Ethanol, part deux
Published by Kyso Kisaen July 16th, 2007 in Punkass!, Environment, Yay! Science!Some good news for people who like alternative energy: ethanol is back on the table.
Cellulosic ethanol is ethanol that comes from cellulose instead of sugar. This is good because most plants don’t have a lot of sugar, but all plants have lots of cellulose. So, instead of using food crops, (like corn and sugar cane which have lots of sugar) to create fuel, we can use any crops, like mown grass clippings, fallen tree limbs or corn stalks (instead of corn ears) to create ethanol.
I’ve been working with some cellulose derivatives this summer, and anyone will tell you that while cellulose can be an absolute bitch to work with, once you’ve hammered out the chemistry that leads to the results you want, that shit is dirt cheap and everywhere. Even better news? It doesn’t have that lameass yield that corn does:
Cellulosic ethanol can contain up to 16 times more energy than is required to create it! If that doesn’t sound ridiculously impressive, consider that gasoline contains only 5 times more energy than was required to create it and corn ethanol is totally lame, containing only 1.3 times the energy required to create it.
Wow– I sure hope this bears fruit. That’s a terrific new development. Good in so many ways.
I yearn for a day where cars are like Doc’s at the end of “Back to the Future”, and we can just stuff banana peels and coffee grinds in the fuel tank whenever we’re low on gas.
Cool as all get out….I really wish we would stop dragging our feet on these things here in NA.
My mum tells me there is a Smart Car dealer in my home town now. (Canada)
The gas went up and the Vespa dealer did a booming business.
There is a bio diesel facility going in soon.
I don’t see that here in the States.
And like we are going to see the Air Car over here inside of 10 years if ever.
Believe me, I was having such great visions of Oil Company and Car execs wetting thier pants…..
Ah well ..I can dream right
ooops I never asked if you checked out thier web site….(theaircar.com)
they have an option where you can sign on to be notified when the vehicle becomes available in your country.
I want the little truck in a bad way!
wow, i want an air car!
god i so want to get excited by stuff like this… but it seems we hear about these stories all the time but nothing ever comes of it. whether it’s because it gets buried by Big Oil, or just turns out to be technically infeasible. but on the bright side, as oil creeps further and further higher, technology that didn’t make much sense with oil at $40/barrel starts to make more and more sense near $80-100 .
The cars are coming to market 2008 in Europe.
Hey. Be of good cheer, fellow travelers. Chin up. It’s up to us, ya know. “They” aren’t going to do it. Therefore “we” must. And “we” shall.
The Air Car is a real-world threat to Big Oil and many other forms of artificial scarcity, including and especially ethanol fuel production. We already have an artificial scarcity of oil, imposed by the Iraq “War”. Ethanol fuel production artificially imposes an additional scarcity of food — raising prices for both fuel and food.
But with the Air Car available, and with “us” knowin’ about it, how can “they” possibly win? Only if we let ‘em. Only if “we” lay down and take it, like a bunch of stupid door mats.
Ya don’t like the Air Car? Then how about the Hydro Car? The infrastructure has already been modified all over Norway to support this technology, and the idea is rapidly spreading.
Fact is, the internal-combustion-engine and supporting economic structures are on their way out. You want a “war”, Mr. Bush? Stick your head up your tiny little butt and fight for “Air”. The “war” is over. It’s time for you and your private little “war” at immeasurable public expense to be hanged by the neck until dead.