This article is based on the following post, Solar and Hydrogen: The Foundation.

The material in this article is taken from the post ‘Natural Gas in Transition’, with the sub-title ‘A Net Zero Debating Point’.

Solar and wind energy lie at the heart of all Net Zero programs. Other sources of energy can play important roles, but none of them are as crucial as solar and wind. 

In spite of their importance, solar and wind have four major drawbacks.

1. They are intermittent;

2. They are not dispatchable;

3. They require a lot of space; and

4. They do not provide transportation fuels.

The material in this article is taken from the post An Energy Evaluation System: Part 4 — An Energy Grid.

We continue our series of posts on how to evaluate and compare different energy sources. The first three posts in the series are:

• Part 1 — An Overview

We are publishing a series of posts to do with evaluating alternative sources of energy. This article is based on the post Energy Evaluation: Properties describes a method by which different fuels and energy sources can be compared.

At the heart of any Net Zero program lies the decision as to which alternative energy sources to adopt. We cannot continue to rely on hydrocarbon fuels — coal, natural gas and crude oil — because they generate greenhouse gases, and because they are being irreversibly depleted.

The good old days

This post is the second in the series ‘The Shape of Net Zero’. The series is based on an understanding that we cannot simply switch out one source of energy (fossil fuels) with another (wind, solar, nuclear and others) and carry on with Business as Usual. We need to consider the following parameters to do with a switch in the basics of our energy supply.