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Sewage To Be Turned Into H

Anonymous Howard writes "The New Scientist website reports in this article that British scientists are working on a more efficient way to convert sewage and other wet waste into hydrogen fuel. It sounds fairly promising."

229 comments

  1. Heroin? by catch23 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Man, when I first read that I was like... I'm livin in Britain now!!

    1. Re:Heroin? by geekd · · Score: 5, Funny

      I thought so too, when I saw the headline.

      Do we really need that much more heroin in the world?

      What does that say about our geek-ness, or lack of it, when we see "H" and think heroin instead of hydrogen?

      I know what I think when I see "weed" and if I find it in my garden I am *not* going to kill it.

    2. Re:Heroin? by linzeal · · Score: 1

      Woo hoo. Thats what I read too.

    3. Re:Heroin? by Decimal · · Score: 2

      What does that say about our geek-ness, or lack of it, when we see "H" and think heroin instead of hydrogen?

      Yeah, we're not the most educated people.
      The symbol for for Heroin is actually Hr.

      :p

      --

      Remember "Bring 'em on"? *sigh
    4. Re:Heroin? by rabidcow · · Score: 1

      Well, my geek-ness is safe. My first though upon seeing "H" was "Hologram"... not that that makes any sense, but hey.

    5. Re:Heroin? by mosch · · Score: 2

      brother, you aren't alone. i was psyched there for a minute!

    6. Re:Heroin? by wwwgregcom · · Score: 1

      I guess im the only one who reads the "from the department line"

      --
      What signature defines me as a person?
    7. Re:Heroin? by ibbey · · Score: 2

      You've obviously been watching too much Red Dwarf, Haven't you?

    8. Re:Heroin? by oliverthered · · Score: 1

      Cheers for the overrated, It looks like someone didn't read the main story which was about turning, waste(shit) into H(Heroin).
      If you're a dealer who dosn't sell shit then drop me a line.

      --
      thank God the internet isn't a human right.
    9. Re:Heroin? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I know what I think when I see "weed" and if I find it in my garden I am *not* going to kill it.

      Not until it blooms, anyway.

  2. It very well should by Jacer · · Score: 0, Troll

    i mean, i know how much "fuel" is in my sweage!

    --
    --fetch daddy's blue fright wig, i must be handsome when i release my rage
    1. Re:It very well should by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      why was that modded down!!! MoC once again.

  3. Alternative fuel sources... by NoMoreNicksLeft · · Score: 4, Funny

    Oil vanishes
    World has energy crisis
    Turn poop into fuel

    1. Re:Alternative fuel sources... by taya0001 · · Score: 0

      My neigbors dog has been doing this for years. Turning poop into his own alternative "energy" source

    2. Re:Alternative fuel sources... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      All I gotta say is that's some cool sh*t.

      >

    3. Re:Alternative fuel sources... by spike+hay · · Score: 3, Funny

      So now do I bill the sewer utility for my sewage, or what?

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    4. Re:Alternative fuel sources... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You are one sick puppy... and I thought goatse.cx was bad...

  4. Hopefully... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    they pay the resource creators... If they do, I'll be eating quite a bit more fiber!

    1. Re:Hopefully... by stoolpigeon · · Score: 1

      You must be new to how this kind of thing works.

      They will not pay you - here is what they'll do.

      They will charge you a fee and add it to whatever you pay now for sewage. They'll call it a Universal Fuel Recovery Fee.

      Then they'll (the gov. folks as this will be originating from public systems) will take kick backs to give contracts to their friends to do the actual work. Then they'll pass laws requiring you to use a certain amount of the new fuel.

      When you go to buy the new fuel you will pay another tax. This will be the Universal Fuel Access Fee.

      Your life will get quite a bit more expensive while 15-20 white men between the ages of 55 and 65 (who are already incredibly rich) will profit enormously.

      If they can't get all this in place - they will squash the technology.

      .

      --
      It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
  5. H? by SSJ_Ramon · · Score: 2, Funny

    Hydrogen, I thought it mean ecchi.

    Never mind.

    --

    This .sig is void where prohibited, no purchase necessary.
    1. Re:H? by moogla · · Score: 1

      You're not into THAT kind of Ecchi are you?

      :P

      --
      Black holes are where the Matrix raised SIGFPE
  6. first post? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Anything is better then filling more roadside landfills that just add to the beauty of our land!

  7. H2, not H.... by Drunken_Jackass · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Wasn't there just a story posted on Slashdot of Americans ineptitude of grasping basic science concepts?

    oh well.

    --
    There are 01 types of people in this world. Those that understand binary, and me.
    1. Re:H2, not H.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      the atomic symbol for hydrogen is H, there's nothing wrong with posting H and not H2

    2. Re:H2, not H.... by Drunken_Jackass · · Score: 1

      True, the symbol is H, but hydrogen doesn't normally exist in that state. You can't turn garbage in to H. You can turn it into H2.

      --
      There are 01 types of people in this world. Those that understand binary, and me.
    3. Re:H2, not H.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      yuo fucken eurotrash!

    4. Re:H2, not H.... by spike+hay · · Score: 2

      They used "H" just to generally refer to the element hydrogen. Many elements pretty mostly only exist in molecular form, such as oxygen and helium.

      Do you always refer to oxygen as O2 and Helium as H2, just to be completely accurate?

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    5. Re:H2, not H.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Do you always refer to oxygen as O2 and Helium as H2, just to be completely accurate?

      Symbol for Helium is He NOT H. That's Hydrogen, dumbass. How's that for completely accurate?

    6. Re:H2, not H.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Helium is an inert gas... No molecules there dude. It's He BTW. Yes in the 60's they made some funky XeF4 'compounds' out of inert gases, but it turns out they're only carcinomers, the inert atom is literally trapped inside a cage and is not chemically bound at all. It goes 'poof' when exposed to water. Nice explosive, I guess.

    7. Re:H2, not H.... by the_2nd_coming · · Score: 1

      and Helium as H2,

      that would be He2

      --



      I am the Alpha and the Omega-3
    8. Re:H2, not H.... by Drunken_Jackass · · Score: 1

      Do you always refer to oxygen as O2 and Helium as H2, just to be completely accurate?

      Yes, as a matter of fact, i do.

      --
      There are 01 types of people in this world. Those that understand binary, and me.
  8. Finally by Ksop · · Score: 4, Funny

    now i have the second step in my plan to rule the world...

    1. Collect poop

    2. ...

    3. Be rich as Gates and rule the world.

    1. Re:Finally by tmarzolf · · Score: 1

      Read the article, it's just a bunch of hot air.

      --

      This Sig has been depreciated.

    2. Re:Finally by gregger · · Score: 1

      It looks like if you did #1, you'd have a lot of #2 anyway...

  9. Similar to Hydrolysis? by ungulation · · Score: 0

    Isn't this just reclaiming water from sewage, then breaking it into Hydrogen and Oxygen? If it is, this is nothing new...

  10. Why mess with sewage? by Fizzlewhiff · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    They need to invent a woman that pees Guinness and poops gold. That would solve all my problems.

    --

    'Same speed C but faster'
    1. Re:Why mess with sewage? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They need to invent a woman that pees Guinness

      Most women do...

  11. Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by hij · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Isn't hydrogen an abundant element? One of the primary uses they cite is fuel cells. Fuel cells are closed systems, and the expensive part is recharging a cell and not filling it in the first place. Besides, hydrogen has so many other drawbacks due to its low molecular weight, that the main problem isn't getting hydrogen it is using it.

    --
    Believe nothing -- Buddha
    1. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by Drakin · · Score: 5, Informative

      Hydrogen is abundant. However, it's also very reactive and forms compounts rather easily. So we have lots of hydrogen, just not in the form of H2 which is the form that is wanted for fuel.

    2. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A fuel cell doesn't have to be closed. You could recharge a fuel cell by just pumping in more H2 instead of using it like a battery.

    3. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by seldolivaw · · Score: 2

      Fuel cells are not the only use, however. Simply combining H2 with O2 produces a goodly amount of energy, and if you have abundant cheap hydrogen then you don't need to recharge the cell; you can just throw away the waste products (e.g., drink the water :-) ) and pump some more H2 in. The reason this is not a popular way of using H2 right now is precisely because H2 is so expensive.

    4. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by spike+hay · · Score: 4, Informative

      You can make hydrogen at home. It's sort of safe.

      Ingredients:

      Granular Lye
      Aluminum foil
      water
      PLASTIC gas can
      garden hose

      1.Take the little gas spigot, and attach to garden hose with duct tape or somthing. Attach the other end of the garden hose onto a garbage bag.
      2. Now, take about 1 sq. foot of foil. Make a thickish line of lye on the aluminum foil. Roll it up until it looks like a cigar.
      3. Fill the can with 3/4 inch of water.
      4. Now, as quickly as you can, cap the gas can. Much of the hydrogen is produced in the first few seconds.
      5. Sit back and watch your bag fill up with hydrogen. The gas can will get very, very hot during the reaction. The reason for the hose is so the water vapor can condense.

      Now, you can do all sorts of things with your hydrogen:

      1. Blow it up. When you make hydrogen for exploding, include about 50% air in the bag, to provide enough oxygen for rapid combustion. This is not very dangerous. The hydrogen blows up too fast to burn you. The worst exploding hydrogen can do is singe your eyelashes. The main danger of this is getting hit by the burning plastic bag. Blowing it up is very fun. It even makes a shock wave. However, I suggest igniting it with a 10 foot long pipe with a match on the end.

      2. Make a balloon. Just get the hydrogen as pure as can be. Then, tie up your bag when it is full. On a still day, just realease your balloon. Attach some colorful paper or somthing to it so you can see it on it's ascent. If you only fill the bag a third of the way full, your balloon should reach about 40,000 feet.

