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P. Gordon Kennedy
Four Star Member
Age : 20
Joined : 13 Jan 2008
Posts : 428
Location : Crystal Falls, Michigan
|  Subject: Re: American oil  Sun Jun 29, 2008 11:54 pm | |
| Well, I just try to keep myself informed. I've been interested in alternative energy technologies since I was 14 and I've been into science since the fourth grade.  |
|   | | P. Gordon Kennedy
Four Star Member
Age : 20
Joined : 13 Jan 2008
Posts : 428
Location : Crystal Falls, Michigan
| | Subject: Re: American oil Sun Jun 29, 2008 11:59 pm | |
| | P. Gordon Kennedy wrote: | | There have been experiments with nuclear fusion, but the problem so far is that with current technology, it takes more energy to trigger the reaction than the reaction yields. Fusion should be pursued, but it is a long term future solution, not a near term one we can impliment in the immediate future. If we could successfully build a fusion reactor, it could be fueled by duterium (heavy hydrogen) from the ocean and there would be enough to power civilization for millions of years. If we expanded our horizions and got our duterium from space, there would be enough to supply our needs for trillions of years (several thousand times longer than the projected lifespan of the sun). A successful fusion reactor is probably several decades away and we probably won't be building stars until a long time after that. And for one final advantage for fusion if we could make it work, fusion uses non-radioactive duterium for fuel, not highly radioactive enriched uranium used in present day nuclear reactors. Furthermore, the only waste product of fusion would be helium gas. No toxic waste, no high level radioactive waste, and no greenhouse gases. |
And by the way, the helium gas could theoretically be fused into carbon to yield even more energy. The reaction would produce elemental carbon (think graffite) not the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. If we wanted to, we could take all that carbon and use some of the excess energy to crush it into diamonds! |
| | | | rainbow689
Four Star Member
Age : 57
Joined : 15 Apr 2008
Posts : 403
Location : Laredo TX
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 1:06 am | |
| | P. Gordon Kennedy wrote: | There have been experiments with nuclear
fusion, but the problem so far is that with current technology, it
takes more energy to trigger the reaction than the reaction yields.
Fusion should be pursued, but it is a long term future solution, not a
near term one we can impliment in the immediate future. If we could
successfully build a fusion reactor, it could be fueled by duterium
(heavy hydrogen) from the ocean and there would be enough to power
civilization for millions of years. If we expanded our horizions and
got our duterium from space, there would be enough to supply our needs
for trillions of years (several thousand times longer than the
projected lifespan of the sun). A successful fusion reactor is probably
several decades away and we probably won't be building stars until a
long time after that. And for one final advantage for fusion if we
could make it work, fusion uses non-radioactive duterium for fuel, not
highly radioactive enriched uranium used in present day nuclear
reactors. Furthermore, the only waste product of fusion would be helium
gas. No toxic waste, no high level radioactive waste, and no greenhouse
gases. |
Great, but if only helium gas is the waste would we all be talking in high squeaky voices? Actually that could be fun! 
_________________
Welcome Earthlings
http://fly.to/rainbow689 |
| | | | Pam
Five Star Member
Age : 42
Joined : 02 Feb 2008
Posts : 1161
Location : Nova Scotia, Canada
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 1:55 am | |
| Malcolm to answer your question, the problem gets made darned complicated by the presence of international companies and consortiums and borders and politics with all kinds of economics tied up in oil.
Unfortunately I think that our little revolution here, the one that sees us all convert to solar and wind and ramp up our recycling efforts, build composters, etc. etc. will end up in a similar place that the first patents to battery operated cars did...in the hands of the oil companies who were blocking their development.
So, I am going to do what I generally do at times like this, except that today I baked peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies so that's what Im going to eat.
_________________
Pam Robertson 
http://andthebandplayedonmylawn.blogspot.com |
| | | | P. Gordon Kennedy
Four Star Member
Age : 20
Joined : 13 Jan 2008
Posts : 428
Location : Crystal Falls, Michigan
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 2:23 am | |
| | rainbow689 wrote: | | P. Gordon Kennedy wrote: | There have been experiments with nuclear
fusion, but the problem so far is that with current technology, it
takes more energy to trigger the reaction than the reaction yields.
