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Natural gas was used almost exclusively as a source of light. Most of the natural gas in this time period was produced from manufacture coal.
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A revolution occured in the making of wrought iron through the use of furnaces that used coal in Pennyslyvania.
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Daniel Halladay perfected the windmill and the western railroad builders were the first to use the windmill to provide water to the workers.
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Augustine Mouchot was worried about the possibility of fossil fuels running out so he developed a solar powered steam generation system to drive industrial machinery.
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The John D. Rockefeller Standard Oil company formed which gave the petroleum industry technological advances which allowed it to become society's major source of energy for the United States. There was an immense potential for petroleum.
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Thomas Edison built the first commercial electric utility plant in the United States in New York. It covered a square one mile radius.
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The first successful hydroelectric plant was in Appleton, Wisconsin. This was a significant engineering achievement which served a system of private and commercial customers.
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The first geothermal power plant was built in California from the Geysers resort where a geothermal well was drilled and a small direct-current generator was used to provide electricity for the Geysers resort.
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The Hoover Dam was completed 4 years after its construction began and was the largest hydroelectric produce at its time of construction and was until 1948.
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The Argonne National Labratory scientists designed and built the first nuclear reactor in Idaho which only provided enough enrgy for four light bulbs.
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President Ford signed into law the Energy Policy and Conservation Act in order to reduce the impact of sever enery suply interruptions.
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The first wind farm was built in New Hampshire which consisted of 20 wind turbines at 30 kilowatts each. The turbines frequently broke though which led to improved designs.
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The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission approves new nuclear power plants for the first time since 1978. They will be built in Georgia.
