Prediction: Coal has fallen. Nuclear is next then Oil.

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell with sublimed C60 source material achieves 30.9% efficiency

The result was certified by Fraunhofer ISE CalLab. The cell uses a top inverted PV device using an electron transport layer made of thermally evaporated buckminsterfullerene (C60) with minimized parasitic optical absorption.

www.pv-magazine.com

Once disregarded as too low efficiency, perovskite gets its LFP moment.

There's a lot of chasing tandem/hybrid/heterojunction with perovskites.

Tandem is the big thing to be cracked in cost reduction as higher efficiencies have enormous value for residential rooftops or other places where space is constrained.

 

[mspohr]

This needs to stop
.

Canadian tar sands pollution is up to 6,300% higher than reported, study finds

Call for companies to ‘clean up their mess’ as Athabasca oil sands emissions vastly exceed industry-reported levels

www.theguardian.com

Toxic emissions from the Canadian tar sands – already one of the dirtiest fossil fuels – have been dramatically underestimated, according to a study. Research published in the journal Science found that air pollution from the vast Athabasca oil sands in Canada exceed industry-reported emissions across the studied facilities by a staggering 1,900% to over 6,300%. Academics said this means that damaging reactive pollutants from the oil sands are equivalent to those from all other human-made sources across Canada with severe health implications.

 

[GSP]

Yes, that's what's happened in Australia, Germany and the UK.

And Hawai’i

The program is dead simple. No smart grid controls, no fancy grid stabilization services. The batteries are simply programmed to send power back to the grid every day between 6:00 pm and 8:30 pm. The battery’s stored power is first tapped to meet the needs of the household. After that, the battery sends its leftover power to the grid for use by others.

Participants get an $850 per kilowatt ($4,250) upfront bonus when they commit to the program for 10 years. They also earn a $5 per kilowatt monthly bill credit for the duration of their participation. That’s another $3,000 in monthly credits over a decade. In addition, HECO pays retail rate for the electricity exported back to the grid.

Lessons From A Battery Sharing Program In Hawaii - It Isn't Easy Being Green - CleanTechnica

Hawaii is struggling to convert to renewable energy and needs battery storage to do so. I has an innovative new battery sharing program.

cleantechnica.com

IMO Hawai’i needs Tesla’s VPP, instead of waiting for an official standard for controlling home batteries.

GSP

 

[eevee-fan]

Regulator quashes ERCOT's proposed state-of-charge rules for BESS

Texas regulators have ordered ERCOT to rescind state-of-charge rules requiring batteries to hold more capacity than needed.

www.energy-storage.news

ErCuT BeSs

 

[eevee-fan]

BLUETTI's Solar+: Your one-stop solution for solar – with a free battery!

If you’re looking to save money by transitioning to solar energy and ensure your home is prepared for grid outages...

electrek.co

Very strange, I would've probably picked CA to start instead of TX as power in CA is more expensive, making ROI shorter.

 

[mspohr]

Ann Arbor Ponders Microgrid Alternative To Coal And Gas Powered Local Utility - CleanTechnica

The city of Ann Arbor, Michigan is about to experiment with a city owned sustainable energy unit in parallel with the local utility company.

cleantechnica.com

To reach its renewable energy goal, Ann Arbor is trying something that has never been done before — constructing a series of community owned microgrids while still maintaining a relationship with DTE Energy. The city owned assets would be bundled into what is being called a Sustainable Energy Unit or SEU. The city explains that, “The Ann Arbor SEU is a community-owned energy utility that provides electricity from local solar and battery storage systems installed on homes and businesses throughout the city. The SEU provides 100% clean, reliable, locally built, and affordable electricity; built by the community, for the community.”

This first of its kind project in the US aims to not only give citizens access to locally produced clean energy but also to overcome the grid reliability issues that plague DTE’s distribution network without having to invest a considerable amount of money in upgrades.

If Ann Arbor is successful, it could demonstrate that municipalities need not be beholden to the power companies that serve them. The audacious idea of skirting the utility’s control of the city’s energy provision has symbolic significance beyond Ann Arbor. According to Latitude Media, It shows that cities intent on decarbonizing their electrical supply may have options beyond the traditional utility model.

 

[Oil4AsphaultOnly]

BLUETTI's Solar+: Your one-stop solution for solar – with a free battery!

If you’re looking to save money by transitioning to solar energy and ensure your home is prepared for grid outages...

electrek.co

Very strange, I would've probably picked CA to start instead of TX as power in CA is more expensive, making ROI shorter.

My guess is permitting. Getting county/city approval to install solar+storage+net-metering takes almost forever in my area!

 

[DrGriz]

Ann Arbor may not be the first:

https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2021-10/2-chantel-nez-perce-solar-presentation.pdf

The Tribe is already on it. There is a crew of Tribal members who are now certified to install Tesla powerwalls and they have much of the town of Lapwai on solar. They are well on their way to having each home have rooftop solar and a powerwall.

