Michaelangelica Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 Why sustainable power is unsustainablethe most advanced "renewable" technologies are too often based upon non-renewable resources, . . .The efficiency of solar cells is measured as a percentage of light energy they convert to electricity. Silicon solar cells finally reached 25% in late December. But multi-junction solar cells can achieve efficiencies greater than 40%.. . .Most of the rare and expensive element is used to manufacture LCD screens, an industry that has driven indium prices to $1000 per kilogram in recent years. Estimates that did not factor in an explosion in indium-containing solar panels reckon we have only a 10 year supply of it left.. . .So far, fuel cells are still the most effective way to turn the gas into electricity. But these mostly rely on expensive platinum to catalyse the reaction. The trouble is, platinum makes indium appear super-abundant. It is present in the Earth's crust at just 0.003 parts per billion and is priced in $ per gram, not per kilogram. Estimates say that, if the 500 million vehicles in use today were fitted with fuel cells, all the world's platinum would be exhausted within 15 years.etcWhy sustainable power is unsustainable - tech - 06 February 2009 - New Scientistsome good links embedded in the article toosuch asTop 7 alternative energies listed - environment - 14 January 2009 - New Scientist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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