Posts

61. Those Evil EV’s - AGAIN?

  Those Evil EV’s - AGAIN? Let’s say you’re an average consumer household in 2023. You’re thinking about your next car, and about The Climate Problem, and whether you should take the plunge to electric vehicles, and if so - how electric? Gas hybrid? Plug-In hybrid? Full-on battery electric vehicle? What’s the most practical way to reduce my transportation carbon emissions, you ask? But then again, what’s up with these articles you’ve noticed lately, making disturbing claims about how carbon-intensive the battery EVs really are, how they compare terribly to plug-in hybrids and, yes, even to internal combustion engine (ICE) cars? How can this be? Have those climate crazies been pulling the wool over our eyes again? Do electric vehicles make any sense after all?? This can be especially unsettling when you see something in a respectable paper, one whose articles you had thought one could generally have faith in. Consider, for instance, a recent op-ed in the New York Times (Peter Coy, Jul
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60. How Great Is Hydrogen?

  How Great Is Hydrogen? Doesn’t hydrogen seem like the perfect fuel of the future? It’s everywhere! Literally 90% of the universe. A pound of hydrogen gas contains three times the energy of a pound of gasoline. When it burns it produces water, with zero carbon emissions! What’s the hold-up with saving the planet with hydrogen fuel?! Well, there are a few problems: Pure hydrogen is almost non-existent on Earth; Producing it requires a LOT of energy; Producing it cleanly costs a lot of money; Transporting and storing it is difficult and expensive. So first of all, there is virtually no plain hydrogen gas on Earth. Most of the hydrogen on Earth is in the form of water. And counter-intuitively, the hydrogen in water is “burned up.” It has already given up its heat just in the process of becoming water. In order to get energy out of it again, you have to break its bonds, which requires - wait for it - ENERGY!  How much energy? In fact, more than you can get from burning the hydrogen, so
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59. Solar Land Use Legislation - Let’s Do Some Numbers

  Solar Land Use Legislation - Let’s Do Some Numbers The alarmist and reactionary tone of a recent op-ed (Sun Journal May 20) about a solar bill in the state legislature (LD 1881) inspired us to spend some time figuring out whether this bill was going to end solar development, help solar development, or just confuse everyone.  The bill, LD 1881, would require developers of solar energy projects to pay a “compensation fee” or pay for conservation efforts to mitigate adverse effects on prime agricultural lands.  We are sympathetic to the sentiment behind this bill. Rapid development of anything, especially when it has an impact on land use, does require attention by authorities and governments to safeguard against negative effects on people and other species. However, as we develop more renewable energy sources we need to weigh the positives against the negatives–in this case the negative impacts on land use compared to the positives of addressing CO2 production from fossil fuel emission
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57. Lithium Supply - Is It a Big Problem?

  Lithium Supply - Is It a Big Problem? Lithium used to be known primarily as a drug with a calming effect. Today, it seems to be among the issues that provoke distress: “There won’t be enough! Mining will be so destructive!”  It might be useful to try to analyze these fears in the context of the looming environmental challenges humanity faces. Such analysis assumes that lithium chemistries will remain the dominant ones used in electric vehicle (EV) batteries. At this point lithium batteries have the highest energy density, but there are many labs around the world working on alternatives that use less lithium and more of the more common minerals. Here we hope to achieve an appreciation of the environmental impact of mining lithium in comparison to extracting and using fossil fuels, because that’s the relevant comparison. We’ll start with the spoiler and hope you follow our findings that led to it. Here it is: In one year we extract more oil just to produce gasoline than we would extrac
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56. Energy Intensity Matters

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  Energy Intensity Matters As you’ve probably noticed, we’re in the midst of a world-wide energy transition from carbon-emitting fuels to green renewables. In the midst of such upheaval, we shouldn’t be surprised by the effects of human resistance to change, and human doubts about successful change. But when fear of change is coupled with the resistance of powerful industries and their political friends, the rhetoric can get out of hand. In times like these it’s especially important to analyze alarmist rhetoric quantitatively whenever possible. One of the most popular arguments is that renewables simply cannot suffice to meet our needs. We recently heard an interview with U.S. Congressman John Curtis (R. Utah.) in which he expressed just such skepticism. He claimed to have spoken to Singapore’s representatives at the U.N. climate summit: “They told me if they put a solar panel on every house, on every business, on every square empty piece of land, that would produce about 10% of the en
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55. Now You’re Cooking With - Induction!

  Now You’re Cooking With - Induction! When we met a scientist/college-professor/ environmentalist friend on the ski trail a few days ago, we somehow got on the subject of induction cooking stoves, only to find that he’d never heard of them. We said: Wait, WHAT?? Should we maybe revisit the subject? (previous column November 2020) It probably came up because recently there’s been quite a hub-bub about gas stoves, thanks to a commissioner from the Consumer Products Safety Commission stating that he thinks there’s a need for regulation to reduce the hazards connected with burning gas unvented in homes. In an interview he said, “Any option is on the table. Products that can’t be made safe can be banned.” Though the Chair of the CPSC stated that no such ban is planned, many immediately assumed the federal government was about to snatch away their gas stoves.  This all came up partly because recent studies have shown that there is a significantly higher rate of childhood asthma and other re
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54. Solar and Farming: Yes, They're Dating!

  Solar and Farming: Yes, They're Dating! There is a new, budding romance on the Energy Transition horizon - one between photovoltaics (solar panels) and agriculture (both crops and livestock). It’s further along in some other countries than in the U.S. - some foreign “Agri-voltaic” couples appear to be well on their way to a long-term commitment that could soon bear abundant fruit - as it were. In fact, as in some of the best relationships we know, the pairing of solar panels and farming can be mutually beneficial, sometimes allowing them to “be their best selves” and to produce more together than they could separately.  Agriculture is estimated to be responsible for roughly 30% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, so finding ways of reducing its energy and water consumption would be helpful for our future. Evidence is mounting that growing certain crops in the partial shade of photovoltaic panels can result in equal or enhanced crop yields, increase the efficiency of the sola
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