Tag Archive: environment
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New Bacteria Source for Biofuels
But will it scale?
Scientists have created a new bacteria by injecting blue-green algae with a set of cellulose-making genes from a non-photosynthetic “vinegar” bacterium, Acetobacter xylinum. The new cyanobacteria produce a relatively pure, gel-like form of cellulose that can be broken down easily into glucose.
A newly created microbe produces cellulose that can be turned into ethanol and other biofuels, report scientists from The University of Texas at Austin who say the microbe could provide a significant portion of the nation’s transportation fuel if production can be scaled up.
Climate Change: Maybe this isn’t such a good idea
Not very cool
Climate Fix: Put pollutants in the air to increase global dimming, reduce global warming… and punch a hole in the ozone layer.
Sulphate injections are one of several “geo-engineering” solutions to climate change being discussed by scientists. But data published in Science journal suggests the strategy would lead to drastic thinning of the ozone layer. This would delay the recovery of the Antarctic ozone hole by decades, and cause significant ozone loss over the Arctic, say US researchers.
Our Saviour may be our Destroyer
Ice that burns
Ice that burns: Will a new discovery trigger runaway global warming?
There’s a theory that global warming cycles over the eons have been the result of the sudden sporadic release of large quantities of methane hydrate.
A tremendous release of methane gas frozen beneath the sea floor heated the Earth by up to 13 degrees Fahrenheit (7 degrees Celsius) 55 million years ago, a new NASA study confirms.
Generally, cold temperatures and high pressure keep methane stable beneath the ocean floor, however, that might not always have been the case. A movement of continental plates, like the Indian subcontinent, may have initiated a release that led to the Late Paleocene Thermal Maximum, occurred around 55 million years ago and lasted about 100,000 years.
Current theory has linked this to a vast release of frozen methane from beneath the sea floor, which led to the earth warming as a result of increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
The large quantity of methane ice at the bottom of the world’s oceans today is seen as a risk factor for accelerated “runaway global warming.” As the oceans heat up, there is a risk that the methane would be released further accelerating the global warming process.
Given this backdrop, this news seems a bit alarming:
Scientists unlock frozen natural gas
For the first time, Canadian and Japanese researchers have managed to efficiently produce a constant stream of natural gas from ice-like gas hydrates that, worldwide, dwarf all known fossil fuel deposits combined.
This breakthrough is touted as something that could one day solve the world’s energy shortages.
But it strikes me that this also has the potential to trigger a fairly cataclysmic release of methane. If the methane is already becoming unstable due to gradually warming oceans, will drilling it be the catalyst for a massive release of gas?
While the engineers will no doubt assure us that there are adequate safety precautions in place, there is no way to have certainty over the outcome of drilling down into the bowels of the earth.
Just ask the people of Sidoarjo.
Deadly Mud Volcano Destroys Village
A team of British researchers says the deadly upwelling began when an exploratory gas well punched through a layer of rock 9,300 feet (2,800 meters) below the surface, allowing hot, high-pressure water to escape.
No Ethics in Ethanol
Biofuel hell
The path to hell is paved with good intentions
Consider that 20 percent of the U.S. corn crop was converted to 5 billion gallons of ethanol last year. This replaced only 1 percent of U.S. petroleum. If the entire U.S. corn crop were used, it would replace a mere 7 percent.
The energy expended to produce a gallon of corn ethanol is 40 percent greater than what is in ethanol itself.
Corn-based ethanol production receives $6 billion in subsidies.
Each gallon of ethanol requires 1700 gallons of waters and releases 12 gallons of noxious sewage effluent into the environment (farmers use ~150 lb. of nitrogen fertizlizer to raise 8700 lb. of corn/acre).
Biofuels is an interesting idea that has become a nightmare in practice. It was fun when a few farmers were powering their trucks on the waste of french fry oil. But the idea has surpassed its feasible limits.
Nice try, but time to drop it.
