3 ms·

You accuse "nuclear lobbying" of promoting "myths" but then this: > moreover because (most) renewables are varying, you actually also create capability to supp

by tomp 4y ago

You accuse "nuclear lobbying" of promoting "myths" but then this: > moreover because (most) renewables are varying, you actually also create capability to supply the varying demand (something you can't do with a nuclear power plant). which is just pure fantasy / fake news. Two random noises (varying renewable supply + variable demand) will very rarely cancel out.

cycomanic 4y ago
I never said they would cancel out. However if you design a supply based on intermittent sources to supply your baseload (i.e. the lowest demand over a time period), the average supplied power will be significantly higher than the baseload level. In other words if you have two uncorrelated randomly varying timeseries, the overlap area under the curve will be higher than just the area of the rectangle using just the lowest point under the curve.
- tomp 4y ago
  Yeah you can do the same with non-varying nuclear. Designing for overcapacity has nothing to do neither with renewables nor with being varying.
- natmaka 4y ago
  Wind power is in most places the major contributor. Therefore correlations between wind regimes in the considered geographic zone is key. At a continental level (according to various scientific studies: in Europe, China and the US) it is low enough to offer ways to obtain a wind-powered baseload. Other ways are complementary: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557422 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557422
  - tomp 4y ago
    Did you actually read the article you posted in the other comment? > With a more cooperatively designed system, this could be reduced to just 20 GW across the continent. So, no, you cannot sustain baseload power with wind, even with cooperation, you still need powerplants (carbon? coal. green? nuclear)
    - natmaka 4y ago
      Yes, a bit. This is also true while using nuclear reactors: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557584 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557584

by tomp 4y ago

cycomanic 4y ago

I never said they would cancel out. However if you design a supply based on intermittent sources to supply your baseload (i.e. the lowest demand over a time period), the average supplied power will be significantly higher than the baseload level. In other words if you have two uncorrelated randomly varying timeseries, the overlap area under the curve will be higher than just the area of the rectangle using just the lowest point under the curve.

tomp 4y ago
Yeah you can do the same with non-varying nuclear. Designing for overcapacity has nothing to do neither with renewables nor with being varying.
natmaka 4y ago
Wind power is in most places the major contributor. Therefore correlations between wind regimes in the considered geographic zone is key. At a continental level (according to various scientific studies: in Europe, China and the US) it is low enough to offer ways to obtain a wind-powered baseload. Other ways are complementary: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557422 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557422
- tomp 4y ago
  Did you actually read the article you posted in the other comment? > With a more cooperatively designed system, this could be reduced to just 20 GW across the continent. So, no, you cannot sustain baseload power with wind, even with cooperation, you still need powerplants (carbon? coal. green? nuclear)
  - natmaka 4y ago
    Yes, a bit. This is also true while using nuclear reactors: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557584 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31557584