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Draft:SustainableEnergy

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Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."{{Sfn|Kutscher|Milford|Kreith|2019|pp=5–6}sss}[1] There are several aspects of energy sustainability at the required scale:

1) primary energy source must be able to provide the 15 terawatt of power and must last for millennia ahead. The Sun is the only powersource available to the human civilization, which meets this requirement alone.[2]  This does not imply, that other primary energy sources, such as [hydroelectric]], nuclear and natural gas, should be abandoned. Au contraire, it is a combination of several different energy sources, which is likely to provide the most optimal solution for each locality.[3] 
2) the apparatus for energy conversion must not comprise rare elements and materials.[4]    
3) the energy-conversion apparatus must be durable enough to amortize its capital cost and to generate a competitive profit margin over its lifetime.

Because of requirements (1)-3 [[1]] photovoltaics became the most actively pursued renewable energy technology worldwide since ca. 2015. Its main resource limitation is silver 3 used to make ohmic contacts with silicon wafers. Solar thermal is even better than solar photovoltaics for solar energy conversion, because it has no resource limitations whatsoever.[5]

4) power sources, which rely on intermittent energy sources (like Sun and wind) require complimentary energy storage. As of 2024, lithium-ion batteries are most often used for energy storage systems with a 2-5 h half-cycle time. Vanadium redox flow batteries are being tested for system with longer half-cycle times. Oftentimes, the cost of energy storage in such systems is higher than the cost of energy production, and there are severe resource constraints on scaling-up such storage systems.REF
5) solar to-electric power conversion combined with transcontinental electric power  transmission by high-voltage direct current submarine power cables presents an interesting opportunity to use sunlight as the primary energy source without the need for energy storage. REF As of the end of 2024 720 km - 1.4 GW North Sea Link between England and Norway is the largest example of underwater power cable. An even larger 4,500 km – 3 GW transmission line has been proposed.





References

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  1. ^ Zhang, Wei; Li, Binshuai; Xue, Rui; Wang, Chengcheng; Cao, Wei (2021). "A systematic bibliometric review of clean energy transition: Implications for low-carbon development". PLOS ONE. 16 (12): e0261091. Bibcode:2021PLoSO..1661091Z. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0261091. PMC 8641874. PMID 34860855.
  2. ^ Lewis, N. S.; Nocera, D. G. Powering the planet: Chemical challenges in solar energy utilization. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2006, 103 (43), 15729-15735, Review. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0603395103
  3. ^ Kudrya, S.; Lezhniuk, P.; Rubanenko, O.; Hunko, I.; Dyachenko, O. Local Power Systems Based on Renewable Energy Sources. In Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, Vol. 552; Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH, 2024; pp 385-398.
  4. ^ Vesborg, P. C. K.; Jaramillo, T. F. Addressing the terawatt challenge: Scalability in the supply of chemical elements for renewable energy. RSC Advances 2012, 2 (21), 7933-7947, Review. DOI: 10.1039/c2ra20839c
  5. ^ Vesborg, P. C. K.; Jaramillo, T. F. Addressing the terawatt challenge: Scalability in the supply of chemical elements for renewable energy. RSC Advances 2012, 2 (21), 7933-7947, Review. DOI: 10.1039/c2ra20839c