On Thu, Dec 15, 2011 at 3:07 PM, Jed Rothwell <[email protected]> wrote:
> Aussie Guy E-Cat <[email protected]> wrote: > > For the E-Cat or any other LENR generator to make inroads into the global >> energy generation market, the LCOE per kWh of delivered energy must be >> lower than from any other comparable energy sources or there is simply no >> market for it. > > > Yup. That's a key point. > > You mean a market for the device as a practical source of energy. A person > could sell eCats as experimental devices. You could sell thousands at a > premium price to laboratories worldwide. Later you might even sell them as > a novelty item, similar to today's high-end electric cars. Toys for rich > people. Early automobiles and microcomputers were novelty items. > > > The top of the LCOE scale probably starts as a drop it in a remote site >> (could be in outer space) somewhere and generate heat and electricity. For >> that market the acceptable LCOE of the delivered energy is very high. > > > Yup again. Other examples of critical power that people will pay a premium > for include: pacemaker batteries, heart assist pumps (Ventricular Assist > Device), hearing aid batteries, watch batteries, remote telephone > repeaters, cell phone batteries, aviation, and highway sensors (now served > by solar panels). > > The technology has to be developed to a high state of reliability before > such applications can be served. The same goes for military applications, > as you pointed out. > > > >> For domestic situations the max acceptable LCOE drops quite a bit and for >> on grid electricity generation the required LCOE hits rock bottom. >> > > Yup. Because of that, this is may be the last market you want to approach. > > See Christensen, "The Innovator's Dilemma" for ideas about good markets to > begin with. This book introduces the concepts of disruptive versus > sustaining technology. These terms have become widely used clichés in > modern business, but people often misunderstand the original concept. I > discussed this book in chapter 7 of my book. I highly recommend reading the > original. > > Christensen came out with a follow-up book which was also interesting. It > needs editing. > > I don't understand any of that in the slightest. The device as it is supposed to be would immediately and without any changes be an excellent heat source. That's what makes the famous photo of Rossi, Levi and Focardi (was it?) huddled around the E-cat in huge winter coats so comical! Even as primitive a device as the early E-cats would be completely welcome as a space heater and hot water source in any cold environment. Imagine an isolated ski cabin in the Alps with no electricity. You wouldn't need to gather wood any more to keep warm all winter long. Same for cooking. But this is very silly conjecture. If the device worked, which is very doubtful at this point, it would be researched and rapidly improved and developed into much higher temperature regimes. That would make it suitable for propulsion and as a source of electricity. It would within a very few years have myriads of applications. And simply routing a bit of the output back to the input through a regulator would make it self sustaining. Of course all of that is just fanciful thinking and wishing.
