Earlier quoted context omitted.
So make a big enough nuclear plant for those peaks.
AFAIK it's about Xenon poisoning.
Xenon
It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
31–40 of 125 posts
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#32I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Energy storage will enable us to use only clean renewables. While the costs for energy storage aren't falling nearly as fast, they are still decreasing. I anticipate that rate to accelerate
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#33I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Bio fuel isn’t soon-to-be coal, if it wouldn’t get burned it would decompose and release the co2 into the atmosphere just the same.
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#34I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Even if solar can only run a third of the time, that's still a third of our electric carbon emissions taken out, which ain't nothing to shake a stick at.
> what am I missing
Battery storage is a thing and will become much more of a thing
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#35I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Energy storage will enable us to use only clean renewables. While the costs for energy storage aren't falling nearly as fast, they are still decreasing. I anticipate that rate to accelerate
> I anticipate that rate to accelerate
Historical cost declines would agree with that thesis. Renewables will approach a price so close to 0 that the battery storage will be the dominate cost in supplying dispatchable energy (but still a lower cost than fossil fuels). Utility lithium battery storage is already cheaper than the most expensive peaking plants, and the cost model improves as costs continue to decline.
https://data.bloomberglp.com/professional/sites/24/Capture2....
https://about.bnef.com/blog/behind-scenes-take-lithium-ion-b... (A Behind the Scenes Take on Lithium-ion Battery Prices)
https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy19osti/73222.pdf (PDF: NREL Cost Projections for Utility-Scale Battery Storage)
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#36"[Wind and solar are] even close to being competitive with the marginal costs of running the coal and nuclear plants we already have." Is that still true without incentives, green grants, rebates, and tax credits? Because without all of that and with mountains of red tape nuclear still produces energy at the lowest cost, and without emitting any CO2.
Not according to the article.
Unsubsidized solar and wind are both listed as $40 while coal and nuclear are listed as $34 and $29 respectively. The article also mentions that increased solar and wind necessitates batteries but doesn't list a price for those.
> "In the case of both utility-scale solar and onshore wind power, this rate has dropped to about $40 per megawatt hour..."
> "With government subsidies, the average costs of onshore wind ($28 per megawatt hour) and utility-scale solar ($36/MWh) are roughly equivalent to those of coal and nuclear generation ($34/MWh and $29/MWh, respectively)"
> "Third, in order to be able to use more wind and solar power, we’ll need to improve our ability to store that power"
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#37I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
This is pretty much what most people think. Though if smart grids are built and there are huge advancements in battery technology (like way beyond what the Elon hype stuff is), and if our energy demands don't continue to rise at a high rate, then wind and solar can completely solve the problem.
But what you're pointing out is why the IPCC and most climate scientists want nuclear as a stop gap. Because it's better than coal. But then the conversation becomes about nuclear vs renewables, which no one on the nuclear side wants to get rid or even slow the development of renewables.
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#38I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Among other things, when it gets really cheap you can start over-provisioning. Cloud cover sometimes cuts the solar irradiance in half? No problem, just build twice as much solar capacity (and maybe add a HVDC transmission line to the next state over for the high production times)
Wide deployment & interconnection will also erase some of the local variability of, e.g. a cloud passing over.
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#39I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Even if solar can only run a third of the time, that's still a third of our electric carbon emissions taken out, which ain't nothing to shake a stick at. > what am I missing Battery storage is a thing and will become much more of a thing
Batteries are made from metals which have to be strip mined. It's really not any more environmentally friendly
Re: It can make more sense to build new renewable capacity than run old coal plants
#40I don't understand the hype around wind and solar. Or rather I don't see how these technologies can ever be anything more than a minor player in the energy market: These technologies are extremely sensitive to weather conditions which means that other, more stable sources must exist and have "stand by" production cap to produce all the energy these tech won't under bad conditions. If so, what's the point? (I mean in…
Yea it's pretty obnoxious to be told "try not to use so much power during these hours: [when you get home from work - when you go to bed]. This is when we need electricity.