      3. Breath it. It creates a high-pitched voice just like helium. Hydrogen is completely non-toxic. Just don't go near flames for a few minutes! (-: Also, don't stick your head in the head in the bag or anything. You could suffocate. Hydrogen is non-toxic, but without oxygen, you would die. You also wouldn't realize you needed to take a breath. When you hold your breath, the burning in your lungs is C02. Since you are inhaling pure hydrogen, which is not metabolized into CO2, you would have no idea that you needed to take a breath.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    5. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by spike+hay · · Score: 3, Informative

      BTW, might I add that the byproduct of the lye-foil reaction is more corrosive than battery acid? It will burn you if you come into contact with it.

      Also, you can put multiple fuel cigars into the gas can.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    6. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What do you do with the stuff left in the gas can? If it's more corrosive than battery acid it can't be too good to just dump it down the drain.

    7. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by spike+hay · · Score: 2

      I just dump it on the ground somewhere. It's not environmentally friendly, but what the hell else are you supposed to do?

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    8. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by ibbey · · Score: 3, Informative

      Dumping it down your household drain would be a better solution. Drano & the like are Lye, so I wouldn't expect that this would be any worse. It'll just get removed at the sewage treatment plant. Dumping it on the ground could effect the environment more directly, though I doubt it'd be too much of a problem. I would probably not dump it down a storm drain, however, as they frequenty drain directly to rivers or lakes. Of course, I am only guessing about all of this, so someone please correct me if I am wrong.

    9. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by ahoehn · · Score: 1

      Rumer has it that if you take two opposately charged electrodes and place them a half inch or so apart in aquious water hydrogen will form. I remember trying this when I was 15 or so with a car battery recharger and getting little bubbles floating up from the electrodes.

      --
      Mod my comments down. It'll be fun.
    10. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by laxian · · Score: 1

      You can neutralize it by adding Baking Soda. Works for both acids and bases. Fizzes up pretty good with acids ... ever add baking soda to vinegar as a kid?

      --

      our written thoughts are gifts to our future selves

    11. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "aquious water"

      as opposed to that dry kind?

    12. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      as opposed to that dry kind?

      That's right, they call it ice.

    13. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by horza · · Score: 3, Informative

      Fuel cells are closed systems, and the expensive part is recharging a cell and not filling it in the first place.

      I don't understand. The hydrogen is the fuel in the fuel cell. You don't recharge a fuel cell, it works like an engine (though using the movement of electrons and protons instead of mechanical parts). And it's not a closed system. You put fuel in, and electricity and waste (water) comes out. Nothing stays internally. Read more about how they work here.

      Besides, hydrogen has so many other drawbacks due to its low molecular weight, that the main problem isn't getting hydrogen it is using it.

      There are two drawbacks. The first is you need to compress it to get a good power/volume ratio, and the second is that the molecules are so small they tend to leak out of anything trying to contain it. They are simple engineering problems though. The former we can already do without problem. The latter various materials are being tested for containers, as is storing the hydrogen within another compound such as boron and then using a catalyst to release it upon demand.

      Phillip.
      http://www.FutureEnergies.com/

    14. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by Mr.Intel · · Score: 2
      There are two drawbacks. The first is you need to compress it to get a good power/volume ratio, and the second is that the molecules are so small they tend to leak out of anything trying to contain it. They are simple engineering problems though. The former we can already do without problem. The latter various materials are being tested for containers, as is storing the hydrogen within another compound such as boron and then using a catalyst to release it upon demand.

      Or Borax as Daimler-Chrysler did with it's Natrium minivan. The Sodium Boro-Hydride carries the H2 and it is extracted when needed. No storage problems, no compression needs. Gets 300 miles to the tank too. So what are we waiting for?

      --
      ASCII tastes bad dude.
      Binary it is then.
    15. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by spike+hay · · Score: 2

      Yeah, I guess I could dump it down the drain. This byproduct is much, much more corrosive than regular lye, however. I don't really want to carry it through my house.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    16. Re:Isn't Hydrogen Abundant by phazei · · Score: 1

      OMG, isn't that called.. electrolisys?
      great for homemade oxygen bar + explosions.

  12. How is this alternitive fuel? by trip11 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    My question is what is actually providing the energy to heat and break up the waste? Sure this sounds like a good method to get rid of waste but it isn't an alternitive fuel source that I can see. You still need solar or oil to break apart the Hydrogen. Nothing is free.

    1. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You could burn some of the hydrogen to run the process. This process would only be useful if it generates substantially more H2 than it takes to run the process. That's a big "if", though.

      The net power would originally come from the sun -- you're converting the energy stored in carbohydrates in the organic waste, originally captured by plants.

    2. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by bugg · · Score: 2
      I think you've pretty much answered your own question. Nothing is free. All forms of power generation require an input of more energy than we will ever get out of it. The big question is- who has to do this work?

      What I'm trying to say/ask is, what is an example of an "alternative fuel source" that fits your definition?

      --
      -bugg
    3. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by iabervon · · Score: 2

      This process is presumably self-sustaining (once it gets started, which obviously takes energy). Waste actually has a reasonable amount of energy, which is why it will burn. The trick is extracting that energy in a more useful form without making a huge mess. They seem to have found a material that permits the hydrogen gas to be separated from the rest of the stuff.

      The old process is 20% efficient, which presumably means that it gets 20% of the energy in the waste out in the form of H2. The new process is supposed to be twice as efficient. The process doesn't require more energy than it produces, but it remains to be seen whether it produces enough energy to be worth the pain of dealing with waste and hydrogen-depleted waste.

    4. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How about using a fission power source? No carbond dioxide emissions and there is no need to take out large tracts of land for solar cells.

      Oh wait, it generates highly radioactive 'waste' in the form of spent fuel. The USA could reprocess it, but that would be too much like the French, and no one likes them. All we need is a place to dump it...Aghanistan maybe? Forget it, Nevada will work.

    5. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by spike+hay · · Score: 1

      You could burn some of the hydrogen to run the process. This process would only be useful if it generates substantially more H2 than it takes to run the process. That's a big "if", though.

      That would work, except for a the little problem of thermodynamics.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    6. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by bugg · · Score: 2
      I'm a huge fan of nuclear power. But you're still getting more power out than was put in (put in, in this case, when the uranium or plutonium atoms were formed, probably in a supernova).

      Nuclear power is drastically cleaner than coal, oil, and when done properly causes less enviornmental damage than hydroelectric. And thanks to the nature of radiation, the most dangerous waste becomes inert the fastest. The biggest downsides to nuclear power are the security concerns (fresh waste needs to be guarded, reactor-grade fuel requires less work to be made into weapons-grade, etc) but it's certainly nothing that we can't work out.

      --
      -bugg
    7. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Finally! Someone informed on nuclear power. You are absolutely correct.

      The waste is down to the levels of non-dangerous uranium ore in 500 years. This would be reduced to under 100 years if we used breeder reactors.

      Also, nuclear plants realease less radiation than coal power, oddly enough.

      Three Mile Island didn't kill or hurt anyone. Chernobyl can't happen with our reactors.

    8. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by Jeremi · · Score: 2
      That would work, except for a the little problem of thermodynamics


      If your thinking of the 2nd law, that only applies to closed systems. Since this system is getting a continuous supply of fresh waste material (read: fuel) from elsewhere, this is not a closed system.

      --


      I don't care if it's 90,000 hectares. That lake was not my doing.
    9. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by Minupla · · Score: 2

      OK, Biochem was never my best subject, so I'm going to speak in generalities here. Yes, the laws of thermal dynamics say that you can never get equal energy out then what you put in. Consider the case of conventional fossil fuels tho. You put a spark in, and get a lot of energy out. What's going on there? Well obviously the energy is coming from the oil, which kindly dinos produced for us by eating lots of green leafy things, which grew by taking energy in from sunlight.

      In the case of our sewage the same thing is the case, we're getting our energy by exploding Hydrogen, which was produced by some kindly humans eating green leafy things or things that ate green leafy things.

      So, you could get your H{sub}2{/sub} out of the waste without terminally breaking any of the tenents of thermal dynamics, since what you are doing, rather then creating or destrying energy is converting it, with a big loss from the origional source (the sun).

      --
      On the whole, I find that I prefer Slashdot posts to twitter ones because I don't get limited to 140 chars before
    10. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by spike+hay · · Score: 1

      Sorry, my mistake. I misunderstood the post. For some reason I was off in la-la-land thinking the post had somthing to do with fuel cells, for some reason. You are absolutely correct.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    11. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by laxian · · Score: 1

      Too bad nuclear power plants are also used to create nuclear weapons!

      --

      our written thoughts are gifts to our future selves

    12. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by Tony-A · · Score: 2

      The waste itself provides the energy, or a large portion of it.
      The process is much like a swamp making swamp gas, but quicker and with a cleaner product. The trick is to waste as little as possible of the energy that's in the waste, and to get a good clean product.

      The new process begins with turning waste "biomass" into hydrogen, methane, water, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, using standard gasification techniques that involve heat and pressure. But further hydrogen is then produced by also breaking down the methane and water, says Bhattacharya, with the aid of a nanocrystalline catalyst.

      The process can be run continuously because pure hydrogen is extracted through a palladium-coated ceramic semi-permeable membrane that blocks other gases. If the hydrogen was not removed the reaction would reach equilibrium and stop. Bhattacharya adds that the heat efficiency of the new system has also been significantly improved.


    13. Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by bugg · · Score: 1

      Nuclear power plan aren't used to create nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons require weapons-grade uranium or plutonium, and neither is seen in large enough quantity to make a weapon in a typical power plant.

