A great many gasification technologies exist - all of which were developed before the price of solar PV panels fell dramatically.
This fall in the price of solar PV panels has ground-breaking implications for natural gas replacements.
All plant material is assembled inside plant cells from water and carbon dioxide using solar energy. The process is photosynthesis and it stores solar energy. Bush fires burn ferociously because of the amount of solar energy stored in plant material such as leaves, wood and grass.
All reactions that store solar energy in plant material are minor variations of:
One molecule of carbon dioxide from the air is split into a carbon atom and an oxygen molecule,
The oxygen molecule is released into the atmosphere, and
The carbon atom is added to a cross-linked molecule of plant material (such as cellulose or lignin) together with one molecule of water.
This simplified model could be represented:
(CH2O)n + CO2 + H2O => (CH2O)(n+1) + O2
The resulting plant material can be considered approximately to be cross-linked collections of carbon atoms with one water molecule for each carbon atom.
Because of the collapse in the price of solar PV panels, all existing methods of making replacements for natural gas from plant material use some of the energy embedded in the plant material, creating carbon dioxide and methane.
It is inevitable that the methane created embodies LESS energy than was present in the plant material.
The low cost of solar PV panels crucially changes the feasible processes for making methane from plant material.
The plant material can be reacted with pure hydrogen, and NOT oxygen, to make methane and water vapour at a high temperature.
The water vapour can be split into hydrogen and oxygen molecules with high-temperature electrolysis with electricity generated solar PV panels.
The hydrogen produced by high-temperature electrolysis of water vapour is reacted with more plant material, continuing the conversion of all the available plant material is converted into methane and oxygen.
There is no carbon dioxide produced, so no carbon dioxide storage is required and the cost of storing carbon dioxide is avoided.
The methane produced embodies the energy that was available in the plant material PLUS additional energy from the solar PV panels used to electrolyze water vapour into hydrogen and oxygen.
Further reading: "Coupling hydropyrolysis and vapor-phase catalytic hydrotreatment to produce biomethane from pine sawdust" at https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37423544/ .
China’s sudden ban on the importation of recyclable waste threatens household recycling bin collection in Australia.
The local waste industry is in a mounting crisis and says recycling bin pickup contracts with councils across Australia face default without urgent action by state and federal governments.
No matter how complex a problem is, the solution may be surprisingly simple.
One solution to tackle the above "crisis" fixes 3 further seemingly difficult issues:
Cheap storage of renewable energy for 24/7 reliability.
Boost natural gas supply and bankrupt the CSG industry.
Establish beyond doubt that coal power plants are obsolete.
For every 100 kWh of renewable energy stored in a battery, between 80 - 95 kWh
is returned when the battery is discharged. Using the same 100 kWh of
renewable energy in a plasma gasifier to convert waste to gas returns at least 200 kWh. It's cheaper than a battery and returns more than double the energy when needed.
Plasma gasification converts carbon-containing substances to gas using electricity to produce an extremely hot plasma to decompose complex molecules. Renewable energy can be stored by using it to create gas from waste in a plasma gasification plant.
Westinghouse Plasma Gasification
Converting Waste Into Clean Energy for a Healthier Planet
See these examples:
"After many years of development with our Japanese partners. Global Green International's (GGI’s) New Project: Coal to Electricity with Microwave Steam Torch Plasma is now ready for release."
Westinghouse Plasma Gasification technology is already at work in several facilities around the world to produce electricity from more than 40 different waste streams—including municipal solid waste, commercial waste and industrial waste.
Victorian brown coal is very cheap and the mine for Hazelwood is available. Re-allocating it to energy storage avoids new mine development. Because this brown coal is about 60% water, a lot of energy could go to waste converting this water into nothing but water vapour.
Waste plastic that is a new and mounting 'crisis' consists of carbon and hydrogen polymers but NO WATER.
Gasifying a mixture of wet brown coal and waste plastic in the right proportion so all the water reacts with decomposed plastic to form syngas avoids wasting energy in the process.
India has absolutely NO NEED for Queensland's Adani Carmichael coal mine. Gas power generation is far more efficient, cheaper and cleaner than coal fired power plants. It is also evolving more rapidly than coal power plants.
The required technology already exists.
Brown coal gasification and a thirty year mental block
Yorke Biomass Energy - straw fuel could be used in place of thermal storage, reducing the capital expenditure of the concentrated solar thermal power station.
Another option for synergy of these two projects is perhaps less obvious but potentially far better. Concentrated solar thermal energy can be used to turn the straw into synthesis gas. This saves about 30 percent of the energy in the straw that is 'wasted' if the straw is burned without first being converted to gas.
We
report on the thermochemical conversion of inedible crop residues using
concentrated solar energy as the source of high-temperature process
heat. ... The
waste biomass feedstock consisted of unprocessed batches of cotton boll,
soybean husk, and black mustard husk and straw, which were pyrolysed
and steam-based gasified at nominal temperatures in the range 879–1266 °C, yielding high-quality syngas ... The heating
value of the feedstock was solar-upgraded by 7%, thus outperforming
autothermal gasification that typically downgrades by at least 15%.
The
ash contained 23% potassium.
