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Re: [Phys-l] Efficiency problem



Hydroelectric plants don't need pumped storage for smoothing.
Hydroelectric generators run flat out during high demand times and throttle back during low demand times. I grew up near TVA dams and it was hard to convince fishermen to keep away from the outflow pipes. Some would drown each year when the penstocks would open suddenly.

Pumped storage is popular with the nuke's since they don't like to ramp the reactors up and down.


At 7:56 AM -0400 5/29/10, Jeffrey Schnick wrote:
On the other hand, if your local power plant is a hydroelectric plant, and by smoothing out the demand on it by means of the pumping scheme one is able to avoid the need for the construction of a coal-fired plant to meet the demand, one could argue that it is greener than grass.