      --
      -bugg
  13. Mr. Fusion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Back the Future II

  14. Does it mean.. by rajinikanth · · Score: 0

    that all my shit is now just hot air?:)

    1. Re:Does it mean.. by cbv · · Score: 1

      No, it means that "smells like teen spirit" gets
      a whole new meaning ;-)

  15. Hydrogen is a dimer! by rmcgehee · · Score: 2, Informative

    Get it straight: Sewage is to be turned into H2, not H. Elemental hydrogen is unstable and is not used as a fuel. Hydrogen gas (the molecule H2), on the other hand, can be burned to form energy.

    1. Re:Hydrogen is a dimer! by Phosphor3k · · Score: 1

      wow. looks like someone took middle school chem.

    2. Re:Hydrogen is a dimer! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not the editors, apparently.

    3. Re:Hydrogen is a dimer! by Tardigrade · · Score: 1

      It seems to me that H is probably an intermediate. If you're going to be anal about it, you might as well say "Sewage to be Turned into Energy", as H2 + O -> Energy is the final step.

    4. Re:Hydrogen is a dimer! by spike+hay · · Score: 2

      If we could make atomic hydrogen and store it, or even better yet atomic helium, it would be pretty good.

      When He bonds to form He2, it realeases lots of energy. Atomic Helium is metastable and will instantly recombine to form He2.

      The energy produced by this reaction is about 5 times as energetic as the most energetic combustion reaction, H2+O2.

      The main use for it would be rockets. Most hydrogen rockets get a specific impulse of around 450 seconds. Metastable helium or hydrogen would get about 2500 seconds. However, we don't know how to make anywhere enough for a rocket, or store it.

      In the nearer term, ozone could boost rocket isp's. Ozone is metastable. It is not as energetic as atomic H or He, however. Using ozone in place of O2 in rocket engines can boost ISP by over a hundred seconds.

      Rockets powered by metastable H or He will probably never happen. There are easier methods with which you can get increased fuel effieciency.

      For boosters, scramjet/rocket powered spaceplanes would provide excellent fuel effieciency.

      For in space, the ultra-efficient VASIMR plasma rocket would provide an ISP of 30,000, about ten times as great as metastable elements.

      Metastable propulsion now is pretty much just theory. However, these 2 propulsion systems I just mentioned are under development right now. They have test engines for both the SCRAMJET and the VASIMR.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
  16. Open Source? by wednesdaywar · · Score: 1, Funny

    I don't even want to think about the implications of making this Open Source.... Not to mention the kernals...

    1. Re:Open Source? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0


      You mean the undigested kernels in my crap?

  17. Howard? by seanadams.com · · Score: 1

    Is he Anonymous, or Howard? You only get to pick one.

  18. Summary... by ZiZ · · Score: 2, Interesting
    For those of you disinclined to gardening, what the article is saying is basically that they have developed an improvement to the compost heap. In particular, a reaction to exctract the hydrogen from the methane plus a hydrogen-specific osmotic filter allow them to maintain the reaction...

    Pretty interesting. This bodes well for the future of recycling, too...

    --
    This flies in the face of science.
  19. Suwage acid? by Penguinoflight · · Score: 1

    Acid, something that gives hydrogen ions. Of course, we wonder if it's stinky hydrogen :-)

    --
    "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the World"
    1 John 4:14
  20. Finally... by eyefish · · Score: 4, Funny

    We'll FINALLY be able to run our cars off garbage like that DeLorean in Back to the Future...

    1. Re:Finally... by zer0vector · · Score: 1

      Well...I think the device in Back to the Future was called Mr. Fusion. I don't think the process the article is referring to is atomic fusion.

      --

      ----
      Striving to put right what once went wrong, and hoping each time that his next leap, will be the leap ho
    2. Re:Finally... by sehryan · · Score: 1

      Except the shape of Mr. Fusion will be decidedly toilet shaped, with a roll on one side and a nice set of magazines on the other. Oh, and don't eat cheese, otherwise you won't be going anywhere for a week (pun intended).

      --
      The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.
    3. Re:Finally... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah an it sure saves having to stop for for those toilet breaks...

  21. UK only joke.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They're going to turn garbage into H? I already thought 'Steps' were crap.

  22. sniff sniff by irc(addict) · · Score: 2, Funny

    I swear I just saw one of those hybrid cars go by..
    wait..
    snifff
    whats that smell? ;P

    1. Re:sniff sniff by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM says that your nose is too near your mouth, then, by God, your nose IS too near your mouth! Can we FINALLY consider that settled, then?

  23. Hmmm... by Wonko+the+Sane+42 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Okay... a few thingns...

    what does 20% efficient mean? There's this lovely quote that it's twice as efficient as our current 20% efficient systems... does this mean you get 20% more out of it than what you put in? If so, it's not bad considering we have more than enough raw sewage to process. However, we have this other problem. What do you do with hydrogen? Sure, you might be able to make some sort of power plant to process the stuff. In fact... some researcher have done it... check this out...

    http://www.geocities.com/ResearchTriangle/Lab/93 18 / uantumcorp.html

    93% efficiency... not bad. But hydrogen is dangerous stuff. I'd say a large amount of hydrogen is more dangerous than a large amount of reactor-grade uranium... considering all it takes to make hydrogen explode is air and heat. That's one of the reason we don't have hydrogen-powered cars. I don't know anybody else... but if they're looking a something like this, they'd better find a safer way to store hydrogen first. Maybe make a big tank out of a bucky ball and put the hydrogen in there...

    --
    The Internet, one place where if you're not right, someone else will set you straight... maybe.
    1. Re:Hmmm... by Wonko+the+Sane+42 · · Score: 1

      Sorry about the bad URL... here's a new one.

      http://www.geocities.com/ResearchTriangle/Lab/93 18 / uantumcorp.html

      Interesting though...

      --
      The Internet, one place where if you're not right, someone else will set you straight... maybe.
    2. Re:Hmmm... by Gaijinator · · Score: 1

      > considering all it takes to make hydrogen explode is air and heat

      You could say that for gasoline, as well. However, fuel cells don't use combustion, so there's less heat. They essentially take the electrons from hydrogen molecules, use them to power whatever is on the circuit, and then gives them back to combine with oxygen and make water.

      Sure, people may say "But hydrogen is in hydrogen bombs! And it would really hurt if I got hit with one of those!" but I think there would be other problems if your car/generator/??? suddenly started fusing hydrogen.

      --
      "For success, it is essential you have Thunderball Fists." "I can have such a thing?" "That's right. Thunderball Fists."
    3. Re:Hmmm... by bugg · · Score: 5, Insightful
      Please, do not spread misinformation about the safety of hydrogen. First of all, you argue that hydrogen is dangerous because all it takes to make hydrogen explode is air and heat.

      This is true. All you need for a hydrogen+oxygen fire is hydrogen, oxygen, and enough activation energy for the reaction (typically provided in the form of a spark or heat from the preceeding reactions). But, before we go any further, let's talk about gasoline. Right now in you car I'm betting you have at the very least 10 gallons of it, and if you just filled up you could have more. Hydrogen as stored for electrical generation would not have oxygen- if you turned on the valve and held your lighter to it you'd essentially be making a bunson burner (or if it's leaking fast enough, a flame thrower). Now, what about gasoline?

      Because of gasoline's low flash point (-40 degrees C. or F, your pick), you find yourself with a bunch of flammable vapors in a short period of time. And gasoline burns more slowly than hydrogen, and this is bad in terms of safety. Hydrogen burns up really quickly and is gone, gasoline pesters. Gasoline fires are much more dangerous than hydrogen fires. And we're not even addressing all of the toxic fumes that go along with combustion of gasoline.

      In the Hindenburg disaster, all of the hydrogen was gone with a pop. The ensuing fire, flames, and mayhem were the result of the paint- the zepplin was painted with a compound that was intended to reduce drag. Unfortunately, this paint was essentially jet fuel. The Hindenburg disaster serves as more of an argument against petroleum based fuels than against hydrogen.

      Of all the problems with hydrogen, safety is not one of them. It's safer for people directly, and it's safer for us and the enviornment in the long run.

      As for your question about efficiency, obviously 20% efficiency means you harness 20% of the total energy that is in the fuel source. Getting 20% more out than what you put in would be a violation of the first law of thermodynamics.

      --
      -bugg
    4. Re:Hmmm... by Michael+Woodhams · · Score: 2

      Good question on the efficiency. I'd guess '20% efficient' (or 40% for this new process) means either:
      * You can extract 20% as much energy from the produced hydrogen as you expended to extract it from the sewage.
      * You can extract 20% as much energy from the produced hydrogen, after deducting the cost of extraction, compared to the theoretical energy you could extract from the sewage by fully oxidizing it.

      I disagree with the dangerous part, however. Hydrogen is safer than petrol/gasoline:
      * Lower energy density
      * Disperses *very* quickly, so it is hard to accumulate enough around a leak site to make a decent explosion.

      Once dispersed, the hydrogen is harmless. Uranium is chemically extremely toxic. Both the chemical and radioactivity toxicity are not rendered harmless by dispersal - you just do less poisoning to more area. I would guess that for nearly pure uranium, the chemical toxicity is worse than the radioactivity. Once used in a reactor, however, the result is highly radioactive and will remain dangerous for thousands of years.

      --
      Quattuor res in hoc mundo sanctae sunt: libri, liberi, libertas et liberalitas.
    5. Re:Hmmm... by Wonko+the+Sane+42 · · Score: 1

      Fair points. And thanks for the clarification about the efficiency. Actually, I sorta realized that had to be it by the time I finished the post. By the time I got to the last paragraph, I didn't really agree with much of the first paragraph myself anymore.
      I'll agree that leaked hydrogen is definately not dangerous. And actually, as a burnable fuel is great because hydrogen burns "clean". Also, good writup on the Hindenburg disaster, thank you.

      The Internet, one place where if you're not right, someone else will set you straight.

