Very cheap solar power
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From: Sam Wormley on 25 Nov 2009 09:29 G=EMC^2 Glazier wrote: > Sam Its boilers that make electricity possible. Boilers make steam. > Steam is what I am talking about.and making better use of the sun in a > given area. Bert > Ever heard of solar cells, Herb? The have the advantage of not having to use 540 calories to turn a single gram of water into steam.
From: G=EMC^2 Glazier on 25 Nov 2009 12:19 Sam Than answer this question PLEASE Why do we have boilers making steam for our turbines to turn the generators to produce electricity?. Chances are Sam you again will not answer . O ya You fit with a non thinker A true blue parrot brain at best Bert
From: Sam Wormley on 25 Nov 2009 12:45 G=EMC^2 Glazier wrote: > Sam Than answer this question PLEASE Why do we have boilers making > steam for our turbines to turn the generators to produce electricity?. Because Boilers can work 24/7 using fossil fuels and can be inside buildings and even underground. They can be held at relatively constant temperature for relatively long periods of time, maximizing efficiency. They work when cloud blows by and they don't have to sit idle for 12-16 hours (or more) per day. > Chances are Sam you again will not answer . O ya You fit with a non > thinker A true blue parrot brain at best Bert > I don't think you are all that smart, Bert.
From: Marvin the Martian on 25 Nov 2009 20:52 On Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:29:34 +0000, Sam Wormley wrote: > G=EMC^2 Glazier wrote: >> Sam Its boilers that make electricity possible. Boilers make steam. >> Steam is what I am talking about.and making better use of the sun in a >> given area. Bert >> >> > > Ever heard of solar cells, Herb? The have the advantage of not having > to use 540 calories to turn a single gram of water into steam. Not that you'd know, but solar to steam to electricity is cheaper and more efficient. Most of the world's electricity comes from steam engines.
From: Marvin the Martian on 25 Nov 2009 21:12
On Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:45:09 +0000, Sam Wormley wrote: > G=EMC^2 Glazier wrote: >> Sam Than answer this question PLEASE Why do we have boilers making >> steam for our turbines to turn the generators to produce electricity?. > > Because Boilers can work 24/7 using fossil fuels and can be inside > buildings and even underground. They can be held at relatively > constant temperature for relatively long periods of time, maximizing > efficiency. They work when cloud blows by and they don't have to sit > idle for 12-16 hours (or more) per day. > > >> Chances are Sam you again will not answer . O ya You fit with a non >> thinker A true blue parrot brain at best Bert >> >> > I don't think you are all that smart, Bert. There is a reason why steam engines (aka Rankin Cycle) are so dang popular. It's simple engineering. Physics notes that the Carnot cycle is most efficient, but the energy going in, the compression of the working gas, is mechanical. Mechanical energy comes at a cost. The Rankin Cycle uses 1% of the energy to "compress" the gas as the Carnot cycle. The beauty of steam is that you can pump the far smaller volume of liquid water into the boiler, and use heat to expand it into a large volume of gas. The work to pump the water into the boiler is almost trivial. Just about every Joule of electrical energy, outside of hydroelectric, is created from mechanical energy from a steam engine. And you dismiss the entire thing as some sort of "fossil fuel" issue. You get about 40% efficiency out of a modern steam turbine, while an ideal Carnot cycle would yield about 63% (given the limitations of steel in the boiler, the maximum steam temp is about 560 C). Compare that to 5-10% solar cells, and the advantage is obvious. Basically, if you want energy out, the Rankin Cycle is the way to go, not photovoltaics. You have more iron invested, but if you go to a moderate scale, it's worth it. No solution to the energy "crisis", but useful for off grid applications in the American South West. |