Why renewable energy won't work.

[Kasz216]

Rath said:

Kasz216 said:

Rath said:

 

Photovoltaic energy is only about 25% efficient at the very top end at the moment, there are ways to make it much more efficient. In fact there are more efficiency gains to be had in solar than in any other form of energy as far as I can see.

Except, even with great funding... breakthroughs have been extremly slow and may not come.

The one thing people seem to forget with research is that research is FAAAAR from a given.  Things in labratorys may never and often never are adopted in the mainstream world because there is no way to make it workable outside labs.

Plenty of other stuff just never gets developed.

There have been plenty of progressive gains in the practical efficiency of solar cells over the last decade or so. There will almost certainly continue to be gains.

Progressive gains always stop somewhere.  Outside which.  Doesn't government grants and subsidies then crowd out said technology and advancement?

Afterall, if the government is paying for 25% efficency to be affordable... why spend R&D to get to 35% when the government is just going to drop the subsidy as you advance?

Subsidies just lower the bar... it's like with the US and Ethanol.

All those Ethanol companies get subsidies, and they really don't do much research.  It's other companies that are working on other biofuel alternatives to beat it.

Ethanol is "good enough."