The first and utmost issue we feel will have important implications on our

future career as a chemical engineer will be that of energy usage. According

to Professor Richard E. Smalley of Rice University, the Top Ten Problems
Facing Humanity over the next 50 Years has energy identified by him as the
Grand Challenge at the top of the list. Furthermore, The Millennium Project,
a non-profit organisation based in the United States which connects
individuals and institutions around the world to collaborate on research to
address important global challenges, included energy in the top fifteen
issues challenging the globe.
As we gain awareness and become more educated about our inherently
unsustainable way of living, we can see that the world is in a race to move
away from oil and gas as our primary energy source whilst attempting to
meet the growing demands of an expanding population. From the industrial
perspective, this transition will definitely pose a significant impact on the
future career prospects for chemical engineers in the oil and gas industry.
However, this trend does not translate to us losing job opportunities. Dealing
with problem of peak oil and gas will no doubt be one of the greatest
challenges especially with our current way of life. Reducing our dependence
on fossil fuels by transitioning into the use of clean, sustainable, renewable
energy sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydroelectric and biomass
energy generation is necessary. Massive research, development and
infrastructure required are already underway. Continuous development of
enabling technologies to increase energy efficiency in our buildings and in
our living necessities such as transportation are necessary.
Moreover, the UN secretary-general has set the goal for universal electricity
access by 2030, estimated to cost $50 billion annually. By 2050, the world
needs to create enough electrical production capacity for an additional 3.5
billion people. Shell forecasts global energy demand to triple by 2050 from
2000 levels, assuming that the major socioeconomic trends continue. This,
they assert, will require some combination of extraordinary demand
moderation and extraordinary production acceleration." BP forecasts a 37%
increase in world energy demand from 2013 to 2035 of which 96% will come
from emerging economies. Thus, to best prepare ourselves for the future
demands of alternative energies and to perform well in our careers, we can
start doing the following to keep ourselves relevant to the changing energy
industries.
In the shorter term, the focus will be on increasing efficiencies, costs cutting
and clean coal technologies as we transit from fossil fuels to alternative
sources of energy generation. This is just a transient phase where our
learnings can still be applied. What can we can do now is to lay a solid

foundation in our chemical engineering concepts, grab hold of opportunities

for internships and research opportunities. We can also actively participate in
NGOs working on energy issues to stay relevant of development of
alternative energies and to engage with professionals in this field.
In the long run, we must prepare ourselves mentally that as individual
engineers, we can make a difference. Although our actions and contributions
can be limited within corporations, we are uniquely placed to act as agents
of change. We must also prepare ourselves by setting our sights on the
global scale, understanding regional issues pertaining to energy use. For
instance, according to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Asia Pacific
energy demand could double by 2030 and by 2035 the region will consume
56% of the world's annual energy output. Not only must we understand the
demands, we must also acquire knowledge on the feasibility of various
alternative energy options in different countries and the viable options they
are more inclined to. For example, Japan plans to have a working space solar
power system in orbit by 2030, and succeeded in wirelessly sending 10
kilowatts of power over a distance of 500 meters. Henceforth, our chemical
engineering fundamentals can be employed to develop & improve
efficiencies in harnessing renewable energy sources to allow sustainability
and diminish reliance on fossil fuels. For instance, solar cells are currently
considered large and costly. However, we can foresee it shrinking down just
like silicon chips used for our smart phones whilst being able to capture
energy more efficiently. Knowledge from unit operations can be used such as
fluidisation in the processes to produce them, even to the size of solar
glitters!
All these are possible only with the premise that the world is phasing out
fossil fuels for energy and actively working on harnessing alternative energy.
Viability of alternative sources is dependent on many factors such as costs,
political will of government, technical abilities for production and vested
economic interests of oil and gas companies.
In conclusion, as an individual engineer, the best we can prepare and
perform well in our future career in the face of the dynamic and turbulent
energy industry is to actively seek out knowledge and experience, not
remaining static in our discipline. With the right skill sets, there is room for us
to contribute and improve on the current state of technology. However, to
drive towards sustainable use of alternative energy, it is ultimately up to the
people not to lie supine in the face of resources depletion that awaits our
planet.