The solar-driven thermochemical process
offers a sustainable and efficient path for the conversion of
agricultural wastes into valuable fuels and soil fertilizers.
The synthesis gas produced:
Avoids the cost of the thermal energy storage needed by the concentrated solar thermal power station. This is because the solar thermal energy is stored in the form of synthesis gas.
Allows the energy in both the straw and the concentrated solar thermal energy to be used for a gas-fueled internal combustion engine or combined cycle gas turbine electricty generation. This raises the conversion efficiency to 60 percent - far above the efficiency that either power plant can achieve now (assuming they both plan to use steam turbine generators at efficiencies between 20 percent and 40 percent.)
Microalgae convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and chemical compounds of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
Some bacteria convert chemical compounds of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen into methane and carbon dioxide.
The above two processes results in the decomposition of water molecules and carbon dioxide molecules and their reassembly into methane, oxygen and carbon dioxide molecules. For each 2 water molecules and 2 carbon dioxide molecules entering the process, 1 molecule each of methane, oxygen and carbon dioxide exit.
When 1,000 litres of wastewater are reassembled, the methane produced has an energy content of about 22 gigajoules.
While the value of 'fit-for-purpose" processed wastewater is very low, methane has a wholesale value around $10 per gigajoule and a retail price 2 - 6 times the wholesale value.
Another process uses renewable electricity that is generated when demand is low to produce gas from crop waste, municipal waste, sawdust, etc in a plasma gasifier...
Gas Vision 2050 is an Energy Networks Australia report produced on December 18, 2017. Australia’s peak gas industry bodies prepared it to "demonstrate how gas may continue to provide Australians with reliable and affordable energy in a low carbon energy future."
The scope of the report is to "outline how Australia’s gas supply and infrastructure can be a national advantage as our energy mix continues to evolve."
The reports author's missed the option being explored across Europe: make us of Australia’s gas supply and infrastructure as an energy storage system.
This new purpose for Australia’s gas supply and infrastructure has the potential to make a substantial contribution to the economy. For instance, a proposal for a multi-billion dollar development of pumped hydro energy storage "Snowy Hydro 2.0" is years away from becoming a reality. The gas supply infrastructure can begin providing this function almost immediately.
The report describes three technologies under the heading "Decarbonisation Pathways" -
Biogas production – Biogas consists of methane and is already produced from municipal solid waste.
Hydrogen: Hydrogen can be produced from natural gas or through electrolysis. Hydrogen creates opportunities for clean energy for households, businesses or transport and can also generate zero emissions electricity using fuel cells or gas turbines.
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) refers to the process of producing decarbonised hydrogen from gas, coal, or biogas to remove carbon dioxide from the carbon cycle.
There is a fourth technology that has significant potential to accelerate decarbonisation of Australia's gas supply. So much so that the goal the report sets for 2050 may be achieved much sooner.
Biogas can be produced from a great many carbon-containing materials such as farm crop waste, municipal waste, sewage sludge, animal waste and timber waste. In each case about half the carbon combines with hydrogen from water in the mixture to form methane and the remaining carbon combines with the oxygen "left over" from the creation of methane to form carbon dioxide.
The result is a gas that is about 50/50 methane and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide needs to be removed before the methane is suitable for injection into gas supply pipelines.
Hydrogen can be produced using surplus renewable energy to split water by electrolysis. This is a method of energy storage. Hydrogen may be injected directly into gas supply lines, but the proportion can be no more than 10 percent by volume.
The fourth technology that isn't mentioned in the Gas Vision 2050 report tackles both of the above issues:
Waste materials containing carbon can be reacted with hydrogen. In this process ALL the carbon is converted into methane and NO carbon dioxide is created. So there is nothing to separate from the biogas before it can be injected into natural gas pipelines. The 10 percent limit on the proportion of hydrogen that can be safely mixed with natural gas is no longer an issue...
The biomethane produced via this pathway is achieving two purposes:
It is replacing natural gas with carbon-neutral biogas.
It is storing renewable energy in the form of methane for use as required.
This needn't be a permanent part of a zero-emission energy system. While battery capacity investment is ramping up, excess wind and solar power can be stored and distributed as hydrogen and/or methane in the existing natural gas system.
Burning natural gas in heating appliances will eventually be discontinued, but for now, a large number of these appliances are being used. It will be some time before they are all replaced.
Small distributed gas-fueled electricity generation can be up to 60% efficient. These do the job that batteries and pumped hydro will eventually do - when enough of them have been built.
Farmers can replace coal seam gas industry by manufacturing methane from crop waste that is combined with hydrogen made to store renewable energy.
When there are enough batteries and pumped hydro storage to eliminate the need for natural gas energy resources in Australia, this bio-methane can be used as feed stock in chemical industries to replace coal seam gas. It can also be exported as LNG, substituting for Australia's coal and coal seam gas energy exports.
The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association - "the voice of [one part of] Australia's oil and gas industry" - held its annual conference in Perth recently. The Twitter feed about the conference is under hash tag #APPEA2017
Approaches for increasing the supply of natural gas were on the agenda, but renewable energy production of natural gas didn't get a mention. The absence of Bioenergy Australia which is holding a Bioenergy Business Breakfast in Adelaide next week left the struggling oil and gas industry bereft of a host of ideas to address the intractable problem of rising costs of extracting natural gas. The problem it faces is that there aren't any more low-cost natural gas reserves to exploit.
