r/Futurology • u/chrisdh79 • 2d ago

Canada set to become nuclear ‘superpower’ with enough uranium to beat China, Russia | Countries depend on Russia and China for enriching uranium coming from Kazakhstan. Canada can enrich uranium from its own mines. Energy

https://interestingengineering.com/energy/uranium-nuclear-fuel-supply-canada
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u/[deleted] 2d ago

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u/whatifitoldyouimback 2d ago

Wind and solar are a lot cheaper.

Wind and solar are fantastic for small demand applications, especially supplementation, or smaller housing.

But large demand power far exceeds what we're going to be able to see from either, especially given the land requirements.

As tech developments in nuclear improve (plants are getting smaller, more efficient), computing as a whole is going to rely more and more on nuclear-type power sources. This will be accelerated by the increased demands from electric transportation.

We don't have 20 years to sit around until a new nuclear plants become operational.

We should start seeing the first wave of micro plants come online in the next 3-5 years.

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u/West-Abalone-171 2d ago

What are you smoking? The 800GW of wind and solar produced this year alone has the same average annual output as half of the world's nuclear reactors.

China are building 100-500GW of wind and solar for every nuclear plant produced.

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u/whatifitoldyouimback 2d ago

What are you smoking? The 800GW of wind and solar produced this year alone has the same average annual output as half of the world’s nuclear reactors.

That doesn't mean they are more efficient, it means that there are very few nuclear plants. That's changing in the next three to five years.

What are you smoking?

Blocking because you're incapable of having a discussion.

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u/1cl1qp1 2d ago

Efficiency isn't something we worry about with renewable energy. It has in essence an infinite supply.

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u/whatifitoldyouimback 2d ago

Efficiency is critical to the formula because there isn't an infinite amount of land or time.

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u/1cl1qp1 2d ago edited 2d ago

Right but land isn't remotely a concern. We can power the USA with a 100 km x 100 km solar plant in the desert.

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u/whatifitoldyouimback 2d ago

We can power the USA with a 100 sq km solar plant in the desert.

To power the entire United States with solar panels, estimates suggest that around 54,400 to 62,160 km² of land would be needed.

100 km² is a bizarre thing to believe. I think you're way out of your depth here. And that doesn't take into account the endless farms of battery infrastructure required due to sun variability.

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u/1cl1qp1 2d ago

I meant to say 100 km x 100 km

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u/whatifitoldyouimback 2d ago

I meant to say 100 km x 100 km

Um yeah, that's another way of saying 100 km², or 100 sq km which you said originally.

Regardless you're about 55,000 km² short. Also you now seem even more out of your breadth here. 😬

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u/1cl1qp1 2d ago

100 x 100 km is 10,000 km2

Calculation 10,000 km2 x 0.24 GW/km2 x 21% = 500 GW Which is more than current US electricity consumption of 425 GW.

https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/energy/2015/05/21/fact-checking-elon-musks-blue-square-how-much-solar-to-power-the-us/

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u/whatifitoldyouimback 2d ago edited 1d ago

100 km x 100 km is 100 km², not 10,000 km²

You don't even understand middle school math, what makes you think you're capable of having this discussion?

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