Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 07/30/2008 12:02:28 PM PDT by cogitator
The 160 mph electric drag bike costs about 5ish pennies to do a 1/4 mile run.
30 years. Plus, the author is the CEO of a natural gas company; he may envision switchover to plug-in hybrids, natural gas hybrids or even fuel cell cars.
Nuclear energy should definitely be part of the future energy mix. And as RightWhale says, eventually, fusion. (And also both passive and active geothermal; passive geothermal uses heat exchangers buried in the ground).
Do you really feel that fusion is ready for prime time? I agree that it should be the long term answer, but it seems that we are always just a few modifications and a couple of billion away from implementation.
I wholeheartedly support funding developing and researching it (one of the few government spending projects I do support) but I have my doubts : (
Free market my patootie.
I’d bet against that.
I wouldn't. They'll be available, all right, but only to members of the Politburo and the nomenklatura. /s
Bingo!
I’ll add that it’s not just about supply, it’s about your load your supplying to. Heavy industry in particular needs a steady load.
How steady? With today’s electronic regulated processes even momentary blackouts under a second can shut a whole factory down and require a restart -— and it takes alot of power to get motors and other mechanical devices running.
Which can mean millions of dollars every time that happens. Factories hope that doesn’t happen ever, but maybe once a YEAR at most.
Wind and solar ain’t gonna cut it. Storage will help, but you can never use it for the backbone.
Yes, solar and wind generators do produce electricity.
Again, new technologies solve humanity’s problems instead of corrupt, smooth talking, liberal politicians. They see the technology coming and grab the credit.
For the calculation formula, you'd have to ask the author. I don't have any information about subsidies.
The price umbrella is the artificial expansion of the price of oil through the gradual elimination of supply and production. The advancement of alternative technologies happened on its own and so the pain at the pump was wholly unnecessary except as a liberal political tool.
Will a Chemical Engineer do?
Bottom line, you’re absolutely correct.
If our politicians manage to keep our own hydrocarbon and nuclear resources away from us, there will be a continuous slide back to our ancestor’s lifestyles of 100-150 years ago. I’m betting the electorate, at some point, simply won’t put up with it any longer.
One thing that bothers me is the focus on passenger cars for hybrids/alternatives/etc. While it’s obvious that ‘alternatives’ are less than optimal for passenger cars, they *can* work. For other transportation needs, not so much.
For instance, the CEO of AutoNation was on CNBC earlier this week explaining that compressed natural gas (CNG) or electric cars will only be of the ‘commuter’ variety. Says he, I’m paraphrasing: “You’ll lose the trunk to fuel storage and the range will be just enough to commute, not enough for a long trip. I’m not sure folks are ready to purchase single purpose, commuter vehicles.”
But you never hear about other transportation types, just the passenger car. We all know that Trains have been powered by only three on-board fuels, all hydrocarbons based: wood, coal, and diesel. (Ok, much like the commuter cars, above, light-rail can effectively use electricity on short, high-volume lines. For long-haul rail traffic, electricity is not cost effective.) You could modify a diesel-electric to run with ethanol or CNG but it would be less than optimal. (Can you envision every locomotive coupled with a propane tanker for fuel?) And will we see batteries or hydrogen cells for Trains? Answer: No, not practical.
And how about large cargo carrying ships? Is it back to wind for us? I hope not. Again, the only practical fuel sources have historically been coal and diesel. Of course, the Navy has shown that small nuclear reactors are just fine for large ocean-going vessels. (Wouldn’t a Disney cruise ship with a nuclear reactor be a perfect combination?)
Lastly, air travel. Jet fuel and Navgas are pretty close to perfect fuels for their use. What else would power a jet for hundreds of miles at better than the speed of sound? What else could you put in a 747 that would keep it flying with passengers and cargo for 15+ hours between landing and replace the fuel in less time than it takes to change out the passengers?
When you factor in the volume of liquid fuels used to power all our 18-wheelers, trains, and ships on a daily basis, you better hope congress comes to its senses soon. Otherwise, our world will stop shrinking, only the rich will be able to travel, and things not made locally will be much more expense.
cheee
Fusion is nearly ready. FedGov is spending $200-500 million a year. Should be way more than that. The first commercial fusion plant would be probably about 2050, but could be moved up a lot. They have been going slow because they are dealing with materials science and each step is a breakthrough of sorts. There are a boatload of underemployed physicists, chemists, and mathematicians, not to mention engineers who could be put on this but are home trimming their lawns and shrubs.
Global oil demand is being driven by industrializing nations. We aren't ever going to see $2.00/gal gas or $50/barrel oil again. While U.S. production could be a bit higher, we can't drill our way back to a 50% import level unless we also cut our demand. Significantly expanded implementation of alternative energy can do that and that's why Pickens is proposing his plan (as an example -- there are other plans and ideas).
"n the next few decades, it is possible that the only thing oil products will be used for is to power airplanes, heavy vehicles and ships. All that is required on the part of those wanting to reduce greenhouse gases is a little patience so these new technologies can be adopted by the market."
Which somewhat addresses your points, I think.
Volkswagen 1-Liter 235 MPG Extreme Fuel Efficiency Car
Illustration of the car from the film "Minority Report" (a two-seater):
Don't worry -- we'll eventually get the generator plant down to a reasonable size:
While the VW gets impressive mileage, it is still a coffin on wheels. If this 639 pound car is hit by a 2,000 pound car, guess which one is going to suffer the most damage? Suppose the high-tech materials could be made crush proof, that thing would then bounce like a ball. Can you say whiplash?
The bigger the better. The smallest useable plant would be about 20 stories tall and just as wide.
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