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green for victory

(591 posts)
93. There are various ways of storing heat
Tue Apr 16, 2013, 12:56 AM
Apr 2013

Storing electricity is a different problem. We can do it, we went to the moon in 10 years. I think we can do a better job. Our money and scientists have different priorities.

Here's an 18 year old tech solution for heat storage that was applauded by Bill Richardson, ex Energy sec:

In 1995 Solar One was converted into Solar Two, by adding a second ring of 108 larger 95 m² (1,000 ft²) heliostats around the existing Solar One, totaling 1926 heliostats with a total area of 82,750 m² (891,000 ft²). This gave Solar Two the ability to produce 10 megawatts—enough to power an estimated 7,500 homes.[1]

Solar Two used molten salt, a combination of 60% sodium nitrate and 40% potassium nitrate, as an energy storage medium instead of oil or water as with Solar One. This helped in energy storage during brief interruptions in sunlight due to clouds.[1] The molten salt also allowed the energy to be stored in large tanks for future use such as night time—Solar Two had sufficient capacity to continue running for up to three hours after the sun had set.



Solar Two was decommissioned in 1999, and was converted by the University of California, Davis, into an Air Cherenkov Telescope in 2001...Solar Two's 3 primary participants were Southern California Edison (SCE), the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

"We're proud of Solar Two's success as it marks a significant milestone in the development of large-scale solar energy projects," said then U.S. Energy Secretary Bill Richardson.


"This technology has been successfully demonstrated and is ready for commercialization. From 1994 to 1999, the Solar Two project demonstrated the ability of solar molten salt technology to provide long-term, cost effective thermal energy storage for electricity generation.", Boeing

On November 25, 2009, after 10 years of not producing any energy, the Solar Two tower was demolished[1] The mothballed site was levelled and returned to vacant land by Southern California Edison. All heliostats and other hardware were removed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Solar_Project



That is 18 year old tech. Imagine if a fraction of the cost of the bogus wars was spent on perfecting this heat storage.



What if a trillion dollars was spent on battery technology? Do you think there would be better batteries and perhaps ways of storing the output from PV farms?


