Crypt feed: Electricity of power plant for massive Bitcoin

Liquefied natural gas (LNG abbreviated, or LNG of English Liquefied Natural Gas) is natural gas of commercial quality condensed in the liquid state. It consists mainly of methane but also includes up to 10% ethane and small amounts of other gases (propane and butane in particular). Methane becomes liquid at a temperature of -161 ° C at atmospheric pressure, it takes the form of a clear, transparent, odorless, non-corrosive and non-toxic liquid. In this form, the gas has a density of 422.62 kg M-3, occupying six hundred times less than its volume than in its usual form under the normal conditions of temperature and pressure and 2.5 times less than compressed at 200 bars. As a fuel, its ICP is 22.4 MJ / L, or 60% of the diesel. Industrially, the LNG is produced in large quantities in cryogenic plants. It is mainly used as a means of transporting the natural gas from producing countries to maritime consuming countries. About 12% of the natural gas produced in the world in 2019 is transported according to this method. It can also be sold as a final energy, that is, directly to users, such as fuel for ships or terrestrial vehicles, and as a natural gas supply solution for non-network sites. Its role in the global energy supply is growing. LNG should not be confused with liquefied oil gas, consisting mainly of propane and butane, saturated hydrocarbons with three and four carbon atoms respectively (against one for methane); Neither with natural gas liquids, also called condensates, which are a natural essence obtained by condensation of hydrocarbons ranging from pentane (five carbon) to the octane (eight carbons) at the outlet of natural gas wells.

Crypt poet is becoming increasingly popular and the bitcoin course commutes a new record high around the $ 60,000. At the same time, the mining of the well-known virtual currency becomes more and more expensive, so it takes ever more and more powerful server farms to continue bitcoin into relevant quantities. That s exactly where a natural gas power plant specializes in the US, which earned millions of millions each month instead of tens of thousands of households. A lucrative business, but how sustainable can that be?

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Enormous electricity requirements for Krypto

The worldwide crypto mining consumes every year about as much electricity as the Netherlands , after all, a country with more than 17 million inhabitants and a high (and therefore electricity intensive) living standards. The government in China has only a few months ago, the Krypto-Mining hit the plug and dragging a previously very important market almost overnight. But the hype continues and the mining on a large scale continues to pay. So also for a former coal power plant in the USA.

with electricity for 35,000 households

The power plant was rebuilt a few years ago with funding to a natural gas power plant and has since operated with natural gas from fracking. Now natural gas is generally less harmful to the environment as a coal, in natural gas production by fracking, however, the environment is massively destroyed. Since the power requirement in the region of the power plant is covered anyway, the operator began to build a bitcoin mining farm and operate with natural gas flow. Of the maximally 106 possible megawatts, about 44 megawatts for 15,300 servers should now be used around the clock bitcoin. Alternatively, about 35,000 US households could be fully supplied with this amount of electricity.

Bitcoin for 45 million in three months

Instead, the power plant was able to complete 729 Bitcoin mines in the period from July to September, that is, in about three months, which corresponds to the current Bitcoin course a value of approximately $ 45 million . The use of the electricity of fracking natural gas is therefore financially extraordinarily worthwhile for the operator - to the displeasure of environmental protection organizations already alerted.

Krypto-Mining forbid?

According to environmental advocates and protectors, the power plant ensures several problems at once: increased CO2 emissions, air pollution and the water of a nearby lake, which is used as a cooling water, has increased temperature, which in turn flora and fauna To create lakes. The power plant operator is replaced with alleged CO2 neutrality, which, however, is only achieved by the purchase of certificates - and, of course, does not change the environmental impact and destruction on site. Environmental protection organizations therefore require the stop of Krypto Minings in the US state of New York and no further approvals for such farms. There are currently a number of mining-appropriate power plants.

Source: T3n

From Johannes Gehrling editor 20.10.2021 at 13:50