New methods for producing natural gas from renewable energy are being developed and refined, continually lowering costs and improving efficiency.
At the same time:
The cost of extracting coal seam gas is constantly increasing.
The domestic price of natural is continuing to rise.
The wholesale price of natural gas in Australia has risen steeply
These factors are making it more commercially attractive to produce natural gas from renewable energy.
There are 3 underlying processes for making renewable natural gas no matter how the various technologies achieve them:
Carbon dioxide can be converted into carbon-containing compounds and oxygen by algae and other plants using sunlight to drive photosynthesis.
Carbon dioxide can also be converted into natural gas and water using hydrogen produced from electrolysis of water using electricity from renewable energy generation. Oxygen is produced as a by-product as in the first process.
Any carbon-containing compounds including those produced by algae and plants in the first process described above along with farm waste and municipal waste, can be converted into a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide. About half the carbon in the input feed stock is converted into methane, and the other half into carbon dioxide. After the carbon dioxide produced as a by-product is separated, it can be converted into methane by recycling it into either of the first two processes. No "carbon capture and storage" required, avoiding a susbstantial cost of using natural gas from fossil fuel reserves.
Long established technologies use methane-producing bacteria that create methane and carbon dioxide in anaerobic fermentation ponds or tanks.
More recently plants have become available that use supercritical water as a gasification medium to create methane and carbon dioxide. These complete the gasification process more quickly and so don't need large tanks where methane-producing bacteria gradually transform the feed stock. This newer technology is especially well-suited for wet feed stock as there is no need to dry it.
These more recent technologies can also efficiently convert low-grade coal with high moisture content into natural gas. Existing coal-fired power could use this option to improve efficiency and lower emissions until it is feasible to decommission them.
Researchers at ENN Group, China and Carleton University, Canada recently investigated supercritical water lignite gasification technology. See "Coal-based Clean Energy Production", Advances in Energy Engineering (AEE) Volume 1 Issue 4, October 2013.
Supercritical Water gasification of wet biomass and low-grade coal
More recently the Lappeenranta University of Technology, Finland, completed an assessment of the option of Australia becoming a major exporter of renewable energy to Asia - making use of the Queensland LNG export facilities - to ship natural gas made with renewable energy. See "Can Australia Power the Energy-Hungry Asia with Renewable Energy?"
There are 4 or 5 processes that do more-or-less the same thing in slightly different ways. Each was designed with a different purpose in mind, but that doesn't mean they can't be used for other purposes the designers hadn't considered.
Bioenergy, waste-to-energy, renewable energy storage as synthetic natural gas, biogas and synthetic natural gas from coal are different ways of doing the same thing.
Synthetic natural gas can be used to store energy, to generate electricity on demand, and as feedstock in manufacturing processes. Synthetic natural gas can also be manufactured for export in the form of LNG.
It can be made from 100 percent renewable energy, 100 percent fossil fuel energy, or some combination of both renewable and fossil energy. This allows a transition to a 100 percent renewable energy future, achieving the above requirement statement: ensuring reliable, affordable and clean energy.
The underlying process combines carbon dioxide, water and energy to create methane and oxygen:
CO2 + 2H2O → CH4 + 2O2
Photosynthesis by plants and algae to create biomass that methanogenic bacteria convert to methane is one way of doing this with solar energy.
Waste-to-energy can use methanogenic bacteria to produce methane using the solar energy embedded in the waste.
Electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen that is reacted with carbon dioxide to make methane is another way of doing this with solar PV systems and wind turbines.
Biomass can be converted to methane in high temperature superheated water reactors. The thermal energy to do this can be from concentrated solar thermal energy, or from reaction with either oxygen or hydrogen created by electrolysis of water.
Biomass can be converted to methane in very high temperature gasifiers that create carbon monoxide and hydrogen that is reacted in a separate step to create methane. The energy for this high temperature process can be obtained by burning a portion of the feedstock in air.
In each of the above processes that use biomass to produce methane, coal can be used in place of some or all of biomass.
When there is sufficient solar PV and wind turbine generating capacity, hydrogen can be produced whenever electricity supply exceeds demand. This hydrogen can be reacted with carbon dioxide to make methane for generating electricity whenever demand exceeds the supply.
With sufficient renewable energy generating capacity, synthetic natural gas can be manufactured for export - providing completely renewable energy to importing countries via existing LNG export, transport and import infrastructure.
Curiously, coal is presently being converted to synthetic natural gas in the most environmentally 'unfriendly' option available - burning a portion of the coal in air to create carbon monoxide and hydrogen that is reacted in a separate step to create methane. This technology has been criticised for its high level of carbon dioxide emissions and water usage.
Coal could be converted to methane by reacting it with hydrogen produced by electrolysis of water with electricity from solar PV systems and wind turbines. It can also be converted to methane in high temperature superheated water reactors. The thermal
energy to do this can be from concentrated solar thermal energy, or from
reaction with hydrogen created by the electrolysis of
water.
This is most suitable for low-grade lignite such as that found in Yallourn Valley in Australia that consists of 50 percent or more water. With this process it can be converted to high-value synthetic natural gas, avoiding the need for coal seam gas.
Its use can be gradually phased-out as renewable energy generating capacity increases to the stage where it can completely replace it.
In a relentlessly negative campaign against putting a price on carbon, Tony Abbott the then leader of the opposition visited Austral Bricks in September 2011.
Austral Bricks managing director Lindsay Partridge said the Brickworks had reduced carbon emissions by 40 per cent in the past decade, but the introduction of the carbon tax would cost his company $12.8 million a year.
“This is one of the many businesses in one of the many industries which is going to be badly hit by the Prime Minister’s toxic tax,” Mr Abbott said. “The thing about the carbon tax is that it’s going to be very tough for Australian families, it’s going to be particularly tough for Australian homebuyers.”
Shortly after, Gerbilnow contacted Austral Bricks and suggested it assess renewable energy for firing its brick kilns. The use of waste timber in a gasifier for this process has two commercial benefits.
The cost of fuel was substantially lower than natural gas.
No carbon tax was payable.
The carbon tax is an incentive to adopt such innovations. In particular it is an incentive to switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. As a result of the switch the cost of new houses may fall as the cost of bricks can be lowered.
Fast forward 2½ years to March 2014.
Two different descriptions of Austral Bricks' innovation to become the first carbon-neutral brick manufacturer in Australia emerge.
The one by Tony Abbott's Minister for the Environment conceals the facts:
that a switch to renewable energy has been made,
that the cost of manufacturing bricks is lower as a result, and
that the carbon tax has served as an incentive for positive outcomes for both the environment and the economy.
13 March 2014 | David Wheeldon | Architecture & Design
Austral Brick’s national energy and sustainability manager Steven Mouzakis said the use of low emissions biomass as opposed to fossil fuels is largely responsible for the plant’s low carbon dioxide emissions.
“Emissions from the biomass are just 215 tonnes per year, about the same as 12 average Australian households,” he said.
“In contrast, a conventional natural gas kiln of the same capacity could emit approximately 8,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases.”
The false and deceitful description by Greg Hunt, the Minister for the Environment in the Abbott Government:
17 March 2014 | The Hon. Greg Hunt MP, Minister for the Environment | Media release
Congratulations to Austral Bricks on becoming a leader in their field.
For businesses, being carbon neutral means looking carefully for ways to reduce energy emissions, which makes good business sense as well as being good for the environment.
Austral Bricks has ...found innovative ways of reducing these emissions.
These include switching some of its kiln operations from coal to gas, as well as improving the energy efficiency of their lighting. ...
Steven Mouzakis, National Energy and Sustainability Manager of Brickworks Building Products, which produces Austral Bricks, said the company is delighted to have achieved a carbon neutral footprint for its range of brick and paver products manufactured at the Longford facility.
Ineffective burning of wood in traditional stoves causes the deaths of many people around the world.
More than three billion people still burn wood, dung, coal and other traditional fuels inside their homes. The resulting indoor air pollution is responsible for more than 1.5 million deaths a year – mostly of young children and their mothers. Millions more suffer every day with difficulty in breathing, stinging eyes and chronic respiratory disease.
Interesting (on traditional wood stoves) 'Rural networks can help prevent deaths from indoor pollution' https://t.co/s2gSUsBTEH>
— Tanya Ha (@Ha_Tanya) May 30, 2014
Great feature and moving video about the trouble with traditional (and newer) cookstoves in India http://t.co/sY5mrI0pMr#longreads
— Brendan Maher (@bmahersciwriter) May 28, 2014
1.5 billion people have no access to electricity, and 85% of the population in Africa don't yet have electricity. 400 million in India have no access to power.
Collecting Firewood
There is enormous unmet demand for access to electricity and clean energy.
Energy is essential to meet our most basic needs: cooking, boiling water, lighting and heating. It is also a prerequisite for good health – a reality that has been largely ignored by the world community.
One of the greatest energy needs across the world is for cooking, something which we take for granted. Without a decent energy supply, people are forced to rely on biomass - wood or animal dung - for cooking. Women and children can spend hours every day searching for increasingly scarce resources. Once they start burning biomass, the thick acrid smoke cause's serious lung diseases turning kitchens into death traps.
Children and their mothers are most at risk, choking, retching and gasping to get air to their lungs which are being attacked and destroyed by smoke. More people die from smoke inhalation than malaria.
According to the World Health Organisation, diseases associated with indoor air pollution claim 1.5 million lives every year - that's one person every 20 seconds.
Matt Chambers | The Australian | February 22, 2013
SANTOS says it is so confident Australian
east coast gas prices will rise that it is using prices close to $9 a
gigajoule - which is two or three times current gas prices - to
assess its gas reserves.
Santos and CEO David Knox
are relying heavily on the eastern states' gas prices rising.
Chief financial officer Andrew Seaton said the
company was very comfortable internally that gas prices would rise to
its publicly stated forecast of between $6 and $9 a gigajoule beyond
2015 when three big liquefied natural gas projects in Gladstone start
sucking up most of the east coast's gas.
"We use a gas price towards the upper end of
that range," Mr Seaton said.
"We're seeing evidence in the market already
that prices are being signed in that range."
The Australian recently reported Origin Energy
sold miner MMG gas at a price that rises to $9 a gigajoule once the
LNG plants are up and going.
Neither Origin nor MMG has confirmed or denied the
price.
Gas prices are now between $3 and $4 a gigajoule.
Santos said 2012 net profit fell about a third due
to an absence of assets sales that boosted the previous year's
result.
Net profit fell 31 per cent to $519 million but
underlying profit, which excludes one-off gains and losses, rose 34
per cent to $606m. The underlying figure beat the $586m average of
eight analysts' forecasts compiled by Dow Jones Newswires.
Underlying earnings were lifted by two natural gas
projects coming online in Indonesia and Western Australia,
accelerating a shift by Santos away from oil production as a key
driver of earnings.
Santos is also a major shareholder in two
multi-billion-dollar gas-export projects in Papua New Guinea and
Australia, slated to start production in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
Santos shares were up 24c, or 2 per cent, at
$12.14 today.
Santos said the Gladstone LNG gas-export project
in Queensland, which counts Total SA and Petroliam Nasional as
shareholders, is on track to ship its first cargo of LNG in 2015 and
remains on its recently revised budget of $US18.5 billion.
Chief executive David Knox stressed Santos would
not need to raise equity to finance its share of the funding for
GLNG.
Mr Seaton said GLNG was not looking at selling
infrastructure, moves which its two LNG rivals, BG Group and Origin
Energy/ConocoPhillips, have flagged.
Santos said it increased its proven and probable
(2P) reserves to 1.406 million barrels of oil equivalent, from 1.364
million a year earlier, representing what it said was an annual 180
per cent reserve replacement rate.
But it was forced to almost halve contingent
reserves at the GLNG project from 3.277 million barrels of oil
equivalent to 1.638 million.
"Reduction in GLNG and other Queensland coal
seam gas fields (was) from a technical reassessment of recovery
factors associated with deeper and/or lower permeability coals"
combined with new guidelines for calculating reserves, Santos said.
Mr Knox stressed the drop came from areas not
earmarked to feed into the LNG plant until 2025 or later.
reducing clearing of rainforest for palm oil plantations,
improving human health, and
ending the coal seam gas industry
may find the following information helpful.
Orangutan gives idea the "thumbs up"
The same information may also help if you are concerned about mine closures, job cuts and losses on coal infrastructure investments.
The orangutan project
Palm Oil Plantations Endangering Orangutans
During the past decade the orangutan population has decreased
by approximately 50 percent in the wild. This is primarily due to human
activities including rainforest destruction for palm oil plantations.
At present, 80 percent of orangutan habitat has been altered or lost.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and
Natural Resources (IUNC) has classified the Bornean orangutan as
Endangered with approximately 55,000 left with 5,000 killed a year. The
Sumatran orangutan is Critically Endangered with approximately 6,300
left and 1,000 being killed a year.
What Products Contain Palm Oil?
Palm oil is the second most widely produced edible oil. Each year, Australia imports approximately 130,000 tons of palm oil.
Palm oil and its derivatives are found in around 50 percent
of all packaged foods on Australian shelves. It has a longer shelf life
than other vegetable oils making it more appealing for food production.
Palm oil is found in many food products including biscuits, chips,
crackers and batters. It is also found in toothpaste, soap, shampoo and
cosmetics.
In recent years palm oil based biodiesel has entered the
European market. While biofuel has been promoted as an effective means
of reducing emissions, establishing palm oil plantations increases
greenhouse emissions. Although Australia does not currently offer palm
oil based biodiesel, if crude oil prices continue to rise the demand for
biofuels may increase.
(Read more ...)
The dangerous ingredient you’re eating— and don’t even know it
By Gretel H. Schueller, December 7, 2012
Palm kernel oil sounds harmless and even “natural,” right? And in recent
years, it’s been finding its way into many packaged foods as
manufacturers look for low-cost oils to replace trans fats. (After
federal rules mandated all packaged foods list the amount of
heart-damaging trans fats they contain on their "Nutrition Facts"
labels, many manufacturers reformulated their products to ferret out the
offending fat and earn a better-looking label.) Highly saturated fats
turn rancid more slowly, so food companies often use them to help
preserve taste and texture. Trans-fat-free—and relatively
inexpensive—palm oil fit the bill. Its long shelf life and semi-solid
state at room temperature make it appealing to food companies.
Palm Oil is High in Saturated Fats
About 80 percent of unmodified palm kernel oil fat is saturated. Saturated fats raise levels of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol in the blood. That’s damaging to the heart and arteries, since excessive LDL
accumulates in artery walls and can trigger inflammation, eventually
leading to a heart attack or stroke. (Confusingly, palm fruit
oil—also known as palm oil or red palm oil—is rich in a form of vitamin E
that preliminary research indicates may help fight cancer and prevent
strokes; it is also lower in saturated fat.)
(Read more ...)
