2,956
edits
Archive:000/Decarbonize the energy supply: Difference between revisions
Archive:000/Decarbonize the energy supply (view source)
Revision as of 16:29, 26 October 2024
, 26 October 2024Elie moved page Decarbonize the energy supply to Archive:000/Decarbonize the energy supply without leaving a redirect: Huge_refactor
No edit summary |
m (Elie moved page Decarbonize the energy supply to Archive:000/Decarbonize the energy supply without leaving a redirect: Huge_refactor) |
||
| (10 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
How to produce enough | How to produce enough {{p2|energy|This includes more than just status-quo electricity consumption. It also includes everything it would take to replace fossil fuels in vehicles and in industries.}} (for the world) without burning [[fossil fuels]]? | ||
==Ongoing challenges== | ==Ongoing challenges== | ||
===The {{( | ===The renewables approach {{light|(+ energy storage)}}=== | ||
* [[Solar]] & [[wind power]] would have to be the main sources, | * [[Solar]] & [[wind power]] would have to be the main sources (in most parts of the world). | ||
* Batteries [[?|might be enough]] to smooth out the '''day/night''' cycle of solar. But the '''seasonal''' fluctuations of wind & solar [[?|probably need ''far more'' energy storage capacity]]. See discussion on [[?| | ** Most people don't live near regions suitable for [[hydropower]] or [[geothermal power]]. {{talk|TODO: link to discussions about what regions they ''are'' suitable}} | ||
** [[Biofuels]] cause global [[hunger]] and [[deforestation]], unless only [[biomass waste]] is used (which is in [[How much biomass waste is there?|very limited supply]]). | |||
More discussions | |||
* Most solar panels today would probably be '''unsustainable''' or even impossible to scale up, due to having [[solar panel minerals|too many scarce minerals in them]]. | |||
* [[ | ** ''See discussion on'' [[solar panels made of abundant materials|alternatives to this]]. | ||
* Batteries [[How much short-term energy storage for solar?|''might'' be scalable enough]] to smooth out the '''day/night''' cycle of solar. {{x|Best bet would be either [[sodium-ion]] or [[iron redox flow batteries]].}} | |||
** But the '''seasonal''' fluctuations of wind & solar [[How much seasonal energy storage?|probably need ''far more'' energy storage capacity]]. | |||
*** ''See discussion on'' [[What could provide enough seasonal energy storage?|other energy storage types and whether any could provide enough capacity]]. | |||
More discussions: | |||
* [[Is there enough land to scale up wind power?]] (without causing significant ecological damage)? | |||
===The nuclear approach=== | ===The nuclear approach=== | ||
Considering the different types of nuclear power, it seems that | Considering the different types of nuclear power, it seems that '''[[thorium power]]''' is the one with the least problems. Here's a comparison: | ||
{|class='wikitable' | {|class='wikitable' | ||
!rowspan='2' |Type of nuclear power | !rowspan='2' |Type of nuclear power | ||
| Line 40: | Line 48: | ||
|Almost none | |Almost none | ||
|- | |- | ||
|[[Fusion]] (not viable yet) | |[[Fusion]] <span style="background:#F66">(not viable yet)</span> | ||
|Abundant | |Abundant | ||
|Low risk | |Low risk | ||
| Line 47: | Line 55: | ||
|colspan=4|{{minor|^ For more details, follow these links in the leftmost column.}} | |colspan=4|{{minor|^ For more details, follow these links in the leftmost column.}} | ||
|} | |} | ||
Actions / discussions / next steps: | Actions / discussions / next steps: | ||
* [[ | * [[Why isn't thorium power a thing yet?]] | ||
* [[ | * [[Would small (shipping-container-sized) thorium reactors be viable?]] | ||
====Battery electric vehicles==== | ===Vehicles {{light|- possible options}}=== | ||
* [[ | ====Battery-based electric vehicles (EVs)==== | ||
* [[ | * Most EVs today use [[lithium-ion batteries (NMC type)]]. Scaling these up is [[How much cobalt if all vehicles were electric (NMC lithium-ion)?|'''unsustainable''' due to the amount of '''cobalt''' in them]]. {{talk|Need to mention 3 issues about cobalt (put this on the linked page maybe): Child labor, scarcity, and the possibility of mining the ocean floor (since conventional mining wouldn't be able to produce enough to make all cars electric). All this would be even worse if cobalt isn't fully recovered in EV battery recycling.}} | ||
