Brexit, for once some facts.

Danidl

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But that current (ha!) stability is only achieved because we have non-renewables available, and helped by things like grid interconnects (so long as they don't burn out).

If we end up with nothing other than renewables, stability might be very hard to achieve in a cold winter with little wind.
Exactly... Which is why pan European grids are the way to go. But it is possible to plan for longer term storage of renewable energy sources by creating chemical compounds ...
 

Woosh

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And we had it serviced this year for the first time ... The service was i think about 200 but the guy wasn't happy about a circulation pump which was noisy , so that was another 150.. and is much quieter.
how big is your garden though? (I imagine your heat pump is not attached to the house's wall).
 

Danidl

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How are they aiming to subsidise heat pump installation for £5000 each, without increasing taxes?
Lets see. A heat pump is a very simple device.. A 3kw electric motor, a compressor attached to that and a 150 watt fan and a truck radiator .. a few valves ,tubing and a small microcontroller . .. Total weight about 150kg , with pressed steel housings . Its not really high technology. So a substantial amount of the money is profit ,... . So by employing people to build these install them they create work,and money circulates
 

guerney

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Road transport will tend to diminish and air transport increase over time, assuming we have already replaced fossil fuel with electricity.
People will always want personal transport - helipads on all roofs for people-carrying scaled up DJI drone-syle transport? Only for some.
 
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Woosh

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Molten salt batteries:

probably hydro-electric.
All the small spikes can be dealt with by the trans-national interconnects. It's only when we have a conjunction of no wind, no sun, no gas, no hydrogen for days and nuclear power is down for maintenance.
 

Woosh

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People will always want personal transport - helipads on all roofs for people-carrying scaled up DJI drone-syle transport? Only for some.
I am looking at required investment at the national levels. Would we need HS2/HS3/HS4? more motorways? or put money into electric planes?
 

guerney

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probably hydro-electric.
All the small spikes can be dealt with by the trans-national interconnects. It's only when we have a conjunction of no wind, no sun, no gas, no hydrogen for days and nuclear power is down for maintenance.
I'm all for Thorium reactors, but it seems only India is seriously considering it's use - more plentiful than Uranium, can't be weaponised (at least, not easily), less waste... with half-life of centuries instead of tens of millenia:

 

oyster

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Exactly... Which is why pan European grids are the way to go. But it is possible to plan for longer term storage of renewable energy sources by creating chemical compounds ...
As child I had small solar torch. It was absolute rubbish. But I set thinking about the idea of solar panels being set up across the Sahara and connected to Europe - eventually to us. Supremely naive. But nonetheless, a pan-European grid makes much sense - and some of the electricity might come from Africa, into Spain, I guess. Just needs to have extreme resilience.
 

guerney

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I am looking at required investment at the national levels. Would we need HS2/HS3/HS4? more motorways? or put money into electric planes?
Are there any eplanes, capable of carrying freight over long distances yet?
 

Danidl

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how big is your garden though? (I imagine your heat pump is not attached to the house's wall).
The heatpump is located 12 feet from the house .. beside where the oil burner is still located. The circulation pump I had replaced is inside the house and a standard radiator type. . The HP is ground mounted, about 6 inches clearance from a boundary wall. I had it relocated slightly further from the house , not for noise, but so it wasn't pumping the colder exhaust air into a 3 walled courtyard shape. ( Mind you that was great for keeping the fresh turkey very cold when the fridge was full at Christmas.
Note I am using Imperial measure to make it easier for UK readers!.
 
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guerney

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I am looking at required investment at the national levels. Would we need HS2/HS3/HS4? more motorways? or put money into electric planes?
They're up against housing price increases, changes to environmental laws... whenever they plan decade(s) long planning projects like that - in China they sweep it all aside by decree.
 

oyster

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probably hydro-electric.
All the small spikes can be dealt with by the trans-national interconnects. It's only when we have a conjunction of no wind, no sun, no gas, no hydrogen for days and nuclear power is down for maintenance.
And failures.
 

Danidl

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As child I had small solar torch. It was absolute rubbish. But I set thinking about the idea of solar panels being set up across the Sahara and connected to Europe - eventually to us. Supremely naive. But nonetheless, a pan-European grid makes much sense - and some of the electricity might come from Africa, into Spain, I guess. Just needs to have extreme resilience.
The point I am making here ,is not that the pan Europe grid is a fantasy ..it is already happening. . And of course North Africa would be included . Part of the value is that we in Europe are spread over about 3 time zones. , So the rush hour is more like 4 hours ...
 
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guerney

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I see hydrogen as the replacement fuel for air transportation, rather than batteries.
Yes but:


It's madness shoving hydrogen through existing leaky gas pipes! Or using it at any great scale to fuel anything at all - there will be trillions of tiny litle leaks, little pffts, leading to all life on Earth's surface developing skin cancers (humans, animals) and dying off ...
 
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flecc

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...which is when we need wave - the physical borders with Ireland and France, would be added bonuses ;)
Tidal power yes, 100% reliable and very efficient.

Wave power no, it's just wind power slightly delayed with much of its energy removed, so pointless and very inefficient.
.
 
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guerney

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As child I had small solar torch. It was absolute rubbish. But I set thinking about the idea of solar panels being set up across the Sahara and connected to Europe - eventually to us. Supremely naive. But nonetheless, a pan-European grid makes much sense - and some of the electricity might come from Africa, into Spain, I guess. Just needs to have extreme resilience.
With regular 50+ degree C temperatures and above, cheaper and more robust heat based generation technology of some sort could become viable in places like that (as all people migrate to the frozen wastes of Northern Europe, after the Jet Stream and warm water currents have moved permanently south, as they will do within a few years IMHO):


Infra-red solar panels:

 
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guerney

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Tidal power yes, 100% reliable and very efficient.

Wave power no, it's just wind power slightly delayed with much of its energy removed, so pointless and very inefficient.
.
Yes but if we take too much power from the tides for too long, won't that bring the Moon closer to Earth? The sky will fall on our heads! :eek:
 

flecc

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Yes but:


It's madness shoving hydrogen through existing leaky gas pipes! Or using it at any great scale to fuel anything at all - there will be trillions of tiny litle leaks, little pffts, leading to all life on Earth's surface developing skin cancers (humans, animals) and dying off ...
We've long been using some hydrogen fuel cell buses in London and currently have many more on order. They will be running all our longer routes with Battery Electric ones serving the short to medium length routes. We've totally stopped all purchase of ICE buses.

The hydrogen used is a by product of chemical manufaturing elsewhere and no pipelines are involved, all transport and use is with compression in cylinders.
.
 

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