pfdietz

22 ms·

661.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Formaldehyde is also the product of the natural oxidation of methane by OH radicals. No, the methane isn't being turned into chlorinated organic compounds. The reaction mechanism is CH4 + Cl --> CH3 + HCl. (Caveat: I don't th
662.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
One reason you don't see overproduction is it's hard to get connected to grids. Local self-generation eliminates that roadblock. I think we're going to see increasing energy autarky in rural regions as solar gets cheaper. A
663.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
To destroy methane, which is a strong greenhouse gas.
664.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
They'd also react with other hydrocarbons, also extracting hydrogen atoms. But that's ok too -- those hydrocarbons act as sinks for hydroxyl radicals, reducing the rate of methane destruction.
665.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
If you react large amounts of methane and chlorine, the methyl radicals will react with molecular chlorine to make methyl chloride. But if the methane and chlorine are dilute, as they would be here, the methyl radicals with react with some
666.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
The blockage of connecting those to the grid will encourage self-generation, which will mean putting them off in the boondocks where land is cheap. Taking that to the logical limit is where space data centers come from. I think we're
667.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Remember all those projections of solar adoption that, year after year, consistently underestimated future growth? It turns out the same has been happening with nuclear, only in reverse: the agencies doing the projections have consistently,
668.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
I'd get angry with them, but at this point the renewable wave is so overwhelming and unstoppable that they are just screaming into the void. I know they are set up for bitter disappointment, having constructed a false defensive narrat
669.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Given that we're approaching 1 TW of new solar capacity installed globally each year, who do you think is doing the subsidizing?
670.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Gas turbines are a modern scientific/technological miracle. The materials science of turbine blades is awesome. Most materials can't be used above about 1/2 their absolute melting temperature as they become subject to creep.
671.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
A problem I'd have with seawater electrolysis is production of undesirable chlorine compounds: hypochlorite or elemental chlorine. Or maybe there are uses for these? Releasing chlorine (diluted!) into the atmosphere might be a way to
672.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Hacker News readers hate this one weird trick!
673.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
They'd use compressed gaseous hydrogen, but that has its own problems.
674.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
You're explaining the practical consequences of their delusion, but delusion it remains. Hydrogen for cars isn't going to work to save them, even with the lobbying. Granted, they were probably screwed anyway, so they had no good
675.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
If solar continues to plummet in cost we may see distributed industry in rural areas, to take advantage of energy that is essentially stranded by transmission cost. Storage becomes even more important in this scenario.
676.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Even without natural gas, hydrogen as a general energy storage medium competes against thermal storage. The round trip for this (electrical energy back to electrical energy) can be as good as hydrogen, and the storage medium can be literal
677.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Processes that involve heating sulfuric acid vapor to decomposition don't sound terribly practical. If you thought seawater corrosion was challenging...
678.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
A good book that addresses this issue in the title chapter: https://www.amazon.com/Why-Big-Fierce-Animals-Rare/dp/069102...
679.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
The minks and fishers around where I live (Cayuga Lake in New York) are native. The bigger issue with wildlife around here is invasive species, especially plants. So much privet, bush honeysuckle, buckthorn, and multiflora rose. And many
680.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Excuse me stewardess, I speak jive.
681.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Also seeing minks and fishers.
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by pfdietz 6mo ago
Silly? There are plenty of substances that are toxic at high dose and innocuous, or even necessary, at low dose. Examples of the latter are vitamins A and B6. The question of responsibility is of course not what we were talking about, but
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by pfdietz 6mo ago
I don't see any mention there of the dosage at which these toxic effects occur. That would be necessary to determine if the amount found in the environment is a concern or not.
684.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Math nerds make devoted spouses. Is it a spectrum thing?
685.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
> PFAS were known to cause issues for a long time Has this actually been confirmed, or is this just the precautionary principle in action?
686.
by pfdietz 6mo ago
Cosmic rays are mostly protons, not electrons or positrons. You're mixing up to separate theories in the article.
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by pfdietz 6mo ago
Gowers has ChatGPT 5.5 Pro do Ph.D. level math research with very little prompting.
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by pfdietz 6mo ago
Short wave photons, so called "extreme UV" (XUV) lying between UV and x-rays, are extremely strongly absorbed by air molecules. These photons are emitted by the solar corona, and the emission is strongly dependent on solar activ
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by pfdietz 6mo ago
That's right. I should have phrased that better.
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by pfdietz 6mo ago
It also depends on just what kind of fiber. Bran flakes are like the sovereign cure for constipation.

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