* [[ | ** Best alternatives ([[types of EV batteries|so far]]) hold somewhat less of a charge (i.e. the vehicle gets less {{p2|range|"Range" refers to the distance the vehicle can travel after 1 full charge.}}). {{talk|TODO: Add to this page a simple comparison between NMC, LFP and sodium-ion, in terms of typical expected EV range.}} | ||
* For buses | *** [[LFP batteries]] are cobalt-free but still lithium-based. Lithium scarcity [[How much lithium if all vehicles were electric (LFP batteries)?|would be somewhat a problem]] but not as bad as cobalt. | ||
*** [[Sodium-ion batteries]] are made from abundant materials - they don't have any mineral-scarcity problem ([[Do we know for sure that sodium-ion batteries avoid mineral scarcity?|probably]]). But they hold even less of a charge than LFP. | |||
**** Sodium-ion batteries are [[status quo of sodium-ion batteries|quite new to the market]] (in 2024), and the hope is that they'll become a lot cheaper than existing batteries. That way, [[short-range EVs|EVs could be cheap and durable]], with the only tradeoff being the lack of range.{{qn}} Probably still good enough for city/suburban living. | |||
*** For '''city buses''': LFP and sodium-ion are both perfectly fine. The {{p2|lower ''energy-per-weight''|i.e. the fact that more battery mass is needed to hold the same amount of electricity}} is not a problem, because buses need extra weight at the bottom anyway for stability. | |||
Actions/discussions: | Actions/discussions: | ||
* [[ | * [[Next steps for sodium-ion batteries]] {{talk|Is it true that sodium-ion EVs are available in China already, and just not in North America? If sodium-ion batteries are on the market now, how does their cost compare to lithium-based batteries so far?}} | ||
* [[ | * [[How well are EV batteries recycled?]] | ||
====Hydrogen-powered vehicles==== | ====Hydrogen-powered vehicles==== | ||
* Hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles would be unsustainable to scale up, because of the [[amount of platinum & palladium in the fuel cells]]. {{talk|This page needs to mention: Hydrogen ''production'' also requires these same metals but it [[ | * [[Hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles]] would be unsustainable to scale up, because of the [[PGMs required for hydrogen production vs for fuel cell vehicles|amount of platinum & palladium in the fuel cells]]. {{talk|This page needs to mention: Hydrogen ''production'' also requires these same metals but it [[PGMs required for hydrogen production vs for fuel cell vehicles|can be done with much less of them]] and thus could probably be done sustainably.}} | ||
* Hydrogen combustion vehicles don't have this problem, but their fuel | * [[Hydrogen combustion vehicles]] don't have this problem, but their fuel-efficiency is lower.{{qn}} {{talk|How bad would this be an issue if renewables or nuclear were to be the main energy sources?}} {{talk|Discussion needed: Estimate: How much hydrogen would have to be stored (stocked) at any given time, for the supply chain to work (let's say if it's all produced through nuclear power)? Probably a lot less than what it would take to smooth out the seasonality of renewables - I need to write a page explaining why.}} | ||
====Ammonia-powered vehicles==== | |||
''This wiki currently needs more research:''<small style="color:#777"> | |||
* How does ammonia compare to hydrogen in terms of: | |||
** Production energy-efficiency | |||
** Fuel cell energy-efficiency | |||
** Catalyst metals required{{qn}} in ammonia production, and in ammonia fuel cells | |||
** Storage (mass of materials required per unit of energy stored)</small> | |||
==More / See also== | ==More / See also== | ||
{{empty}} | {{empty}} | ||
{{talk|TODO: People also have other concerns about renewables and energy storage. I need to direct readers to pages that address those concerns.}} | |||
{{talk|Maybe title this page "[[Decarbonize the energy supply]]"?}} | |||