tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post5030646985484512838..comments2024-03-05T10:52:24.691+00:00Comments on Mark Wadsworth: Nuclear Plan BMark Wadsworthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07733511175178098449noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-27009097561360744182016-03-29T22:20:50.439+01:002016-03-29T22:20:50.439+01:00SS. I totally agree about building more than one ...SS. I totally agree about building more than one design of anything, especially something as complex as a nuclear power station. And in such projects versions 2 to n are always slightly improved each time as well. A little bit of extra refinement each time.Lolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04586735342675041312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-3448517226723209672016-03-29T20:53:36.541+01:002016-03-29T20:53:36.541+01:00B, fair point. B, fair point. Mark Wadsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07733511175178098449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-86882662887190827862016-03-29T20:24:34.178+01:002016-03-29T20:24:34.178+01:00"B. I'm not that daft.
My 2 kW kettle b..."B. I'm not that daft. <br /><br />My 2 kW kettle boils a cup of water in (say) 2 minutes, so it uses 2 kW x 2/60 hours = 1/15 of a kWh each time."<br /><br />Well then, why did you say "I understand that a kettle uses 2 kWh"? You can see why I thought you were confused, or was that a typo?Bayardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15211150959757982948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-53831120539278326302016-03-29T07:58:24.076+01:002016-03-29T07:58:24.076+01:00The other factor is number of hours in a year whic...The other factor is number of hours in a year which is 365*24 or 8800 roughly. So if you have to multiply GW into TWh per year, multiply by 8.8Stephen Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02276800274947292226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-6707976993265287632016-03-29T07:55:44.849+01:002016-03-29T07:55:44.849+01:00The easiest numbers for me are personal average co...The easiest numbers for me are personal average consumption rates for uk citizens - slightly less than 1kW electricity (including all infrastructure) average per person usage and 5kW (or 5 kiloJoules per second if you prefer) of all primary energy. (Food is about 100W). Multiplying this by 60 million we get 60gw of electricity (somewhat over the true figure which was more like 40-50GW last time I checked) and 300GW of all energy.Stephen Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02276800274947292226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-6683770454305414312016-03-28T19:36:12.056+01:002016-03-28T19:36:12.056+01:00B. I'm not that daft.
My 2 kW kettle boils a...B. I'm not that daft. <br /><br />My 2 kW kettle boils a cup of water in (say) 2 minutes, so it uses 2 kW x 2/60 hours = 1/15 of a kWh each time. A kWh costs me (say) 10 pence so each time I boil the kettle, it costs me a bit less than a penny. Running an oven for an hour costs 10p etc.<br /><br />That's not the problem, the problem is multiplying up all this stuff by 28 million households and million of businesses, expressing the result it kW, MW, GW and TW and kWh MWh, GWh or TWh as appropriate. You can't guesstimate those results, you have to look them up or know them off by heart. Mark Wadsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07733511175178098449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-36365514349727047112016-03-28T18:19:30.604+01:002016-03-28T18:19:30.604+01:00Mark, I think you are getting confused. Your kett...Mark, I think you are getting confused. Your kettle has a power rating of 2kW. If you boiled it continuously for an hour, you would have used 2KWh. Power is measured in KW, consumption is measured in kWh.Bayardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15211150959757982948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-22037725559549554512016-03-28T16:00:23.066+01:002016-03-28T16:00:23.066+01:00SS, I understand that a kettle uses 2 kWh, and I c...SS, I understand that a kettle uses 2 kWh, and I can multiply up and I know how many units show up on my bill, it's just that total consumption is in kWh or MWh etc but power stations are quoted in thousands of MW, which is per hour, so to get total amount generated you have to multiply by hours they are switched on etc. And then you have to remember kW, MW, GW and TW etc. Mark Wadsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07733511175178098449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-61032243356255982112016-03-28T14:37:44.983+01:002016-03-28T14:37:44.983+01:00What units do you think about energy in, Mark?What units do you think about energy in, Mark?Stephen Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02276800274947292226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-77969635277821599302016-03-24T07:56:10.542+00:002016-03-24T07:56:10.542+00:00SS, good correction but I don't think many peo...SS, good correction but I don't think many people will have notiiced the original typo. <br /><br />Most people including me get hopelessly confused when multiplying up electricity usage or generation.Mark Wadsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07733511175178098449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-6329220443506306712016-03-24T05:25:46.103+00:002016-03-24T05:25:46.103+00:00Apologies a correction. My own estimate was actual...Apologies a correction. My own estimate was actually 160GWh/h (1400Twh/year) total electricity generation, of which 100GWh/h (880Twh/year) would be nuclear. See: <a href="http://stephenstretton.co.uk/a/2/ZeroCarbonUK2030.xls" rel="nofollow">Spreadsheet</a>Stephen Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02276800274947292226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-92035982944659628002016-03-23T06:32:40.365+00:002016-03-23T06:32:40.365+00:00I've always opposed building the EPR design fi...I've always opposed building the EPR design first compared for example to the AP1000. Think about it:<br />You have one design (EPR) that uses defence-in-depth (i.e. multiple redundant safety systems a.k.a. increasing the complexity of the design) and so-called economies of scale (i.e. make the problem bigger).