Turning plastic bottles into a source of renewable energy
Kirjoitettu 3.7.2009, kategoria Polttoaineet, Sekalaista, Uutiset.
The weekend is upon us and it’s great to have something cheerful to take with us to our leisure time. In my view, nothing more uplifting than a great green idea. So meet Plastic Plan. The project, still in paper, aims at ridding landfills of plastic bottles while using them to generate clean energy offshore. So here’s the plan:
The bottles are collected and put into strong, reinforced, plastic mesh, cube shaped bags. Cubes roughly 2.5 meters (8 feet) in size. Sized locally to fit onto local trucks and trains. Then these bags are transported to harbors by river when possible, or by light truck and rail. Once in the harbor these bags will be grouped together and floated out to sea. Just far enough out to sea as to not be visible from land. The cubes will then be assembled by light crane and by hand, cube by cube, into an enormous platform . Each cube connected to the cube above it, below it and to the cubes on all four sides.
Now things get a bit more complicated in terms of how these storage platforms will actually produce clean energy. According to Chris Allen, the man behind the idea, clean and green energy devices such as solar, solar electric pump, wind, wind turbine pump, or wave/current powered pumps can be mounted on this base. The goal is to pump sea water 30 meters or more up into the reservoir. Water is pumped into the resevoir by hundreds or thousands of clean energy pumps. The same amount of water is released through just a few large “dam” size hydroelectric turbines at the bottom of the platform. This process takes the fluctuating energy produced by many small solar, wind, wave pumps and transforms it into a much stronger more reliable clean energy. Electricity, strong enough to be cabled to shore and to be transmitted over the existing power grid.
It sounds great. However, Allen admits that the bottle method is ineffecient in the sense that the islands’ own weight, the deep water pressures, and the weight of the water in the resevoir will crush and disfigure the cube shaped building blocks. Some bottles will break and cubes will become flatter and more cubes will need to be added during construction to compensate. To solve this problem, millions of bottles will be necessary. The first island, or cluster of islands, would ideally be located at the mouth of a river, a river with many cities upriver. The first island/s should also ideally be located in a warm climate to avoid any freezing while perfecting the design and process. The ideal place? The Gulf of Mexico offshore of New Orleans.
What do you think? To find out more, and arrive at your conclusions, visit The Plastic Plan’s website. (Via Alternative Energy News).
Lähde: EnergyRefuge.com Blog
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Wind farms may be barred from key Wyo grouse areas
Kirjoitettu 2.7.2009, kategoria Sekalaista.
Wyoming officials say they have no plans to allow wind farms or even pilot studies for wind turbines in areas designated as key to the sage grouse.
Lähde: Topix
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Debt, oil and healthcare reform
Kirjoitettu 2.7.2009, kategoria Uutiset, Öljyhuippu.
…the ongoing healthcare debate in Washington is anachronistic. A future oriented analysis has to include two driving forces: first, the long-term consequences of the fiscal/economic crisis and, second, the arrival of geological peak oil…
Lähde: Energy Bulletin
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UK & Europe - July 2
Kirjoitettu 2.7.2009, kategoria Sekalaista, Uutiset.
Scientists attack energy industry
Treasury faces legal action over ‘dirty’ banking investments
Britain’s green shame
Lähde: Energy Bulletin
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First Hybrid Solar Power Station
Kirjoitettu 2.7.2009, kategoria Sekalaista.
Weizmann Institute created a milestone in the field of alternative energy in association with AORA. AORA is a leading Israeli solar energy technology company. It launched the world’s first hybrid solar thermal power station at Kibbutz Samar in southern Israel. During the inaugural launch of the powerhouse, guests from other countries such as Spain, [...]
Posted in: Future Energy, Industry, Solar Power
Lähde: Alternative Energy
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Gore Teleconference Drums Up Support for Clean Energy Bill
Kirjoitettu 2.7.2009, kategoria Sekalaista.
WASHINGTON, DC , June 23, 2009 - Former Vice President Al Gore reached out to the general public today to gather support for the American Clean Energy and Security Act, H.R. 2454, which goes to a vote in the House of Representatives on Friday.
Photo: Former Vice President Al Gore (Photo courtesy Repower America)
Lähde: Topix
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New Solar Bus LED Lighting Kit
Kirjoitettu 1.7.2009, kategoria Sekalaista.
17ft x 5Ft Solar Spot High Output LED Shelter
All Purpose Mfg. Inc. has been designing and developing Solar Lighting Systems for years and again we size each Solar Lighting Bus Shelter for the City in your area with a 3 to 4 day battery backup system.
Lähde: EarthToys
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The smart course or the stupid one: why legalizing drugs now is just common sense
Kirjoitettu 30.6.2009, kategoria Sekalaista, Uutiset.
Every once in a while someone tells me about a plan they’ve read that allows them to make 50,000 dollars an acre or something like it. They are excited, and don’t understand why more farmers don’t do this. My standing observation is that I can think of only a couple of crops that will make you that much money direct off the field, and these days, people send helicopters around to look for those crops and burn your fields, so I don’t recommend it.
Lähde: Energy Bulletin
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Is the United States drifting toward "war socialism"?
Kirjoitettu 30.6.2009, kategoria Uutiset, Öljyhuippu.
We can still hope for unprecedented cooperation to manage the coming decline. But Jay Hanson (dieoff.org) may be right that if that cooperation doesn’t emerge, we may be faced with a decision about making preparations for an all-out and probably violent scramble for the world’s remaining resources–a contest in which a disciplined, cohesive and militarized society has the best chance of survival. Is he missing a viable third or fourth way?
Lähde: Energy Bulletin
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Biofuel as a Jet Fuel Alternative?
Kirjoitettu 30.6.2009, kategoria Sekalaista.
The seeds of a humble weed could lower a jet fuel’s cradle-to-grave carbon emissions by 84 percent. Camelina sativa is an oilseed crop and it might be used as fuel in aircrafts in the near future. A study conducted at Michigan Technological University claimed that Camelina has shown to be one of the more [...]
Posted in: Biofuels, Future Energy, Transportation
Lähde: Alternative Energy
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