tagged w/ Alternative Fuels
-
This essay initially started out as "Pretenders, Contenders, and Niches." However, the section on pretenders grew to the point that I have decided to split that essay up. The first part, Renewable Fuel Pretenders, will cover some of the current media and political darlings. The second part, Renewable Fuel Contenders, will discuss some options that have received less attention, but in the long term are more likely to have staying power in my view. The final part on niches will discuss situations in which certain options might work in very specific situations.
One thing that probably goes without saying. Most pretenders don't believe they are pretenders. They are often completely sincere people who believe they have cracked the code, and thus they take exception to my characterization. The cellulosic guys, the algae guys, and even the hydrogen guys will insist that I have it all wrong. In fact, following the posting of this essay on my blog, I heard from all of them. I got numerous e-mails assuring me that they really had come up with the solution. What I have discovered in many of these cases is that people often believe this because they have no experience at scaling up technologies. They might have something that works in the lab, but this can instill a false sense of confidence in those who have never scaled a process up.
by Robert RapierThis essay initially started out as "Pretenders, Contenders, and Niches." However, the... more
-
-
The Air Car is comming to the US and at comparable prices with 0 emmissions. Never having to pay for gas again never felt so goodThe Air Car is comming to the US and at comparable prices with 0 emmissions. Never... more
-
-
EYE OPENING!
Just saw it last night at Monterey, California's restored Golden State Theater where my father watched films as a child 70 years ago.
I highly recommend the movie "Fuel". Josh Tickell and the movie "Fuel" do a great job of entertainingly informing us about alternatives to crude oil, and how corruption in government has compromised our country, our way of life, our standard of living our security in the world, our future and our planet. Even my son Kevin thought it was Awesome!
I must say, it was under promoted. It's such a good production and the information so relevant and important, I am surprised the film doesn't have broad mainstream distribution. Then again, because of it's inflammatory nature in the eyes of big oil that is, I guess I'm not surprised.
I highly recommend it to anyone. It's on par with the best films of it's type, such as "Super Size Me", "Who Killed The Electric Car" and Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth".
What really blew me away was that we can make fuel from algae.
Check out the official trailer @ : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb4Z_mwpMyQ
Their web site @ : http://thefuelfilm.com/
Theaters currently booked: http://thefuelfilm.com/theaters
Make a difference and spread the word about this film.EYE OPENING!
Just saw it last night at Monterey, California's restored Golden State... more
-
-
This week's cartoon describes algae-based energy -- one of the possibilities for plant-based fuels that many people think is very promising. In fact, some experts think that it might even beat out corn, sugar cane or even switchgrass as an environmentally friendly biofuel feedstock. As an added benefit, algae thrives on common water pollutants like phosphorous, so farming it in a controlled way can be a profitable strategy for cleaning up spoiled waterways near power plants and industrial sites. But there are still hurdles to overcome before algae biofuel can become a viable energy alternative (Jamais Cascio discussed some challenges in this 2006 article). Many new solutions for growing algae are emerging around the world -- including this innovative Light Immersion Technology from Redmond, Washington-based Bionavitas, which allows light to penetrate deep layers of the plant so that farms can produce larger quantities. Keep looking to Worldchanging for more news of the best alternative energy breakthroughs.This week's cartoon describes algae-based energy -- one of the possibilities for... more
-
-
It took an inventor / innovator (me) to shift Shell into gear with their new "Nitrogen Enriched" fuel. Well, there's no confirmation of this rumor I am spreading, but one never knows.
"The Houston division of Royal Dutch Shell says that nitrogen enhances cleaning elements in Shell gasolines partly by making them more stable at the higher temperatures at which modern engines tend to operate, so the additive can work more effectively in current engines that use technology like fuel injection.
The Shell Nitrogen Enriched Gasolines, formulated to dissolve carbon deposits that can foul up the workings of a car engine, will be spotlighted in ads under Shell's "Passionate Experts" campaign, which launched in 2007. "
The real benefit is that Nitrogen stabilizes the combustion process. Without the presence of nitrogen, the oxidation / combustion process would be extremely violent and destructive to the engine. Nitrogen absorbs the heat generated by the oxidation process (thereby controlling it).
The heated and excited nitrogen molecules are what actually do the work pressing on and pushing the piston down.
I started the post with the intention of drawing other engine designers and engineers into this mindset - for the betterment of society, humanity and the health and well-fare of our planet.
