Wiru_The_Wexican t1_j0532bb wrote
Reply to comment by Direct-Ad-7922 in World to deploy as much renewable energy in the next five years as the last 20 by CobaltEmu
My joke comment aside, I think while this guy made his case in the vaguest, most asshole-ish way possible, the point he's trying to get across is sound. Basically these profiles are advocating for nuclear energy over wind/solar, which a lot of big environmental groups are actually advocating for, and I'd cautiously support.
I've done some renewable energy-focused work and long story short, nuclear energy's highly misunderstood and come a long way in modern times. Wind and solar technology has pretty limited energy output atm, and while like any other technology, that'll change with time and research, given our tight timeframe to reduce carbon emissions if we wanna avert global disaster, nuclear's looking like the more feasible option.
That's not to say more wind or solar's bad, especially in regions with sunnier and/or windier climates, nuclear just seems to be more feasible on a global level.
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j054d7i wrote
Like the attitude. Yes, the most SUSTAINABLE form of energy is nuclear, no doubt
I just want to highlight how we feel uplifted by renewables when we’re truly deluding ourselves with it
TendiesMeWant t1_j05d1c8 wrote
Fellow electrical engineer here. Then explain why China, a no nonsense country filled with engineers that only cares about profit, is converting the Gobi desert into a solar farm that will produce twice the amount of energy from solar in the U.S. by 2030? The last thing this volatile world, that's constantly at risk of destruction via nuclear war, needs is an abundance of fissile material in human hands.
Dc12934344 t1_j05ob95 wrote
Oil companies know they have more time if we just keep chasing a nuclear dream.
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j06cih0 wrote
If they only care about profit then making a solar farm which shows off the tech that they produce and sell is no doubt a marketing tactic.
Do you think they truly care about sustainability more than profit?
TendiesMeWant t1_j0774au wrote
They wouldn't make a solar farm of anywhere near that scale if they just wanted to show off and promote their tech. The investment is going to cost them a ridiculous amount of money and when 2030 rolls around the tech isn't even going to be state of the art.
No. But I think they've seen the same data I have and concluded that solar energy is cheap and abundant and not subject to the whims of OPEC+.
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j077ce3 wrote
And if they make even more money off of sales then it’s worth it.
We spent more on nuclear power. And we make a lot of money off of it
This solar is just marketing tactics. Cause they know people falsely believe it’s sustainable.
Meanwhile they are quietly building more nuclear plants than any other country in history.
https://thediplomat.com/2022/09/powering-chinas-nuclear-ambitions/
They may very well have a cleaner country than most in the very near future
TendiesMeWant t1_j07ay43 wrote
Marketing tactic? It will produce 455 GW of power. And how is solar unsustainable?
They are also building more solar and more coal plants than any other country. They're the richest country with the most people, this isn't surprising that they're building the most nuclear too.
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j08mwbd wrote
How is solar unsustainable? What happens when the sun no longer shines on panels? Is the need for electricity no longer there?
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j08n3yk wrote
How is solar unsustainable? What happens when the sun no longer shines on panels? Is the need for electricity no longer there?
TendiesMeWant t1_j09hwmi wrote
This is your argument....? I honestly thought I would've heard something I haven't heard a thousand times from people without electrical engineering degrees.
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j09x1e1 wrote
If you want more details then there is this pretty cool website called Google.
Or, feel free to scroll up and follow any of the 5 different resources that that I linked earlier.
Although if you really wanted to understand what I mean you would have done this already.
At this point I think you are purposely deluding yourself too
TendiesMeWant t1_j09xl1s wrote
You think governments spending countless billions around the world haven't thought of that? There are innumerable methods of storing energy during the off hours. And I don't know what articles you're referring to, all I see is those two linkedin links. Furthermore, I don't see how the misinformed idea that you can't store energy during the off hours makes renewables "unsustainable". The future will likely be a mix of multiple sources of energy for generations. We absolutely should be attempting to replace unclean and expensive energy with clean and cheap energy. It makes no sense not to.
Direct-Ad-7922 t1_j0a3fpd wrote
I used to think the same way - truly - I even developed wireless power transfer tools for using car batteries for distributed storage.
It’s the sustainability of storage that’s the problem - it costs too much and it doesn’t last long enough.
The thing is normal people vote for politicians who vote to spend billions on tech like this which doesn’t actually solve the problem.
We blow money like nobodies business
[deleted] t1_j0chk7e wrote
[removed]
Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments