“We already live in a solar powered world!”

[NW-Bound]

Not to mention that without fossil fuel it will be nearly impossible to produce enough biofuel for the jets. Agriculture is highly dependent on fossil fuel for machinery and the production of nitrogen fertilizer.

Our great-grandchildren will read about our air travel and cruise trips, while living in caves.

 

[PoorOldCountryBoy]

gas savings

FWIW, there have been 2 times in my lifetime when gas consumption for the Washington DC metro area was reduced by 40% in weeks. When gas prices went past $4.00, and in the oil embargos in the 1970's.

I'm not a big fan of taxes but making things more precious tends to get people's attention. What's sad is how wasteful things are "normally".

Our solar panels are now on track to reduce our electric bills to $0. We're waiting for a best-fit battery, if we currently had to likely we'd need a TSLA model. [ Yes skeptics, we're grid tied so in winter we're only producing about 60% of what we need live. ]

This is just a drop in the bucket but when everyone does their part we could pretty easily get to a 50% savings across all power sources. It does take some systemic thinking which most folks are simply overwhelmed by, so likely it will take pain rather than planning from a social impacts point.

 

[RobLJ]

Last year, we used a little over 31 kwh/day; our panels (installed in October) now are producing 40 kwh/day, which is more than enough to charge the Bolt, although February so far has been unusually clear.
December/January we were in deficit, averaging about 18-25 kwh/day produced. We should bank more than enough kwh to get us through next November-January without a charge, other than for the monthly connection. We are using gas for heat, although when the AC unit fails, I'll probably replace it with a heat pump.

 

[triangle]

I am happy to see solar generation costs drop and energy efficiency increase. I would like to be able to power my home from panels not connected to the power grid. I have considered putting panels on my roof, but plan to move.

On the other hand, comments like that from Musk is why I do not understand the global warming debate from either extreme perspective...there is never actually explanation how it works in the public square beyond some superficial discussion. The percentage of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is less than 0.05%. Double, triple, quadruple that and it will create a blanket? Outer space is cold, what about the 2nd law of thermodynamics?

This past Monday, NASA launched an new probe to learn more about our sun.
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/esa-nasa-solar-orbiter-launch-voyage-to-sun-heat-shield

 

[GalaxyBoy]

Here is probably more than you ever wanted to know about Li-ion battery fires:

https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/safety_concerns_with_li_ion

Quality lithium-ion batteries are safe if used as intended. However, a high number of heat and fire failures had been reported in consumer products that use non-certified batteries, and the hoverboard is an example. This may have been solved with the use of certified Li-ion on most current models. A UL official at a meeting in the Washington, D.C. area said that no new incident of overheating or fire had been reported since Li-ion in hoverboards was certified. Fires originating in the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 were due to a manufacturing defect that had been solved. The main-ship battery in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner also had defects that were resolved.

...

One of the most accident-prone batteries is Li-ion in an 18650 cell with an unfamiliar brand name. These batteries made available for vaping do not have the same quality and safety as a recognized brand name. Li-ion is safe if made by a reputable manufacturer, but there have been a number fires and injuries with cells that developed defects and caught fire while carrying in clothing and while traveling.

...


There are also safety concerns with the electric vehicle. However, statistics shows that EVs produce fewer fires compared to vehicles with the internal combustion engine (ICE) per billion kilometers driven. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), over 400,000 ICE powered cars burned down in the 1980s. Today, 90 fires per one billion with ICE vehicles are considered normal; reports say that Tesla had only two fires per one billion driven kilometer.

 

[GreenEggs]

Agreed. It's not a technical issue, there is plenty of space available and the technology already exists to make it work. The financial and social aspects are the biggest hurdles. Like you said, it won't be an overnight change, but solar is gaining ground as the prices come down.

Imagine if every parking lot had solar panels mounted above the parking spaces. That would be a lot of power generation.

Not to mention how wonderful parking in the shade would be.

Solar over parking lots seems to be the perfect solution. I don't understand why we're seeing cheap farmland wasted for solar farms when parking lots are already paid for and can benefit from the shade, not to mention the proximity advantage.

Who's "in charge" of figuring this stuff out? It looks like common sense from my POV.

 

[ERD50]

Not to mention how wonderful parking in the shade would be.

Solar over parking lots seems to be the perfect solution. I don't understand why we're seeing cheap farmland wasted for solar farms when parking lots are already paid for and can benefit from the shade, not to mention the proximity advantage.

Who's "in charge" of figuring this stuff out? It looks like common sense from my POV.

Agreed. I would think the sun blocking would extend the life of an asphalt parking lot as well.

-ERD50

 

[aja8888]

Solar over parking lots seems to be the perfect solution. I don't understand why we're seeing cheap farmland wasted for solar farms when parking lots are already paid for and can benefit from the shade, not to mention the proximity advantage.

Who's "in charge" of figuring this stuff out? It looks like common sense from my POV.

Well, I guess the folks (private companies) who own the parking lots have reasons:

1. Initial cost of equipment which will be high,
2. Ongoing maintenance of panels, inverters, wiring, etc.,
3. Liability issues with property damage and individuals damaging the panel structures and possibly themselves,
4. Theft, malicious damage, etc.
5. Obtaining permits and approvals for construction and use,
6 Additional insurance costs.

There's probably more negative issues, so use your imagination.

 

[braumeister]

Our zoo has solar panels over its main parking lot. Produces 1.65 megawatts, something like 20% of the zoo's total needs.

 

[JoeWras]

It would require a code change around here. The specifications for trees and greenery in parking lots are very severe. You have to have a lot of islands, a lot of trees, and a lot of shade.

 

[GreenEggs]

It would require a code change around here. The specifications for trees and greenery in parking lots are very severe. You have to have a lot of islands, a lot of trees, and a lot of shade.

The solar panels will give you close to 100% shade.

That's the beauty, "everybody" wants to park in the shade, right? Stores could be encouraging more shoppers to choose them over the competition's 120-degree oven to park in. IMO, stores should want to provide shaded parking even if it didn't produce electricity, just to attract more customers.

With all the shade they could plant lush green shade-loving plants.

Covering the asphalt will also help lower the air temperature. As in "fighting global warming". You know the saying, "Think globally, act locally."