Shell likely labeled their "Nitrogen Enriched" fuel as a manner / method of cleaning deposits in an internal combustion engine to be "patent-ably different" in order to obtain a patent at all - as the significance of "nitrogen" was a matter of public record in the public domain at least at the time of my writing about it. Other's may have written about it prior to me, don't know. Sometimes timeliness is everything.
The discussion I began on August 31, 2007: http://speedtalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7431&start=0
Shells press release: http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=101274
Now, who thinks I should get royalties? (Psst! I'll give you a nickle if you say I should)
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Senator Barbara Boxer
Assmeblymember Bill Monning
Attorney General Jerry Brown
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
President Barack Obama
FBI Federal Beauru of InvestigationIt took an inventor / innovator (me) to shift Shell into gear with their new "Nitrogen... more
-
-
"A Biodiesel manufacturer claims government moves to axe compulsory use of biofuels spells the end of the industry in New Zealand including his plans to employ 46 extra staff at a new plant.
Tom McNicholl, managing director of Auckland-based BioDiesel Oils NZ, said he would mothball a nearly-built Waikato plant that would have produced 60 million litres a year of tallow-based diesel after the Government confirmed it would scrap compulsory biofuel requirements next week."
Question: if BioDiesel Oils NZ's biodiesel was tallow-based, does that mean that it was sustainable and not impacting food supply?"A Biodiesel manufacturer claims government moves to axe compulsory use of biofuels... more
-
-
The biggest working sanitary landfill in the United States, located right outside Los Angeles, is so much more than a garbage dump: it is an environmentally-safe recycling haven where even unrecyclable waste can be turned into clean bioenergy fuels and lots and lots of power (it is one of the largest power generators in the state of California).
Landfills are the nation's second largest source of manmade methane pollution. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and a contributor to the smog air pollution.
While landfills such as Puente Hills in Los Angeles are realizing the economic benefits of capturing and utilizing the energy from methane, there are still hundreds of landfills across the nation missing this critical opportunity.
See what can de done and do pass on the good news :)The biggest working sanitary landfill in the United States, located right outside Los... more
-
-
Wayne Keith is headed to Las Vegas in an old Dodge pickup that runs on, of all things, wood. He gets about 1.6 mpp (that's miles per pound) and reckons he needs about 1,000 pounds to get there. No problem. He's carrying a chainsaw and a list of lumberyards along the way.
Such are the provisions you need for Escape from Berkeley, a madcap alt-fuel race that mashes up Mad Max and Cannonball Run with a touch of the Darpa Challenge and Burning Man. If the rules are simple -- no petroleum allowed, and fuel must be scavenged along the way -- the challenge is anything but.
"The basic premise is build a vehicle out of junk, we'll give you the equivalent of one gallon of gas and you have to drive 600 miles to Las Vegas. Oh, and you can't buy any fuel along the way," says Jim Mason, the artist and inventor behind the race. "That's a pretty heavy stone to carry."
That isn't keeping the 10 teams lining up for this weekend's race from giving it a try in everything from a veggie-oil Lotus 7 to a steam-powered three-wheeler that looks like it rolled right out of the 19th century.
The race has drawn geeks and gearheads, artists and academics and even a rancher from Alabama, none of whom are waiting for General Motors or Toyota to lead us beyond oil. They've cobbled together an impressive fleet of street-legal and roadworthy cars, proving automakers aren't the only ones who can make autos. "I think energy will be our next hacking culture," Mason says. "If there's any goal here, it's to see how we can move energy from a commodity culture to a hacker culture."
Mason started hacking World War II-era Imbert wood gas technology three years ago. He's developed a DIY gasifier kit (he's sold 35 of them, at two grand a pop) and installed it in the 1989 Honda he's making the run to Vegas in. "A gasifier isn't a practical solution for urban transit," he concedes. "But it shows it can be done."
Still, if there's a favorite to take the $5,000 grand price, it's Alabama rancher Keith Wayne. He's making the run in a 1987 Dodge Dakota pickup truck, which is the fourth truck he's converted to run on wood gas. He's already put 30,000 miles on it, so he knows it works. "Gasification is a little tricky to grasp, but once you understand it, it's pretty simple," he says. "It takes a lot of rigging and welding and doing and redoing. But it's a cheap ride, and it's carbon-neutral. The scientists at Auburn (University) tell me it's cleaner than an electric car."
Those scientists oughta know, because one of them -- Dr. David Bransby -- is Keith's teammate. They're making their way across the country in a pair of wood-gas pickups, spreading the gasification gospel before making the run to Vegas. "We've been in touch with Lowe's and Home Depot and other places that will have scrap, and we'll be getting wood from them along the way," Keith says. As for those stretches of road where there's nothing but scrub and brush, well, Keith's got a chain saw and the rules allow him one gallon of gas, so he figures he's got it covered.