<br />Alternatively, you have a design (AP1000) that is an evolution of the existing Sizewell design and uses simplification to achieve the same sorts of ends. Westinghouse used to be owned by BNFL. <br /><br />Next, it's obvious (and I've always pointed out) that the first reactor will be expensive and over-budget. That's because nobody until recently has built a reactor in Europe. Nuclear has 'learning curve' too, but it's a learning curve associated with each design that is built - the first one is expensive and then you learn how to build it. That's why it's almost always uneconomic to build just one plant - you should be building a series of them. It seems unfair not to take account of this, and the way that it works which is a little different from renewables.<br /><br />It seems that it's worse than this - the EPR is an engineering failure. Furthermore, EDF does not have huge financial strength at present - another megaproject will give it big financial problems. I'm sure they are playing for time, and learning from the Finnish and Normandy builds before going forward.<br /><br />In terms of financing, Hinkley is also quite expensive for the UK taxpayer. I think the UK government should look at many options for new nuclear (including R&D) and also look for zero-cost policy. One such policy is to provide a premium 'prize' minimum price (for carbon OR electricity) - but only for a few years - and then concretely plan to increase carbon prices to meet that minimum cost. Starting small would be a good option.<br /><br />Another option is government debt plus project finance or just for the government to simply plan to build a lot. Remember, the first one is always going to be over-budget - that's the way it works.<br /><br />None of this has really changed since I've written about it 10 years ago. http://stephenstretton.co.uk/a/2/2.html<br />Nuclear is important but we shouldn't be doing down either it or renewables. There's plenty of space for both, and even wind in moderate quantities especially. The goal is a fully electric energy system, so it's likely the UK needs slightly more than 100GW (average use) for all our energy needs.<br /><br />Globally, massive solar in deserts plus some modular, mass produced reactors. The Chinese government has a massive savings surplus in tens of trillions of dollars to spend over the next few decade. They could do worse by spending their saving surplus on engineering a solution to climate change.Stephen Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02276800274947292226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-92197781049856702192016-03-18T13:04:55.180+00:002016-03-18T13:04:55.180+00:00Bayard above,
Thanks, Dam that Dr Beeching :)
I ...Bayard above,<br /><br />Thanks, Dam that Dr Beeching :)<br /><br />I googled around the subject Yep, UK involvement is very depressing from my perspective.A handful of buses and proposed boat!MikeWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15455583313857077618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-59447264484045896392016-03-16T17:44:17.046+00:002016-03-16T17:44:17.046+00:00"For those that are interested in this area, ..."For those that are interested in this area, I am puzzled: why did we go straight from hydrogen test rigs to family cars and miss out heavy freight locomotives on the railways as a tested ‘system’."<br /><br />Probably because replacing fossil fuels in railway locomotives isn't as politically advantageous as replacing it in cars. Talking of "tested systems", the concept of the hybrid power train had been around in railway locomotives since the 1950s, yet when it came to hybrid cars, the engineers seem to have started from scratch and come up with a different answer.Bayardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15211150959757982948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-37688905793465516332016-03-16T14:17:19.340+00:002016-03-16T14:17:19.340+00:00I agree,
Even some leading Greens, I think, have g...I agree,<br />Even some leading Greens, I think, have given qualified support to nuclear. George Mountbot at the Guardian I seem to remember? My qualified view: Nuclear core part of the mix for the next 25/30 years give the applied physicists and engineers time to come up with something better, more efficient, safer for the next generation!<br />For those that are interested in this area, I am puzzled: why did we go straight from hydrogen test rigs to family cars and miss out heavy freight locomotives on the railways as a tested ‘system’. Railway infrastructure (energy refuel stops), for example, answering most of the criticism levelled at the H car?MikeWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15455583313857077618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-31828045912037560522016-03-15T19:07:53.115+00:002016-03-15T19:07:53.115+00:00Totally right and spot on.Totally right and spot on.Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01146808185620364646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-30103130967344581902016-03-15T18:36:36.753+00:002016-03-15T18:36:36.753+00:00"Having a standardised fleet, rather than the..."Having a standardised fleet, rather than the nuclear zoo we are currently on course to build, would have other cost and safety advantages too."<br /><br />Standardisation is something the French are good at, mainly thanks to Napoleon, but the UK? Don't make me laugh! Just count the number of different railway gauges (loading and track) and canal lock sizes in the UK.<br />Bayardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15211150959757982948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-80215949247622411232016-03-15T11:43:20.801+00:002016-03-15T11:43:20.801+00:00http://npi.org.uk/blog/social-security-and-welfare...http://npi.org.uk/blog/social-security-and-welfare-reform/help-buy-not-keep/Mark Wadsworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07733511175178098449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1141932539860553199.post-73648368574522321362016-03-15T09:05:14.162+00:002016-03-15T09:05:14.162+00:00Go nuclear, young man.Go nuclear, young man.James Highamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14525082702330365464noreply@blogger.com