* Posts by EnricoS

4 publicly visible posts • joined 29 Mar 2013

11 MILLION VW cars used Dieselgate cheatware – what the clutch, Volkswagen?

EnricoS

Re: Well, let's summarise this.

I think we need to distinguish here between emissions and efficiency. AFAIK VW are being accused of cheating the emissions tests to improve real-world fuel economy.

Of course car makers tune their cars to get the best fuel economy on the "standard cycle" used for tests. How close you personally get to these values then depends on how closely your personal set of circumstances (driving style, conditions, terrain, climate.....) meet the homologation conditions. I usually beat the "manufacturers claims" for fuel efficiency as my commute is handily medium speed and flat-ish terrain. I also don't floor it, mainly as there is no point on UK roads. You have to travel at the speed of the prevailing traffic.

The manufacturer fuel economy figures are there to give you an indication of how good car A is compared to car B, under a certain set of conditions. What we all need to be made more aware of, as the buying public, is what those test conditions are. Perhaps the standard test should also include a "boy racer" mode....

Vanished global warming may not return – UK Met Office

EnricoS

Re: WHAT??!! No mention of an impending Maunder Minimum?

"And anyway, not burning up non-renewable fuels might be a good idea whatever the truth about global warming. We might need that stuff in the future for other things" - exactly. One of the most amazing, and useful natural resources we have, and we set fire to most of it.

Antarctic ice THICKER than first feared – penguin-bot boffins

EnricoS

More ice means more to flood us all if/when it all melts (as a result of man-made/natural climate change, which may/may not be happening).

You know how your energy bills are so much worse than they were?

EnricoS

Opinion(s)

A few observations after reading the comments from what appears to be a bunch of angry old men who know much more than those people who are actually running things > hint, if you can do better then get out there and do it. I am sure that the populace will welcome your leadership.

ALL power generation facilities have load factors;

Plant type 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2007-2011

average

Combined cycle gas turbine stations 64.7% 71.0% 64.2% 61.6% 47.8% 61.9%

Nuclear power plants 59.6% 49.4% 65.6% 59.3% 66.4% 60.1%

Coal fired power plants 46.7% 45.0% 38.5% 40.2% 40.8% 42.2%

Hydroelectric power stations 38.2% 37.4% 36.7% 25.4% 39.1% 35.4%

Wind power plants 27.7% 27.5% 27.1% 23.7% 29.8% 27.1%

Photovoltaic power stations 9.9% 9.6% 9.3% 7.3% 5.5% 8.3%

So, yes wind is has a load factor of half that of Gas - but not a quarter as some posts would lead you to believe.

"CO2 (aka "Carbon") is not a "POISON"" - true, but CO2 is an asphyxiant. Too much CO2 and you would suffocate. As probably would plants, as they too need O2 to respire (aka live - CO2 is needed to grow). Too much CO2 will suffocate the planet.

"And if soot causes Global Warming (tm) then bring it on. A cooling world would be much worse than a warming one (not that it's warmed much for the last 15+ years)" - what you mean is, in my tiny % of the globe it hasn't felt like is getting warmer for the last 15 years. But, on average across the world, it has. Has this caused the incredible instability in the weather we have now? I don't know. But if we keep settings records year after year (hottest this, wettest that, dryest the other, coldest whatnot) then we can say for sure that our climate is changing.

Oh, and the "Why should we do anything about it if the Chinese and USA won't" - your parents must be so proud. I'm not doing it 'cos he's not doing it. Grow up and show some leadership - yes, that which you bemoan is sadly lacking in our political sphere nowadays.