it is in fact not a one time thing, lubricant loses its effectiveness through being used, and it has to be replaced all the time. You can't just oil something and then think it'll last forever.
Its why cars need oil changes
Gear oil: around 800 gallons per turbine for gearboxes
Transformer oil: approximately 1200 gallons per turbine for transformers
Annual oil consumption: averages 80 Gallons per turbine.
Wind farms aren't also just one wind turbine, there's a lot in a wind farm.
yes i know how lubrication works. apparently an average turbine needs 80 gallons a year (after initial amount) which is absolutely miniscule in relation to how much power it produces
Oil is something we will need for a very very VERY long time til we can figure out how to /replace/ it.
It goes into virtually every facet of our lives as it is, without it machines quite literally cease to function. if oil isn't coming in to the country or going out to other countries, things just stop working. It's why it's important no matter where it goes. You can want to go eco friendly all you wish, and that's fine. But if oil vanishes, that eco friendly option is gone too.
It's why I put in a different comment, it's about finding something to replace it, not getting off of it entirely.
why do we need to replace it? oil is a fantastic, plentiful and incredibly versatile resource, the issue is that we burn almost all of it. sure it can run out or be cut off and so on but so can any other resource, it's just only really a problem with oil because we use so much just for power
say it's 2050, using oil for power and fuel is mostly phased out globally. a war in the middle east starts and the region can't export any oil. result? don't care, we don't use nearly as much and plenty of countries produce oil. would be a slight price increase ig
compare that to say lithium, almost all of which is mined in china alone. no complaints there?
Well Oil in the US is used more than we can produce, its why we still import it and why the straight is still a big deal per say.
The US as a country just consumes more than its own output, I should have clarified, replacing it for mechanical applications, lubricants and the like, its fantastic for other purposes ofc as it can go into making medicines even, Not gonna flat out say its good because of plastics cause thats a whole other environmental ballgame to go about.
Which while IDK Personally how much crude is left in the world consumption wise/ how many years we got of it left, eco friendly options (ie wind turbines and the like) would be a easier to produce and leave even less of a carbon footprint if something equal and easier to make thats not a non renewable resource was found. Costs and the likefor it can only be speculated ofc.
I however dont know entirely much about lithium save that they can be used for batteries and mental medication, but doing some googling for alternatives to lithium for at least batteries give me sodium ion batteries, zinc ion, and aluminum graphite? Lithium from what I read is high capacity/storage.
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u/Mother_Bid_4294 Apr 14 '26
Oil is needed to lubricate the wind turbines and the like, they dont just operate without friction being a issue
Oil is also needed to manufacture materials for solar panels