That interview with Dr. Olah was a good read. Thanks Darryl.
From: Darryl McMahon Sent: Thursday, November 27, 2014 1:24 PM To: sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org Has anyone read "Beyond Oil and Gas: The Methanol Economy"? http://www.technologyreview.com/news/405436/the-methanol-economy/ http://www.amazon.ca/Beyond-Oil-Gas-Methanol-Economy/dp/3527324224 If so, any thoughts about the book or subject matter? Darryl On 27/11/2014 12:55 PM, John Jaser wrote: > Tom: > > > Thanks for the abundant knowledge in your post. I am most certainly not a > chemist, but have always considered liquid methanol a very interesting > candidate for energy storage. Since it can be made from a variety of > renewable and non renewable means (wood, coal, biogas, etc) it seems like an > easier economic target to produce than pure hydrogen. Transprots and pumps > well, compared to what would be needed for compressed hydrogen gas. What to > do with it once you make it? The indirect methanol fuel cell, if developed > further looks promising. > > > Thanks again for the conversation! > > > > > > > From: Tom > Sent: Wednesday, November 26, 2014 5:33 PM > To: sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org > > > > > > Aaah, methane is intriguing. > Biogas is a metabolic product of one of the most ancient life forms, the > methanocreatrices. Anaerobic chemoautotrophic bacteria so different from > others that many would assign them to their own kingdom. > As to methane being easily transported consider .... where propane and > natural gas can be compressed to liquids, greatly increasing energy density, > methane "resists" liquefaction, requiring tremendous pressure. This seems to > be the "fly in the ointment". Unliquefied, a tankful of methane doesn't go > far. > Methane has value as a renewable fuel. > It is captured and used at waste treatment > plants to generate electricity. Methane is currently being captured at > landfills and used to generate electricity. I know of a dairy farm that > harvests methane from the manure the cows produce. They use the methane to > generate electricity. The heat from the generators heats the water used to > sanitize the milking area. They don't use the methane in their cars or farm > machinery however. > Relatively safe. Hmmm > Methane is a potent greenhouse gas. "Ocean burps" from vast storehouses of > methyl hydrates/clathrates have been credited with contributing significantly > to the end of the last ice age. The release of methane from thawing peat bogs > is a part of the cascade of events that is accelerating global warming. > Gasoline was once considered a waste product of oil refining, dumped into > rivers. When it was pointed out that it could replace ethanol as fuel for > internal combustion engines the "waste" became valuable. > Imagine what might happen if methane gas presented the same financial > opportunities by its use as vehicle fuel > .... a "renewable fuel". Do we dare the oil giants to tap the vast stores of > methane currently trapped safely under the ocean? It's already being > proposed. They can do it safely, right? Have you seen the data about leakage > from pipelines compressed gases seem to find their way out. Not so good in > the case of methane. > Capturing methane at its source and using it close to where it's produced > to generate electricity seems appropriate. > Sorry to carry on, but you did say methane was intriguing. > Best, > Tom > _______________________________________________ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel _______________________________________________ Sustainablelorgbiofuel mailing list Sustainablelorgbiofuel@lists.sustainablelists.org http://lists.eruditium.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sustainablelorgbiofuel
