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Post by Barry Brook on Jan 16, 2013 19:42:46 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/zero-emission-synfuel-from-seawaterDoes the concept of cheap synfuel to replace oil-based products, that is created using carbon dioxide dissolved in seawater (so potentially also helping to relieve ocean acidification), sound too good to be true? Read the post, and let us know your feedback on this exciting concept, described and elaborated (with a well-justified costings model) by Dr John Morgan. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Jan 3, 2013 15:34:21 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/next-nukesAs the debate over climate policy picks up again in the wake of Hurricane Sandy and President Obama’s reelection, policymakers should prioritize efforts that will accelerate the adoption of zero-carbon technologies, especially the only proven baseload source available: next generation nuclear. But how to best achieve this? This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Nov 15, 2012 17:51:37 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/ewp2012-hazy-future-visionThe Energy White Paper 2012 (EWP2012), released by the Australian Government last week, seeks to map out a strategic policy framework for future energy supply. One of the major goals of EWP2012 is to provide a “clear vision” of how Australia should set about the long-term task of decarbonising our stationary electricity, liquid fuels and industrial sectors. So how well does it succeed? This BNC post gives an answer... This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Nov 9, 2012 12:30:55 GMT 9.5
Inclusion of economics - even if basic (e.g. not properly accounting for fit-for-service issues like the need for large-scale energy storage for high-penetration variable renewables like solar PV and wind), is a bit step forward - it lessens the arbitrariness of the projected energy mixes vs the UK model
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Post by Barry Brook on Nov 8, 2012 16:23:24 GMT 9.5
Certainly Giles Parkinson wasn't happy. reneweconomy.com.au/2012/csiro-model-how-to-design-your-own-clean-energy-future-39135 But there was extensive discussion of the nuclear costs at the ANU energy forum, and people there seemed to think they were reasonable (if anything, the SMR forward estimates were conservative). The key with that the Parkinsons of this world want FOAK costs to be applied to nuclear, and hypothetical NOAK to his preferred technologies (and to ignore storage costs). The nuclear costs in BREE also tally with Nicholson et al 2010 meta-review, see TCASE 14: Assessment of electricity generation costs: bravenewclimate.com/tcase14
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Post by Barry Brook on Nov 8, 2012 15:39:05 GMT 9.5
Thanks QM, I'll delete your post to keep the discussion on it centralised here.
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Post by Barry Brook on Nov 8, 2012 15:34:42 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/csiro-energy-future-2050-toolCSIRO eFuture have built a wonderful new tool for exploring scenarios of Australia’s electricity future. It gives great flexibility to ‘build your own future’ and is a wonderful point of reference for debates on clean energy pathways from today through to 2050. It’s based, among other things, on the data published in the recent AETA report This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Oct 23, 2012 22:58:00 GMT 9.5
Thanks Douglas - that's good to know. It went through a number of iterations and got good feedback from most people. It will be interesting to see how it is received at the WEF tomorrow.
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Post by Barry Brook on Oct 23, 2012 21:16:54 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/the-case-for-near-term-commercial-demonstration-of-the-integral-fast-reactorHere we present a white paper, written by the Berkeley Conferees and SCGI, for the 2012 Dubai World Energy Forum. The focus is expediting the commercial demonstration of the Integral Fast React - a generation IV design which safely recycles nuclear waste to create abundant zero-carbon electricity. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Oct 10, 2012 11:31:05 GMT 9.5
I was interviewed for this - I wonder if I'll make the cut?
