4 ms·
Impressive peak power however please look at the graph https://electrek.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/solar-eia-california-wholesale.png?w=1000&h=500 https://elec
by heisenbit 10y ago
Impressive peak power however please look at the graph https://electrek.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/solar-eia-california-wholesale.png?w=1000&h=500 https://electrek.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/solar-eia-calif.... Eyeballing the area covered by solar is more around 15-20% i.e. while during a good day 50% is covered by solar the overall contribution is much less. Also note that peak demand was at 17:0-18:00 and solar contributed almost nothing at that time.
Unless one can time-shift solar power in sufficient volume the benefits will be limited.
- esturk 10y agoYou're thinking of only 1 part of the solution. 'Energy storage' is a time shift in providing power and that is solved by technological means. But there's probably a simpler solution which of time-shift in "energy usage" which can be accomplished via new business models. There's untapped business potential to get people to use more power at peak solar hours. For example, free drying in a laundromat with the accompany wash. Low cost or free car charging during the day when shopping, etc. There's a strange traditional dichotomy of having cheaper power after sunset to not overlap with business usage. But with solar, we should rethink this and have cheaper power BEFORE sunset.