ArtikBanana

Firebrick systems powered by renewable energy could be used for up to 90% of industrial process heat applications, the Stanford study says. Meeting that demand in the U.S. would require firebrick system capacity of 2.6 TWh, with a peak discharge rate of 170 GW.

“But even in the only country that is massively building, China, nuclear development is comparatively marginal. In 2023, China started up one new nuclear reactor, that is plus 1 GW, and more than 200 GW of solar alone. Solar generated 40% more power than nuclear and all non-hydro renewables—mainly wind, solar, and biomass—generated four times as much as nuclear.”
The report also highlights how nuclear power is being challenged not only by the strong growth of solar and wind, but also by battery storage, whose costs are projected to decline below those of coal-fired and nuclear power plants by around 2025 in China. “Solar plus storage is already significantly lower than nuclear power in most markets today, as well as highly competitive with other low-emissions sources of electricity that are commercially available today,” it also notes.
The authors also cite data from investment bank Lazard revealing that solar-plus-storage can already be cheaper than gas peaking and new nuclear. “The competitive cost and large-scale availability of variable renewable energy sources combined with firming options—especially storage—could well turn out to be the game-changer of energy policy in the years to come,” they further explain.

While the much lower fuel cost has to be a bit of a shocker (we all know EVs are more efficient and cheaper to operate, but not 95% cheaper), the bigger surprise has to be how much more convenient the electric boat was in a certain key way. “We actually had range anxiety, but not for the Candela. The irony is that the photographer’s gasoline-powered chase boat had to refuel six times during the trip, while we only charged three times,” said Gustav Hasselskog.

The German government says that the H2Mare OffgridWind project in Denmark has connected two electrolyzers to a wind turbine for hydrogen production, while Ontras Gastransport and H2 Energy Europe have agreed to define the technical and commercial framework for hydrogen transportation in its Green Octopus Mitteldeutschland pipeline project.

GreenGo Energy will also collaborate with Lodestone, a local iron mining company, to integrate green hydrogen into steel production, aiming to set new standards for sustainable manufacturing.

In its four years of operation, the world’s first semi-submersible floating offshore wind farm, WindFloat Atlantic, has surpassed anticipated production figures, achieving a total cumulative output of 320 GWh.

Oxford PV is delivering its first commercial perovskite solar modules to US customers. The 72-cell solar modules have an efficiency of 24.5% and, according to the company, can generate up to 20% more energy than conventional silicon modules.

Earlier this year, the company set a new efficiency world record of 26.9% with its 60-cell residential-sized module, unveiled at this year’s Intersolar. It claims to have a “clear roadmap” to bring the technology to over 30% efficiency.

A research team at Osaka University in Japan has developed green light wavelength-selective organic solar cells (OSCs) that transmit blue and red light necessary for crop growth and use green light, which contributes only a little to photosynthesis, for power generation.