Circular reasoning (Rolfe's solar energy system)

[Rolfe]

This is the unit being manufactured in an Adelaide suburb Australian-made bidirectional (V2X) EV charger hits the market

A bit pricy at the moment, but the price will come down as more units are manufactured.

Rosie makes a good case for these units


T1 Terry

We're in a different situation in that we don't have any coal-fired power stations any more, and we are definitely not a super-solar location. It's generally fairly cloudy here. (Wind, though, we have rather a lot of. Also tides and waves.) I guess we'll just have to see what they decide to do. It's a big upheaval to have to change a grid that was set up for a relatively small number of big power stations capable of continuous output to cope with a whole lot of microgenerators which tend to come off and on line about the same time. But clever people are working on it.

 

[Bam Bam]

We're in a different situation in that we don't have any coal-fired power stations any more, and we are definitely not a super-solar location. It's generally fairly cloudy here. (Wind, though, we have rather a lot of. Also tides and waves.) I guess we'll just have to see what they decide to do. It's a big upheaval to have to change a grid that was set up for a relatively small number of big power stations capable of continuous output to cope with a whole lot of microgenerators which tend to come off and on line about the same time. But clever people are working on it.

We aren't quite the 'lucky country' like Australia, who have both wind and solar on tap seemingly all year round (at least in South Australia).

Instead we have wind for most of the year (though less in the Summer) and solar for a few months. So we will need to install lots of solar but it won't help much in he Winter.

In general the two are complementary (low wind tends to happen in the Summer when sun is high) so batteries + solar or wind works well.

Except when we have a 'dunkelfleute' where it is cold, glum and still. For those times we need gas backup (for now). Eventually it will probably be hydrogen stored underground for long-term electricity backup if we want to avoid CO2 emissions and make use of the fact there will be a surplus of electricity most of the year.

 

[johnb80]

Eventually it will probably be hydrogen stored underground for long-term electricity backup if we want to avoid CO2 emissions and make use of the fact there will be a surplus of electricity most of the year.

I sincerely hope not, we have expensive energy now, if we start to harvest Hydrogen god help us.

 

[Bam Bam]

I sincerely hope not, we have expensive energy now, if we start to harvest Hydrogen god help us.

You are right to be sceptical about hydrogen.

People like the idea because they think it saves them from having to change from their hydrocarbon ways, but it is not that simple and it not at all appealing.

It will cost a fortune and has been used as an excuse to continue burning fossil fuels with abandon because "magic hydrogen is just around the corner." Ignoring the fact that green hydrogen is going to cost a lot more than the fossil fuels it would replace.

However, there will be some uses for green hydrogen in the future economy.

Michael Leibreich's Hydrogen ladder is very good for working out which uses are necessary, which are likely and which are never going to happen (like hydrogen cars and hydrogen home heating).

Not clear what other options are a good idea for long-term storage, though. The Royal Society advocated for hydrogen stored deep underground where it would be more easily pressurised.

 

[johnb80]

However, there will be some uses for green hydrogen in the future economy.

Michael Leibreich's Hydrogen ladder is very good for working out which uses are necessary, which are likely and which are never going to happen (like hydrogen cars and hydrogen home heating).

Get yourself a cuppa and a biscuit and have a watch of this:-

 

[Bam Bam]

Get yourself a cuppa and a biscuit and have a watch of this:-

I subscribe to this podcast and listen avidly so I no doubt heard it when it came out.

This is the discussion I was referring to on hydrogen for long term storage...



Leibreich is well known hydrogen bubble burster/sceptic: