Alternative Fuels, the Dark Side and other things...

Over the weekend CNN aired an interview with and expert on agriculture
-- The subject being eEthanol.

During the interview, he cited the fact that nearly all Ethanol is
today being produced from our domestic corn crop, and in 2006
accounted for 30% of the total corn market, and anticipated that
should the demand for Ethanol continue to grow, it will soon account
for 50% of our domestic corn production.

The result is that the price of a bushel of corn has risen faster than
the price of crude oil, to the extent that it will shortly impact the
price of all corn based food products, including animal feeds and just
about even food sold in supermarkets, from corn flakes and dog food,
to beef, pork and chicken. Consequently, he believe that the cost of
food will begin to outpace the price of Ethanol adulterated gasoline
at the pump.

That's the dark side of Ethanol, reminding us that nothing comes for
free. Something to keep in mind.

Shifting gears, I have seen virtually no alternative fuel discussion
even mention the exploitation of gas hydrides, which are mined from
the seas and, at least according to the Discovery Channel, are capable
of providing massive amounts of energy. It was not made clear how
exactly you would harvest this stuff, or the problems, but it would be
interesting to read informed discussions about whether gas hydrides
are a potionally a viable energy source, or simply like hydrogen, a
product of wishful thinking by non-scientists.

Finally, I have to wonder why Methanol receives very little discussion
in alternative energy group? Methanol, as most of us are aware is
commonly called 'Wood Alcohol' and is generally produced by the
destructive distillation of wood, but it can be produced through the
destructive distillation of many other types of biomass (leaves, plant
stalks, grass clippings, and even weeds.) Also, IIRC, no fermentation
steps are required to produce it, and it is coverted into energy by
burning, just as is Ethanol. Still, rather than having our yard waste
end up in a landfill, wouldn't it be an attractive idea to covert it
into a usable energy source? More discussion is needed on this
subject.

I post this simply because I consider them to be topics worthy of
informed discussion, rather than the sill debates on 'cars that run on
water' and many of the other silly topics posted on this newsgroup
(sci.energy.hydrogen).

Harry C.

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: battery pulsing gizmo
    ... where solar panels wouldn't provide sufficient energy. ... there's quite a bit of research into methanol fuel cells too. ... fueled by ethanol, methanol, and sugar, with the alcohol ones varying by ... you can eat corn or feed it to cattle or something.... ...
    (rec.motorcycles.tech)
  • Re: Ethanol Again
    ... I would just point out that the carbon in corn comes from the ... when you factor in the energy required to process the corn into ... ethanol, even if it were energy neutral it would not be carbon ... U.S. corn crop. ...
    (rec.outdoors.rv-travel)
  • Re: Is Nob Really Dr. Joseph Goebbels?
    ... > energy than it takes to produce. ... reliable analyses done well show that both corn ... > that reported that ethanol production returns 67 percent more energy ... Ah, the obligatory government force. ...
    (rec.audio.opinion)
  • Re: Ethanol myths/realities...
    ... If the energy market can bid away corn to make energy, ... Without dumbbass gov't subsidies, the above argument vaporizes ... Look - I'm NOT supporting ethanol - hate it and not defending it. ...
    (rec.sport.football.college)
  • Ethanol Again
    ... In the previous thread "The Real Truth About Ethanol" ... I would just point out that the carbon in corn comes from the ... when you factor in the energy required to process the corn into ... U.S. corn crop. ...
    (rec.outdoors.rv-travel)