      --
      The Internet, one place where if you're not right, someone else will set you straight... maybe.
    6. Re:Hmmm... by wackybrit · · Score: 1

      All of your post is informative and useful, except this:

      Right now in you car I'm betting you have at the very least 10 gallons of it,

      Huh? My car holds a TOTAL of 12 US gallons, so why would you assume that's a 'very least' amount anyone would have? Currently my car has about 3-4 litres in the tank.. which works out as 1 of your gallons.

    7. Re:Hmmm... by lkaos · · Score: 2

      I'd guess '20% efficient' (or 40% for this new process) means either:

      Typically, when discussing fuel "efficency," the term is used to mean the amount of power actually harnnessed verses the energy of the reaction.

      The combustion engine is a classic example of a horribly inefficient power source as it is something like 7% efficient meaning that only 7% of the power produced in the reaction is actually used (the rest is heat, wear, friction, etc.).

      --
      int func(int a);
      func((b += 3, b));
    8. Re:Hmmm... by bugg · · Score: 2
      Also, current fuel cells are roughly five times more efficient at getting electrcity from hydrogen than burning it in a generator. The only advantage to getting power by combustion of hydrogen is that it's a really easy thing to do. The practical applications of burning hydrogen, however, if any, are very limited. Pardon the cliche, but fuel cells are the wave of the future.

      As for how to store the hydrogen, storing it as a gas is difficult because of the pressures required to get dense hydrogen. We might see new and more efficient techniques for synthesizing hydrocarbons (like gasoline ;)) pop up. With nuclear power, it should be a pretty good combination. Other people support using natural gas (Methane, CH4) and steam reforming it. We will see where the future takes us with this (heck, it may take is to non-hydrogen fuel cells)!

      --
      -bugg
    9. Re:Hmmm... by spike+hay · · Score: 1

      But hydrogen is dangerous stuff. I'd say a large amount of hydrogen is more dangerous than a large amount of reactor-grade uranium...

      You are absolutely correct, sir. Uranium has very low radioactivity. That's why it's half-life is over a billion years. It has low enough radioactivity that they make fiesta-ware out of the ore. (The ore, interestingly enough, is more radioactive than the metal, due to the radium content) You only would have to worry about spent rods, which contain plutonium among other things.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    10. Re:Hmmm... by mark_lybarger · · Score: 1

      i would fairly safely assume that the poster was going for the majority (this being >75%) on this point. most vehicles here have 12(compact) - 20+ (suv's) gallon tanks.

      since you're talking liters, i will assume you're from a different country.

    11. Re:Hmmm... by MtViewGuy · · Score: 2

      Certain forms of hydrogen are extremely dangerous to handle.

      Especially liquid hydrogen--when LH2 burns it does it with an extremely explosive force indeed. That's why LH2 is used as rocket fuel. It's also the reason why when the external tank blew up on the Challenger launch in 1986 it did it with the force of a tactical nuclear warhead.

    12. Re:Hmmm... by Decimal · · Score: 2

      Yeah, the only real problem is that hydrogen is a gas, not a liquid like gas. So everyone you talk to at the Hydrogen Station will have squeeky voices.

      --

      Remember "Bring 'em on"? *sigh
    13. Re:Hmmm... by Decimal · · Score: 2

      Er, like gasoline. Dammit.

      --

      Remember "Bring 'em on"? *sigh
    14. Re:Hmmm... by joekool · · Score: 1

      I feel it's my duty to inform you that the squeaky voice stuff is helium. Too my knowledge, that is not a property of Hydrogen.

      --

      Slackware: old school feel, new school gear.
    15. Re:Hmmm... by joekool · · Score: 1

      Assuming everyone on average has 3/4 of a tank seems foolish, but if we do, then it might be possible. (also assuming that the distribution of gas tank size across any given sample is normalized) That would lead to an average somewhere around 12. I think reality would lead us to believe that people at least on average are probably closer to 1/2 a tank. Which would lead us to believe that 6 gallons or so is closer to the average in people tanks at any given moment. Since my car seems to have made it here this morning on nothing at all (started on nothing, ended on less), we'll assume it's sucking gas out of everyone else's car, leading to an even smaller average.

      All of this mean that the guy above you was probably right, but it makes no difference to the guy above him's argument.
      Which would make me completly irrelevent, I suppose.

      --

      Slackware: old school feel, new school gear.
    16. Re:Hmmm... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Dammit again, you're probably right. Has anybody here tried sucking hydrogen to find out?

    17. Re:Hmmm... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And Helium does this because it is less dense than air. Vocal cords move faster. If i remember correctly Hydrogen is less dense than Helium. It should make your voice higher.

    18. Re:Hmmm... by damien_kane · · Score: 1

      they'd better find a safer way to store hydrogen first. Maybe make a big tank out of a bucky ball and put the hydrogen in there...

      They'd better make sure its more than one atom thick... Otherwise they might create their own big bang

    19. Re:Hmmm... by bugg · · Score: 0
      Oh, yeah, we're all off topic.

      Maybe 5-6 gallons would have been a better figure. Mea culpa. Regardless of how many gallons it is, I don't want to see it ignite. :)

      Actually, I take that back, it'd be cool to see it ignite- I just don't want to be near it ;)

      --
      -bugg
    20. Re:Hmmm... by joekool · · Score: 1

      that's how people lose eyebrow's!

      Well, at least that's how I lost mine.

      I never did like that car.

      --

      Slackware: old school feel, new school gear.
    21. Re:Hmmm... by adminispheroid · · Score: 1
      The squeakiness of He comes from it being a low density gas (compared to air). And H2 is half the density of He. So it would be even squeakier.

      But I haven't tried this, and I sure as hell ain't gonna.

    22. Re:Hmmm... by swylie · · Score: 1

      Hindenburg paint- not jet fuel, rocket fuel. Jet fuel is kerosene, a mixture of alkanes. The paint of the Hindenburg was some kind of solid nitrogen aluminum compound that had literally been tested as a rocket fuel.

    23. Re:Hmmm... by mpe · · Score: 2

      In the Hindenburg disaster, all of the hydrogen was gone with a pop. The ensuing fire, flames, and mayhem were the result of the paint- the zepplin was painted with a compound that was intended to reduce drag. Unfortunately, this paint was essentially jet fuel.

      Not quite correct, the paint was effectivly rocket fuel. Similar to that used in SRBs. Another purpose of it was to be reflective and thus prevent solar heating of the gas, which would have ment needing to adjust vertical trim more between day and night.
      The other fuel on board was that for the engines.

    24. Re:Hmmm... by Muad'Dave · · Score: 3, Funny

      Certain forms of hydrogen are extremely dangerous to handle.

      Especially that nasty Dihydrogen Monoxide!!!

      --
      Tiller's Rule: Never use a word in written form that you've only heard and never read. You will end up looking foolish.
    25. Re:Hmmm... by Tower · · Score: 1

      Hydrogen works, too - it is also not toxic, and is no more dangerous to inhale than helium... there isn't much reason to try it, but hey, it could be fun...

      --
      "It's tough to be bilingual when you get hit in the head."
    26. Re:Hmmm... by Tower · · Score: 2

      I know a fair amount of people that fill up when they get anywhere near 1/3->1/4 of a tank remaining, and even those of us who wait longer tend to refill before or around the time the warning light/bell (if equipped) comes on (usually 2-3 gallons on most vehicles), so a more realistic "average" for a 12 gallon tank would be 6-8 (this is not a strict time average, of course), and when you include Ford Exploders and Chevy Subdivisions (my grandfather's old Suburban had a 40 Gal tank - but he actually used it for towing a large trailer cross-country, not just for groceries), you would probably see that average go up even more... 10 gal is probably high, but not altogether unreasonable...

      and that, of course, doesn't mean that the "empty" space in a gas tank isn't filled with the more dangerous gas vapors... a less full tank can explode quite a bit more violently.

      --
      "It's tough to be bilingual when you get hit in the head."
    27. Re:Hmmm... by joekool · · Score: 1

      your right about people that put gas in before the tank is dry--I was assuming, for the purpose of rough calculation, that they are offset by all the people that only put in a few gallons at a time, and drive around below half a tank all the time, like I do. In a small town, you don't have to use as much, and you might as well put in just enough for a week, and not fill up ever, except in the event of an exceptionally low price on gas. Oh and I think that we can assume that tanks above 12 gallons are in the minority. All of course still irrelevent.

      On the other hand your probably right about the less full tank being full of vapors, and thus prone to larger explosions(mostly dependant on the vapor pressure, if I remember correctly), which actualy did have something too do with somebodys point above--I of course have long since lost track of what it was though.

      --

      Slackware: old school feel, new school gear.
    28. Re:Hmmm... by joekool · · Score: 1

      I did not know that--some one had told me something different, and I no longer have any idea who it was, otherwise I would have to severly beat them....ah well, I learn something new every day

      --

      Slackware: old school feel, new school gear.
    29. Re:Hmmm... by Mr.Intel · · Score: 2
      We will see where the future takes us with this (heck, it may take is to non-hydrogen fuel cells)!

      You mean like Borax as Daimler-Chrysler did with it's Natrium minivan. The Sodium Boro-Hydride carries the H2 and it is extracted when needed. No storage problems, no compression needs. Gets 300 miles to the tank too.

      --
      ASCII tastes bad dude.
      Binary it is then.
  24. So let me see if I got this straight... by NoMoreNicksLeft · · Score: 5, Funny

    There once was a fuel researcher from Wales
    Who might have had one too many ales...
    He said "You might think I'm nuts"
    "We can get hydrogen from our butts"
    "And fill our gas tanks with our tails!"

  25. Seriously, folks... by 00_NOP · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Does anyone think hydrogen is going to be accepted by the public as a fuel anytime soon?

    Seems to me that the oil companies need only roll out that old Hindenberg film everytime to clinch this one.

    1. Re:Seriously, folks... by Fiver-rah · · Score: 4, Insightful
      Aside from sheer misplaced emotional idiocy, I don't see why not. There's folks out there who accept nuclear power despite tragic mishaps which have happened there. There's even people that accept the combustion of hydrocarbons as a source of power despite any number of mishaps. One major one that comes to mind? Some idiots flew a bunch of planes carrying upwards of 20,000 gallons of this stuff into the WTC. And we all know what happened there.

      My point isn't that we should eschew all dangerous fuels. My point is that fuel is dangerous. It has to be. If it doesn't have a high chemical potential energy, it's not fuel; it's inert and therefore useless. I sure hope the public doesn't get swayed by stupid misguided safety arguments.

      --
      Read Bujold. Free (as in
    2. Re:Seriously, folks... by dimitri_k · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Seems to me that the oil companies need only roll out that old Hindenberg [sic] film everytime to clinch this one.

      Um, that doesn't happen. I know, I know, anything large and rich is bad, but if they are so ruthless at least give them credit for something less juvenile than:

      ENERGYCO VP: Johnson, this darn Hydrogen research is really scary. Instead of seeing how we can make money off it as a large energy supplier with an entrenched distribution infrastructure, I guess we should just roll out the ole' Hindenburg clip. That should stop the progress in it's tracks.

      --
      sig is
    3. Re:Seriously, folks... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      More like:
      ENERGYCO VP: We have two choices here. Spend money on hydrogen research which wouldn't really increase our incomes much, or keep on making money from our existing gasoline infrastructure for the next x years until the oil runs out and we're forced to switch anyway. So it's basically long term of short term money. Our stockholders want short term money. Roll the Hindenburg clips.

    4. Re:Seriously, folks... by ibbey · · Score: 3, Informative

      Um, that doesn't happen.

      Sure it does. Ever hear how the electric chair was invented? Tesla's invention of the A/C motor finally made widespread distribution of electricity feasable. The problem was that Edison only had patents on D/C generators. The public had to be convinced that D/C was better. Conveniently, New York State was looking for a new, "more humane" way to execute prisoners. Edison proposed using A/C power to electrecute them, thereby demonstrating how dangerous A/C was. Unfortunately, his plan backfired when the first victim was still alive (albeit smoking) after four full minutes of current. See the book Blood & Volts by Thomas Metzger for more history.

  26. ecchi? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When I saw that title I wondered what kinda ecchi sewage they were talking about...

  27. Think "Storage" Re:How is this alternitive fuel? by StefanJ · · Score: 2
    Think of the H2 (stored as is, or in a hydrocarbon, or temporarily bound with a metal) as a form of energy STORAGE.

    Sure, you need to expend energy to make it, and that energy will come from sources that include oil and coal. But it's much easier to deal with emissions in a big plant than in individual internal combustion engines. And down the road, as wind and solar and tidal become affordable, you can start phasing out the fossil fuels and get most or all of the carbon out of the loop.

    It won't happen overnight, but this is a start. Gotta get those learning economies going.

    Stefan

  28. Because hydrogen is diatomic by yerricde · · Score: 5, Informative

    What does that say about our geek-ness, or lack of it, when we see "H" and think heroin instead of hydrogen?

    It means we know the difference between H, H+, and H2. Hydrogen, like oxygen, nitrogen, and the halogens, is diatomic, meaning that it exists in nature in pairs (Cl2 I2 F2 Br2 O2 H2 N2). In nature, it also exists as positive ions (labeled H+); Bronsted acids give off these. (Water is amphiprotic; that is, it's a weak acid and base simultaneously.)

    When I see "H2", I think "hydrogen." When I see "H+", I think "hydrogen ion" and then "there's an acid somewhere around here". Plain "H" by itself is heroin, just like "X" without the "Window System".

    --
    Will I retire or break 10K?
    1. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by dimitri_k · · Score: 1

      When I see "H2", I think "hydrogen." When I see "H+", I think "hydrogen ion" and then "there's an acid somewhere around here". Plain "H" by itself is heroin, just like "X" without the "Window System".

      If plain H is smack, plain X isn't X11. It's E.

      --
      sig is
    2. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by six809 · · Score: 1


      No, I still don't get it. All your scientific explanation taken into account, I still don't see how "H" translates to "Heroin". I've never seen that abbreviation before. Am I just weird or something? Ok, I'm British, but I read enough yank diatribe that I usually know how to translate it into English - but this one doesn't even tap quietly on a triangle... And "X" definitely means "X Window System", sorry. Maybe I'm too geeky or something :/

    3. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by geekd · · Score: 3, Informative

      if the government says it, it must be true!

      And then there is good ol' pulp fiction (not the movie, but actual pulp fiction)

    4. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by spike+hay · · Score: 4, Interesting

      This is not the best idea

      The way I understand it, this process just reforms biogas into hydrogen. Biogas is mostly methane (CH4; ie natural gas). When you burn methane, the only pollution is one molecule of CO2.

      Now, reforming methane produces the exact same amount of pollution as burning it. You break it up into 2 molecules hydrogen, and two oxygen atoms bond to the Carbon. You got two molecules of hydrogen and one of CO2, which is the exact same amount of pollution as when you burn it.

      Reformation is:

      CH4 + 02 --> H2 H2 CO2

      Reformed methane pollutes more than burned methane. This is because reforming it and then putting it into a fuel cell is much less efficient than just burning it. I think we are looking for a high-tech solution when one is not needed.

      I also don't think biogas production is such a good idea. (I am all for producing methane from places that would otherwise vent it off, however, like sewage plants and cattle yards.)

      If you have comercial biogas plants, like ones proposed that use seaweed, they would pollute much more than natural gas, as well as taking up more land than natural gas wells. Biogas has a lot of sulfides and such in it. I might also remind you that CH4 is ten times as bad a greenhouse gas as C02. So any gas that escaped from these plants would contribute to global warming(if global warming is caused by us. Most scientists think it isn't). So It's better just to stick with cheap, clean natural gas, or better yet, nuclear power.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
    5. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by Mithal · · Score: 1
      Although not very descriptive in scientific terms, the article still clearly states that the biomass is converted in CH4 and H2.

      biomass -> H2 + CH4 + H20 + CO + CO2

      The CH4 left, rather than being thrown out, is transformed into H2.

      CH4 + H20 + (Catalyst) --> H2 + ... (No details available)

      These processes have been around for a while, but their overall efficiency at converting biomass directly to H2 was low. The posted article talks about important improvement in efficiency. Lets just hope that they meet expectations.

    6. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by adminispheroid · · Score: 1

      Much of what you say is true, but the reaction is wrong. "Reforming" means CH4 + 2 H2O in the presence of much heat and your favorite catalyst yields CO2 + 4 H2. You get out 4 H2's for each CH4, not 2. So, as you see, this is twice as efficient as you were thinking. Hence it's not much worse than burning methane, it's only just as bad as burning methane.

    7. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by 56ker · · Score: 2

      "using standard gasification techniques that involve heat and pressure. But further hydrogen is then produced by also breaking down the methane and water, says Bhattacharya, with the aid of a nanocrystalline catalyst." - I think they must've read the first sentence of this quote then written their comment but not the second.

    8. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by mosch · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      yes, you're too geeky. if you'd ever been in the market for heroin, you would've heard H as a standard abbreviation for heroin, and it's not just an americanism, first time i heard the term was quite a few years back, from a brit.

    9. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by csmiller · · Score: 1
      From Web Elements

      There are many industrial methods for the production of hydrogen and that used will depend upon local factors such as the quantity required and the raw materials to hand. Two processes in use involve heating coke with steam in the water gas shift reaction or hydrocarbons such as methane with steam.
      CH4 + H2O (1100C) -> CO + 3H2

      In both these cases, further hydrogen may be made by passing the CO and steam over hot (400C) iron oxide or cobalt oxide.

      CO + H2O -> CO2 + H2

      Oh for <SUB> & <SUPER> tags to be allowed on slashcode.

      --
      It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity. --- Albert Einstein
    10. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      'H' that guy from Steps?

    11. Re:Because hydrogen is diatomic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Unless the converson process if 100% efficient, don't you still have trace quanities of undersirable by-products (i.e., pollutants, e.g., CO).

  29. Why don't they.... by Crusty+Oldman · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Why don't they convert this crap into energy, instead of wasting New Scientist's and Slashdot reader's time?

    There is nothing newsworthy here at all. Same old hydrogen into energy by a secret process they won't tell you about which works in the lab, maybe. B-F-D!

  30. "twice the efficiency"? by Beryllium+Sphere(tm) · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The article said that previous approaches were only 20% efficient and this is twice as good.

    I wish they said how efficiency is defined. If they mean it takes 1 KWh of energy to extract hydrogen that produces 0.4 KWh when it's burned, then this is really uninspiring unless the input is just plain heat, in which case it's about as good as an electric power plant.

  31. Water world come true? by Kizzle · · Score: 1

    I hope this somehow spawns the invention that lets me turn my urin into drinkable water.

    1. Re:Water world come true? by Wonko+the+Sane+42 · · Score: 1

      That's actually really easy. My step-dad's in the water treatment business. He designs systems that filter raw sewage back to drinkable water.

      --
      The Internet, one place where if you're not right, someone else will set you straight... maybe.
    2. Re:Water world come true? by hangdog · · Score: 1
      Why would you want to convert urine into something else?

      Urine Rocks!

    3. Re:Water world come true? by VikingBerserker · · Score: 2, Interesting

      It's already been done, and has been used successfully. some details can be found here.

      Good thing it's intended for astronauts. I'd imagine it's hard to get volunteers to drink the results.

  32. Overabundant resource by r_j_prahad · · Score: 5, Funny

    If we could turn sewage into energy where I work, our weekly staff meetings could light Las Vegas.

  33. Huh? by teslatug · · Score: 2

    So how's this different from extracting hydrogen from regular H2O? Not to be a party pooper, but what does shit have to do with hydrogen?

  34. hydrogen? Why not methane? by thumbtack · · Score: 2

    What methane is too easy?

    1. Re:hydrogen? Why not methane? by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 3, Funny

      Exactly -- I think methane also has a higher energy density (by weight and volume) than hydrogen -- that eases the storage and transportation problems.

      However, if they really want to solve all the nation's energy problems then all they need to do is install a huge heat-exchanger and steam-turbine in Congress.

      There's enough hot air in their to keep the nation running forever!

    2. Re:hydrogen? Why not methane? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      sewage plants already use methane gas in powering some parts of treatment process its just not very efficent right now.
      Course sewage treatment plants not only make you pay to take the shit away they also sell the solid byproduct after they remove all the water for fertilzer.

  35. Keep in mind... by RyanFenton · · Score: 3, Interesting


    The report isn't about being able to profitably use sewage to gain energy, it's about putting energy into waste to get hydrogen. Much like desalinating seawater will give you fresh water at a high cost, processing sewage will get you refined hydrogen at cost - though now it's cheaper to get the hydrogen than before.

    So there's no {1. Get sewage, 2. ??? 3. Profit}-finishing steps yet, it just possibly costs less than it used to.

    :^)

    Ryan Fenton

  36. Sewage to made into H by recursiv · · Score: 2
    And I'm thinking...
    Hey, this isn't dissimilar to the Hitchhiker's Guide, in which vast quantities of waste is formed into letters by dumping strategically onto the surface of earth. Hmm.... a sewage made 'H'. sounds absolutely flabulous.
    Now I'm done thinking.
    --
    I used to bulls-eye womp-rats in my pants
    1. Re:Sewage to made into H by Jason+Earl · · Score: 2

      Wrong book my friend, you are thinking of Better Than Life one of the Red Dwarf books by Grant Naylor.

      Good book though...

  37. Similar research at UC Riverside by foolish · · Score: 2, Informative

    http://spacedaily.com/news/energy-tech-02j.html

    Tells you a bit more about the process and the diagram gives you a good glimpse at the device.

    --foolish

  38. What is H? by DrFrob · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Don't you mean H2?

    1. Re:What is H? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The periodic table uses 'H', therefore it is valid.

      Although it occurs naturally as diatomic hydrogen H(sub2), 'H' is the proper abbreviation.

      'H' can stand for heroin, but I prefer one of the others:
      Dope, Big-H, Dr. Feelgood, Smack, Horse, Anti-freeze, Dirt, Beast, DoA, Mud, Brown Sugar, China White, Mexican Brown, Junk, Black Tar, Chase the Dragon, Monkey Water, La buena, Harry, Cotics, Mr. Brownstone.

  39. Re:grr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM says there's enough excrements for everybody, then, by God, there IS enough excrements for everybody. And here I was, thinking that the plural of "excrement" was "pine boxes." Thanks for setting your hair straight!

  40. How about them emissions? by WankersRevenge · · Score: 1

    The new process begins with turning waste "biomass" into hydrogen, methane, water, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, using standard gasification techniques that involve heat and pressure.

    Is it me, or is this just doing the same thing as typical fossil fuels? I mean, if we utilize this new method and create carbon dioxide as a side effect, then what's the point? Besides turning my shitbox car into a literal shitbox, we still have the carbon dioxide emission problem not to mention a new added smell which might bring farting back into the mainstream.

    Can someone please explain why this is a good thing? I'd like to know.

    1. Re:How about them emissions? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Unless you are eating large amounts of vaseline, your waste products are derived from carbon which was very recently involved in a living organism. This carbon is involved in a cycle, and assuming that a similar amount of plants are growing to keep you well fed, there is no net gain in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Fossil fuels are carbon that was long ago involved in this cycle, but have since been sequestered deep in the earth. Burning this type of carbon releases all that carbon at once. That's bad, mm-kay?

  41. Free as in burgers by Grape+Shasta · · Score: 5, Funny

    This is exciting - I think that between the public bathrooms and the grease bins, McDonald's will become an energy company, and start giving away food for profit!

    Ronald McDonald hereby accepts the Nobel Prize for ending world hunger...

    --

    "I am a cipher, a cipher, wrapped in an enigma, smothered in secret sauce" -Jimmy James
    1. Re:Free as in burgers by Sabalon · · Score: 3, Funny

      Just a pain when you have to sign the form at McD's stating that you will not use the shitter at Burger King

    2. Re:Free as in burgers by Tower · · Score: 1

      Heck, you can re-use the old fry oil in engines - Frio-Diesel!

      --
      "It's tough to be bilingual when you get hit in the head."
  42. Solent Hydrogen is People ('s excrement)!!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Solent Hydrogen is People ('s excrement)!!!!

  43. hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) by AeiwiMaster · · Score: 1

    New scientist also have a article
    about some scientist
    making a robot run on H2O2
    as a fuel.

    Does anyone have some good link
    for more info on this.

    Like how good is there engine and
    how does one produce H2O2.

    Knud

    1. Re:hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) by Wonko+the+Sane+42 · · Score: 1

      I don't know about that specific robot arm, but a lot of things seem to use H2O2 engines...

      Firebird
      http://www.intora-firebird.com/power.h tm

      A few other applications of H2O2
      http://www.near.no/gallery/h2o2/h2o2.htm

      Also, here's a new approach to H2O2 production...
      http://www.es.anl.gov/htmls/cbt6-H2 O2.html

      H2O2 is also produced by your very own cells... crazy, eh?

      --
      The Internet, one place where if you're not right, someone else will set you straight... maybe.
  44. So Narrow! by Dwaynewayne · · Score: 1

    Slim! Tight! mmmmm good.

  45. so the next time i shit my pants while driving ... by j1mmy · · Score: 1

    ... i'll get an extra boost of speed?

  46. Is it not obvious? by mrjacobjames · · Score: 1

    Slashdot deliberately posted the article with an "H" knowing full well it will create controversy with us geeks. News for nerds? News for drug-users.

  47. uh... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    shouldn't that be H2?

  48. Obligitory by erik+umenhofer · · Score: 1

    This will be known as Mr. Fusion right?
    *runs and gets a delorean*

    1. Re:Obligitory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      thats not funny

      you're not funny

      stop trying to be funny

      just stop, now, please.

  49. Hindenburg by efuseekay · · Score: 3

    But, the Hindenburg is not carrying compressed hydrogen (else it would not have sufficient buoyancy). So it'll burn in a zip (except for the explosions that would have happened when the pressurised H2 in control tanks blow up).

    A car, however, needs compressed hydrogen. Compressed hydrogen will burn fast too, but there is a lot of energy to be burnt. Assuming that a gasoline car and a hydrogen car carry the same amount of energy (let's ignore efficiency for the moment), then I don't see the different between a burning gasoline and burning hydrogen car.Essentially you have to burn the same amount of energy. Only in H2 cars, you have to burn them *faster.

    In fact, I'll be happier standing next to a gasoline burning car, since pressurised liquid hydrogen at room temperature will evaporate like mad and mix with the air to form a nice, highly explosive, mixture. Imagine a leak in the hydrogen tank : you'll get a perfect nozzle (with the pressurise interior), and viola : a big bunsen burner (also known as a flame thrower). And I am not even talking about the huge super pressure vessel you have to carry around as gas tank. If it does not burn on a crash, you'll get a big, bad blowup.

    Now, having said all that, I am not advocating against H2. I am saying is that it is probably as dangerous as gasoline,if not more (mostly due to the pressurised nature of H2 you have to carry around). In Malaysia, you can get Liquified Natural Gas cars, which has much higher hydrogen to carbon ratio and burns much much much more cleanly for a while in an gas producing state of ours (for you Malaysians : it's in Sarawak. I was with Shell as an intern. I know, they're evil.) I've not heard anything about big explosions of these experimental cars though.

    --
    Mode (3) smart-aleck mode. Press * to return to main menu.
    1. Re:Hindenburg by Tower · · Score: 1

      There are several places in the US where CNG vehicles are becoming increasingly common - notably the busses and other work vehicles for the NY/NJ crossings. I have driven a full-sized pickup truck and a passenger sedan that were converted to CNG, and they feel and sound like a standard gas engine (because most of the engine is identical). They do smell a lot better, though. There aren't tons of places to get/fuel these cars, but it is a nice first step towards a cleaner alternative.

      --
      "It's tough to be bilingual when you get hit in the head."
  50. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  51. Watch that yellow snow ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    And here in Australia they've just managed to turn sewerage into artificial snow for the ski slopes ... :)

    Always on the forefront of useful technologies aren't we ...

  52. Intro to Entropy (very long) by sam_handelman · · Score: 4, Informative

    Brevity is the soul of wit, which makes me a clod. Sorry. I've actually got a degree in this, so here it goes:

    H2 + O2 -> water + energy

    everyone knows this, right? You burn hydrogen, it makes heat. So, conversely,

    water + energy -> H2 + O2

    this is splitting water; you can do this at home (not that I recommend this!) by taking the two leads from a power supply and dumping them at opposite ends of a glass of water. The bubbles you see (just before the explosion) are hydrogen and oxygen gas.

    Now, when you run a reaction that goes

    stuff -> other stuff + energy

    the reaction makes the environment warm. Like a piece of wood burning.

    Likewise, when you run a reaction that goes

    stuff + energy -> other stuff

    it makes the environment COLD. A simple home experiment you can do (in perfect safety) is to take a glass of water and then upend a container of salt into it. The glass of water will get cold, because:

    NaCl (salt) + energy -> Na+ + Cl-

    Now, the question is - why does Salt dissolve? The answer is: entropy. Entropy is one of the most difficult of all concepts to explain (especially when it results in organised phenomenon, such as life) but, basically, Entropy is the tendency of bigger aggragates (NaCl) to shatter into little pieces (Na+ and Cl-). There is a quantifiable relationship between the amount of entropy a reaction produces (the log of the number of pieces around) and the amount of heat (energy, in joules or calories) that a reaction must "liberate" into the environment in order to go (i.e. be "spontaneous"). A reaction that breaks things apart AND releases heat into the environment - like wood burning - will always go. A reaction that takes heat from the environment, and builds things up - such as a tree forming from water and air, bear with me - will never go; living things exist by coupling spontaneous reactions to non-spontaneous ones, the net reaction can be spontaneous even if one half of it would not be on it's own:

    water + air + energy -> tree (non spontaneous)
    concentrated heat (from sunlight, incidentally) -> dissipated heat (spontaneous)

    water + air + concentrated heat -> tree + less dissipated heat (spontaneous!)

    See? We're allowed to continue existing.

    So, for any given reaction, you COUNT the amount of entropy the reaction makes, and if that is BIGGER than the amount of heat the reaction takes up (as is the case when salt dissolves) the reaction goes.

    Okay, now, if there isn't any hydrogen around (because all of it has filtered away) the amount of entropy you produce by liberating X hydrogen (it's a log, recall) is much, much greater than if there is already a lot of hydrogen around.

    So, to go back into the kitchen, if there is already a lot of salt dissolved in the water, the reaction

    NaCl + heat -> Na+ + Cl-

    produces less entropy. Eventually, the entropy produced by the NaCl dissolving no longer outweights the heat required to break it into two pieces, and the salt stops dissolving. You can empty a second canister full of salt into your glass of water, and it will all filter to the bottom, the water will get no saltier.

    A similar thing happens with heat. If you take your salt-water with salt on the bottom and put it onto the stove, more salt will dissolve - ignore this if it doesn't make sense: this is because the more heat there is the environment, the less entropy (disorder) the environment loses when it puts any given amount of heat into the system.

    The famous mathematical expression of all this is:

    Total Entropy Change = Heat "Liberated" / Temperature + Log (change in amount of stuff)
    (this is more commonly said dG = dH - TdS)

    When I say Heat "Liberated", I mean heat which comes from the "system" (your glass of water) into the environment. If the glass of water makes the environment cold, this value is negative. 80% of PhDs can't keep the signs straight, so don't worry if something seems backwards. You're not alone.

    So, doubling the amount of something always produces the same amount of entropy. If you have 60g of hydrogen, you need to make 60g more to produce (60,120) 1 "unit" of entropy. However, if you've got only 4g of hydrogen around to start with, making 60g more produces (4,8,16,32,64) 4 "units" of entropy.

    So, in the reaction-
    CH4 + H2O + heat -> 3 H2 + CO2

    Here we are breaking things into pieces (4 pieces on right, 2 pieces on left), so the reaction is driven forward by entropy. There are two things you can do to drive the reaction forward faster.

    1) You can add more heat; if you add more heat, you will make more hydrogen.

    2) At any given temperature, you can drive the reaction forward by taking hydrogen away - this is what they're doing in the article. As the reaction goes forward, the hydrogen bubbles off.

    Another kitchen chemistry experiment. Put two pots of water on the stove, full of water. Cover one of them. The one that you don't cover will boil away and turn completely into steam, right? This is because there is no steam in the air immediately above the pot, so when a particular water molecule becomes steam, the entropy gain is huge. The covered pot, on the other hand, will not boil away entirely (of course, eventually it will but in the short term I mean,) instead, it will boil away until a certain concentration of steam is reached in the air in the pot, and then stop.

    So, if you want to boil water away more efficiently, you set up a system to blow the steam out the window (or collect it somewhere that you want to keep it) so that the air in the kitchen doesn't get humid. That's what this group has done.

    Congratulations, you now know thermodynamics. That's really it.

    They've also added a catalyst that makes the reaction go faster, but I'll save my explanation of kinetics (the study of how FAST reactions "go", as opposed to weather or not they go at all) for another time.

    Since you've read this far, you get to know the collective secret of the scientific community: we are so high right now. Snoop Dog ain't got nuthin' on us; reefer in hand 24/7. Do you think I could've written this long schpeal without beaking baked off my derear? Oh, man, have I got the munchies.

    --
    The good and new comes from no quarter where it is looked for, and is always something different from what is expected.
    1. Re:Intro to Entropy (very long) by Jeremi · · Score: 2
      this is splitting water; you can do this at home (not that I recommend this!) by taking the two leads from a power supply and dumping them at opposite ends of a glass of water. The bubbles you see (just before the explosion) are hydrogen and oxygen gas.


      Oh dear... so one can create a bomb using just a glass of water, an electrical wire, a match, and a power outlet? Just wait till the next True Believer does this in the airplane lavatory.... :^(

      --


      I don't care if it's 90,000 hectares. That lake was not my doing.
    2. Re:Intro to Entropy (very long) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You, sir, are a god! Not only is your science sound, but hardly anyone reads the entire comment before moderating. I would give you a +1 InformaTroll if I could.

      :wq

  53. Re:Heroin? Nope! by Foehg · · Score: 1

    That's nothing. When I saw the single, capital letter H (in a slashdot context) I immediately interpolated as though it were an initial on an update at the bottom, reading thus:
    Sewage To Be Turned Into Hemos
    !

  54. Hydrogen is not a dimer! by mph · · Score: 1

    Elemental hydrogen is not necessarily unstable, and most hydrogen is not a dimer. It's a big universe. Don't let the fact that you live in a dense, UV-shielded part of it color your beliefs.

    (Most hydrogen is ionized, too.)

    1. Re:Hydrogen is not a dimer! by spike+hay · · Score: 2

      But we don't have atomic hydrogen on the earth. Mettalic hydrogen mining from deep within Jupiter's atmosphere is not very cost effective. :-)

      Elemental hydrogen is stable under ultra-mega high pressure, like in Jupiter's atmospher. But it isn't stable here on earth. And that's all that really matters for it's use as rocket fuel. On earth, atomic hydrogen will be gone faster than you can say "Holy shit!! It's gonna blow!!"

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
  55. Sewage into Heroin? by EvilJello · · Score: 1

    Doesn't sound fairly promising to me! There's nothing fair about making fun of people who have an addiction to a substance that is the scourge of so many southeastern states. This is just one more example of how far /. has sunken to get a cheap laugh and make a few bucks off of those horribly square advertisements.

    Slashdot is dying...

  56. Wow, I was just thinking by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    that you should buy me a delorean! Imagine that!

  57. Re:Heroin? $$$ by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 3, Funny

    You gotta admit: There's a LOT more profit to be made turning sewage into heroin than turning it into hydrogen.

    --
    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
  58. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  59. does this mean by the_2nd_coming · · Score: 1

    that now we will just poop into our fuel cells to get H?

    --



    I am the Alpha and the Omega-3
  60. pure H by blowg0ats · · Score: 0

    Look, even if they COULD make H from garbage, it wouldn't be nearly as nice as the H you can buy on the streets. I don't think I would ever shoot up from H that was produced from gar...huh? whats that you say? hy-dro-gen? oh.

  61. Aw man by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Now we'll have to import shit from the middle east.

  62. That's more endothermic... by moogla · · Score: 1

    It's easier to reform methane than water (less energy in required to get H2 out). Note that CH4 burns when put a match near it but H20 does not.

    --
    Black holes are where the Matrix raised SIGFPE
  63. I always knew... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ... that sewage was explosive stuff.

  64. Re:The correct answer by ahfoo · · Score: 3, Funny

    Actually, I've drank lye solution before by accident. We were making hydrogen baloons and using the same beer bottles we were drinking as reaction vessles. Bad lab technique, I realize.
    So, from my experienice, it's unlikely you'd actually swallow it because as soon as it hits the warm part of your tongue and begins to react your body tells you something is very wrong and you tend to spit it out violently and start rinsing with water.
    I was with a bunch of drunk idiots who wouldn't take it seriously and call the ambulance, so I ran into a nearby grocery store and grabbed a bunch of lemons thinking this would be the logical solution to the problem --I was inexperienced in these matters at the time and not thinking very clearly.
    So, I just grab a lemon right there in the store and bite into it. Holy shit! It was the wrong thing to do, the reaction was violent and excruciatingly painful. The bloody red chunk of lemon fell from my drooling mouth as I sank to the floor in drool and tears.
    There was two old ladies in the produce section and when they saw what I had done and the blood on the yellow lemons they pushed each other into the bread isle looking quite concerned.
    Being in such a bizarre state, I insisted on trying the lemons again. So, I bundled a bunch of them in my shirt and sat down in the cereal section forcing myself to bite down on them and moaning.
    Finally, I went up to the cashier with the bloody chunks of chewed lemon and tried to smile and act casual and I said through my screwed up mouth --"I wanted to see if they were any good."
    The fucker didn't even laugh.
    So, I got back to the house and my associates had started to straighten up a bit in my absence. They informed me that the lye bottle itself said not to use acids if ingested and they gave me some half and half which was what the bottle suggested and it instantly eased the pain. It was like the fire went out.
    So, I thought my mouth was fucked. I called poison control and they said it was too late to do anything. I'd just have to live with it.
    Well, the next day I looked in the mirror and I was terrified. My gums had receeded quite a bit and my tongue looked like hell. My cheeks and lips had clearly lost tissue. I was way way bummed.
    But in the end, it turned out to be no big deal. Within three days my mouth had more or less totally healed and I swear my breath was fresher than ever and my taste buds seemed totally alive and sensitive to delicate tastes. For about a year, I was overly sensitive to anything basic, but it went away.

