> From: Moose <olymoose@xxxxxxxxx>
>>
>>> When some nut discovers a way to spray sand with some cheap
>>> concoction, let bake in the sun for a while, stick electrodes in
>>> it and generate essentially unlimited, almost free power, will
>>> today's Malthusian
>>> equivalents have been fools for not seeing the next thing that
>>> long delays the inevitable reckoning?
>>>
>>
>> "Essentially unlimited?" Hardly. Unless this "nut" manages to top
>> today's average efficiency of about 10%, we're still using nearly
>> as much energy that could be harvested if we covered all of the US
>> with
>> solar cells: http://tinyurl.com/57n7oc
>>
> Oh dear, is there or isn't there an invisible smiley face?
>
> Just to be sure, I'll give some more of the imaginary specs.
> Conversion
> efficiency depends on the quality and composition of the sand
> (including
> depth and translucency) and on the temperature. Poor sand, 20C = 47%.
> Excellent sand, 45C = 82.5%
Ah, okay. So now we only need to cover 1/4 of North America with the
stuff to meet our current energy needs, assuming that much excellent
sand is available and that global warming kicks in big-time. I'm glad
you clarified that!
See, Reagan knew about this 20 years ago:
:::: At best, it [conservation] means we will run out of energy a
little more slowly. -- Ronald Reagan ::::
:::: Jan Steinman <http://www.VeggieVanGogh.com> ::::
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