Alternate Fuel

[Griffin NoName]

Of course we have an obesity scare going on in the UK, with endless expenditure and government intervention to try to control what we eat. A human fat donation bank could provide a more useful approach and prevent the lorry drivers strikes.

[Sibling Chatty]

Anthro,

Hemp would be a blessing in a zillion different ways.
Energy. Oil, of course, plus a clean-up of the land where ya grow it. (Toxic remediation.)
Clothing!! You wanna know how well hemp clothing wears?? Ya know all that WWII issues that seems to have lasted forever?? Made with hemp fiber. The US bought what it could, and had a "secret" farm in Kansas where they grew hemp for uniforms. Wears better than cotton, is as comfortable as cotton/linen. Easy care.
The fibers are long and strong, and can be used to strengthen almost anything...

Of course, the Gubbmint can't be havin' that terrible stuff growin'!! somebody might distill downn the hallucinogenic bit from 45 tons of it and get semi-mellow for as much as 3 minutes!! (Just say NO, kiddies!! Especially to alkies like Nancy Reagan...)

[Opsa]

Can't we hybridize the THC out of it or something, if the gubment's determined to have such a hissy fit over the handful of giggles it inspires?

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Industrial hemp has very little THC, was banned in the US after the cotton and wood lobby felt threatened (back in the 30s), remains banned due to 'moral' reasons (it's association with marijuana), and quite likely will remain banned for the same stupid reasons.

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Hemp is pretty cool, and back in the sailing-navy days, it was encouraged [by the government] EVERYWHERE---- to provide raw material for rope, obviously.

But, my favorite fuel-crop is Sawgrass.  It's basically a weed, and since it's grass, once planted, you "harvest" it by mowing not unlike collecting hay.  3-4 crops a year, in some areas.

But, it's cellulose, and to convert that to fuel, you need an extra step to break the cellulose into sugar.  Cows do this in their 4 stomachs using symbiotic bacteria.

Once the cellulose is broken into sugar, you make ethanol in the regular way with yeast and distillation.

I understand there's quite a bit of research going on for single-step cellulose-to-ethanol processing, and if that can be done, cellulosic  sources of biofuels become serious contenders against fossil oils.

There are any number of waste-cellulose resources in the nation-- from paper to trash to wood chips to... algae.

Which brings up yet another possible HUGE resource for biofuel:  algae 'farms' in vast areas of the ocean.  There are already polluted areas of the ocean that have HUGE algae blooms because of farm ferterlizer runoff issues.  The sea-bottom has been killed off from this.

Why not make "lemonade" while the algae is blooming?  Harvesting of the algae would remove the extra phosphors and nitrous chemicals (from the farm run-off) helping the area to return to a normal chemical balance.  Meantime, we have a nice source of cellulose-- we are talking possible TONS of cellulose per day, to remove in this way.

The down side is that we don't have a purpose-built method of getting the algae out of the water, but that ought to be simple enough-- the algae only grows in the top 12" or so of the water.  Look how the whales "harvest" this stuff: simple filters ought to work, something like a "reverse swamp cooler" ought to work:  filter media on a conveyor belt, hanging off the front of the ship.  As the ship moves slowly forward, the belt continues to filter the algae up out of the water, where it can be scraped/squeezed out of the media, and the process continues.   It could be sun-dried on board the ship, greatly reducing it's bulk.  Heck, if the ship is large enough, while it's still wet, start the processing on board.  What you'd deliver would be pure ethanol, as fuel.  The waste could be returned to the sea, as it is basically leftover algae parts... completely biodegradable.

*sigh*

I don't see this happening any time soon-- "big oil" will get in the way, obviously.

And subsidized food crops are ALREADY in the way-- the gubment MUST REMOVE ALL SUBSIDIES if the crop is for FUEL.

If we're going to get anywhere with this, that is....

[Alpaca]

Big oil or other parties interested in keeping the status quo may get in the way now, but it's good to keep aware and keep researching even if nothing significant is getting done yet, because once we reach crisis stage, big oil is going to be no obstacle to the panicked rush for self-preservation.

[/captain pessimism]

[anthrobabe]

Of course we have an obesity scare going on in the UK, with endless expenditure and government intervention to try to control what we eat. A human fat donation bank could provide a more useful approach and prevent the lorry drivers strikes.

speaking of driving in the UK-- I read recently that the  United States Empassy owes like a million dollars in fees for driving in London (the $16 a day use fee)----- they claim it is a tax and they don't have to pay taxes as they are diplomats. Buggers--- I say make them ride the bus as well. Well the USA and UK do have a history of taxation issues 
And walking helps one loose body fat (most people some people no)!

But, my favorite fuel-crop is Sawgrass.  It's basically a weed, and since it's grass, once planted, you "harvest" it by mowing not unlike collecting hay.  3-4 crops a year, in some areas.

Which brings up yet another possible HUGE resource for biofuel:  algae 'farms' in vast areas of the ocean.  There are already polluted areas of the ocean that have HUGE algae blooms because of farm ferterlizer runoff issues.  The sea-bottom has been killed off from this.

I did not know about sawgrass-- but it does make great sense---- mow and go-- come to think of it I have too read about using grass clippings. And harvesting Algae is a good idea too.

Industrial hemp has very little THC, was banned in the US after the cotton and wood lobby felt threatened (back in the 30s), remains banned due to 'moral' reasons (it's association with marijuana), and quite likely will remain banned for the same stupid reasons.

EXACTLY---- and that is a good point about diff's in THC content. That is good to remember that many plants have varrying values of the active ingredient (IE: chili peppers).


and Chatty yes-- hemp makes beautiful cloth, and if I remeber reading somewhere the dreaded cloth moth don't like it.

[Griffin NoName]

speaking of driving in the UK-- I read recently that the  United States Empassy owes like a million dollars in fees for driving in London (the $16 a day use fee)-----

Yes, it's been a big scandal over here

and Chatty yes-- hemp makes beautiful cloth, and if I remeber reading somewhere the dreaded cloth moth don't like it.

Isn't hemp cloth scratchy to wear?  Of course, without oil we wouldn't all have soft namby-pamby skin but hides as thick as rhinoseruses