Presentation by Trevor Branton on Energy Choices

Received on Thursday 22nd November 2007

At the Co-op training centre Ipswich.

ENERGY OPTIONS

• Fossil Fuels• Nuclear• Wind• Waves• Tides• Sun• Biomass • Heat inside the earth

ELECRICITY USAGE

Fossil Fuels

• Availability/Demand – World• Depleting resources — Dash for Gas• Fuel or Raw Material?• Security of supply — Georgia• Political — Iraq, Middle East• Cost - Fluctuation and dependence• Global Warming• Acid Rain• Transport• Fuel• Ash Disposal

Nuclear Energy

• Siting Demand Grid Connections FoundationsCooling Water

• Sizewell A Magnox• Capacity 420 MW (Supply 500 000 homes)• Lifetime Availability ~75%• Typical Annual Production 3 000 000 units• 1 tonne Uranium 15000 tonnes coal (Magnox)• 1 tonne Uranium 150 000 tonnes coal (PWR)• Unit of Comparison Sizewell A Output• Sizewell B is equivalent to 3 Sizewell A Output• 30 times Fibropower at Eye = Sizewell A Output

Coal Equivalent and Emissions

• Sizewell A Lifetime Electricity Production• Electricity Production 110 000 000 000 units• Fossil Plant Efficiency 35%• Total Heat Equivalent 314 285 714 MWh

1 131 000 000GJ• Calorific Value of Coal 23.5 GJ/tonne• Coal Equivalent 48.1 million tonnes• Ash Produced 13.5 million tonnes• C02 Production 127.1 million tonnes

WIND ENERGY

• British Wind Energy Association• Installed Capacity 1200 MW• Average Availability 300 MW• Cost 500 MW Capacity £800 Million

500 MW Output £3200 Million• Environment 1200 MW East Anglia• Wildlife Bird strike• Visual On shore Wales Lewis• Noise Radio Interference Reliability• Availability 25% When the ~jg~ wind blows• About 75% of Sizewell A output.

Wave Power

• Another form of wind power (BWEA)• Potential 120 000 MW• Difficult Technology• Engineering problems are clearly formidable• (Pilot plants keep getting washed away, damaged or

corroded up)• Getting the power ashore over long distances• No practical energy extraction demonstrated• Economics are speculative• Variations Winter Storms/Summer Calms• Scottish Isles - Small unit

Tides

• La Rance Small pilot scheme• 12.4 hour cycle and 14 day cycle• Power approx. Tidal Range - Twice • Time of high tide changes daily• Severn Estuary 2.5 to 14 times Sizewell A• Very high capital costs — cf Thames Barrier• Long construction times• Environmental Impact• Weston-super-Mare 2 miles of mud• Wildlife Waders displaced• Shipping Restrictions

The Sun • Each year the Earth receives from the Sun 12000 times the energy

consumed in 1970.• Solar Domestic Water Heating (5% of energy use)• Is it becoming more viable?• (Financial benefit cf interest from capital)• Solar Electricity Generation• Timing — energy need when Sun is not out• Britain one third of Sahara radiation• Very variable, particularly in Winter• Large collecting areas needed• High Capital Cost Service Life • £150 000 installation — how much for £7500?

Biomass

• Sunlight harnessed by biological conversion• Trees for fuel• Sugar and crops into alcohol• Algae into methane• Efficiency of sunlight into energy ~ 1%• Coniferous trees would need to cover 50% of

land area to meet country’s energy needs. (Plus 20% to meet husbandry energy needs)

• Sizewell A 3 to 4 million tonnes of wood• Fuel v Food - Mexico - Economics

Biomass — Vegetable Oil

• Vegetable oil use in UK 100 000 tonnes/year

• Could produce 40 MW from generation= 1 000 000 units per day

• A fry-up typically consumes 1 unit = 1 000 000 fry ups/day

• Therefore the recycling of waste vegetable oil could produce sufficient energy to be self sustaining.

Geothermal

• In theory — everything going for it BUT• Depth at which useful temperature occurs is dependent

on how long ago there was volcanic activity.• Iceland and New Zealand Relatively recent — high

geothermal gradient• UK 55 million years — low geothermal gradients 25 °C

per kilometre• Test Site on Cheshire/Shropshire 16°C• Los Alamos Geothermal Test Site 100°C per kilometre • Would require at least an 8 kilometre deep hole costs

and difficulty increase rapidly with increasing depth.

UK ELECTRICITY FUEL MIX

• Gas 39% 19500 MW• Coal 33% 16500 MW• Nuclear 21% 10500 MW• Other (Oil) 3% 1500 MW• Renewable 4% 2000 MW• Hydro Resource nearly fully utilised• Biomass Fibropower• Wind• Nuclear (2006) 12000 MW• Nuclear (Current) 11000 MW• Nuclear (After 2010) ‘~ 9600 MW