"We're looking forward to it," he says. "You get a group of people together, give them rules like this and tell them to drive from Point A to Point B without gas, well, there might be something come out of it you've never seen before."
Wayne Keith is headed to Las Vegas in an old Dodge pickup that runs on, of all things,... more
-
-
The promise of commercial algae fuel is getting closer to reality with GreenFuel Technologies announcement of a $92 million deal to build algae greenhouses. The projectwill capture CO2 emissions from a cement plant in Jerez, Spain and use them to grow algae for food, fuel, and feedstock.
Currently, GreenFuel and partner company Aurantia SA have a 100 square-meter prototype plant running. GreenFuel hopes to have a full-scale 100 hectare plant ready by 2011. The larger plant is expected to absorb 50,000 tons of metric carbon and produce 25,000 tons of algae each year. For some perspective, 25,000 tons of algae will produce 1.3 million gallons of algae oil annually. The prototype plant began testing six weeks ago. If all goes well, GreenFuel wants to ramp up the project to 1,000 square meters.
More here http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/greenfuel-grows-100-square-meters-of-algae--5031.htmlThe promise of commercial algae fuel is getting closer to reality with GreenFuel... more
-
-
Instead of using Food products and Trees lets use someting smarter for
making fuel.
Hey the big tobacco might just find a way to survive all the suits and the agreement to discourage smoking.
By Paul Schuler
Capital News Service
Friday, March 2, 2001
ANNAPOLIS - Tobacco may actually be able to help reduce lung cancer and air pollution -- if only cars would start smoking it.
The University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute presented to the Southern Maryland Delegation Friday a way to produce the clean-burning fuel, ethanol, more efficiently by using genetically engineered tobacco.
The research could create an unlikely alliance of tobacco farmers looking for alternative markets for their crop and environmental and health advocates wanting to reduce air pollution. However, the researchers still have a long way to go to convince the two sides to back their efforts, said University of Maryland associate professor Jonathan Arias.
The genetically altered tobacco could be an alternative crop for the 452 farmers who have agreed not to produce the crop as part of the state tobacco buy-out program, according to Arias.
Gov. Parris N. Glendening created the buy-out program in 1999 to rid the state of tobacco growing as part of his anti-smoking campaign.
Under the buyout contract, farmers receive $1 for each pound of tobacco they produced in previous years in exchange for not growing it. However, the contract stipulates only that farmers not produce tobacco for human consumption. They could produce the genetically altered tobacco and still receive the money.Instead of using Food products and Trees lets use someting smarter for
making fuel.... more
-
-
"It's actually like growing tomatoes; the algae need similar things," he says.
This crop uses the warmth, light and a steady feed of carbon dioxide and nutrients to reproduce faster than any other plant on earth.
The amount of algae in these tubes can double daily. And that is both the attraction and the problem with algae as a commercial crop.
What Algae-Link's system claims to crack, possibly for the first time, is the problem of clogging. A patented internal cleaning system keeps the set-up harvesting twenty-four hours a day.
Once the cells of the algae are split into their constituent parts (an established science with all biofuel crops but a more secretive part of the process in this case), the green mass can be sold as feed for fish and oyster farms and the vegetable oil can be processed into engine fuel.
What will be crucial is to produce the raw material in sufficient quantities. Cynics are saying a land mass anything up to the size of Ireland would have to be devoted to algae production to fuel the world's civil aviation industry.
But that may not be out of the question. With algae cultivation in tubes, farming is feasible on otherwise unusable land; there are already projects up and running in the Gobi desert of northern China.
MUCH MORE IN LINK.
Nuclear power plants could of helped us 10 years ago, There is so many promising biofuel technology out right now, its time for America to step up."It's actually like growing tomatoes; the algae need similar things," he says.
This... more
-
-
Sounds like a better way than using corn!!!
only with all the bans on smoking it will probably go the way of Canabis and be removed from cultavation before it can be appreciated for its other uses.
Tobacco also has uses as a natural insect repelent/cide
While almost every plant on earth has been investigated as an alternative energy resource, for some odd reason tobacco has been entirely overlooked. I call this odd because the high sugar & starch composition of tobacco is well-known, as is the very low lignin encasement of its cellulosic materials. With this data alone it should be clear to science, agriculture, and industry worldwide that the tobacco plant has a nearly ideal composition for direct digestion to ethanol, and is also an ideal candidate for biomethanation or gasification. Tobacco-based ethanol can be produced for far less cost per gallon, with far more economically valuable sidestreams, than corn-based ethanol ( see below for full details). Further, it is known that tobacco is a heavily coppicing plant, enabling it to produce very high biomass tonnage, and it is also known that tobacco thrives on poor soils in a wide range of environments.
Perhaps the most attractive aspect of tobacco-based biomass fuel is that not only would tobacco fuel not take away from food crop production, as corn-based ethanol does, it would actually add immense tonnage of food-grade protein that can be extracted from the sludge remaining after ethanol is produced. Fraction-1 protein is an odorless, tasteless crystalline substance that can be extracted from tobacco, and it is a complete protein - as efficient a source of human food value as beef. It would be totally 'paid for' by the ethanol produced from the tobacco biomass, and so it would be, in effect, free food. It can be added to flour of all kinds and used to produce baked goods like bread and tortillas, adding enough high quality at no cost to these basic foods to practically eliminate protein deficiencies in even the poorest countries.
addtional information on the same site
In summary, Tobacco biomass can be produced at well over a hundred tons per acre, using either hand labor or simple machinery, on land that is unsuitable for food crops, and that biomass material can not only provide low cost bioenergy, extracted as biogas or ethanol or both, but also after that energy has been produced, pure unadulterated food grade protein, along with medical grade protein and other economically valuable byproducts, can be extracted from the fermentation tank or digester sludge. Then that sludge, which is very high in available nitrogen, and other nutrients and trace elements, can be returned to the soil.
http://home.ktc.com/bdrake/tbe3.html
A second article http://www.newsline.umd.edu/business/specialreports/tobacco/tobaccob030201.htmSounds like a better way than using corn!!!
only with all the bans on smoking it will... more
-
-
Zeitgeist: Addendum !!!
The video posted is a trailer for what you are about to watch.
This is one of the most powerful and informative films ever !!!!
Watching the FULL VERSION will definitely IMPACT the way you THINK and will give you the info NEEDED to understand OUR WORLD TODAY !!!!
Take the time to watch it !!!! I truly believe that we can Save our race and our planet by finding out the truth of what is going on....and THE LAST HOUR OF THE FILM IS ABOUT SOLUTIONS !!!!!!
If you doubt, or think you know about this topic.... then watch it, and then we'll debate...
Here is the Link for the FULL VERSION !!!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7065205277695921912&ei=g7LqSKmtKpryqAOaz_HVDw&q=Zeitgeist+Addendum
Zeitgeist: Addendum !!!
The video posted is a trailer for what you are about to... more
-
-
The search for sources of biofuels that won’t negatively impact the world’s food supply and add to global warming appears to be bearing some fruit. One company that thinks it has a solution, Great Plain - The Camelina Company, has proclaimed itself the “world’s largest camelina producer.” Just what is camelina? Camelina is an oilseed crop in the same family as mustard, rapeseed and cabbage, that’s beginning to be grown and crushed throughout the United States and Canada for both fuel and cattle feed. Camelina is well on its way to a low cost, high yield, alternative to crops like corn or soy as source of biodiesel.
Federal mandates to increase alternative fuel production have contributed to the rising cost of consumer goods and food, and may actually increase global warming as valuable farmland is being used to grow crops for fuel. Camelina offers one solution for reaching biodiesel production goals by providing a sustainable, low-input biofuel feedstock that doesn’t interfere with food production. Camelina, unlike many other crops, is virtually 100 percent efficient. It can be harvested and crushed for fuel and the remaining parts can be used to produce high quality omega-3 rich animal feed, fiberboard and glycerin. It actually produces both food and fuel.
Camelina has the ability to grow on marginal land, utilizing very little moisture, in cold states as far north as Montana and Canada. Camelina is also an excellent rotational crop and has been shown to enhance the yield of subsequent crops such as wheat by up to 15 percent.
Great Plains has contracted with several crushing partners in North America to produce over 10 million road miles of camelina biodiesel to date, and plans to boost production to 100 million gallons by the year 2012.
The search for sources of biofuels that won’t negatively impact the world’s food... more
-
-
a crazy looking contraption in the bed of the truck composed of ducting, PVC pipe, a 50 gallon drum, an old furnace, and of course, a lot of duct tape among other many other things.
I had to ask him what in the world was on the back of his truck. It was a wood burning oven that catches the combustible fumes from the wood coals, condenses any moisture, then feeds the fumes into the engine to make it run. I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it.
