[MonteQuest]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')hat cost could come way down, he figures, if the recycling is done with electricity from nuclear power plants, wind turbines or even solar power plants if economically viable. The aluminum oxide and gallium would be shipped to such plants, using electrolysis to break the oxide back down to aluminum, Woodall said, "and we start the cycle all over again."

[MacG]

Well, they don't seem to make professors the way they used to. Where does this Jerry Woodall moron expect to find the energy to produce the aluminium?

[Tyler_JC]

Well, do you doubt that the oil companies, car companies, and US government interfered with the progress of the electric car?

If not, watch "Who Killed The Electric Car?".

What stops the government from raising C.A.F.E. standards? Encouraging energy efficiency?

We spend more money subsidizing the coal companies than we do on ALL renewable energy subsidies combined.

I personally believe that the effects of Peak Oil could be minimized greatly if we could only get the corporate/government/lobbyist triangle to help out. Or at the very least, get out of the way.

I'm not saying that this aluminum gas thing is the solution, but it's certainly something to be looked at. Maybe we could consider diverting a few of the hundreds of billions being spent on oil wars into research?

Just my two cents.

[MonteQuest]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tyler_JC', 'W')hat stops the government from raising C.A.F.E. standards? Encouraging energy efficiency?

[Tyler_JC]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Tyler_JC', 'W')hat stops the government from raising C.A.F.E. standards? Encouraging energy efficiency?

[whereagles]

This hydrogen misconception is annoying me. The other day, a guy wrote an article in a local newspaper claiming the country should be investing into hydrogen generation and distribution...

I had to write a counter-article explaining why..
- hydrogen is a carrier of energy, not a source
- the only hydrogen generation that makes sense is through non-polluting sources
- those sources are only good for about 2-3% of what we'd need!!!

I hope someone got the message..

[Graeme]

ETFs for Clean Energy Fans

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'R')ecognizing the problem, Wall Street is moving to satisfy investor cravings for a way to play the alternative energy story. The launch of new exchange-traded funds (ETFs) gives investors exposure to alternative energy companies in a straightforward, cost-effective way, yet without the risk of investing in any one of them individually. Several such ETFs were unveiled this year, and more are in development. (Standard & Poor's Index Services, an entity that operates independently of S&P Equity Research Services, launched the S&P Global Alternative Energy index on Aug. 13.)

As of mid-2007 there were at least five ETFs focused heavily on alternative energy, and a host of new indexes that let investors track the performance of the industry as a whole, as well as sub-segments like energy generation or foreign storage companies.

On May 9, Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy ETF (GEX) started trading on the New York Stock exchange. The fund, owned by Van Eck, tracks the Ardour Global index (Extra Liquid), which is comprised of stocks in 30 publicly traded companies engaged in alternative energy production. The New York Mercantile Exchange is planning to list a futures contract tied to the Ardour index as well.

[Graeme]

Oil-eating bugs may unlock clean energy from crude

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A') tiny oil-eating bug that lives deep underground may allow the world's oil industry to unlock energy trapped in trillions of barrels of heavy crude, which is costly and dirty to produce using today's methods.

British, Canadian and Norwegian researchers have shown how microbes in oil reservoirs break down crude and release methane gas, a discovery that could spur much more environmentally friendly energy production as resources get more scarce.

The trick now will be to pump up the organisms with the equivalent of steroids so they can perform their task in 10 years instead of 10 million, said University of Calgary geologist Steve Larter, who led the team's Canadian contingent. The study is published in the science journal Nature.


The scientists also discovered a step midway through the biodegradation process, in which a separate family of microbes produces carbon dioxide and hydrogen from partly degraded crude, before they turn it into methane.

That may lead to using microbes to capture the CO2, which is blamed for global warming, and recycling it into methane fuel in a closed-loop energy system, they said.

[TheDude]

Oil-Finder also has a topic on this: Discovery could revolutionize oil sands processing. His story mentioned 2009 as earliest date for tests.

[Graeme]

Mods please merge

[paimei01]

I hope the bugs escape and cause "something nobody could have thought of"

[bonehead]

Graeme,i love your posts.There's nothing wrong with being positive.Keep 'em coming.That said,i still have not seen any of the wonders of cellulosic ethanol or plug-in hybrids etc.I know it takes time for things to develop but i have a very real sense that they're not coming fast enough to stop the freight train that's coming.I will try to stay positive but it's becoming increasingly difficult.

[PhebaAndThePilgrim]

Goodmorning, From Pheba, from the farm:
Okay, somebody help me here. I read a sci-fi novel, or watched a movie about this very subject.
A bacteria was invented that cleaned up oil slicks. The bacteria escaped and invaded the environment, consuming all plastic. The result was a total breakdownof society.
Anybody remember the name of the book or film?
Pheba.

[thor]

I'm a sensitive guy, particularly to words like 'may', 'might' and 'could'. This article has plenty of them just like countless other articles in the journal Nature. When is all of this going to be a fact for once?

Frustrating this is...

[eXpat]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Phebagirl', 'G')oodmorning, From Pheba, from the farm:
Okay, somebody help me here. I read a sci-fi novel, or watched a movie about this very subject.
A bacteria was invented that cleaned up oil slicks. The bacteria escaped and invaded the environment, consuming all plastic. The result was a total breakdownof society.
Anybody remember the name of the book or film?
Pheba.

[SpringCreekFarm]

Where can I get some of these bugs to put in my hair?

[yesplease]

OMGz, a tenth of a percent of the world GDP... We're really movin' now.

[Graeme]

Google Proposes $4.4 Trillion Clean Energy Plan

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')iring of its mission to "organize the world's information," Google has set itself a new objective: save the planet.

The search giant unveiled a US$4.4 trillion plan Wednesday to reduce the U.S.'s dependency on fossil fuels and embrace alternative energy. The proposal would yield a net saving of $1 trillion by 2030 and slash U.S. carbon dioxide emissions by 48 percent, according to Google, which said it had been busy "crunching the numbers."

The plan involves weaning the U.S. off of coal for producing its electricity and turning to wind, solar and geothermal power instead. It would also cut oil use in cars by 40 percent and use electricity for personal transportation. Google said its goal in announcing the plan, called Clean Energy 2030, was to stimulate debate.

[EnergyUnlimited]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'G')oogle Proposes $4.4 Trillion Clean Energy Plan