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Post by Barry Brook on Oct 5, 2012 2:00:38 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/is-japans-nuclear-free-pathway-an-environmentally-friendly-choiceThis is an essay I co-wrote with one of my current Ph.D. students, Sanghuyn Hong. In it, we take a critical look at the current national energy policy of Japan, and highlight the unfortunate implications of a strategy that preferences fossil fuels over nuclear energy. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Sept 19, 2012 12:42:48 GMT 9.5
A nice summary of a joint talk I gave at CEDA last week: AUSTRALIA MUST LOOK TO NUCLEAR AND OTHER TECHNO-FIXES Posted : Tuesday, September 18, 2012 www.noodls.com/view/60B3BF566BE9CD85245CAC96508BBB897CFF880EAustralia must develop advanced nuclear power technologies and other carbon-free technologies if it is to tackle climate change and meet its growing energy needs, a CEDA audience in Adelaide has heard. Experts at the forum said Australia needs to be serious about finding cost-effective alternatives to fossil fuels to stem its rising carbon emissions. Eminent climate change scientist, Professor Chris Rapley said despite media claims that scientists were divided over climate change and its implications, scientists agree: The world is warming; Global warming is mainly due to human use of polluting fossil fuels; and It matters because the stable climate system of the past 10,000 years is becoming more volatile, causing droughts and extreme weather conditions and placing pressure on food prices. Ocean levels - acting as a thermometer by rising in response to increasing atmospheric temperatures - and melting Polar regions clearly indicates global warming, Professor Rapley said. "We've increased the carbon dioxide on the planet by approximately 40 per cent in 100 years," he said. "There is evidence that (the Earth) hasn't visited this level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere for 30 million years so we've done something in 100 years, 100 times faster than the planet naturally does, which is quite dramatic." Professor Rapley said while former US Vice President Al Gore's movie, "An Inconvenient Truth", predicted in 2006 that the Arctic would be ice free in the summer within 50-60 years, new evidence suggested it might be ice free within the next 20 years. Although governments had agreed that a carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere at 450 parts per million, with a 50 per cent chance of a two degree warming, was a sustainable level, the world's current emissions trajectory would reach 1000 parts per million by the end of the century and continue to climb, he said. The world had reverted to using 19th century technologies, burning coal to meet its growing energy requirements as oil supplies dwindle, particularly in rapidly industrialising countries, he said. The forum heard that efficiency interventions would get the world a third of the way to reducing human carbon emissions and would save money but techno-fixes would be required to meet the projected 350 per cent increase in global demand for electricity by 2060. Environment Institute Australia, Director, Professor Barry Brook, said to achieve the 450 parts per million target, the world would need a 15-fold increase in the use of nuclear power globally and a 50-fold increase in the use of solar and wind energy in a 50-year period. "Cost effectiveness is fundamental. All a carbon price does is potentially make these (low carbon technologies) slightly more cost competitive with fossil fuels," he said. "What we really ought to be focusing most on is bringing down the cost of these alternative energies as much as possible. "If we can get them ultimately as cheap, or cheaper, than fossil fuels even without a carbon price then, as long as they can do the same job, we've solved the problem." Advanced nuclear power could produce a lifetime's supply of energy from a golf ball of uranium with little waste - equal to 3000 tonnes of coal producing 10,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, he said. Nuclear is one of the few technologies currently on the market that has the potential to become as cheap as, or cheaper than coal, he said. "I'm predicting a future in which we can solve climate change and we can solve the problem of habitat destruction which causes biodiversity loss," he said. "It's going to require energy for desalination or to produce food... we are not going to need less energy... what we need to be sure is that energy is cheap, it's zero carbon and it's sustainable." Flinders University, Vice-Chancellor, Professor Michael Barber told the forum that while Australia and Canada had similar resource bases, economies and political systems, Canada appeared more committed to addressing climate change at the national and provincial levels and had embraced nuclear energy. Two Canadian provinces, Quebec and British Columbia, had introduced a price on carbon and another, Alberta, had introduced an emissions trading scheme, he said. While Australia's emissions were trending up, Canada's appeared to have peaked in 2007, he said. "The developments in British Columbia and Quebec in regard to carbon pricing are heavily coloured by and respond to local values. As a result there is a sense they are making a difference at the local level and their economies are adjusting," he said.
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Post by Barry Brook on Sept 10, 2012 18:49:25 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/lovins-reinventing-fire-critiqueIn this post, Ted Trainer of UNSW provides a detailed critique of the energy chapters in Amory Lovins' new book, Reinventing Fire: Bold Business Solutions for the New Energy Era. Ted is seeking feedback, on his appraisal, or on your own thoughts of Lovins' prose. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 22, 2012 17:27:40 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/two-books-on-sustainable-nuclear-energyHere I make an announcement about a free version of the book "Prescription for the Planet" by Tom Blees, and introduce a brand new book by Robert Hargraves called "Thorium: Energy Cheaper than Coal". This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 17, 2012 18:29:28 GMT 9.5
I am about 1/2 way through it right now. It seems sensible so far, and I've not seen the critiques pointing out defects. David?
