E-Squirrel
Champion Author
Orange County
Posts:2,405
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Message Posted: Mar 22, 2010 9:17:59 PM
teafortwo asks:
"I wonder if this process can be applied to garbage and landfill waste?"
From claim that: 'says the system is "agnostic" to the types of biomass it can process.'
I would assume so. But the costs of separating the suitable biomass from the other trash could be a killer, as could the costs of transporting the biomass, which kills most biomass projects. At least this finds a way to turn some solar energy into usable fuel.
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teafortwo
Champion Author
Washington
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Message Posted: Mar 11, 2010 10:56:10 PM
Follow the science.
Conserve and support alternatives.
I wonder if this process can be applied to garbage and landfill waste?
Thanks for sharing E-Squirrel ;0)
FROM THE ARTICLE:
A solar-driven process could yield far more fuel than conventional biomass production.
Sundrop Fuels, a startup based in Louisville, CO, says it has developed a cleaner and more efficient way to turn biomass into synthetic fuels by harnessing the intense heat of the sun to vaporize wood and crop waste. Its process can produce twice the amount of gasoline or diesel per ton of biomass compared to conventional biomass gasification systems, the COmpany claims.
Gasification occurs when dry biomass or other carbon-based materials are heated to above 700 ºC in the presence of steam. At those temperatures, most of the biomass is COnverted to a synthetic gas. This "syngas" is made up of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, which are the chemical building blocks for higher-value fuels such as methanol, ethanol, and gasoline.
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