Energy-Quest
Encyclopedia
Organization
An organization is a social group which distributes tasks for a collective goal. The word itself is derived from the Greek word organon, itself derived from the better-known word ergon - as we know `organ` - and it means a compartment for a particular job.There are a variety of legal types of...
that sought to educate the public about the risks of an impending energy crisis
Energy crisis
An energy crisis is any great bottleneck in the supply of energy resources to an economy. In popular literature though, it often refers to one of the energy sources used at a certain time and place, particularly those that supply national electricity grids or serve as fuel for vehicles...
due to the current worldwide dependence on fossil fuels and the benefits of energy conservation
Energy conservation
Energy conservation refers to efforts made to reduce energy consumption. Energy conservation can be achieved through increased efficient energy use, in conjunction with decreased energy consumption and/or reduced consumption from conventional energy sources...
and the use of renewable energy sources
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
. It intended to do so through a series of three record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
-setting ocean voyages:
- The EarthraceEarthraceMY Ady Gil was a , wave-piercing trimaran, which was originally created as part of a project to break the world record for circumnavigating the globe in a powerboat. The vessel was powered by biodiesel fuel, but was also capable of running on regular diesel fuel...
- The Aurora Expedition
- The Triton Expedition
Started and staffed by university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
student
Student
A student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...
s, the project was endorsed by several organizations and prominent individuals.
The Earthrace
The Earthrace will be an attempt to break the speed record for circumnavigatingCircumnavigation
Circumnavigation – literally, "navigation of a circumference" – refers to travelling all the way around an island, a continent, or the entire planet Earth.- Global circumnavigation :...
the globe in a powerboat
Powerboat
A powerboat is another name for a motorboat. Powerboat may also refer to:* Powerboating* F1 Powerboat World Championship* Offshore powerboat racing...
while using only renewable fuels. It is being supported by over 100 companies, and is led by New Zealander
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
Pete Bethune. Energy-Quest is providing organizational and fundraising
Fundraising
Fundraising or fund raising is the process of soliciting and gathering voluntary contributions as money or other resources, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies...
assistance to the Earthrace in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The Aurora Expedition
The Aurora Expedition will involve an around-the-world voyage in a powerboat which, at 20 ft, will be the smallest vessel of its kind to ever complete such a journey. Due to its limited fuel capacity, the Aurora will rely on advanced fuel-efficientFuel efficiency
Fuel efficiency is a form of thermal efficiency, meaning the efficiency of a process that converts chemical potential energy contained in a carrier fuel into kinetic energy or work. Overall fuel efficiency may vary per device, which in turn may vary per application, and this spectrum of variance is...
technologies for propulsion. Energy-Quest thus seeks to incorporate highly clean and efficient diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
s, solar cell
Solar cell
A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect....
s, and wind turbine
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s into this design.
Aurora will stop at over forty major ports around the world, where she will showcase the cleanest and most efficient energy technologies available at the time, and her crew will promote the widespread use of such technologies. Ultimately, the Aurora Expedition is intended as a stepping stone towards the completion of the organization's final and most important endeavor – the Triton Expedition.
The Triton Expedition
The Triton Expedition will be the first circumnavigation of the world by a boat powered solely by a hydrogenHydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
fuel cell
Fuel cell
A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Hydrogen is the most common fuel, but hydrocarbons such as natural gas and alcohols like methanol are sometimes used...
. Triton will stop at major destinations around the world, where her crew will meet with local political and industrial leaders to promote the importance of alternative energy
Alternative energy
Alternative energy is an umbrella term that refers to any source of usable energy intended to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences of the replaced fuels....
development. Through Tritons voyage, Energy-Quest hopes to generate international media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
attention, and in this way stimulate the development of a renewable energy-based hydrogen economy
Hydrogen economy
The hydrogen economy is a proposed system of delivering energy using hydrogen. The term hydrogen economy was coined by John Bockris during a talk he gave in 1970 at General Motors Technical Center....
.
History
The project was started in the summer of 2005 by Joseph F. Sahid, a graduate of the Phillips Exeter AcademyPhillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy is a private secondary school located in Exeter, New Hampshire, in the United States.Exeter is noted for its application of Harkness education, a system based on a conference format of teacher and student interaction, similar to the Socratic method of learning through asking...
and currently a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. He soon was joined by other volunteers, and an official team was rapidly assembled. The Energy Quest program has been now been discontinued...
Staff
- Joseph F. Sahid - Chairman
- Henry Friedman - Assistant to the Chairman
- Bruno Valle - Chief Endorsements Officer
- Bruce Hilman - Chief Technology Officer
- David Back - Political Officer
- Evan Fain - Communications Officer
- Thomas Dougherty - Outreach Officer
Endorsements
Organisations who officially endorse the Hydrogen Expedition:- Bluewater Network
- National Hydrogen Association of Australia
- Save the Planet USA
- Environment Colorado
- Italian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association
- HydrogenBoyz
- Authentic Travel Magazine