Safe Speed Forums

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7135930.stm

Has anyone else read the Global Warming chapter of the "Scared to Death" book which takes apart the mini-mythe that wind is a good source of renewable energy.

Basically it apparently requires coal power stations to be on standby at all times, incase the wind stops - and they on average operate at about 33% capacity as wind is so unreliable.

Yet we're being told Wind is the way forward (and admit it'll cost much more to the consumer) --- more lies? or was C. Brooker being pesimistic?

Also worth noting is the boast in the BBC article that we'll overtake Denmark next year, Brooker does point out, in Scared to Death, that Denmark stopped making new Wind Farms in 2002 due to how inefficient they are, Ireland followed suit in 2003... if this is the case, why are the citizens of UK being lead blindly toward higher electricity bills for yet more polictical showmanship and lack of research

Its worse than that.

Wind farms function as "Embedded generators" IE Grid controllers have no controll over how much (or how little) power they produce (unlike power stations)

many of these "green generators" (rooftop solar, wind and so on) seem to treat the grid as some sort of "battery". it is not!

A strong grid backed up on large power stations can tolerate a modest percentage of "Embedded generators" and still maintain stability (Voltage/frequency)

As the proportion of electricity generated by "E/G's" increaces it becomes rather more difficult. (there are possible ways round this, but they would be expensive and possibly even bizarre (EG large resistor banks to dump surplus power))

Worst case scenario is likly to be a mid summer gale (low over all demand, much of it being met by the wind farms) If the wind suddenly stopped, or suddenly got stronger (which it can do) the result would almost certainly be a total grid collapse with widespred power cuts that would take some time to recover from.

Get your standby generators ready lads! You are going to need them!!

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"The road to a police state is paved with public safety legislation"

I reckon excess power should be used to hydrolyse seawater to make hydrogen. (Well it sounds like a better idea than megawatt resistors.)

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Paul Smith
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Which could then be stored to run power station generators to cope when there is a deficit?

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Prepare to be Judged

Thats the point. I am not opposed to wind generators. But they need to be part of an overall system. Under the current "Market" system wind farm operators are simply not going to be interested in spending money on electrolysis plants or on the equipment to store and utilise the hydrogen.

In the days of the CEGB, plant was matched throughout the grid network to provide an overall reliable supply. Today we have lots of private companies each trying to exploit their own particular niech to maximise their own individual profits.

I can see large windfarms being equipped with megawatt resistors (triggererd by overvoltage/overfrequency protection) simply because it is the cheapest and dirtyest solution to the problem.

PS

Thats nasty!

Electrolising aquious sodium chloride would, IIRC, produce copious quantities of Chlorine gas (nasty!) and sodium hydroxide (Lye!) neither of which are particularly pleasent chemicals!

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"The road to a police state is paved with public safety legislation"

No reason you couldn't desalinate it too using the excess power is there?

Actually, desalinating seawater is a very good way of using surplus power. The "fresh" water resulting from this is both valuable in its own right and easily stored.

In fact. I would go one further. Forget using windmills for electricity generation altogether. I would use them to drive hydralic motors to feed reverse osmosis plant.

Water supply is a big problem at the moment. Windmills are actually a very good way of provideing clean water. (they would work well in developing countries too. Export oppertunity anyone!)

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"The road to a police state is paved with public safety legislation"