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 16, 2012 12:27:41 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/talking-turkey-on-nuclear-costsThis article appeared in the final article in the SA Mines & Energy Journal series on nuclear energy (issue 24, pg 34), about the economic bottom line for nuclear. It was co-authored by Ben Heard. Let's talk turkey on economics of nuclear and it's low-carbon alternatives! This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 8, 2012 17:07:50 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/ffs-tech-keyThis article (by Barry Brook) was originally published on The Conversation website until the title: "Low-carbon electricity must be fit-for-service (and nuclear power is)", and addresses the the recent AETA report and the limitation of undue focus on LCOE rather than trying to understand the system-wide challenges in fossil-energy replacement. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 2, 2012 16:39:26 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/no-easy-substitutes-for-fossil-fuelsThis essay by Dr Tom Biegler explains the link between abundant and cheap energy and GDP, and why it will be difficult to move away from our dependence on fossil fuels. Nuclear power is not explicitly mentioned, but it is the obvious 'elephant in the room' alternative to coal COULD provide just that required substitute. Which is why I keep hammering on about it! This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 1, 2012 12:58:04 GMT 9.5
By the way, thanks QM and Anon for pointing out those page references to focus on - very helpful for the short essay I'm writing on this. Great to have this type of feedback on BNC.
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Post by Barry Brook on Aug 1, 2012 11:34:48 GMT 9.5
The key question, as Anon points out in that quote, is whether a MWh of wind is the same as a MWh of nuclear in terms of its ability to displace fossil fuels. I will write more about this shortly, I'm doing a commissioned piece on it and will link to the BNC blog in due course.
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 26, 2012 15:16:07 GMT 9.5
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 20, 2012 12:51:49 GMT 9.5
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 20, 2012 12:48:17 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/is-the-olympic-dam-mine-a-special-caseThis is an Op Ed published by Geoff Russell and me in the The Adelaide Advertiser newspaper this week. It was in response to this piece by Jim Green. We compare his objections over uranium at OD with the reality of the alternatives of fossil fuels - like everything in life, context matters! This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 17, 2012 10:45:51 GMT 9.5
That's my view Anon - if the 'debate' can just get a few listeners to read more - know more - even if they initially disagree with me, then it is worth it. It's incremental but cumulative, and the hope with radio debates like this, community events, and other engagement, is to create a snowball effect. Right the ball is small and the hill is shallow, but it is rolling...
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 13, 2012 18:51:18 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/energy-efficiency-peak-demandThis post summarises the findings of a paper just published in the peer-reviewed journal Sustainability by Graham Palmer, entitled “ Does energy efficiency reduce emissions and peak demand? A case study of 50 years of space heating in Melbourne“. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 11, 2012 10:15:57 GMT 9.5
Joffan answered part 2. For part 1 of DW question, we are talking about the composition of the make-up fuel that is added during the fuel recycling, so the new fuel must be changed over. All in "Plentiful Energy", I strongly recommend you read this book.
Thanks to others for the feedback on the interview - at the very least if such interviews get a few people researching the topic themselves (even if they start off being determined to 'prove me wrong') then I think that is the best outcome of debates like this. We have an advantage over our opposition after all - facts, truth and science are on our side!
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 10, 2012 14:35:48 GMT 9.5
Yes, right, the IFR can use natural uranium, depleted uranium, or uranium metal derived from used nuclear oxide fuel (once reduced - but contaminated with minor actinides and trace fission products). Highly flexible!
Re: staying calm - you just have to accept that many things will go through to the keeper in a 38 min slot - it would take hours to address it all properly, alas!
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 10, 2012 12:33:37 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/brook-vs-ludlumYesterday I debated nuclear energy and climate change on 891 ABC radio with Greens Senator Scott Ludlum, on the afternoon show hosted by Sonya Feldhoff. Many points raised, few covered in detail, so perhaps we can expand on some of these below. This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 3, 2012 9:23:16 GMT 9.5
Sorry David, missed you by a day - I'm now back in Australia (although still in transit) and was somewhere over the Pacific when you left your message
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Post by Barry Brook on Jul 2, 2012 3:08:09 GMT 9.5
A new post has been published on BraveNewClimate. Link here: bravenewclimate.com/notes-from-the-us-of-aIt has an overview of my trip to Russia and the USA, a quote from Steve Kirsch, a comedy skit, a photo of a lecturing hedgehog, and a recommendation of the book "Radiation and Reason". What more could you ask for? This BNC Discussion Forum thread is for the comments related to this BNC post.
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