US energy production could become mostly renewable within 15 years

The good old US of A often comes under international criticism for the amount of pollution they produce, but a study from the NOAA and University of Colorado in Boulder, has shown that this needn't be the case: According to a heinously clever and complex software model the university's researchers have developed, it should be possible to cut US emissions to 78 percent below 1990 levels within 15 years while meeting increased demand. 

Above: Trump won't like it, but to be honest Trump doesn't like anything, as far as I can tell. Image courtesy of Business Insider.

The model takes into account future cost, demand, generation and transmission scenarios, and shows that this could be done using weather driven renewables.“Our research shows a transition to a reliable, low-carbon, electrical generation and transmission system can be accomplished with commercially available technology and within 15 years,” said Alexander MacDonald, co-lead author and recently retired director of NOAA’s Earth System Research Laboratory.

 
Above: A run down on the envelope pushing model. 

One of the problems with all renewable electricity is that renewables are notoriously unreliable - steady sunshine or wind cannot be guaranteed at any one location. But across the whole US the wind is blowing, or the Sun is shining, somewhere - the country just needs the power transmission ability to move the power to where it's needed. Specifically the model opted for using a new, high-voltage direct-current transmission grid (HVDC) to supplement the current electrical grid. HVDC lines reduce energy losses during long-distance transmission, and MacDonald compared the idea of a HVDC grid with the interstate highway system. “With an ‘interstate for electrons’, renewable energy could be delivered anywhere in the country while emissions plummet. An HVDC grid would create a national electricity market in which all types of generation, including low-carbon sources, compete on a cost basis. The surprise was how dominant wind and solar could be.” 

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