Synthesis Energy Systems (SES)
SES is the provider of a highly efficient, cost
effective, and commercially proven coal and biomass conversion
technology based on U-GAS® gasification that has been developed over the last 40 years. The U-GAS®
process is the result of a Department of Energy (DOE) and Gas
Technology Institute (GTI) joint development program that began in the
early 1970s. The technology was initially developed for the conversion
of coal to synthetic natural gas, followed by power and chemicals. The
U-GAS® gasification technology has been piloted,
demonstrated, and commercially operated on a wide range of feedstocks
including bituminous coal, sub-bituminous coal, lignite, biomass, coal
char and wastes, and metallurgical coke. The technology enables
customers to realize higher project returns through greater fuel
flexibility, higher availability, lower operating costs, and lower
capital investment.
The primary advantage of U-GAS® relative
to other leading gasification technologies is its ability to produce
syngas from all ranks of coal (including low rank, high ash and high
moisture coals, and lignite), many coal waste products and biomass feed
stocks. This process is highly efficient at separating carbon from waste
ash, which allows for the efficient processing of certain low rank coal
and many coal waste products that cannot otherwise be utilized in the
entrained flow and fixed bed gasifiers offered by our competitors.
After cleaning, the syngas can be used for many
applications such as power and synthetic natural gas. Other
byproducts such as sulfur, carbon dioxide, steam and ash are viable
commercial products. (Read more...)
All about oil from algae
Applications and Health Benefits of Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3
fatty acids are highly concentrated in the brain and appear to be
important for cognitive (brain memory and performance) and behavioral
function. DHA specially is essential for the proper functioning of the
brain and for the development of nervous system and visual abilities
during the first 6 months of life.
Omega-3 fatty acids as a part of diet help lower the risk of heart diseases.
Omega-3 fatty acids may delay or prevent the progression of certain psychotic disorders in high-risk children and adolescents.
Algae Strains Producing Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Microalgae can supply omega-3 fatty acids at high concentrations. Species of
Crypthecodinium, Thraustochytrium, Ulkenia and Schizochytrium are rich
the omega-3 fatty acid DHA, while species of Phaeodactylum, Chlorella,
Monodus, and Nannochloropsis are rich in EPA.
Crypthecodinium cohnii is a heterotrophic algal species that is currently used to produce the DHA used in many infant formulas. Research efforts have revealed that approximately 50% Thraustochytrium aureum’s total fatty acids are DHA.
Phaeodactylum
tricornutum is a high EPA-producing algal species with EPA comprising
30-40% of its total fatty acids when grown using optimum culture
conditions.
(Read more ...)
Algae.Tec Ltd
The enclosed modular high-yield algae bioreactor system uses waste carbon dioxide and sunlight.
Our algae technology has demonstrated exceptional performance, providing
step-change improvements in productivity, product yield, carbon dioxide
sequestration, plant footprint requirements and substantial
capital/cost savings versus agricultural crops [such as palm oil plantations] and other competitive
algae processes in the industry.
Algae.Tec Technology
Photosynthesis is a biochemical process during which:
algae absorbs
light energy from sunlight and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or a
industrial (eg stackgas) source,
utilizes water and critical nutrients
(nitrogen, phosphorous and other key nutrients), and
undergoes multiple
step light and dark phase reactions to biologically produce primarily
lipids (fats and oils), carbohydrates (sugars) and proteins subsequently
generating oxygen off-gas.
The fundamentals of algae production and the
downstream conversion to renewable fuels [or edible oils] are relatively “old”
chemistries, but the optimal path to feasible commercialization does
require step-changes in system design and process innovation for
economic viability.
(Read more...)
An Australian led-project to turn
1.4 million
tonnes of Chinese pig poo into alternative energy and fertiliser
has been hailed in a national science award.
Giant pig waste biogas plant - artist impression
The project, run by the Adelaide-based Cooperative Research Centre
for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment
(CRC CARE), Chinese firm HLM Asia PL and Huazhong University of
Science and Technology, has developed technology for treating one
of the world’s largest and smelliest waste disposal
problems.
The technology has been trademarked as pooCARE™. It has been
demonstrated in the field and is now being scaled up to treat large
volumes of waste from many piggeries.
Prof. Naidu, Managing Director, CRC CARE, says that the demonstration biodigester can:
remediate 200 tonnes of piggery waste daily (73,000 tonnes
annually)
produce 380 cubic metres of biogas daily, worth around A$41,000 a
year as a heating fuel
produce 5,600 tonnes of fertiliser worth A$550,000 per
year.
CRC CARE has also been working with the pork industry in
Australia, including the Pork CRC, to transfer the biodigester
technology from China to farms in Australia. This will enable
Australian piggeries to gain a new income stream from their waste,
which will help support farm operations, grow algae and produce
biochar to provide soil nutrients, and increase the sequestration
of carbon in soil.
“Pig poo might seem like simple stuff, but it creates a very
complex set of environmental problems, which I am pleased to say
the CRC CARE/China team has managed to overcome with some lateral
thinking and sound, practical, affordable technologies,” he
says.
The project involved collaborations with a number of Australian and
Chinese small to medium enterprises and its technology is likely to
be taken up internationally in countries such as India, as well as
in Australia and China.
More information:
Prof. Ravi Naidu, Managing Director, CRC CARE, +61 (0)8 8302 5041
or 0407 720 257
Adam Barclay, Communication Manager, CRC CARE, +61 (0)8 8302 3925
or +61 429 779 228
The solar and wind energy industries are in an "all-or-nothing" marketing campaign against coal and natural gas. At present the solar and wind energy industries have no commercial energy storage option to offer.
