Alternative Energy - Vegetable Based Biofuels

There are two main types of biofuels which are already available to some extent, ethanol and vegetable oils.

Oil based biofuels can be produced from a wide variety vegetable oils such as Castor oil, Coconut oil, Corn oil, Cottonseed oil, False flax oil, Mustard oil, Palm oil, Peanut oil, Radish oil, Rapeseed oil, Ramtil oil, Rice bran oil, Safflower oil, Salicornia oil, Soybean oil, Sunflower oil, Algae oil, Copaiba, Honge oil, Jatropha oil and Jojoba oil. Plants containing a high amount of starch/sugar such as sugar cane, sugar beet, and sweet sorghum can be used to produce ethanol (ethyl alcohol) using a fermentation process.

In fact almost any photosynthetic plants can be used for biofuel production, however some plants yield their biofuels more readily and with greater efficiency than others.

Vegetable oil based biodiesel fuels can be safely blended with conventional petroleum derived diesel fuels and used in most vehicles without modification (although older vehicles that use rubber fuel hoses and pump seals need to have these components replaced, car manufacturers have been using synthetics in place of rubber since the late 80’s). The use of vegetable oil as fuel has beeen shown to extend diesel engine life and has been used in Europe for over 20 years now. In fact the original diesel engine produced by Rudolf Diesel in 1892 ran on peanut oil!

Ethanol type fuels can also be used in many vehicles without modification but only up to a point, 10-15% ehtanol/gas mix seems to be safe for most vehicles, however simple adjustments to the fuelling system can increase these figures greatly. It is worth noting that Henry Ford designed the Model T Ford to run on 100% ethanol! In the US several manufacturers produce flex-fuel vehicles can run on 0% to 85% ethanol mix (in fact they could run on 100% ethanol but this is currently prohibited).

However there is growing controversy surrounding these existing biofuels. In the case of ethanol, it is reported that although the use of ethanol in vehicles reduces CO2, carcinogenic benzene and butadiene emissions, but the levels of formaldehyde and associated compounds such as such as formalin and acetaldehyde are greatly increased generating more ground level ozone (which has led to legislation effectively banning ethanol as a fuel in some states). Then there is the huge food versus fuel debate, diverting crops for biofuel use to the detriment of the food supply is thought to have caused a steep rise in global food prices and increased food scarcity.

It is likely that the future of the biofuel industry lies with non food crops and second generation biofuels (using the residual non-food parts of current crops, such as stems, leaves and husks that are left behind or from other organic waste). The current front runner in the biofuels race has to be algae fuel, described by some as third generation biofuel. Algae straijns such as Botryococcus braunii and Chlorella vulgaris, can be cultivated in vast quantities on non arable land with no fertilsers and very low input energy requirements. Producing over 30 times more energy per acre than conventional food crops algae could well be the future of biofuel, in fact we are already seeing new terminology appearing in technical journals such as algaculture and oilgae!

Nanotechnology for Alternative Energy Sources

Nanotechnology (sometimes referred to as simply Nanotech) is essentially the study of the control of matter on an atomic and molecular scale (100 nanometers or smaller). The science of nanotechnology involves developing materials or devices with wide ranging applications including energy production.

Creating devices smaller than 100 nanometers has led to the development of many new ways to harness, store, and transfer energy. Benefits of this new technology have already been utilised in a variety of mainstream designs offering increased efficiency of lighting and heating products and increased electrical storage capacity of devices.

Over the last few decades our energy consumption needs have increased dramatically while our energy production has remained fairly constant. The US has traditionally relied on imports of fossil fuel to satisfy energy needs. Finding an alternative energy source has become an economic priority and nanatechnology will most likely lead the way in terms of making alternative energy sources economically viable.

Examples of nantechnology use with alternative energy production

• Methanol - a potential alternative fuel, methanol can be produced from municipal waste and biomass and when combined with steam can produce hydrogen (another clean alternative fuel). This process requires the use of a metal catalyst for efficiency. The materials used for the catalyst are extremely important and using advanced tunnelling microscopes, nanotech companies can study the effects of catalysts and create new materials to improve efficiency.
• Battery design - the present battery technology using conventional materials has been a severe limiting factor on the performance of electric vehicles. However using nanotech lithium ion battery materials, Altair Nanotechnologies, Inc has promised performance from an all-electric vehicle to rival performance and comfort of today’s internal combustion-engine cars. A sedan with a 200-plus-mile range and a recharge time of under 6 minutes using a battery that is completely safe from explosion, with an estimated 15-20 years lifespan and producing no carbon dioxide emissions of any kind!
• Power transmission - NASA has just awarded a contract to the Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory at Rice university to produce a one meter length of carbon nanotube wire. this wire will be around one sixth of the weight of conventional copper cable and be over ten times more efficient in the conduction of electricity. Constructed of tiny, molecular cylinders formed purely of carbon atoms, these nanotubes lare much more resistant to heat and could also revolutionise the electronics industry allowing them to create faster processors by replacing copper interconnects with nanotubes. This technology in the near future could be used to construct power transmission lines built from carbon nanotubes that could conduct electricity across great distances without loss, this could make remote alternative power options such as desert based solar and wind collector farms commercially viable.

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