breakthrough in nanocomposite for high-capacity hydrogen storage.”
e! Science News. e! Science News, 13 March 2011. Web. 12 July 2012.

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“Building a Sustainable Hydrogen Economy.” Science Daily. Science Daily, 8 December 2011. Web.
16 July 2012

“New technology would dramatically extend battery life for mobile devices.” e! Science News. e!
Science News, 10 March 2011. Web. 12 July 2012.

“Reliability Issues for Carbon Nanotubes in Future Electronics Uncovered.” ” Science Daily. Science
Daily, 17 August 2011. Web. 16 July 2012

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