The mind-blowing thing we get WRONG about energy

Do you think switching away from fossil fuels is easier than it seems?

I’m a great believer in the 80/20 rule where we can do 80% of a job with 20% of the effort and then the last 20% takes 80% of the effort. Skeptics look at how much effort it will take to get rid of 100% of fossil fuel use by looking at the hardest problems to solve. In reality tackling the easiest problems to solve to get most of the benefit and then look at how we can deal with the difficult things.

As an Energy Engineer working in this industry, this videos are great and show how things are not so straightforward. However, we shouldn't downplay how difficult it is replacing all energy uses with renewable electricity. Industrial heat is not currently possible to provide it with electricity when high temperature is required. Jet fuel is another example of a hard to decarbonise industry. Moreover, we should not forget that electricity transport over long distances isn't cheap, if a country doesn't have much renewable potential, they may be required to import the energy in other forms such as traditional fossil fuels, which is a more efficient way of transporting large quantities of energy over long distances. An example of this could be Japan. So whilst what you are mentioning here is true and important for people to understand, we shouldn't underestimate the complexity of the challenge our generation is facing. Edit: to clarify, I am not against the transition or saying it is impossible. Just stating that it will take the use of many technologies, energy vectors, energy sources and it won't be a walk in the park. But it is definitely achievable.

Brisbane, Australia. In 2019 we spent $16 500 AUD on a 13.2 kW solar and 12 kWh battery system, and we save $2000 AUD a year by no longer getting (paying) a power bill. For the first 4 years our feed in tarrif was 20 cents a kW so we made $2000 for the extra power we export. In 2020 we bought a 2010 i-MiEV and save $3500 a year on petrol we no longer have to buy for our transport needs. Just in that time we've saved / made $32 000 AUD. With a 20 + year warranty on most of the Solar system components we are looking forward to many more years of savings! If Governments won't lead the push to Renewables, it's up to those of us that can to lead the way.

Wow, that's one of the rare moments where bad stuff is actually good news lol

As an engineer I love efficiency, and when you look around there are so many low hanging fruits. But time and time again there is no political will or imagination. Climate change is not a new problem and it is disappointing how we have not even managed to slow down the CO2 released into the air. The problem is much easier to solve technically than it is solving politically.😡

Nice video, but hard to follow when you have loud background noise/music and low voice volume. I usually skip videos that do this, but yours is important.

I recently got an induction cooktop. There was a bit of a learning curve, but now my gas stove just seems too slow and imprecise. The induction cooks just as well but with perfect control.

My prayers have been answered: My presenter included this Sankey diagram in his presentation yesterday on home electrification where he looked at "How much power do we really need" (video in preparation) and I said later that everybody should spend 15 minutes with this graph and absorb its central message about "rejected energy".

Getting rid of fossil fuels would be a lot easier if the fossil fuel industry wasn’t in control of governments and economies.

This is how we are supposed to use technology correctly but us humans are too prideful, increasing efficiency then going renewable is the best solution for society as a whole not doing either will hurt further generations

Finally a good use of a Sankey diagram!

If you have your own solar panels, often people talk about how inefficient they are 15-20%. 5x less than grid (Wasted energy is about 10-15%) So total useful energy is 13-16% By the time it reaches you, grid electricity average efficiency is 33%. Only 2x instead of 5x! Shows how important local generation is and more competitive than you would expect!

The music is way too loud

Can't hear the dialogue over the background sound effects.

In a very small scale as a family of five that is exactly what we experienced. In the last couple of years we put solar on our house got a heat pump and two electric cars, and we are not burning any stuff at all anymore. Energy consumption went down by 65% and emissions went down by 93% ! The overall investment was quite a lot, but it’s paying back overtime because the costs also came down by 59%. What works for us as a family will also work for countries and humanity. It’s possible so let’s do it 💪

In the 40 degree Celsius weather in Athens, it's insane to feel the amount of heat coming out of cars when you cross the roads; it jumps from 40 degrees to something that feels like 50. It's sad how uncommon electric vehicles are here when they also create much less noise pollution.

None of our appliances talk to each other for what they need. We use refrigerator takes the heat away from our foods but dissipates the heat back to the living room. Then AC has to remove that heat once again to outside. We use shower with warm water that has its own heat source. Our desktop computers generate heat. I can go on, but you get the picture.

This is why green energy is quoted in BOE (Barrels of Oil Equivalent) and that is where this efficiency difference is calculated.

Thanks for the good news. But that analysis is still missing a big chunk of the problem because it starts with coal lumps and oil. To be more complete, you should start with a mountain with coal veins in it, or the oil deep in the soil somewhere - getting those out takes a lot of energy as well.