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RE: [RC] Biodiesel - Mike SherrellActually we have the technology at hand to eliminate pretty much all greenhouse emissions: nuclear power combined with electric/battery land vehicles. And air travel, the only thing that couldn't run on batteries, is a small enough consumer of liquid fuel that I imagine we could supply it with biofuels, which as the gentleman pointed out are a closed loop with no net emissions, since the CO2 produced burning them is equal to the CO2 the plants use to produce it. Even if that doesn't work, bullet trains go several hundred mph, maybe half the speed of jets but with a lot more legroom, although that wouldn't handle transoceanic requirements. I gather also that synfuels could be produced that would power electric generators using a method that sequesters the CO2, and that there are also coal-powered plants that likewise sequester the CO2. What I want is a way to remove the CO2 that we've already dumped into the air. It's already screwing up the biosphere. But where there's no will, there's no way. Mike Sherrell Grizzly Analytical (USA) 707 887 2919/fax 707 887 9834 www.grizzlyanalytical.com -----Original Message----- From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Truman Prevatt Sent: Friday, April 07, 2006 5:20 PM To: Zephyr Arabians Cc: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: Re: [RC] Biodiesel I think the best thing that can be said about E85 or biodiesel is helps the farmer. I probably doesn't do much for the environment. It probably doesn't do much for our dependence on foreign oil. We have plenty of oil reserves and with oil at 60 to 70 bucks a barrel - there is more exploratory now than in the last 40 years. Most of the reserves are deep water and expensive to get out but at 60 to 70 bucks a barrel they are now feasible. Oil shale converted to oil is not economically feasible as is oil extracted from coal - the US has huge coal reserves. Burning of any hydrocarbon fuel - be it from oil, coal, natural gas, or vegetable oil produces greenhouse gases. While vegetable is cleaner when it comes to sulphur - per cal it produces the same amount of greenhouse gas as does oil. Sulphur can be removed both prior to the buning and after the burning. CO2 cannot currently be removed. The way to help the environment is not to put CO2 into the air from vegetable oil vs. oil from beneath the ground, but to develop multiple sources of energy. If we went to nuclear energy for electric production we would put a big dent in our use of oil. However, that some delicate points that need to be worked. It's fine if a person wants to refine their own diesel fuel from used oil they get at Burger King. However, that's not the solution to our long term energy requirements nor is the solution to global warming and per calorie biodiesel burned to move their truck down the road they are putting the same number of moles of CO2 into the air as the buy burning diesel fuel refined from peterolum. Truman Zephyr Arabians wrote: I guess my general point -- which was lost in the message -- was that those who make their own biodiesel out of recycled cooking oil are to be commended. They may not be making a huge impact with a single vehicle, but they're at least doing *something.* I don't see commercial biodiesel as the answer to dependance on fossil fuels, but one alternative source need not be the 100% solution to be a good thing. Or at least heading in the right direction. Anyway, to reiterate, I was reading all these posts about *commercial* biodiesel -- and the very valid points about needing to grow the crops -- but, my post was *supposed* be just a note commenting on "homemade biodiesel" since it does not depend on new crops, but rather recycles veggie oil that's already been used. ~Nicole -- "Mathematics may be defined as the subject in which we never know what we are talking about, nor whether what we are saying is true." - Bertrand Russell =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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