The CSIRO, GE Global Research and others are creating technology that solves all recognised issues. This technology is steadfastly ignored in media reports.
A combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power station fueled by natural gas that has been converted to syngas by solar thermal energy delivers 20 per cent renewable energy at the reliability and similar cost of a natural gas-only fueled CCGT power station.
Replace the natural gas with bio-methane and this power station will deliver 100 per cent renewable energy at the reliability and similar cost of a natural gas-only fueled CCGT power station.
Capture half of carbon dioxide collected in the bio-methane production process and this technology REMOVES carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This is environmentally superior to both wind and solar technology.
SolarGas technology could help India’s efforts towards achieving energy security.
SolarGasTM technology was developed by Australia’s national science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
Why choose between solar and coal when you can use both?
Global Energy Production will increase dramatically by 2035, regardless of energy-efficiency improvements in developed economies.
1.5 billion people have no access to electricity, and 85% of the population in Africa don't yet have electricity. There is enormous unmet demand for access to electricity and clean energy.
In its annual Human Development Report, the UN Development Progamme (UNDP) said the UN has designated 2012 as the international year of sustainable energy for all. Read more on Health without energy? - Without clean, modern energy people's health can be severely affected
Consider a region perhaps in China or India that has a 600 Megawatt coal-fired power station, and it wants to double this generating capacity.
What do some of the options look like and how do they compare on cost and carbon dioxide emissions?
One option is to build another 600 Megawatt coal-fired power station.
Another option is to build a 600 Megawatt concentrated solar thermal power station with sufficient thermal energy storage to allow it to operate reliably overnight and after one or two cloudy days.
A further option is to replace the existing 600 Megawatt coal-fired power station with a 1200 Megawatt combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power station, and optionally generate the fuel for this power station using the coal supply from the existing 600 Megawatt coal-fired power station with a much smaller concentrated solar thermal (CST) field of heliostats.
For option 1, the coal supply has to be doubled, and CO2 emissions also double. CO2 emissions intensity is constant at 0.8 tonnes per Megawatt-hour.
For option 2, a very large and costly field of heliostats is needed. The thermal energy storage system for reliable operation overnight and after one or two cloudy days is a substantial proportion of the total cost, and even then does not provide reliable operation in periods of extended cloud cover. CO2 emissions remain constant, because the existing coal-fired power station continues operation as before. CO2 emissions intensity of the combined existing and new systems is halved to 0.4 tonnes per Megawatt-hour.
For option 3, a new combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power station is needed, and the existing coal-fired power station is decommissioned. The coal supply from the decommissioned power station is converted to Syngas using a much smaller field of heliostats. Some components of the decommissioned coal power station, such as the coal-handling equipment may be re-used. No thermal energy storage system is required: this need is met by storing Syngas for continuous power generation. CO2 emissions remain constant: the new power station is consuming the same quantity of coal as the existing coal power station it replaces. However it produces twice the amount of electrical energy so the CO2 emissions intensity is halved to 0.4 tonnes per Megawatt-hour. Note that the solar thermal gasification of coal in this option provides the same benefit as a Carbon Capture and Storage system that removes 50 percent of the CO2 emissions of a coal-fired power station.
Note: Option 3 achieves the same outcomes as option 2. That is, total electricity output capacity is doubled to 1200 Megawatts, CO2 emissions do not increase, no additional fossil fuel is needed, and CO2 emissions intensity is halved to 0.4 tonnes per Megawatt-hour.
Essentially these are two technologically different solutions with nearly identical economic and environmental benefits. (Option 3 overcomes criticism that solar energy sources are intermittent and hence unreliable without "backup" fossil fuel power plants.
Option 3 also eliminates toxic mercury and other emissions of the existing coal-fired power station that is retained in Option 2.)
The choice between options 2 and 3 can be based on a comparison of their cost and a consideration of the added benefits of option 3.
Coal-Fired Power Station (Option 1)
Assuming this power station achieves 40% thermal efficiency, with CO2 emissions of 0.8 tonnes per Megawatt-hour:
Input Thermal Energy from Coal: 1500 Megawatts per hour
Output Electrical Energy: 600 Megawatts per hour
CO2 Emissions: 480 tonnes per hour
Figure 1: Coal-fired Power Station Model
Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) Power Station (Option 2)
Assuming this power station achieves 40% thermal efficiency, with zero CO2 emissions per Megawatt-hour:
Input Thermal Energy from Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST): 1500 Megawatts per hour
Output Electrical Energy: 600 Megawatts per hour
CO2 Emissions: 0 tonnes per hour
Figure 2: Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) Power Station Model
Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) Coal/Biomass Gasification (Option 3 - part 1)
Assuming this power station achieves 40% thermal efficiency, with zero CO2 emissions per Megawatt-hour:
Input Thermal Energy from Coal/Biomass: 1500 Megawatts per hour
Input Thermal Energy from Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST): 500 Megawatts per hour
Output Thermal Energy in Purified Syngas: 2000 Megawatts per hour (This is transferred to the Combined-Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) power station below - where it is used the generate electricity)
CO2 Emissions: 0 tonnes per hour
Figure 3: Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) Coal/Biomass Gasifier
Combined-Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) Power Station (Option 3 - part 2)
Assuming this power station achieves 60% thermal efficiency, with CO2 emissions of 0.4 tonnes per Megawatt-hour:
Input Thermal Energy from Syngas/Natural Gas: 2000 Megawatts per hour (This is transferred from the Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) Coal/Biomass Gasification plant above)
Output Electrical Energy: 1200 Megawatts per hour
CO2 Emissions: 480 tonnes per hour
Figure 4: Combined-Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) Power Station Model
Discussion about energy is riddled with value-laden beliefs.
