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138 comments on DrumBeat: October 31, 2006

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JMG on October 31, 2006 - 10:34am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Drilling away :-)

Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI)
http://www.arti-india.org/

Commercialisation of Improved Biomass Fuels and Cooking Devices in India: Scale Up PROJECT
http://www.arti-india.org/content/view/44/42/

ARTI Biogas Plant: A compact digester for producing biogas from food waste
http://www.arti-india.org/content/view/45/40/

Compact Biogas Plant - details
http://www.arti-india.org/content/view/46/43/

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jim burke on October 31, 2006 - 3:21pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
The battery claims from altair nanotechnology are very exciting, if true.

Why is it that, decade after decade, we are constantly tantalized with wonderful new technologies that are never heard from again? (we have a built in conspiracy generator; TPTB are constantly buying these wonder patents up and destroying them!!!!! DEATH TO TPTB!!!!        
       :-)

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MillMan on October 31, 2006 - 4:31pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
because the "technologies" are either fabrications or they can't be sold at a profit.

There seems to be a lot of companies out there working on new battery tech. I'm sure someone's product will be more than snake oil and end up having a combination of good power density and life expectancy to really drive electric cars as an option.

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chemE on October 31, 2006 - 7:02pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Very intriguing. If indeed it is able to process generic biomass waste, including plant waste like switch grass etc, some advantages are immediately obvious:

(1) Only C & H (as CH4 or others) are burned and released to the atmosphere. I know that in tradional (cow-manure) biogas plants solid residue is returned to the fields as fertilizer. Looks like this is possible here also. This means that
  (a) No atmospheric pollution
  (b) minized depletion of soil nutrients

(2) non-grain waste from food crops for e.g. could be used as feed-stock. Right now if plant waste is returned directly to the soil the microbes that break it up release energy directly to the enviroment, without sending it through a cooking stove first :-)

(3)) Compress the bio-gas and use it in a vehicle. In India, many cars have been modified to run on LPG (cooking gas - the stuff used on gas grills in the States) because of a lower cost/Joule.

(4) Generate electricity in a thermal cycle or directly a Fuel Cell.

The options also appear sustainable.

May come to pass as fossil fuels are taxed or run out.

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eric blair on October 31, 2006 - 9:00pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
odds are there is more in the mix than simple C and H.  Sulfur and poss. nitrogen gas.  Not a big issue for a cooking flame, but a real show-stopper for an ICE.
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138 comments on DrumBeat: October 31, 2006

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