Environment & Energy

Last edited Sun Sep 15, 2024, 12:52 PM - Edit history (4)

that's better than 100% fossil fuel, as in the case of a hybrid or conventional ICE car. Something that promoters and owners of either might very well contemplate before they accuse others of being "fossil fuel salesmen". Sigh.

And there is some progress, and plans to reduce the grid's carbon intensity, but I'm not aware of any to reduce the carbon intensity of the gasoline that fuels conventional hybrids and ICE cars. I know that you don't think much of plans, given the "by 2030, by 2050" etc. and I can understand that. But nobody has plans for making gasoline net zero carbon that I know of




From: https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143289137#post3

Edited to add: I'm aware that the increase in projected electricity consumption due to data centers and crypto-mining, and yes, electric vehicles and electric furnaces and water heaters etc. is likely going to end this small slow progress in reducing carbon emissions from the U.S. electricity sector, although I expect the CO2e/KWH will continue to improve /End Edit

More nuclear energy on the grid, will of course reduce the carbon intensity of the grid. But so far I'm not seeing it reducing the carbon intensity of hybrid and ICE car fuel that the fossil-fuel salespeople sell.

And I certainly don't think that any kind of car is "green". Or any source of power either.

I'm always impressed by your graphic of solar, wind, hydro resource utilization

Materials needed for different forms of power generation. Figure based on data from U.S. Department of Energy Quadrennial Energy Review 2015.



taken from this, that uses some of your other work:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100219407847#post4

I'm not an "anti-nuke", by the way. Nor am I a "not-an-anti-nuke anti-nuke" either as you have characterized some others in past posts (or words to that effect). I was an electrical engineer in the nuclear Navy in the 1970's. And I'm impressed by your mortality posts of radiation deaths vs. air pollution deaths.

Edited to add I did look at your first link

I see that even if we managed to get electricity production greenhouse gas emissions down near zero, something that is decades off at best (or a hypothetical minimum case ), the various EV's are only marginally better than the ICEV and HEV (conventional ICE gasoline car and the conventional (i.e. non-plug-in) hybrid. Interesting.

Edited to add I wonder what the Dept of Energy's perspective is. Do they refute this? Have other data? Are bureaucrats in service of politicians? /End Edit

Myself I haven't had a car for 5 years, and manage with a lot of walking (need the exercise anyway), and occasional bus ride.

Another late late edit If I do get a car, it probably will be a conventional ICE, given that I would drive less than 2,000 miles a year, probably more like 1,000 miles. That would be greener (and cheaper) than the other options, since the various electric vehicles (and the conventional hybrid) have higher factory emissions (making the car and the batteries). I don't see in the graphic what they assume as far as annual miles driven, so that i can do some extrapolation to lower mileages of the gasoline production + vehicle use to match my situation.