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[-] LurkingLuddite@piefed.social 70 points 2 days ago

Solar panel projects, which many have outstripped this and other projects in power limitations, do not boil water to generate electricity.

[-] lauha@lemmy.world 53 points 2 days ago

And wind turbines, and hydroelectric plants.

But all but solar cells are pretty much turbines all the way down

[-] ViatorOmnium@piefed.social 14 points 2 days ago

Hydroelectric power stations still rely on steam, it's just in another part of the cycle.

[-] ByteJunk@lemmy.world 19 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

What? Hydroelectric power stations use gravity and the falling or flowing water makes the turbines turn. No steam.

Thermal plants (nuclear, coal, gas), including solar thermal plants, use steam.

[-] TheOctonaut@piefed.zip 33 points 2 days ago

He means water vapour, ie the rain cycle.

[-] Diplomjodler3@lemmy.world 11 points 2 days ago
[-] TheOctonaut@piefed.zip 8 points 2 days ago

I didn't say it was a good quip

[-] anotherspinelessdem@lemmy.ml 3 points 2 days ago

It probably was at some point.

[-] guy@piefed.social 5 points 2 days ago

Would not like to be the technician working on the hydrostation where part of the rain cycle is steam

[-] bryndos@fedia.io 3 points 2 days ago

I reckon some of the water vapour in the atmosphere will have once been steam rising and cooling. But probably not very much, so it's fair to say hydroelectric generation may happen to use some water that was once steam, but I don't think they can be said to rely on steam.

I think the thing that all dynamo based based electricity generators depend on in common is probably the pressure difference.

[-] guy@piefed.social 2 points 2 days ago

Yeah, I tried to make a joke about where the rain forms from steam and not regular evaporation. Imagine working in an environment where it's as a hot sauna all the time

[-] whoxtank28@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

The southern US 😖

[-] anomnom@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 days ago

Another couple decades of oil wars and we’ll get there.

[-] ByteJunk@lemmy.world 5 points 2 days ago
[-] Assassassin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 2 days ago

They use steam condensed in a pressurized environment

[-] lauha@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

And to be fair, those none steam sources, i.e. hydro, wind and solar are all just solar basically.

this post was submitted on 03 Apr 2026
997 points (98.8% liked)

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