I wonder if we would even switch to some different way of electricity if we found a new better way to generate and use it but require making new infrastructure.
There are a bunch of different ways to generate electricity that we already know about.
The photovoltaic effect which is used in solar panels generates electricity from light. The thermoelectric effect which uses the temperature difference between the two faces of a a thermocouple to generate electricity. Electrochemistry can generate electricity from various chemicals such as in batteries.
The issue is that these methods don’t scale as well as just steam generators. Steam generators can reach up to 50% efficiency. So yea, unless we find a method that scales better and has higher efficiency we will keep using steam generators for a while.
Till we come up with a better way to generate alternating current than spinning a magnet inside a coil, it will always be turbines
I wonder if we would even switch to some different way of electricity if we found a new better way to generate and use it but require making new infrastructure.
There are a bunch of different ways to generate electricity that we already know about.
The photovoltaic effect which is used in solar panels generates electricity from light. The thermoelectric effect which uses the temperature difference between the two faces of a a thermocouple to generate electricity. Electrochemistry can generate electricity from various chemicals such as in batteries.
The issue is that these methods don’t scale as well as just steam generators. Steam generators can reach up to 50% efficiency. So yea, unless we find a method that scales better and has higher efficiency we will keep using steam generators for a while.
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