Apparently this is a concept that was engineered back in WWII when there were fuel supply shortages. I have never heard of it.
Probably would not be good if we all did it, but at least I know there is someone in town with a truck that will run no matter what happens with gasoline.
--Dave B. a crazy looking contraption in the bed of the truck composed of ducting, PVC pipe, a... more
-
-
"GasHole" is a new documentary film about the history of Oil prices and the
future of alternative fuels. The film takes a wide, yet detailed examination of our dependence on foreign supplies of Oil.
What are the causes that led from America turning from a leading exporter of
oil to the world's largest importer? What are the economic and sociological
forces that have contributed to that change and impede its solution?
When this film went into production the average price of a gallon of gasoline was close to $2.35 and now, as the price approaches $4.00.
The film examines many different potential solutions to our oil dependence.
Starting with claims of buried technology that dramatically improves gas
mileage, to navigating bureaucratic governmental roadblocks, to evaluating
different alternative fuels that are technologically available now, to
questioning the American Consumer's reluctance to embrace alternatives.
If you buy gas, you should see this movie!
The movie is currently on tour. Check out the movie's website to see which city it will be in next. The film hopes to be premiered in major cities in late summer and hopefully will be out on DVD in November or December 2008.
http://www.gasholemovie.com/
"GasHole" is a new documentary film about the history of Oil prices and the
future... more
-
-
-
Thousands of successful water-conversions around the world are proof that this technology works and will soon catch on! From being used by this guy's torch, HHO gas can prove to be a means to fuel automobiles. The prospect of using HHO to fuel cars successfully almost seems like a dream come true.Thousands of successful water-conversions around the world are proof that this... more
-
-
The skyrocketing cost of food is causing unrest around the world. Last Saturday, Haitians ousted their prime minister, Jacques-Édouard Alexis, following a week of rioting over staple costs. In the Philippines, where the price of rice has doubled since January, the president banned using farmland for any purpose other than food production. Even Italians staged a day-long pasta protest last September when wheat prices jumped.
In the course of a year grain costs have surged by 31% for corn, 74% for rice, 87% for soya, and 130% for wheat, according to the United Nations. Compounding the problem, global grain stores are at a historic low and prices are expected to continue to rise and remain high for the foreseeable future. In response to the growing crisis, the World Food Programme, which feeds some 73 million people, appealed last month for $500 million in funds, the amount it is short this year due to the spike in food prices. And this week, UNESCO released a report that concludes an overhaul of modern agriculture is imminent.
“We estimate that a doubling of food prices over the last three years could potentially push 100 million people in low-income countries deeper into poverty,” World Bank president Robert Zoellick said.
“In this case, the international community has to think about what is the biggest risk in the short run and to make a correct balance between production of biofuel from food stuffs and biofuel coming from nonfood stuffs,” IMF managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said during a press conference in DC last Sunday at the spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank April 12-13.The skyrocketing cost of food is causing unrest around the world. Last Saturday,... more
-
-
leahl
-
added this
-
1 year ago
- |
-
An article about how many more btus we can use from butanol compared to ethanol. How butanol is more stable meaning less evaporative, more efficient to produce, and doesn't require a strain on the corn production. Ethanol isn't a realistic solution to gasoline. Butanol is just another alternative like so many circulating but seems to be better than ethanol. The article mentions butanol being produced from petroleum but thats just one source like ethanol it can be produced from eco friendly biomass. Instead of corn how about algae it produces more oil hands down and won't effect our food. As a community we must stress corn is not the answer a start for some to think about but not close to a solution. Overall butanol is better than ethanol. As stated in the url its less toxic than methanol but more toxic than ethanol. Ethanol just as butanol can be made from an abundance of sources instead of a mainstay for almost any society (example corn). A whole other arguement is hydrogen its a by product from many things just as gasoline used to be a by product of kerosene. Me personally I feel it's necessary to see all sides so do your own research and put gasoline behind us. Oh and just to add what ever happened to all the alternative energy incentives/tax breaks? Reagan? Oil company lobbyist? or did Carter just put solar panels on the White House for publicity? Check out http://peswiki.com/index.php/Directory:Biodiesel_from_Algae_Oil,
http://www.butanol.com/
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/10/world/americas/10brazil.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?SEQ_NO_115=149057
also the department of energy website has alot.An article about how many more btus we can use from butanol compared to ethanol. How... more
-
-
7c0m9
-
added this
-
1 year ago
- |