  65. LOL, I could just see the creators of this by CrazyJim0 · · Score: 1

    Hey Terrance, watch this.
    *boof*
    Philip,"AHAHAHAAH" *head bobing about*,"Lets both try!"
    *BOOF!*
    Terrance and Philip in tandem,"AHAHAHA."
    Terrance,"Hey Philip, imagine if we had more people, we could take out a city block!"
    Philip,"Terrance you're so destructive, what if we put it to good use?"
    Terrance,"Yes, we could build a special seat and harnass everyone's ass gas to power their cars."
    Philip,"Excellent work shit for brains" *boof*
    Terrance,"You farted!" *boof*
    Philip,"So did you."
    Terrance and Philip in tandem,"AHAHHAAHHA"

  66. Re: No to Nuclear Power!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What are you talking about? Nuclear fission is a very dangerous way of producing energy. For a start there is the risk of redioactive pollution from meltdowns, leaks, natural disasters, sabotage etc (uncommon). Then there is the disposal of the tonnes of radioactive waste they produce (regular). Then there is the fact that a nuclear reactor takes a few thousand years after being shut down to decontaminate (definite).

    That means keeping the plant intact and able to contain the radiation for that time. Now considering that some of the olders fission plants are already cracking like ripe walnuts this is not a smart investment in the future.

    Nuclear power plants destroy atoms to boil water. Surely there are more efficient ways of doing that, like putting it in black tanks on a hot day fer chrissakes!

    The world's energy problems will be solved by making smart use of local, renewable resources, eg using sun and wind to dry washing instead of electricity. Not by finding more ways to pump raw energy along thousands of miles of metal wires. Wires which themselves consume heaps of energy as well as causing more severe health problems the higher the load they carry.

    Biogas should be used as a substitute for unavoidable fossil fuel applications (buses?) and
    harvested where it would have been produced naturally anyway, eg a neighbourhood digestor into which everyone chucks their garden and kitchen waste and shares the gas and fertilizer produced.

    Strypey

  67. This is good, as Hydrogen isn't yet a fuel SOURCE. by DonaldP · · Score: 1

    I read a commentary in the APS's (American Physical Society) weekly news a little while ago that there's been a lot of talk about Hydrogen's great advantages as a fuel source. It could replace fossil fuels as our primary fuel source.

    The advantages are there, but the contention was that Hydrogen is not a fuel *source*.

    The question no one seems to bring up is: Where is all this Hydrogen going to come from?

    There is no such thing as "Hydrogen deposits" that can be mined in any conventional sense.

    Right now, the only way to get Hyrdogen is to make it.

    How do we make it? We electrolyze water. (At a net loss as far as energy in vs. Hydrogen out goes, but let's ignore that for the time being)

    Electrolyzing water requires electricity. Which we currently [mostly] get by burning fossil fuels.

    I'm not saying it's a fool's errand or anything. I think using Hydrogen's a grand idea. But so far there's been too little talk about where we're going to get all this Hydrogen from - which needs to be addressed if it's ever going to become a real contender for our countries' primary fuel.

  68. Re:The correct answer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Hmm.. I think I'll try gargling with a diluted solution.

    Thanks for the advice!

  69. High-energy fuels need not be dangerous by Iobor · · Score: 1

    You are right that a fuel must have high chemical potential energy, otherwise it is inert, and a non-fuel. But this does not justify the conclusion ("fuel is dangerous") because it is possible for a substance to have a high chemical potential energy content and be inert.

    Elemental hydrogen certainly isn't an example, but various pure elements are: aluminum, boron, beryllium, and silicon. Even carbon might be so considered, although without the hydrogen its energy per pound isn't that high.

    Aluminum isn't inert if you scrape the sapphire off it. Do so underwater and you'll see bubbles where you have exposed new surface. These are hydrogen bubbles; naked aluminum has taken their oxygen away.

    Boron is inert even without an oxide coat (PDF file).

    As vehicle fuels, both of these have fuel-plus-containment masses and volumes way less than those of hydrogen. Hydrogen at car scale is a heavy fuel.

  70. "palladium-coated ceramic semi-permeable membrane" by Cy+Guy · · Score: 1

    Of course, why didn't I think of that, it all sounds so easy now that you explain it so clearly.

    My question is, if this membrane is capable of extracting H out of plain water, what is the point of starting with waste water? You might as well put one of these "palladium-coated ceramic semi-permeable membrane[s]" where your fuel filter is and start filling up your car's tank from a garden hose (assuming of course you replaced your engine with a fuel cell already).

  71. I know you're trolling but... by horza · · Score: 3, Interesting

    (if global warming is caused by us. Most scientists think it isn't)

    So nearly every government in the world (except for the USA, naturally, with corrupt Bush) has signed up to the Kyoto treaty because most scientists think we have no effect on global warming? Aren't you a little divorced from reality?

    So It's better just to stick with cheap, clean natural gas, or better yet, nuclear power.

    Why shift our whole infrastructure to a resource that will run out such as natural gas? There are a multitude of ways of extracting the hydrogen for our fuel cells, these scientists are working out a way for the medium-term to prop up production and not a be-all and end-all solution.

    Nuclear has a lot of potential, but more money needs to be put into research in ways of making the waste inert, rather than cutting research funding because nuclear is no longer 'trendy'.

    Phillip.
    http://www.FutureEnergies.com/

    1. Re:I know you're trolling but... by spike+hay · · Score: 2


      So nearly every government in the world (except for the USA, naturally, with corrupt Bush) has signed up to the Kyoto treaty because most scientists think we have no effect on global warming? Aren't you a little divorced from reality?


      Actually, no. Go to Pushback.com. The vast majority of scientists think global warming fears are unfounded. You should be able to find a link to the Heidelberg Appeal. This was a petition that global warming fears were unfounded signed by several times the amound of scientists that signed the Kyoto Petition.

      Why shift our whole infrastructure to a resource that will run out such as natural gas? There are a multitude of ways of extracting the hydrogen for our fuel cells, these scientists are working out a way for the medium-term to prop up production and not a be-all and end-all solution.

      Natural gas will run out in about 30 years. But my point is that biogas is not a viable replacement. Nuclear power has a proven safety record in all countries except the USSR (Their crappy Chernobyl RBMK reactor was just asking for trouble).

      Nuclear power can provide us with cheap hydrogen and electrical power. The waste fears are not as bad as Greenpeace has lead people to believe. Waste decays to the radioactivity levels of uranium ore in 500 years due to the simple fact that the most radioactive transuranic elements such as Cesium decay first. Uranium ore is not dangerously radioactive.

      --
      If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
  72. Some confusion here between He and H by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    If we could make atomic hydrogen and store it, or even better yet atomic helium, it would be pretty good.
    Helium is an inert, or noble gas. Its natural form is as single atoms. Airships are full of thousands of cubic feet of monatomic He, perfectly stable
    When He bonds to form He2, it realeases lots of energy. Atomic Helium is metastable and will instantly recombine to form He2.
    Or, more correctly, When H bonds to form H2, it realeases lots of energy. Atomic Hydrogen is metastable and will instantly recombine to form H2.

    --- The Chemistry Pedant

  73. Gas from sewage? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Hell, I've been producing gas from sewage for years. Since hydrogen is odorless though it probably isn't the gas you're looking for.

  74. Kyoto? What are you talking about? by Sabu+mark · · Score: 2, Insightful

    So nearly every government in the world (except for the USA, naturally, with corrupt Bush) has signed up to the Kyoto treaty because most scientists think we have no effect on global warming? Aren't you a little divorced from reality?

    Speak for yourself, hippie. Several countries have ratified Kyoto, but none of the countries who would actually face restrictions have signed it, with the exception of only two. So unless by "nearly every government in the world" you mean "Romania and the Czech Republic and that's about it," lay off the knee-jerk Bush-bashing and don't believe everything your fellow patchouli-sniffers tell you. Get your facts straight and try to break your immature leftist addiction to outrage for its own sake.

    --

    What Would Jesus Do
    (for a Klondike bar)?
    1. Re:Kyoto? What are you talking about? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The entire EU, Japan, Korea, Canada, China and a bunch of smaller countries all wanted to go ahead with the Kyoto Treaty you fool. Quit spewing your Bush(he's corrupt to the core) propaganda and get your facts straight, damn yankee.

  75. Re: Hentai? by jacks0n · · Score: 1

    I thought It was "H" for Hentai.
    Doesn't that bring some pleasant images to mind?
    What does that say about my Ecchi-ness, or lack thereof?

  76. UCR is doing it, too! by lobotomy · · Score: 1

    We* are doing it too. When I looked at the prototype reactor today, they were just about to start leak testing.

    * Bourns College of Engineering - Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT) at the University of California, Riverside.

    The University has a press release (including a schematic) at:
    http://www.info.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/display.cgi?id=217

  77. Re: No to Nuclear Power!!! by spike+hay · · Score: 2

    Strypey, actually it is very safe. It has a very good safety track record. A chernobyl-scale meltdown cannot occur in the U.S.

    Just visit Pushback for excellent nuclear power info, with lots of great links.

    --
    If you don't understand any of my sayings, come to me in private and I shall take you in my German mouth.
  78. Re:This is good, as Hydrogen isn't yet a fuel SOUR by Mr.Intel · · Score: 2

    The advantages are there, but the contention was that Hydrogen is not a fuel *source*. The question no one seems to bring up is: Where is all this Hydrogen going to come from? There is no such thing as "Hydrogen deposits" that can be mined in any conventional sense. Right now, the only way to get Hyrdogen is to make it.

    Yes you can mine it. There is even a large deposit of trapped H2 gas. Obviously you have not read about this or this. The article linked has been moved, but if you will read my post I quote the article as saying, "One of these natural hydrogen fields is already known to exist in North America, and extends from Canada to Kansas."

    --
    ASCII tastes bad dude.
    Binary it is then.
  79. For the real story of the Hindenburg... by GPS+Pilot · · Score: 1

    ...read this.

    Large portions of the Hindenburg's skin were aflame before the hydrogen gas bags were even breached. It would have crahsed even if it had been filled with helium.

    --
    That that is is that that that that is not is not.