Gas vs Electric Autos

Thank you, i will just use this next time i explain this to someone. Just because the charging stations at places like UHCL and cracker barrel have been free does not mean that the electricity bill does not exist. To date 61% of US energy comes from fossil fuels, 20% from nuclear (and greater than 50% in some states), 19% from renewable, ironically Texas probably leads in that category too.

Nuclear reactor tech is where it is at, just requires massive amount of cooling. How many windmills would it take to equal one nuclear reactor?

Also, in response to the person claiming reactors are dangerous, Texas has two nuclear reactors. One 90 miles south of Houston, and one 40 miles north of Fort Worth. Also, never understood why the deforestation movement and coral reef restoration projects hit the backburners. One day we’re cleaning up the ocean and planting trees, the next day we’re using slight of hand in politics to seriously threaten the likelihood of turning harris county into Detroit over night.

You can’t just delete a whole industry and say problem solved.

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The smallest nuclear reactor produces 13,968 mw. The biggest 3.93 GW

The average windmill produces .55 mw. Max capacity is 1.67 but the average is 33% capacity

Comparing the output of a nuclear reactor to one windmill is a poor comparison and ignores so many other pertinent factors and variables.

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Well get to explaining, you used the words pertinent factors and variables but didn’t really say much.

Nuclear fission is not fair weather, no need for specific weather conditions.

Im sure the cost is huge to build one, we know how to mine the materials, produces wicked power for years and years, and is one of cleanest/safest forms of energy known to date. Years back my friend educated me on “slow-core” nuclear reactors and swore on their development. Next gen nuclear is around the corner. They are getting smaller and smaller.

I answered a question.

How does this statement respond to the concern about danger?

I have no idea what you’re saying.

I’m ok with nuclear. But the problem is no one wants to store the spent fuel in their back yard with a half life of 20,000 years.

That is going to be a problem with windmill blades that can’t be recycled and have to be buriedhttps://www.latimes.com/business/story/2020-02-06/wind-turbine-blades

Oh, windmill blades are radio active? Didn’t know that.

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Don’t be a smartarse, it’s unbecoming.

I don’t think he’s being a smart ass at all.

The problem with nuclear waste is loooooooong term radioactivity and storage. Windmill blades don’t have either of those problems.

Read the article Johnny

I don’t think “wind” is a special weather condition.

But factors like construction costs, maintenance costs, overhead, standard facility sizes, efficiency stats etc. would help put those output numbers in a better context for understanding.

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With respect to safety, they are safer than the petrol chemical industry and considered the third safest form of energy behind wind and solar. There are reactors all over the US, and there has never been a full scale meltdown.

The last significant event was back in the 70s and '81. Since 2012, there has been an update to safety standards in the US to limit leakage.

As far as the Detroit comment, the state of Texas houses 300,000 petrol industry jobs, a great majority of those in the Ship Channel area. If the goal is really “net zero emissions” by 2030, you’re going to need to replace those jobs. “Slight of hand” because when is the last time the average American has sat down to actually read one of these giant spending bills? Well i have.

Does the article say windmill blades are radioactive?

BM.

Okay

Hey Coachv,
I read your article and found this part telling.

It pointed to an Electric Power Research Institute study that estimates all blade waste through 2050 would equal roughly 0.015% of all the municipal solid waste going to landfills in 2015 alone.

If that analysis is correct, and I admittedly I haven’t tried to find out more, it seems like this is a
really really insignificant problem.

I agree, someone on this forum has to be an engineer. I am just a Biologist, I only studied thermodynamics to the level required to understand small scale reactions, adenosine triphosphate, stuff like that.