“Every gallon of gas burned emits 20 pounds of carbon dioxide,
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That’s ridiculous.”
It’s also bad math. A gallon of gas weighs what, just over 8 pounds? How can you increase the mass through burning?
The oxygen, from the air, binds with the carbon.
“Every gallon of gas burned emits 20 pounds of carbon dioxide,
*********
That’s ridiculous.”
It’s also bad math. A gallon of gas weighs what, just over 8 pounds? How can you increase the mass through burning?
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My point,exactly..
The extra mass is oxygen. Most fuels require about 2 or 3 times their mass in oxygen to burn, which becomes CO2 and water vapor. On the other side of the coin, how many pounds of CO2 is the writer of the article creating every day just by breathing?
I did a quick search and they claim that the added mass is accumulated from the oxygen atoms gleaned from the atmosphere. I think they are full of crap.
I am still waiting, however, for a reasoned explanation of how 0.04% (the percentage of CO2 in the air) can have such a catastrophic effect.
Increase weight by adding oxygen. C=12 H=1 O=16. Use octane as the formula for gas. A gallon of gas weights 7 lb so it’s 83% carbon or 5.8 lb C. Each 12 pounds of carbon theoretically adds two oxygen or 32 lb. so a gallon of gas adds 15.4 lb O for about 20 lb.
Did y’all skip chemistry in high school?
It’s magic! Just like how the power grid would magically be able to handle the load of eveyone charging electric cars...
Six pounds plus change per gallon... times three?
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/experts-weight-ratio-co2-fuel/
A gallon of regular gasoline weighs 6.2 pounds.