Comments on: Dispatching with “dispatchable” nuclear https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/ The Global Energiewende Fri, 18 May 2018 21:59:25 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.1 By: HarryDutch https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/#comment-6900 Fri, 18 May 2018 21:59:25 +0000 https://energytransition.org/?p=15203#comment-6900 Get rid of wind and solar and run the nukes flat out. The cost of the fuel is small…

]]> By: heinbloed https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/#comment-5643 Sat, 01 Jul 2017 23:32:11 +0000 https://energytransition.org/?p=15203#comment-5643 France, 21st of June 2017: a new summer time peak power demand recorded – 60 GW at noon:

http://www.rte-france.com/fr/eco2mix/eco2mix-mix-energetique

There was no dispatchable atom power available, all peak power demand from early morning to late night was met by hydro power, solar power and power imports. Atom and coal and gas roaring away full power …….. well, 23 atom reactors weren’t available.
Most oil and coal power plants available during the last record at 58 GW a few years ago are demolished or are in the process of.

On Saturday, 1st of July there are 30 reactors down in France …. dispatched.

]]> By: photomofo https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/#comment-5599 Mon, 19 Jun 2017 08:26:23 +0000 https://energytransition.org/?p=15203#comment-5599 “It peaked above 100 GW in 2012, more than 50% above the maximum output of the entire nuclear fleet.”

The thermal rating of France’s nuclear fleet is up around 200 GW. If you wanted to deliver 100 GW of heat from the existing nuclear fleet you could do at least part of this with co-generation. Another option would be to use 35 GW of heat pumps to deliver 100 GW of heat.

You don’t ramp down to zero with a nuclear plant… You ramp down to a low power level like 15% and then dump steam to the atmosphere to get rid of the remaining energy. This allows you to keep your equipment warm and in hot standby. A better option to make nuclear flexible is to pair it with pumped hydro and conventional hydro that has flexibility. Then there’s time shifting load which has been a practice in France for 40 years. Basic idea here is you use excess nuclear electricity to heat up water. In particular during the middle of the night when there are low load conditions. EVs represent a sort of magic bullet type load because you can use this load to follow solar/wind and eliminate most of the ramps on your graph.

]]> By: Monkey Pit https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/#comment-5598 Mon, 19 Jun 2017 07:59:14 +0000 https://energytransition.org/?p=15203#comment-5598 “It peaked above 100 GW in 2012, more than 50% above the maximum output of the entire nuclear fleet.”

The thermal output of nuclear reactors in France is up around 200 GW Craig.

]]> By: yenishrepublic https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/#comment-5591 Mon, 12 Jun 2017 20:26:25 +0000 https://energytransition.org/?p=15203#comment-5591 I am an undergraduate in Taiwan and have been intensively following your articles in this blog, since I am about to study renewable in Germany (in Freiburg, if things go well) this autumn, and also because I believe the islanders should pay more attention to what is happening right now in Europe and the US, if we are to reach 20% renewable share in electricity, as the government plans.

Speaking of the cost of storage, me and my friend (a to-be graduate in power electronics also after this summer) had a discussion on the advantage of a DC grid last weekend, at least in a micro scale. One of the advantages we covered of was that cost of storage in batteries might be less in such a grid. I wonder if any study has been conducted on related subjects. I would be very thankful if you have any.

]]> By: heinbloed https://energytransition.org/2017/06/dispatching-with-dispatchable-nuclear/#comment-5590 Mon, 12 Jun 2017 19:57:13 +0000 https://energytransition.org/?p=15203#comment-5590 In Fessenheim the water patches were seen again:

(in German)
https://www.baden.fm/nachrichten/offenbar-erneute-ueberschwemmung-im-atomkraftwerk-fessenheim-153064/

The new French governments wants to dispatch more atom power plants than previously thought:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-edf-nuclear-idUSKBN1931AD

The least dispatching power plants in times of good RE-harvest are indeed the atom power plants as just seen in week 23 in Germany:

https://www.platts.com/latest-news/coal/london/german-coal-natural-gas-output-at-record-low-26751717?ito=771&itq=65170b6b-9353-4373-82bb-2c12500a4150&itx%5bidio%5d=667841

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