Bummer.. pipoman Apr 2013 #1
Yeah, I was suddenly overcome by a wave of depression on reading that. Jackpine Radical Apr 2013 #52
Ten reasons solar energy is all wrong: wellspring Apr 2013 #73
*snort* krispos42 Apr 2013 #74
As a brand new investor in 24 solar panels on our roof , selling sunshine back to SCE.. pkdu Apr 2013 #82
Yep..... That's what the oil giants want us to think..... midnight Apr 2013 #84
well played n/t w0nderer Apr 2013 #85
Love it! Tree-Hugger Apr 2013 #96
+1000. JDPriestly Apr 2013 #99
Beautiful... GTurck Apr 2013 #103
K&R And only a couple of decades too late. n/t Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #2
Corporate forces, forever standing in the way of progress. marmar Apr 2013 #3
They will be responsible for their own demise if they ignore solar energy. LiberalFighter Apr 2013 #4
We need them to be more responsible nolabels Apr 2013 #30
No, we don't need any corporations. fasttense Apr 2013 #47
We throw our money away bailing out the banks and feeding the Pentagon/CIA/DHS. leveymg Apr 2013 #5
+ a few billion green for victory Apr 2013 #6
Socialist! pscot Apr 2013 #39
And giving obscenely rich ppl MORE tax breaks and tax havens. nt valerief Apr 2013 #44
About the first thing Raygun did upon occupying the WH was to remove Carter's solar panels on the byeya Apr 2013 #7
and soon after, he abolished the Fed tax credits started by Carter green for victory Apr 2013 #10
Thanks for the reminder! byeya Apr 2013 #37
First thing Cheney did at the Veep's residence was undo Al Gore's work Hekate Apr 2013 #64
Why don't utility companies invest in Solar then? perdita9 Apr 2013 #8
Exactly... I find it odd that if they think solar will win, why aren't they investing in it? octothorpe Apr 2013 #48
All of the major energy companies are controlled by a common financial royalty. AdHocSolver Apr 2013 #58
Thanks for sharing this information. I wish someone would do a graphic to make it easy to share. BrotherIvan Apr 2013 #68
They are. Callmecrazy Apr 2013 #61
I'll bet they're all getting into water now. lexw Apr 2013 #101
Bookmarked..... daleanime Apr 2013 #9
K&R abelenkpe Apr 2013 #11
imagine the power of a Wiki-Solar project- everyone that wants contributes green for victory Apr 2013 #19
People in northern Maine have solar panels on their houses. MADem Apr 2013 #94
we people here at DU that have solar panels ThomThom Apr 2013 #75
If photovoltaics are feasible in Germany it is feasible in most of the U.S. yellowcanine Apr 2013 #12
It might work here but we would definetlyneed diversity. Arctic Dave Apr 2013 #25
Woo hoo! primavera Apr 2013 #13
They say that like it's a bad thing ... Myrina Apr 2013 #14
For them, it is. SammyWinstonJack Apr 2013 #17
Long overdue. Zorra Apr 2013 #15
heh. SammyWinstonJack Apr 2013 #16
I guess we should prepare for the rise of the mandated solar insurance industry, then. bluedigger Apr 2013 #18
ouch. hope this guy isn't listening green for victory Apr 2013 #21
I always assumed... onyourleft Apr 2013 #20
It won't happen soon enough. blackspade Apr 2013 #22
I could be wrong watoos Apr 2013 #27
Creating markets, as Jamie Dimon would put it. reteachinwi Apr 2013 #36
There's plenty of solar companies (especially here in So. Cal.) that will do it for no money down. SunSeeker Apr 2013 #42
Cool, Thanks! blackspade Apr 2013 #53
we are so behind in this marions ghost Apr 2013 #23
we could start turning the battleship today green for victory Apr 2013 #24
corruptisma marions ghost Apr 2013 #32
Smart power companies should be, right now, doing the following. Ready4Change Apr 2013 #26
Why not here? kyeshinka Apr 2013 #28
Yeah, and... DirtyDawg Apr 2013 #29
So? Dinosaurs went extinct too. nt bemildred Apr 2013 #31
Google Earth the place and it doesn't have a solar park there OnlinePoker Apr 2013 #33
Just happen to have a screen shot green for victory Apr 2013 #40
I am not surprised but happy to note the Democrats has been in the right side of alternative Thinkingabout Apr 2013 #34
K&R DeSwiss Apr 2013 #35
Let's see if I can find a shred of empathy or concern for the utilities... AndyA Apr 2013 #38
I have panels. My bill last month: -$5.00. nt Javaman Apr 2013 #41
How much did they cost you to install those? octothorpe Apr 2013 #49
Yeah, I'm in Austin. Javaman Apr 2013 #51
That's great - but you'd be fucked if the utilities went away, wouldn't you? wtmusic Apr 2013 #80
I know you are mr. nuke around here so I won't even qualify your Javaman Apr 2013 #83
You can't. wtmusic Apr 2013 #86
You enjoy picking fights don't you? Javaman Apr 2013 #87
No fight. wtmusic Apr 2013 #88
Yeah, you do, you just wait for people like myself to speak about solar power Javaman Apr 2013 #89
Responding with ad hominems seems like a glaring admission wtmusic Apr 2013 #91
I don't remember where I got this link. This link might have a bearing on this question. RickFromMN Apr 2013 #102
Kind of hard to evaluate 28 billion different combinations, isn't it? wtmusic Apr 2013 #107
Forgive me for being slow. I am trying to understand. RickFromMN Apr 2013 #111
Strictly speaking the demand curve is reflects whatever load is placed on the grid wtmusic Apr 2013 #113
Thank you for this link. This is fascinating. RickFromMN Apr 2013 #116
I'm going to point you to a website (one of my new favorites) wtmusic Apr 2013 #117
You enjoy reading a lot into peoples posts with zero information. Javaman Apr 2013 #104
And you enjoy telling me what I enjoy. wtmusic Apr 2013 #109
End scene. nt Javaman Apr 2013 #110
There are various ways of storing heat green for victory Apr 2013 #93
A good point. wtmusic Apr 2013 #108
What's really inexplicable is that the utility companies SheilaT Apr 2013 #43
I really really don't want to see the utility companies owning "solar rights". djean111 Apr 2013 #45
Is this a joke? n/t Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #54
I'm not joking, although I'm being somewhat ironic. SheilaT Apr 2013 #55
Ah, got it. Another westerner here, I know exactly what you're saying. Egalitarian Thug Apr 2013 #59
It's true==As the song says: "Nothing is Your Own" nikto Apr 2013 #115
Capitalism 4Q2u2 Apr 2013 #46
Solar farming in Iowa Skidmore Apr 2013 #50
Hearing this makes me much more resilience Hutzpa Apr 2013 #56
Panels aren't visible on Google Maps? BadgerKid Apr 2013 #57
That's sort of the point, yes. (nt) Posteritatis Apr 2013 #60
First reaction: My heart bleeds for them Hekate Apr 2013 #62
We could only wish. ileus Apr 2013 #63
In the words of Exxon's CEO: silverweb Apr 2013 #65
Good. Utilities should be managed and run by municipalities and counties. Cleita Apr 2013 #66
Let's do it and revitalize the US Power Grid nt MrScorpio Apr 2013 #67
We may have destroy the utility companies to GET the solar panels. DirkGently Apr 2013 #69
Utility company could change their business model csziggy Apr 2013 #70
YAY! grahamhgreen Apr 2013 #71
Solar's great! StoneCarver Apr 2013 #72
that's called competition in a capitalistic market fascisthunter Apr 2013 #76
Someone still has to transmit power though, right? eridani Apr 2013 #77
Germany has managed to figure it out. If we can't, maybe we could hire a few Germans green for victory Apr 2013 #95
"we could hire a few Germans": We've done it before. WinkyDink Apr 2013 #112
I am kind of bothered by the solar farm concept FrodosPet Apr 2013 #78
Take a look at Palo Verde Nuclear plant in Arizona green for victory Apr 2013 #97
I wasn't advocating for more nuclear plants FrodosPet Apr 2013 #100
But for the lack of will of the people... cbrer Apr 2013 #79
Well, they should have come up with a different EC Apr 2013 #81
A positive paradigm shift... Mr.Pain Apr 2013 #90
Doing my teency little part with my Goal Zero solar charger. AllyCat Apr 2013 #92
I have to be honest with everyone here... nikto Apr 2013 #98
start smart daybranch Apr 2013 #105
Wow... what a shame that would be Recursion Apr 2013 #106
Wait, is Grist satire? sakabatou Apr 2013 #114
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