Renewable energy is "clean" / Fossil fuel energy is "dirty".
Fossil fuel energy is cheap and reliable / Renewable energy is expensive and unreliable.
Energy is just energy
Converting carbon fuels to low- and non-carbon fuels
The chart "Energy" shows that three different fuels -
Two samples of syngas created from two different raw materials contain identical quantities of chemical energy.
Two samples of methane created from the same two raw materials contain identical quantities of chemical energy, and
Two samples of hydrogen created from the same two raw materials contain identical quantities of chemical energy.
One of the two raw materials is cellulose. This is a renewable energy resource produced from sunlight, water and carbon dioxide by photosynthesis in plants.
The second of the two raw materials is polyethylene terephthalate, or PET. This is a non-renewable polymer made from fossil carbon resources. It is the plastic from which many disposable drink containers are made.
Both of these raw materials are compounds of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
Each can be transformed into -
Syngas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen - where all of the carbon in the raw material remains in the resulting fuel,
Methane - where half of the carbon in the raw material remains in the resulting fuel and the other half may be separated in carbon dioxide, and
Hydrogen - where none of the carbon in the raw material remains in the resulting fuel and all of it may be separated in carbon dioxide.
The processes for transforming these two raw materials into any one of three different fuels can be applied to any raw material containing carbon, such as coal, lignite, natural gas, energy crops, organic waste, plastics and paper.
A variety of technologies exist for each of these three fuel transformations. Technologies also exist for separating and storing carbon dioxide.
The Question for Political Leaders
A question our political leaders and industry leaders need to answer is why these technologies are being ignored and are not being actively implemented? A further question is why are unproven and unneeded technologies being developed that substantially delay the time when we will see carbon capture and storage in everyday use?
Additional Information Sources
Department of Primary Industries, Victoria
"Capture technologies include:
Pre-combustion capture refers to taking the primary fuel (e.g. coal) and converting it into gas. The gas produced is chemically altered to CO2 and hydrogen. The CO2 is separated from the hydrogen, compressed and transported to a suitable storage site."
Source:State Government of Victoria, Department of Primary IndustriesCarbon Capture and Storage - Questions and Answers
Department of Energy, U.S.
"An advanced integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plant, which will convert coal fuel into hydrogen to generate enough power to support 160,000 homes, and a chemical plant that will produce nitrogen-based fertilizers. The plant will also capture more than 90 percent of the CO2, which means that the fertilizer and power produced by the project will have a significantly smaller carbon footprint than those produced by conventional facilities, including those using natural gas.
Approximately 2.6 million tons per year of CO2 will be transported via pipeline to Occidental Petroleum’s Elk Hills Oil Field, located less than 4 miles away. With oil fields as the CO2 injection site, HECA will enable oil production to be increased, while storing CO2. Michael Peevey, President of the California Public Utilities Commission, has said: 'They have developed an innovative business model that improves the economic viability of the project. HECA intends to ramp up the facility to produce more electricity during peak hours of need in order to maximize the energy and capacity value of the plant. This is an example of the kind of creative thinking we will need to solve the climate crisis.'
'The HECA project underscores the significance of Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage—the creative combination of business drivers and environmental responsibility. It demonstrates how carbon capture technology will help us fully develop and use our vast domestic energy resources in a sustainable way.'
...
The project will create more than 2,000 construction jobs over 3 years and approximately 100 permanent operational positions."
Source:U.S. Department of Energy9 July 2012Power Plant Will Produce Clean Power, Increase Domestic Oil Production
Australian Coal industry seeks 15-year policy reform delay
Why is Australia to spend over $1 billion on CarbonNet and take 15 years developing new Carbon Capture technology ----
---- when proven technology has existed for decades in the USA?
A Possible Reason for the Coal Industry to Delay Pre-Combustion Carbon Capture
Post-combustion Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) provides a justification to continue
construction of coal-fired power stations. It holds out a promise of one
day being able to reduce emissions of such power plants.
Once a coal-fired power plant is constructed, the coal industry is guaranteed a customer for at least 40 years.
Gasification of coal with pre-combustion Carbon Capture eliminates the reason for constructing any new coal-fired power stations. Once converted to gas, the fuel can be used in high-efficiency combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power stations. In addition a number of toxic components of coal such as mercury can be economically removed when the coal has been converted to gas.
The demand for coal would go down when natural gas prices fall. There would be no guaranteed demand to provide fuel for new coal-fired power stations.
A gas-fired power station achieves 60 percent thermal efficiency,
much higher than the 40 percent for advanced coal-fired power stations.
This difference also results in lower demand for coal.
