Tag Archives: energy

Thermonuclear energy – is it the future of our energy mix?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Introduction

With unsustainability of our energy production it is becoming clear that our civilization is at place when there’s no choice but to reconsider the sources of energy we use. Fossil fuels need to be rid of, as search for more effective, low-emission sources continue. Altough, in few decades a significant chunk of energy will be produced thanks to renewables, other solutions like nuclear energy will also have a share in the so-called ‘energy-mix’. Nuclear energy has many adavantages, however it has many oponents not without a reason. Not only the fuel for the reactors is not renewable, but the nuclear waste has very strict requirements in order to minimize the amount of inevitable harm to the environment it causes. It doesn’t sound like a great path to follow long-term. There is another technology, which may help us achieve more sustainable energy, though. It is called the thermonuclear energy.

The difference

Nuclear, thermonuclear – those adjectives seem pretty similar. Both processes involve very high temperatures and release of huge amounts of energy. Essential difference between the two is that thermonuclear energy comes from fusion of elements into heavier ones, not from the decay of more massive, mostly radioactive elements like uranium.

China’s EAST Tokamak

There are much more elements on Earth theoretically available to the reaction, however I won’t mention any others besides Hydrogen and Helium, as fusing heavier elements require even higher pressure and temperature. The main advantage is lack of waste problems, as Helium, a product of the reaction alongside energy is not toxic by any means. The fusion itself has been found to release many times more energy than the nuclear fission (decay of elements like uranium). Hydrogen and Helium are also two most common elements in the Universe, while elements heavier than Iron like Uranium or Plutonium can be considered a rarity.

The obstacles

Thermonuclear fusion is not a theoretic concept, we can consider it as common in the Universe, because it is the main source of stellar power. Our Sun radiates energy due to constant fusion of helium in its core. However fusion power is still being developed, as most of the trials and experiments fail to produce more energy than they were provided with. The main cause of that is inability to recreate pressure comparable to the one in Sun’s core, which means that we need to achieve even higher temperatures.

How to sustain higher temperatures?

As of now, there are two approaches towards tackling this challenge: magnetic and inertial confinement. The latter of two utilizes lasers hitting a can of gold with great amount of energy, which vaporizes due to heat radiates extensively. Radiation hits and compresses atoms of hydrogen which are due to that fused into helium giving off the energy. The main problem is the lasers using way more energy than it is produced. The former one is centered at initiating fusion through use of magnetic fields to confine the fuel and hitting it with particles and radiation to heat it. The common place to do this are reactors in shape of donut, which are called tokamaks. Unfortunately, since 1950’s most of the experiments with nuclear fusion failed.

On the other hand, reports from Chinese EAST facility give promising results. The so-called ‘Artifical Sun’[1] has set another record, it sustained temperature of 70 million degrees Celsius for 17 minutes. The reactor achieved also shocking short-term results with reaching 120 million degrees Celsius for 100 seconds and 160 Million degrees Celsius for 20 seconds last May. The chinese experiments are not over yet, as China alongside USA, Russia and many other countries participates in joint project called International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor which will include research in France.

Considering the presented shortcomings, it may seem that nuclear fusion is very far away from becoming a viable replacement to other sources of energy, however taking recent developments into account such point of view should be considered a bit overpessimistic. There are plans for much more extensive exploring of the technology, and every year the World takes this opportunity more seriously. In my opinion, adapting nuclear fusion to common industrial use is a matter of few decades, because it’s destined to happen.


sources:

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3161780/chinas-artificial-sun-hits-new-high-clean-energy-boost

https://www.vox.com/2014/4/16/5580192/the-comprehensive-guide-to-fusion-power

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/chinas-artificial-sun-reactor-broke-record-for-nuclear-fusion-180979336/

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How to save 92% on your electricity bill? [CASE STUDY]

Reading Time: 2 minutesJust about 4 months ago Tesla officially announced acquisition of SolarCityclick . Many people consider this as a giant leap towards bringing solar energy to the masses. Today we finally have a real-life case study of Tesla’s revolutionary solar system in use and it’s undeniable that Elon Musk’s company is on the right track to lead the solar energy revolution.