Fusion should be pursued, but it is a long term future solution, not a
near term one we can impliment in the immediate future. If we could
successfully build a fusion reactor, it could be fueled by duterium
(heavy hydrogen) from the ocean and there would be enough to power
civilization for millions of years. If we expanded our horizions and
got our duterium from space, there would be enough to supply our needs
for trillions of years (several thousand times longer than the
projected lifespan of the sun). A successful fusion reactor is probably
several decades away and we probably won't be building stars until a
long time after that. And for one final advantage for fusion if we
could make it work, fusion uses non-radioactive duterium for fuel, not
highly radioactive enriched uranium used in present day nuclear
reactors. Furthermore, the only waste product of fusion would be helium
gas. No toxic waste, no high level radioactive waste, and no greenhouse
gases. |
Great, but if only helium gas is the waste would we all be talking in high squeaky voices? Actually that could be fun! |
Actually since helium is lighter than air, it would all escape into space unless the reactor opperators made a deliberate effort to contain it. |
| | | | zadaconnaway
Five Star Member
Age : 60
Joined : 16 Jan 2008
Posts : 1499
Location : Washington, USA
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 2:57 am | |
| Ah shucks, I was contemplating sounding like a chipmunk!
And you can send me some cookies any time you like, Pam!! Maybe I'll bake tomorrow!
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Zada Connaway
Mother's Journals: parts 1, 2 and 3 ISBN # 1-4241-6969-0
http://www.zadaconnaway.com/ |
| | | | Abe F. March
Four Star Member
Age : 69
Joined : 26 Jan 2008
Posts : 912
Location : Germany
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 9:11 am | |
| Pam,Zada:
I think peanut and chocolate chip cookies would be a great way to support the non-proliferation of fossil fuels. Can you bake them with solar energy or is there another way?
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| | | | zadaconnaway
Five Star Member
Age : 60
Joined : 16 Jan 2008
Posts : 1499
Location : Washington, USA
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 11:11 am | |
| Abe, maybe if we go somewhere in the car, we could cook them under the hood? I know you can heat canned foods (like soup) on the car engine. Of course, if a big enough batch was made, you could eat cookies for quite a few meals and forgo cooking regular lunch and dinners!
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Zada Connaway
Mother's Journals: parts 1, 2 and 3 ISBN # 1-4241-6969-0
http://www.zadaconnaway.com/ |
| | | | Pam
Five Star Member
Age : 42
Joined : 02 Feb 2008
Posts : 1161
Location : Nova Scotia, Canada
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:11 pm | |
| Making cookies with solar energy...hmm...when I was a lot younger I did try to make cookies in the microwave, but they really weren't the same. They didn't rise or spread out and were hard like a hockey puck. I suppose that if I adapted my wood stove (which heats the house), I could bake cookies in there because it certainly gets hot enough. It might be easier to adapt the recipes a bit to cook them in a cast iron pan on top of the wood stove, like you would an Irish soda bread or native Canadians make Bannock. Could do foccacia bread that way too come to think of it.
Certainly is food for thought!
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Pam Robertson
http://andthebandplayedonmylawn.blogspot.com |
| | | | zadaconnaway
Five Star Member
Age : 60
Joined : 16 Jan 2008
Posts : 1499
Location : Washington, USA
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 12:32 pm | |
| There is always the no-bake style of cookie. But they are not really cookies. Doggone it anyway!
_________________
Zada Connaway
Mother's Journals: parts 1, 2 and 3 ISBN # 1-4241-6969-0
http://www.zadaconnaway.com/ |
| | | | Carol Troestler
Three Star Member
Joined : 08 Jun 2008
Posts : 178
Location : Wisconsin
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 1:29 pm | |
| I bet we could bake those cookies in the sun if we lived in Texas or Arizona this time of year! But not in Canada, Washington, or Wisconsin. Yesterday felt like October.
Carol |
| | | | P. Gordon Kennedy
Four Star Member
Age : 20
Joined : 13 Jan 2008
Posts : 428
Location : Crystal Falls, Michigan
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 2:20 pm | |
| | zadaconnaway wrote: | | Abe, maybe if we go somewhere in the car, we could cook them under the hood? I know you can heat canned foods (like soup) on the car engine. Of course, if a big enough batch was made, you could eat cookies for quite a few meals and forgo cooking regular lunch and dinners! |
You can heat things up on a car engine, because that engien is only about 25%-30% efficient. 70%-75% of the energy in the gasoline goes to heating the air around the engine, rather than driving the car (by contrast, a good electric motor can have an efficiency of 90%). That's right, you only get about one dollar worth of useful energy out of that four dollar gallon of gasoline.  |
| | | | Abe F. March
Four Star Member
Age : 69
Joined : 26 Jan 2008
Posts : 912
Location : Germany
| | Subject: Re: American oil Mon Jun 30, 2008 2:35 pm | |
| Actually I was joking about the solar powered cookie thing, but the answers have been interesting and informative.
The more we talk about things like this the more inventive one may become.
I developed a solar cooker for my own use. It would be great for camping requiring no fire, however it does require sunshine and therefore it is not a reliable source. I haven't checked but there may be things like that already on the market. If not, it most likely soon will be.
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| | | | lin
Four Star Member
Joined : 20 Mar 2008
Posts : 613
Location : Mexico
| | | | | lin
Four Star Member
Joined : 20 Mar 2008
Posts : 613
Location : Mexico
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