AHC: Renewables-fueled Industrial Revolution

Fabius Maximus · Apr 7, 2015

Is there a way of having something similar to OTL's Industrial Revolution happen using some sort of renewable power supply? Wind, tidal, humans, it doesn't matter as long as it's not the sort of thing that'll run out.

(Fossil fuels can still be used, just as long as they aren't the main source of power.)

DominusNovus · Apr 7, 2015

No, nope, nada, unuh.

Maxwell Edison II · Apr 7, 2015

Not if fossil fuels are also available, they are considerably cheaper. And it wouldn't be likely to start with tidal/solar/whatever, it'd probably be biomass used as a fuel.

Legofan4 · Apr 7, 2015

We did it was called wood.

Tyg · Apr 7, 2015

Legofan4 said:
We did it was called wood.

And the result was that much of Western and Southern Europe was denuded of forest cover. Technically renewable, but not sustainable.

DominusNovus · Apr 7, 2015

Fossil fuels are transportable. Renwables are not.

Although, other than geothermal and nuclear, all current forms of energy are ultimately solar.

Tripledot · Apr 7, 2015

Didn't the Industrial Revolution start because of water-wheel textile manufacturing?

Legofan4 · Apr 7, 2015

Tripledot said:
Didn't the Industrial Revolution start because of water-wheel textile manufacturing?

Yes and horribly limited in locations that were useful and the actual power that could be taken out of a rvier and transfered with primitive belts or gears.

leopard9 · Apr 7, 2015

Any chance solar power gets off the ground?

Emperor Norton I · Apr 7, 2015

There was a renewable power supply. It was called the lower class. *Badumtssh*

Ethan387 · Apr 7, 2015

The person that invented the diesel engine first used peanut oil to power it. They just started using diesel because they were refining oil and only used kerosene and gasoline and had nothing to use the most abundant substance from the refining process, diesel fuel.

Mr.brightside · Apr 7, 2015

The trick to this would be to prevent the industrial revolution from happening in Europe. After hydro power is developed to its potential given the technology the only option was fossil fuels. Unfortunately the technology to exploit the best renewable resource in Europe, Wind, is there yet. Geographically a industrial revolution that starts in the Global South could make use of solar thermal energy. It can still start out based on hydro power but then solar powered steam engines as a work around the location issues. In OTL the technology was there by about the 1870s. This probably wouldn't butterfly away fossil fuels. However it could erode some of Europe's dominance.

Fabius Maximus · Apr 8, 2015

Emperor Norton I said:
There was a renewable power supply. It was called the lower class. *Badumtssh*

Would a factory powered by people on treadmills work? Or would the cost of paying those extra employees mean it wouldn't be economical?

TheYoungPretender · Apr 8, 2015

Emperor Norton I said:
There was a renewable power supply. It was called the lower class. *Badumtssh*

One, yes, the most common form of industrial power generation from around ~ 6000 BC on is a nice well wielded whip applied to someone fed barely enough calories to keep them alive. Worked from Rome to Yangtze bottom lands. Produced enough surplus to let philosopher kings and Great Men think precious thoughts in peace.

Two, most modern renewables require a good knowledge of electricity generations and atomic theory to make them run. Steam motors precede electric motors by over a century; how electricity even functions isn't fully sussed out until steam is a mature technology.

Jape · Apr 8, 2015

Fabius Maximus said:
Would a factory powered by people on treadmills work? Or would the cost of paying those extra employees mean it wouldn't be economical?

...pay them?

'Ezana · Apr 8, 2015

leopard9 said:
Any chance solar power gets off the ground?

Too high tech.

Escape Zeppelin · Apr 8, 2015

Fabius Maximus said:
Would a factory powered by people on treadmills work? Or would the cost of paying those extra employees mean it wouldn't be economical?

Would it work? Yes definitely but if you're going to pay your workers instead of using slaves then it's not going to be a profitable operation. You're better off with a waterwheel or a steam engine.

leopard9 · Apr 8, 2015

Apparently, there was an 1870 solar powered steam engine made. In a sunnier climate that has little access to coal, this could be very important.

Mike Stearns · Apr 8, 2015

leopard9 said:
Apparently, there was an 1870 solar powered steam engine made. In a sunnier climate that has little access to coal, this could be very important.

Yeah. Solar-thermal technology was definetly doable with off the shelf components of the mid-late 19th Century, unfortunately coal and oil were cheaper and just as easily available.

TheYoungPretender · Apr 8, 2015

Mike Stearns said:
Yeah. Solar-thermal technology was definetly doable with off the shelf components of the mid-late 19th Century, unfortunately coal and oil were cheaper and just as easily available.

I feel like such an idiot for forgetting about that - it was quite popular in Egypt for irrigation work, if I recall. However, that does bring up the issue with using it in Ohio or Northern England.