All Labs

Energy Tradeoffs Lab

Build electricity grid mixes from eight energy sources and measure the tradeoffs between carbon emissions, land use, and cost. Run guided experiments to discover why decarbonization involves real engineering compromises.

Guided Experiment: Decarbonization Challenge

Starting from a coal-heavy grid, predict how average CO₂ emissions will change as you progressively replace coal with low-carbon sources.

Write your hypothesis in the Lab Report panel, then click Next.

CO₂ Intensity
641
g/kWh
Generation
695
TWh/year
Land Use
2402
km²
Avg Cost
$91
per MWh

Controls

Total Capacity100 GW
Source MixTotal: 100%
Coal60%
Natural Gas20%
Nuclear5%
Hydro5%
Wind (Onshore)5%
Solar PV3%
Geothermal0%
Biomass2%

Scenario Results

Coal-Heavy Baseline
gˉCO2=641.2  g/kWh\bar{g}_{\text{CO}_2} = 641.2 \;\text{g/kWh}
Total Capacity
100 GW
Annual Generation
695 TWh
Avg CO₂ Intensity
641.2 g/kWh
Total Land Use
2402 km²
Weighted Average LCOE
$90.9/MWh

Current Grid Mix

60%
20%
Coal60%
Natural Gas20%
Nuclear5%
Hydro5%
Wind (Onshore)5%
Solar PV3%
Biomass2%

Data Table

(0 rows)
#TrialGrid ScenarioCapacity(GW)Generation(TWh)Avg gCO₂/kWh(g/kWh)Land Use(km²)Avg LCOE($/MWh)
0 / 500
0 / 500
0 / 500

Reference Guide

Capacity Factor and Generation

The capacity factor determines how much energy a plant actually produces relative to its maximum potential. Nuclear achieves 93% while solar averages 25%.

E=Pcap×CF×8760  hE = P_{\text{cap}} \times CF \times 8760 \;\text{h}

This means 1 GW of nuclear generates about 3 times more electricity per year than 1 GW of solar PV, which is why capacity factor matters for grid planning.

Generation-Weighted Emissions

A grid's average carbon intensity is weighted by how much each source actually generates, not by its installed capacity.

gˉCO2=∑igi⋅Ei∑iEi\bar{g}_{\text{CO}_2} = \frac{\sum_i g_i \cdot E_i}{\sum_i E_i}

A source with high capacity factor contributes more to the weighted average even if it has a smaller share of installed capacity.

Land Use Intensity

Different energy sources require vastly different land areas per unit of power. Nuclear uses about 1.3 km² per GW while wind needs 70 km² per GW.

Atotal=∑iCi⋅ai(km2)A_{\text{total}} = \sum_i C_i \cdot a_i \quad \text{(km}^2\text{)}

Biomass is the most land-intensive at 500 km²/GW because it requires large areas of cropland or forest for fuel. This creates competition with food production and natural habitats.

Levelized Cost of Energy

LCOE captures the full lifetime cost per MWh, including construction, fuel, maintenance, and decommissioning, discounted to present value.

LCOE=Total lifetime costTotal lifetime generation\text{LCOE} = \frac{\text{Total lifetime cost}}{\text{Total lifetime generation}}

Wind and solar now have the lowest LCOE ($25-50/MWh), but these figures exclude the cost of storage and grid integration needed to handle intermittency.