I think it's irrelevant if the cost of solar panels goes to zero, the reality is that the farm to fork cost/kwh is still quite high because dispatch and transmission are never cheap.
Furthermore, for every 1 pound of polysilicon produced...you get 4 pounds of silicon tetrachloride output.
I gambled on $UAN and $AMR guesstimating that the spread of renewables would lead to more nat gas and coal/steel consumption per a kilowatt hour produced globally. I got lucky and it worked out. I'm not bullish on solar costs going below the embodied energy cost of desal per 1000 gallons. (10-14kwh/1000 gallons)
> Furthermore, for every 1 pound of polysilicon produced...you get 4 pounds of silicon tetrachloride output.
SiCl4 can (and should) be completely recycled in the process that makes silicon, to make more SiHCl3. There is no reason to treat it as waste in a cost optimized system.
Furthermore, for every 1 pound of polysilicon produced...you get 4 pounds of silicon tetrachloride output.
I gambled on $UAN and $AMR guesstimating that the spread of renewables would lead to more nat gas and coal/steel consumption per a kilowatt hour produced globally. I got lucky and it worked out. I'm not bullish on solar costs going below the embodied energy cost of desal per 1000 gallons. (10-14kwh/1000 gallons)