PeakOil is You
A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand
Re: A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand
by Windmills » Fri 21 Jan 2011, 18:35:36
Technology is always good. It should always be implemented. Negative side effects need never be considered because the next technology will always cure them...eventually. These are the laws of technocopia.
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Re: A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand
by Homesteader » Sat 22 Jan 2011, 05:08:21
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Windmills', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('TheAntiDoomer', 'e')xample) at a rate equivalent to 10,000 U.S. gallons an acre a year. It anticipates that this yield could hit 25,000 gallons an acre a year when scaled for commercial production, equivalent to roughly 800 barrels of crude an acre a year.
so they have proven they can do 300 baarrels or so a year, and claim they can get it to 800, not bad at all.
Rate equivalent is an extrapolation from some other production number. It doesn't mean they've actually achieved 10,000gal/acre/year. It could mean they've produced a few drops at a certain time rate that, when scaled up on the back of an envelope, gives 10,000 gal/acre/year. I'd just like to see some more clear numbers.[/quote]
Never mind the energy inputs required to produce algaeoil on anywhere near a commercial scale (the energy and nutrients to actually grow and maintain a sufficiently large algae population, disease control, heating, cooling, maintenance etc. . . ) Oh, and don't forget that when the sun isn't shining, like every night, the little algae don't close up shop and go home. They will switch over to cellular respiration until the sun is sufficiently intense the next morning for photosynthesis to produce enough energy to support cell functioning. Cellular respiration will run on the glucose those little hard working algae oil wells made when the sun was shining.
Some info on photosyntheses:
"Any analysis of biomass energy production must consider the potential efficiency of the processes involved. Although photosynthesis is fundamental to the conversion of solar radiation into stored biomass energy, its theoretically achievable efficiency is limited both by the limited wavelength range applicable to photosynthesis, and the quantum requirements of the photosynthetic process. Only light within the wavelength range of 400 to 700 nm (photosynthetically active radiation, PAR) can be utilized by plants, effectively allowing only 45 % of total solar energy to be utilized for photosynthesis. Furthermore, fixation of one CO2 molecule during photosynthesis, necessitates a quantum requirement of ten (or more), which results in a maximum utilization of only 25% of the PAR absorbed by the photosynthetic system. On the basis of these limitations, the theoretical maximum efficiency of solar energy conversion is approximately 11%. In practice, however, the magnitude of photosynthetic efficiency observed in the field, is further decreased by factors such as poor absorption of sunlight due to its reflection, respiration requirements of photosynthesis and the need for optimal solar radiation levels. The net result being an overall photosynthetic efficiency of between 3 and 6% of total solar radiation."
and. . .
"1.2.3 Fuel production via microalgal CO2 fixation
One of the most serious environmental problems today is that of global warming, caused primarily by the heavy use of fossil fuels. In Japan, large amounts of CO2 are released into the atmosphere from electric power plants and industry. The CO2 generated by these large point sources could potentially be recovered with relative ease through the use of an established technology such as chemical absorption. The enormity of the amounts of potentially recoverable CO2 would however necessitate the development of technologies for sequestering or, more favorably, utilizing this CO2.
Photosynthetic microalgae are potential candidates for utilizing excessive amounts of CO2, since when cultivated these organisms are capable of fixing CO2 to produce energy and chemical compounds upon exposure to sunlight. The derivation of energy from algal biomass is an attractive concept in that unlike fossil fuels, algal biomass is rather uniformly distributed over much of the earth's surface, and its utilization would make no net contribution to increasing atmospheric CO2 levels. Although algal biomass is regarded as a low-grade energy source owing to its high moisture content, through biological processes, it may be converted to modem gaseous and liquid fuels such as hydrogen, methane, ethanol, and oils.
Hydrogen is regarded as a potential energy source of the future, since it is easily converted to electricity and bums cleanly. Hydrogen is currently produced by fossil fuel-based processes which emit large amounts of CO2, and relatively smaller amounts of other air pollutants such as sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. Biological H2 production has thus recently received renewed attention owing to urban air pollution and global warming concerns (2). Biological hydrogen production methodologies incorporating artificial reconstitution systems with chloroplast, ferredoxin, and hydrogenase; a heterocystous cyanobacterial system with oxygen scavengers; and an algal system in a day-and-night cycle, have been studied in
Japan. From an engineering point of view, however, bacterial fermentation mechanisms for hydrogen production under either dark or light conditions is currently of importance in terms of environmental issues and the utilization of organic wastes such as waste effluent of the food and fermentation industries, pre-treated sewage sludge, and market garbage.
The use of microalgae as sources of liquid fuels is an attractive proposition from the point of view that microalgae are photosynthetic renewable resources, are of a high lipid content, have faster growth rates than plant cells, and are capable of growth in saline waters which are unsuitable for agriculture. While the lipid content of microalgae, on a dry cellular weight basis varies between 20 and 40 %, lipid contents as high as 85 % have been reported for certain microalgal strains. Botryococcus braunii, is a unique microalgal strain, having a long-chain hydrocarbon content of between 30 and 40% (dry weight basis), which is directly extractable to yield crude oil substitutes. Both physical and chemical processes are applicable in the production of liquid fuels from algal strains of high lipid content. These processes include direct lipid extraction in the production of diesel-oil substitutes, transesterification in the formation of ester fuels, and hydrogenation in the production of hydrocarbons (3). Oily substances are also produced via liquefaction of microalgal biomass through thermochemical reactions under conditions of high pressure and temperature."
Link: http://www.fao.org/docrep/w7241e/w7241e ... 20fixation
A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand?
Go talk to the Steorn boys and those Italian guys pushing their cold fusion mumbo jumbo.
"The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays, is coming to a close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences…"
Sir Winston Churchill
Beliefs are what people fall back on when the facts make them uncomfortable.
Sir Winston Churchill
Beliefs are what people fall back on when the facts make them uncomfortable.
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Re: A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand
by TheAntiDoomer » Sat 22 Jan 2011, 15:43:41
Homesteader, did you even read the articles?????//
No algea involved here, techincally this isn't even a biofuel. It is using CO2 and Sunlight to create synthetic fuels.
No algea involved here, techincally this isn't even a biofuel. It is using CO2 and Sunlight to create synthetic fuels.
"The human ability to innovate out of a jam is profound.That’s why Darwin will always be right, and Malthus will always be wrong.” -K.R. Sridhar
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Do I make you Corny?
"expect 8$ gas on 08/08/08" - Prognosticator
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Re: A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand
by DoomersUnite » Sat 22 Jan 2011, 19:54:10
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('TheAntiDoomer', 'H')omesteader, did you even read the articles?????//
No algea involved here, techincally this isn't even a biofuel. It is using CO2 and Sunlight to create synthetic fuels.
No algea involved here, techincally this isn't even a biofuel. It is using CO2 and Sunlight to create synthetic fuels.
So much for peak oil.
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Re: A brave new world of fossil fuels on demand
by Ludi » Sat 22 Jan 2011, 20:19:34
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Windmills', 'T')echnology is always good. It should always be implemented. Negative side effects need never be considered because the next technology will always cure them...eventually. These are the laws of technocopia.
Excellent quote.
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