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the numbers work out pretty well when you disregard the reality . Only in fantasy land the sun is always at peak, technology that claims to be 10% efficient is
by davidj 16y ago
the numbers work out pretty well when you disregard the reality . Only in fantasy land the sun is always at peak, technology that claims to be 10% efficient is actually 10%, DC-AC conversion and storage is 100% efficient, and if you disregard the government subsidies and the energy needed to manufacture.
- bsk 16y agoDo you work at BP or Exxon Mobil? :D
- pjscott 16y agoI know you're joking, but a big problem in discussing energy sources is that a lot of people assume that anybody who tries to explain the difficult engineering issues must be a paid shill for a big energy company. It's kind of irritating, even if it is both false and an ad hominem fallacy.
- davidj 16y agoBP is one of the largest researcher and manufacture of solar panels.
- hugh3 16y agoWell, I set out to debunk the economics of it, but my back of the envelope calculations gave better numbers than I was expecting. You're right, though, lots of factors I have failed to take into account. Another big one not mentioned yet: ever noticed how dirty your car looks after being left outside for a couple of weeks? Well have fun washing your roof as often as you wash your car.
- joeag 16y agoActually oil, gas and coal get more than 10X (in dollar amounts) the subsidy that renewable energy and technologies get. Granted, it is because the quantities are much higher, but it's not a "subsidized vs not subsidized" argument.
- eru 16y agoNet subsidies? I know that in Europe there tends to be a huge tax on petrol.