BF2S Forums Big breakthrough on solar power?

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

1. Nowhere on the planet is cloudy all the time, and even if it was, it too would be connected to the global grid - same with places near the poles would also be connected to the global grid - that's what global means.

2. How do you get data across the oceans? In little digital boats? No, by cables, that run across the ocean-floor. Not that many would be needed - most of the inhabited land masses are either all connected, or very close together.

1. Seattle?

2. High voltage power lines are a bigger deal than internet cables. Especially the global security risk they present.

What global security risk, when you've got a global energy grid?

spark wrote:

One of the reasons solar is so attractive is that it reduces - or even eliminates - the need for massive electricity grids.

You've still got to get the electricity to where it's needed when it's needed.

Gee I dunno, cut all the power lines between the major producers and the major consumers?

If everything was independent enough to make the damage from an attack negligible, the need for such a grid would be nonexistent.

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

1. Seattle?

2. High voltage power lines are a bigger deal than internet cables. Especially the global security risk they present.

What global security risk, when you've got a global energy grid?


You've still got to get the electricity to where it's needed when it's needed.

Gee I dunno, cut all the power lines between the major producers and the major consumers?

If everything was independent enough to make the damage from an attack negligible, the need for such a grid would be nonexistent.

Or interconnected enough - like the internet (well, thinking back to the last time I lost internet connectivity, maybe that's not such a great example, lets say the internet in principle (i.e. how it was originally designed)).

Would be a necessity over land, but gets very expensive overseas.

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Gee I dunno, cut all the power lines between the major producers and the major consumers?

If everything was independent enough to make the damage from an attack negligible, the need for such a grid would be nonexistent.

Or interconnected enough - like the internet (well, thinking back to the last time I lost internet connectivity, maybe that's not such a great example, lets say the internet in principle (i.e. how it was originally designed)).

Would be a necessity over land, but gets very expensive overseas.

How so?

Not that many long distance connections would be needed - as I've already said, the majority of the inhabited land masses are, for all practical purposes, joined together.

Spark wrote:

An international grid is simply not viable for a huge number of reasons.

Also, how so?

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Would be a necessity over land, but gets very expensive overseas.

How so?

Not that many long distance connections would be needed - as I've already said, the majority of the inhabited land masses are, for all practical purposes, joined together.

Spark wrote:

An international grid is simply not viable for a huge number of reasons.

Also, how so?

To some degree, yes. That does not mean that every corner of the earth is easily accessible, or that a worldwide power grid would be cheap or protected in all areas.

The hard to reach places tend not to have people living on them - due to them being hard to reach.

And, it would be as protected as the internet is now - do you know how hard it is to permanently disconnect, say, a whole country from the internet once it is connected?

It's virtually impossible, and getting harder every day.

The key is multiple-connectivity - each node in the network is connected to many others, so that, if any one node is taken out, the data (or electricity) just goes via a different route.

Spark wrote:

One of the reasons solar is so attractive is that it reduces - or even elimates - the need for massive electricity grids.

Winrar

Spark wrote:

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Flaming_Maniac wrote:

Would be a necessity over land, but gets very expensive overseas.

How so?

Not that many long distance connections would be needed - as I've already said, the majority of the inhabited land masses are, for all practical purposes, joined together.

The power losses over such a distance would be astronomical.

Plus, transmitting power through water? Think about it.

It's done now. Using sealed cables.

Spark wrote:

Spark wrote:

An international grid is simply not viable for a huge number of reasons.

Also, how so?

As I've said before, there are plenty of parts of the world I would not like to be on the same grid with.

WHAT??? Are you afraid they might contaminate your electricity with their foreignness?

Spark wrote:

No, I'm afraid that for periods of the day my electricity supply might become, say, unstable.

How?

Scorpion0x17 wrote:

Spark wrote:

No, I'm afraid that for periods of the day my electricity supply might become, say, unstable.

How?

He means black-outs.

But as for transmitting electricity internationally, you'd need enormous voltages and tiny currents (really, really tiny currents seeing as you're doing it through oceans) and insulating these wires increases heat transmission, heat loss, and consequent resistance in wire.  Also, this loss means the voltage drops and you need to top it back up now and then.  It's really not practical.

the global net would only be interesting if we can continue the current technologies we have and make our (still prototype) 0 ohm resistance materials practical (at the moment they need to be very very cold and that is not really effiecient but it means no energy loss what so ever)

Mek-Stizzle wrote:

Meh. I'm getting sick and tired of reading about these awesome new energy reports. You never even hear about them ever again.

I offered plenty of disclosures in the OP. I released myself from all liability and disappointment.

FM works for Monster Cable.