to save gasoline use dead cats

[Anastasia]

My response would have to be:

 

"I like babies.  I just can never finish a whole one..."

 

Converting biomass to a diesel substitute solves a lot of problems that the biomas -> methane has with storage and production. 

 

If this is fast and cheap enough, it may just be viable.  And what is better, it may be easy enough to do in your own back 40, assuming you have the proper setup.

199820[/snapback]

 

It's actually not practical at all and would only meet like 5% of our energy needs; I was just trying to be funny.

[Arnieman]

It's actually not practical at all and would only meet like 5% of our energy needs; I was just trying to be funny.

199829[/snapback]

Actually, any bit we could use would help twofold here - first, reducing the price of fuel* would provide at least some people with a cheaper fuel, and if it could be mixed in with regular crude oil produced fuel, could provide a fuel product that's cheaper for everyone. This would definitely help the economy.

 

Second, the materials used in making the product - paper, plastic, cloth, and "rubbish" - are already in high quantities in landfills, which are ever-closer to reaching capacity**. If these products were rather turned into a fuel for our vehicles, we really wouldn't have to worry about where to put the trash - and even could probably go about reducing what's already accumulated.

 

* - The article reports that fuel made this way is about US$0.30 a liter (roughly $1.20 a gallon) - compared to the local (SW Ohio, USA) gas stations I've seen which are now at about $2.49 a gallon (a weekly low, it had been $3.00 and even $3.50 in some places after Katrina). Yeah, I know it's probably cheap compared to European petrol stations, but I still remember a year ago, thinking $1.50 was so expensive.

 

** - There are certain parts of the United States (NYC) that are already past capacity, and shipping to other states (such as Ohio), which are very near to capacity themselves.

[Anastasia]

Eh

It's impossible to maintain on a long-term basis without oil. The things you would need to produce this fuel are all produced with the aid of oil. Also, there are transportation costs associated with centralizing the trash, and for something that would only meet about 5% of the US daily energy needs (using all the garbage produced on a daily basis), it doesn't seem worth it.

[Arnieman]

True, you can't totally supplant oil - it's still very necessary, and we're getting into heavy trouble here for it. However, if we can recover some of the potential fuel lost to clothing (which wears out and gets trashed), and some of the other stuff wasted - it's worth looking into, and as crude oil prices start going up, will start looking even more attractive. Plus, most of the stuff that would go into the fuel that needs oil to produce does have one thing going for it - most of it is stuff we've already made.

 

As for tranportation costs of the garbage - these are already being incurred, just instead of going somewhere to sit and rot (or not rot, as some cases have shown), they go somewhere to be used. Similar to our recycling we already do.

[The_Piper]

True, you can't totally supplant oil - it's still very necessary, and we're getting into heavy trouble here for it. ey go somewhere to be used.  Similar to our recycling we already do.

200223[/snapback]

 

You can. Just wait a few years when oil is no longer available, how creative mankind can be.

 

Piper

[Arnieman]

You can. Just wait a few years when oil is no longer available, how creative mankind can be.

 

Piper

200286[/snapback]

I meant as is now - I mean, who here is going to deny that we are going to run out before long?

[Amorak]

I read it once... something about serving Irish babies up for English dinners?

 

Yeah, I see this is going to be REAL controversial... maybe we could start converting terrorists to oil?

199269[/snapback]

 

I don't think I'd be comfortable with having Dubya's remains crammed into my fuel tank

[Mireille]

You can. Just wait a few years when oil is no longer available, how creative mankind can be.

 

Piper

200286[/snapback]

 

Seconded. Alternative sources are too expensive for now in relation to oil, but this will change.

[Merrick]

omg, you people are so evil.

one of those cats could have been someone's best friend.  and why is it always cats? why not dogs, or you know what would even be better? MEN 

197884[/snapback]

 

 

*snickers*

 

*Had to say, I'm no 'male basher'. ^_^ Only against some.

Edited September 24, 2005 by Merrick

[Anastasia]

You can. Just wait a few years when oil is no longer available, how creative mankind can be.

 

Piper

200286[/snapback]

 

Hah. Or not. War will erupt over oil. Civil war maybe, maybe a world war, who knows. But there is going to be blood shed. Oh I am looking forward to it.

[Mireille]

Hah. Or not. War will erupt over oil. Civil war maybe, maybe a world war, who knows. But there is going to be blood shed. Oh I am looking forward to it.

201674[/snapback]

 

Oh really? Even if it's going to be YOUR blood?

[Mr.Mind]

Alternative sources aren't too expensive, they just aren't as profitable. Now many people are willing to go into business selling anything (especially energy) that is not very profitable.

 

The problem isn't from not having enough alternative sources. Its from people realizing that they will make A LOT more money until the oil runs out.

[Anastasia]

Oh really? Even if it's going to be YOUR blood?

201764[/snapback]

 

Yeah. I really don't care if I die. I almost want to die. Life is pretty much pointless when it comes down to it. But then... why not enjoy it while you can? So that's what I'm doing. Living life, and nothing more. I do not fear death.

[behindthemask08]

I can't wait till gas hits $8 a gallon. Then alternative fuels will be extremely viable.

All hail Hydrogen, Propane, and Solar Power!

[Arnieman]

I can't wait till gas hits $8 a gallon. Then alternative fuels will be extremely viable.

All hail Hydrogen, Propane, and Solar Power!

202964[/snapback]

Small problem - Hydrogen is very viable, Propane has the same problems as Oil, and Solar Power - how about a cloudy day?

[Soldus]

You can "store" solar power in batteries (not very efficient, but they are working on that),

even better, in form of hydrogen. (extracted from water via electrolysis)

with that hydrogen you can fuel your car aswell as heat your house and provide yourself with electrical energy anytime, regardless of day/nightime and clouds.

[jakoblin]

a big problem to what soldus say

in form of hydrogen. (extracted from water via electrolysis)

 

hydrogen in usa is too expensive and i also google on hydrogen that say some people can make hydrogen bomb .

[Dent]

Storage has always been the major problem with any source of electricity.

 

There have been no solutions that can be effectively employed in in broad strokes.

 

Hydrogen makes things brittle, and therefore degrades any containment.

 

About the only thing that has ever worked is having way too much electricity produced, so that increased demand doesn't matter.

 

What most people who put in the time to research have found is that investing in systems to reduce the amount of electricity needed from the grid is the way to go, on the personal level and the community level. These systems include reducing what you use, as well as things like solar cells, windmills, heat pums and stuff like that.

 

Biomass is coming up as a great way to both reduce waste and to help in the production of different energy sources. Biomass is made up od stuff that was formerly living including corn, manure and yes, even dead cats.

[Soldus]

@jakoblin:

via electrolysis you can produce your own hydrogen, you don't have to buy it. hydrogen bombs are not a threat just because you run a hydrogen vehicle or furnace, they are not easily built and need a thermo nuclear bomb to ignite.

 

@dent:

of course you are right, decentralization and a mix of all available and soon available alternative energy forms is the way to go.

with solar thermic modules you can heat your home (and have warm water) basicaly all year round in most regions of the world, add a wood pellet or biomass furnace and you're all set even in colder regions.

hydrogen is difficult to store more in vehicles, because it needs more space for the same amount of energy, that isn't really a problem for immobile units tho.

[behindthemask08]

hydrogen bombs are extremely hard to make and hydrogen can be available for about $4.50 a gallon(compared to gasoline - not a real gallon of hydrogen just the same amount of energy.