This week, a well-known consumer advocacy portal CHOICE – click, published an article describing the story of an Australian Tesla fan who used the Powerwall battery for the past year and experienced its saving potential.

Powerwallclick is a smart lithium-ion energy storage pack designed and produced by Tesla Inc. In short, this product is a battery pack for your home that stores energy from photovoltaic panels and delivers sustainable electricity, even when the sun isn’t shining. Powerwall is a great backup power device but it also gives the user the ability to sell excess of energy back to the grid. With its power management system, Powerwall is able to significantly decrease household energy bills spending.

 

The best proof for Tesla’s solar system cost cutting capabilities is the story of Nick Pfitzner described in CHOICE articleclick. Nick lives with his family in a four-bedroom home in Kellyville Ridge, Australia. This large residence is equipped with atelier, laundry, outdoor entertainment area and its own pool. Powering this home with electricity in 2015 cost Nick $2289 but in January 2015 Nick decided to invest in sustainable energy system. Nick invested $16,790 in buying 7kW Powerwall battery, a 5kWp solar array, a SolarEdge inverter and a Reposit monitoring system.

Nick Pftitzner standing alongside his home solar system

Source: www.choice.com.au

After implementation of this system Nick’s average quarterly bill dropped from $572 in 2015 to $45 in 2016. After a year of using his new power system Nick was able to save 92% on his annual electricity expenses. His annual electricity bill has dropped from $2110 in 2015 to $178.71 in 2016. This level of efficiency surprised the owner himself: “Before I crunched the numbers I was looking at what would be my return on investment. If it saved me 80% of my power bill, [I thought] it would be pretty good,” he says. Outstanding efficiency of Nick’s system topped original Tesla Inc projections estimating that their solar systems can pay itself off within 14 to 18 years. If Nick’s solar system will continue operating at this rate it will payback in just 8 years.

Isn’t it marvelous?

 

Remarkable results of Nick’s power system will undoubtedly ignite already booming market of solar power systems. This combined with Tesla’s progressing plan of building 3 more Gigafactiories – click in order to increase supply and lower costs of batteries and photovoltaic panels only amplifies the strong belief that solar will power our future.

 

 

Sources:

https://www.tesla.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tesla_Powerwall

https://www.choice.com.au/home-improvement/energy-saving/solar/articles/living-with-the-tesla-powerwall-for-a-year

http://www.repositpower.com/

http://www.solaredge.com/us/

 

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More than moon power!

Reading Time: 2 minutesSolar panels have been around for a long time. Solar energy theory has been around since the 1800’s but the one of the first silicon based panels came out in the 1940’s, that was invented by Russell Ohl back in 1941. However it has a less than 1% efficiency.

This brings us to the present, we have tried so many different ways and configurations to get energy from the sun and to convert it into usable work. The main problem with solar panels is heat. Ironically the brighter the sun the more energy you get, however, the brighter the sun the hotter the panels get and this leads to a higher ohm resistance in the panel itself which means a reduced efficiency.

Enter the British company RawLemon. They have invented an orb that works similar to a Fresnel Lens. This clear water filled orb is able to concentrate the sun, with the help of a solar tracking device, and then create useful work from the concentrated solar rays. This orb is so good at concentrating light that it can even generate electricity from moonlight!

RawLemon sucking up moonlight, from IndieGoGo

RawLemon was able to make some smaller versions of the devise and they collected over 150% of their crowdfunding goal raising a total of $233,062 IndieGoGo. Unfortunately their website is getting “an upgrade” so you can’t purchase anything from them at the moment.

Rawlemon in the daytime.

Now let us move on to something that has a bit of controversy behind it. The V3Solar Cone.

The company claims that with this special design they are able to be at least 20 times more efficient than a traditional flat solar panel. As I mentioned before the hotter a panel gets the more inefficient the panel becomes. V3 gets around this because the solar panel is always spinning at the optimal speed. This allows, in theory, the panels to be exposed to sunlight just long enough for proper energy exposure but also the ability to cool down as it spins away from the sun as a “fresh” solar panel is brought around back to the direct sunlight.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQYXvNC5tpk]

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