They will be off the Grid as soon as possible.

Idaho's Nez Perce Tribe | Solar Initiative, the 5311 Project

EIA estimates that solar power currently makes up 3% of the country's electric generation. 2050, 20% of the nation's energy could come from solar power.

energysavings.com

 

[woof]

I still think we should pump in sea water for heating/cooling.

Sea water is really hard on equipment.

 

[Dave EV]

My guess is permitting. Getting county/city approval to install solar+storage+net-metering takes almost forever in my area!

Weird, it's super easy in my area of CA.

 

[Oil4AsphaultOnly]

Weird, it's super easy in my area of CA.

And which area is that?

 

[eevee-fan]

More news trying to push e-fuel. By-product = animal feed, that's good news regardless.

US Chicken Prices to Fall at Last Thanks to Green Fuel Boom

 

[mspohr]

More news trying to push e-fuel. By-product = animal feed, that's good news regardless.

US Chicken Prices to Fall at Last Thanks to Green Fuel Boom

Processing the vast amounts of soybeans needed to make the plant-based jet fuel and diesel required to lower US emissions will also create mountains of co-product soymeal, widely used in animal feed.

As wasteful as ethanol

 

[fhteagle]

As wasteful as ethanol

I disagree with this statement for at least a dozen reasons. But I won't list them out unless someone asks me to, so as to not completely derail this thread.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

My guess is permitting. Getting county/city approval to install solar+storage+net-metering takes almost forever in my area!

Or just competition. Bluetti are from Las Vegas, NV so may have seen greater market opportunities in Texas. They started at a backup battery company and there are good opportunities for batteries in Texas' competitive electricity market.

 

[mspohr]

I disagree with this statement for at least a dozen reasons. But I won't list them out unless someone asks me to, so as to not completely derail this thread.

It seems that discussing alternatives to fossil fuels is appropriate for this thread.

Ethanol has been extensively investigated and most of the studies find that the emissions from growing, transporting, and processing feed stocks (primarily corn) and water use are insignificant whereas the environmental damage and the continued support of ICE engines are damaging.

In any case, farming may involve a decline in soil fertility due to reduction of organic matter,[82] a decrease in water availability and quality, an increase in the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and potential dislocation of local communities.[83

Health costs of ethanol emissions​

For each billion ethanol-equivalent gallons of fuel produced and combusted in the US, the combined climate-change and health costs are $469 million for gasoline, $472–952 million for corn ethanol depending on biorefinery heat source (natural gas, corn stover, or coal) and technology, but only $123–208 million for cellulosic ethanol depending on feedstock (prairie biomass, Miscanthus, corn stover, or switchgrass).[87]

Ethanol fuel - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

It seems that discussing alternatives to fossil fuels is appropriate for this thread.

Ethanol has been extensively investigated and most of the studies find that the emissions from growing, transporting, and processing feed stocks (primarily corn) and water use are insignificant whereas the environmental damage and the continued support of ICE engines are damaging.

In any case, farming may involve a decline in soil fertility due to reduction of organic matter,[82] a decrease in water availability and quality, an increase in the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and potential dislocation of local communities.[83

Health costs of ethanol emissions​

For each billion ethanol-equivalent gallons of fuel produced and combusted in the US, the combined climate-change and health costs are $469 million for gasoline, $472–952 million for corn ethanol depending on biorefinery heat source (natural gas, corn stover, or coal) and technology, but only $123–208 million for cellulosic ethanol depending on feedstock (prairie biomass, Miscanthus, corn stover, or switchgrass).[87]

Ethanol fuel - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The disagreement wasn't about ethanol. It was with saying that soy-based diesel is as wasteful as ethanol.

 

[iPlug]

Germany showing the way of transitioning district heating towards heat pumps, replacing coal and other fossils:

Could large heat pumps revolutionize how we warm our homes? – DW – 01/29/2024

 

[mspohr]

The disagreement wasn't about ethanol. It was with saying that soy-based diesel is as wasteful as ethanol.

It's pretty much the same. Better in some areas, worse in others.
Probably the most underrated effect is that it keeps polluting fossil fuel vehicles on the road where they continue to burn fossil fuel blends and create pollution damaging the environment and human health.

Biodiesel - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The environmental impact of biodiesel is complex and varies based on factors like feedstock type, land use changes, and production methods. While it can potentially reduce greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuels, concerns about biodiesel include land use changes, deforestation, and the food vs. fuel debate. The debate centers on the impact of biodiesel production on food prices and availability, as well as its overall carbon footprint.

However, environmental organizations, for example, Rainforest Rescue[165] and Greenpeace,[166] criticize the cultivation of plants used for biodiesel production, e.g., oil palms, soybeans and sugar cane. The deforestation of rainforests exacerbates climate change and sensitive ecosystems are destroyed to clear land for oil palm, soybean and sugar cane plantations. Moreover, that biofuels contribute to world hunger, since arable land is no longer used for growing foods.

 

[mspohr]