In the current economic market, there is a rapidly growing industry for “green” innovations that will reduce the effects of pollution. Because our ecosystems are beginning to fail and the media are shedding a much-needed light on the situation involving pollution control, many corporations and government agencies are working together to look further into possible solutions.
One focus of the green initiatives lies in the area of renewable energy - energy that can be reused and recycled. The Rhode Island Economic Development Corp. has been experimenting with such energy in the form of high-powered windmills and solar panel energy as a way to power their large plants and hopefully reduce the amount of waste that filters into the waterways around them.1 Even though the transition from fossil fuel to these new energy sources may be expensive, the cost-effective reusable energy has the potential to even itself out within a span of merely a decade. One major problem with solar panels is Rhode Island’s extensive overhead clouds that cut out much of the sun’s energy. However impractical solar energy may be for rainy Rhode Island, it could serve as a forerunner in reusable energy for other, sunnier, areas of the country with high fossil fuel-powered plant density. According to researchers at SolarEnergy.com, solar panels are easy to install and can store enough energy to run for a substantial amount of time even when the sun is not present. The only downfall is that large-scale solar energy projects tend to be tedious and expensive, and therefore have rarely been implemented in modern industry.2 More research into this could result in a feasible solution to today’s air pollution problems.
Ducon is a corporation that is entirely dedicated to the research and finding of new pollution solution innovations. Researchers have developed several systems that aid in even the smallest problems. Some such systems include mercury control systems that deal with mercury pollution, carbon absorbers that eliminate carbon dioxide poisoning, and flue das desulfurization systems that alleviate sulfur exposure in areas where large plants are present.3 Ducon has even developed high-powered emission and opacity monitors to keep track of the amount of harmful toxins being released into the air through their MIP Division .3 Because the company can only do so much in coming up with completely new energy sources for the industry, they have focused much of their research on the control and innovation of energy sources already present. Much of their research is geared toward the control of harmful emissions caused by fossil fuel burning like the popular source found in coal.3 Just recently, a system they developed was tested on a textile plant in South Carolina that was approved by the MACT standards and therefore will soon be distributed for further testing on other plants across the nation. Ducon’s research also expands beyond the borders of the United States into high-polluted areas in Asian territories such as India and China.
Much of the research and development done by Ducon is being mimicked all over the nation and world as the race to find a new energy source and reduce pollution worldwide gains momentum. Solar, wind, and electric power are the forerunners in the “green” race, but with the help of corporations such as Ducon, advancements in conventional energy technology may also be a top competitor. Whether the energy be new and reusable or reinvented conventional source, the advancements in the power plant industry have already begun to change the way we see the world—now cleaner and clearer.
1 Rhode Island Economic Development Corp; www.riedc.com
2 www.solarenergy.com
3 www.ducon.com