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Anon questions our energy sector (slrpnk.net)

submitted 23 hours ago by MataVatnik@lemmy.world to c/science_memes@mander.xyz

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[-] drake@lemmy.sdf.org -1 points 2 hours ago

When energy storage and transmission methods are also not up to the task, nuclear becomes the best answer.

Obviously, the best answer is to improve energy storage and transmission infrastructure. Why would we waste hundreds of millions on a stupid toy power plant when we could spend 10% of that money on just running decent underground cables.

[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 3 points 1 hour ago

You really don't understand how expensive underground cables are. You know those big, huge steel transmission towers that you see lined up, hundreds in a row?

Those towers costs hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars each. And the reason they're used is because that's way cheaper than underground.

Shit - just the cable is a couple million per mile per cable.

[+] drake@lemmy.sdf.org -6 points 1 hour ago

Are you fucking serious? Nuclear power plants cost way fucking more than some cables. You people are fundamentally so unserious. Pull your head out of a reactor for ten seconds and take reality as it exists

[-] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 2 points 26 minutes ago

Yes. They cost more than some cables. But we aren't talking about wiring a stereo.

A new nuclear unit (4 billion-ish) costs about as much as 2,000 miles of transmission-grade cable (about 2 million per mile). Considering that there's about 30 cables on a tower run, you're looking at around 65 miles' worth of cable for the cost of a nuclear unit.

And that's just the cost of the wire. No towers, no conduit, no substations, no land acquisition (aerial easement and underground are very different things), no labor.

[-] jaemo@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 hour ago

mmmm sounds like someone has zero concept of the scale of the problem: ie how much cable we'd need to bury. Simmer down Tony Snark, you're demonstrably less clever than the rest of the species' experts in this.

[-] drake@lemmy.sdf.org -2 points 1 hour ago

You have no idea what you’re talking about. shut the fuck up, you pretentious cunt.

[-] Ajen@sh.itjust.works 1 points 34 minutes ago

Maybe take a break from the doomscolling/doomposting and try to relax.

[-] areyouevenreal@lemm.ee 2 points 1 hour ago

You do realize that all that is also expensive, and limited? We haven't invented room temperature superconductors yet, and battery technology is far from perfect. There is only so much lithium and cobalt in the entire world. Yes we can now use things like sodium, but that's a technology that's still young and needs more research before it's full potential is realized. There is also a reason we have overground cables and not underground. Digging up all that earth is hella expensive.