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submitted 11 months ago by Knusper@feddit.de to c/technology@lemmy.ml

Solar now being the cheapest energy source made its rounds on Lemmy some weeks ago, if I remember correctly. I just found this graphic and felt it was worth sharing independently.

Source: https://ourworldindata.org/cheap-renewables-growth

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[-] CmdrShepard@lemmy.one 30 points 11 months ago

I'm all for renewables but keep in mind a nuclear plant can produce 24/7 regardless of conditions while many renewables cannot. I don't see an issue with diversification here rather than pointlessly advocating for a one-size-fits-all solution.

[-] KevonLooney@lemm.ee 12 points 11 months ago

A nuclear plant can't "produce 24/7 regardless of conditions". Obviously natural disasters affect them. Nuclear plants need water so any flooding or tsunami can affect them. They also need maintenance because they are very complicated water boilers.

They require a lot of educated people to run them, whereas a wind turbine requires a few guys to check on them sometimes. Solar just requires some dudes to brush off the panels occasionally. That can probably be automated too.

[-] TangledHyphae@lemmy.world 11 points 11 months ago

Solar's lack of moving parts is something people overlook, too. Hail storms supposedly rarely damage them, and if they do, you can just replace individual panels.

[-] wuphysics87@lemmy.ml 1 points 11 months ago

Navy has been operating nuclear submarines for 80 years. You don't have to be that educated

[-] CmdrShepard@lemmy.one 8 points 11 months ago

I used to work with a guy who was a nuclear tech before getting out of the military and he legitimately made me concerned about the level of intelligence they require to do the job.

[-] Wanderer@lemm.ee 2 points 11 months ago

Demand isn't a 24/7 constant value.

Nuclear doesn't match demand and supply.

[-] CmdrShepard@lemmy.one 10 points 11 months ago

Nobody said it was, and I have no idea what the statement, "Nuclear doesn't match demand and supply" is supposed to mean.

[-] gmtom@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago

Yes diversification is important too. But that still doesn't mean nuclear is worth it.

[-] frezik@midwest.social 1 points 11 months ago

Because it doesn't help. Renewables want to be paired with something that can easily be spun up and down as needed. Nuclear doesn't fit that model. It tends to make it worse, because cheap energy we could be getting from solar or wind has to give way to the nuclear baseload instead.

It's something of the opposite problem of the sun not shining at the same time the wind doesn't blow. At times where you have tons of both, you want to store them up for later. Nuclear forces a situation where you have to do that even more.

[-] CmdrShepard@lemmy.one 0 points 11 months ago

Except we don't have a practical way to store any of this energy and there is always a constant baseline demand that can be met in part by techniques that don't need to be constantly spun up and then back down and work day and night, rain or shine.

[-] Hexadecimalkink@lemmy.ml -2 points 11 months ago

Ammonia believe it or not.

this post was submitted on 17 Nov 2023
981 points (98.6% liked)

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