Sugar-powered cars on the anvil

Economic Times(India) ^ | April 13, 2008

[PSYCHO-FREEP]

Rio and the coastal area is probably what you might be thinking of, but overall population per land area may be the difference.

It is the 5th largest population, but the interior is very sparsely populated. Their road system is limited mostly to the coastal regions and their travel requirements are small compared to other large geographical and populated countries. (According to what I gather from Wikipedia.)

[The Great RJ]

Hydrogen autos are decades away and may never be practical. While hydrogen is a clean fuel, it will take a whole new infrastructure to deliver it to motorists. Even the technology of practically and safety storing hydrogen in a vehicle's fuel tank is so far elusive. We already have the means to transport, deliver and safely store hydrocarbon fuels like gasoline and with emerging technologies like hybrid gas/electric vehicles can provide transportation cheaply and cleanly. Instead of converting food into fuel, particularly a fuel that would require massive retooling of our entire transportation infrastructure, why not invest in turning waste products into hydrocarbon liquid fuels ..i.e. synthetic gasoline.

[FastCoyote]

Actually Dane, if this panned out it would be revolutionary. The hydrogen/solar hype is a plain crock. The best way to transport hydrogen is as a hydrocarbon (i.e. gas, diesel, or yes cellulose).

[ANGGAPO]

I get a sick feeling about liquid hydrogen in the tank. I think I remember that it has to be vented. (A vapor pressure thing)

[BuffaloJack]

More burning of food for fuel.
Every idiot who comes up with another lame brain scheme like this costs us more in higher food prices.
I do not look forward to paying $5 for a bottle of pop.

[count-your-change]

HYDROGEN! The fuel that’s just 5-10 years away from any date in the future.

[stylin_geek]

Actually, I mis-remembered an article I read on Human Events.

You are correct, they do use Sugar Cane for ethanol production.

Doesn’t really matter, one way or another. It still takes land and water to grow the feedstock for ethanol. It strikes me as being an incredible waste of resources and in the end will wind up being quietly phased out.

[stylin_geek]

Bottom line: Does anyone who has looked at the “ethanol as a solution to our energy problems” issue really think this is anything more than knee jerk emotional hokum with less value than snake oil?

[stylin_geek]

Well, thank you. However, there have probably been those who used other adjectives in front of my screen name....

[dangerdoc]

“Other than a diffusion process which requires compressors (more use of energy) I know of no other method of separating gasses.”

A centrifugal seperator would work but the whole thing is still a bad idea.

[dangerdoc]

“I just ran through 7000# of corn to heat my house all winter for $420.”

I have about 30,000# of wood stacked to dry for next winter. About $20 for gas and oil, $15 for a new chain oh, and a few sore muscles.