RE: Nuclear power and the hydrogen economy

["Flood, John" <FloodJR@NV.DOE.GOV>]

> "However, the potential capacity for solar

> hydrogen is quite large. The estimated power output

> from 10% efficient solar cells covering

> 1.7% of the land area of the U.S. (an area comparable

> to the land devoted to the nation's interstate

> highways) is 3.3 TW, equivalent to the total U.S.

> fossil fuel use in 2000.



1.7% of the US land area seems to be dismissed as an significant or

readily-achievable amount.  By my estimate that's about the size of Vermont

and New Hampshire combined, perhaps even more.  And then it is suggested

that to supply our power needs with nuclear would require a reactor every 30

miles, probably hoping the distinction of "coastline" will be lost in the

discussion, or if not, drag in the idea of ruining the coastline.  This is

not a report - it's yellow journalism.



Interesting too that the waste from the nuclear plant is described as

problematic, but there's no mention of waste from producing the solar

panels.  The manufacturing process generates some very nasty waste, and

since the average lifetime for solar panels is short enough that a large

system would require a continuously operating replacement process, a large

scale solar program will involve a continuous waste stream.



No one has been able to produce panels with a long enough average lifetime

to produce more power than they take to manufacture, so it can't work

anyway.



The ultimate factor in my opinion is the one that is crushing Germany right

now - any power system that does not consume a fuel of some sort cannot be

made to produce power on a schedule.  So Germany's heavy reliance on wind

power means that 12,000 MWe are missing from their grid because the wind

farms are becalmed.  You can't control WHEN you make power unless you

control the source of the power.  So unless Greenpeace has a plan to control

the sun and the wind....



Other than that, it's a great idea.



Bob Flood

Nevada Test Site





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