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Possible Graphene Alternative Made From Hemp Waste
MTorrice writes "A low-cost chemical process can turn hemp fiber into carbon nanomaterials. Researchers used the materials to make devices called supercapacitors that provide quick bursts of electrical energy. Supercapacitors made with the hemp nanosheets put out more power than commercial devices can."
According to one of the authors, "Hemp bast is a nanocomposite made up of layers of lignin, hemicellulose, and crystalline cellulose ... If you process it the right way, it separates into nanosheets similar to graphene." Perhaps the process could be applied to related plants (hops?) too.
If only pot were legal, and free, we could all just sit around getting high all the time and the world would be a better place. Government will provide what we need by taking it from evil rich people.
Yay, free pot!
I wonder, if marijuana plants can be used for same... A close enough relative to hemp for the latter to be banned in some places...
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
My ashtray is full of carbon nanomaterials stemming from hemp products.
Am I rich now?
legalize it!!
Hemp growing is illegal in the US despite the numerous benefits it can provide
maybe its time to stop letting big business create laws that exist only to benefit their profit margins
They did in fact create a system that puts out more instantaneous energy per unit weight, but that is not the improvement that super capacitors need. They have improved gravimetric power density. The two measures that need improvement to make super capacitors more useful are gravimetric energy density (how much energy can it store in a given weight), and volumetric energy density. How much energy can it store in a given volume. Without significant improvements in those two areas, super capacitors cannot make significant inroads against batteries.
It should also be noted that super capacitors already have better power density than chemical batteries by a wide margin, and are more than sufficient to replace I.C. engines and gasoline in that respect.
I wish I had a good sig, but all the good ones are copyrighted
Wow! How high does the charge get?
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
N/T
Fuck touchscreen, fuck autospell.
They feared that it could be used to suppress protest or support unpopular rule.
We should also standardize around a single food crop. Why are we wasting so much time/money/space with variety. The government should mandate that we all have to eat that protein goop from the Matrix movies.
1. It is not a subspecies. It is the same plant, just different strains. Just like different kinds of tomatoes.
2. You cannot hide high THC plants in a hemp field. The hemp plants will fertilize and thus ruin the high THC plants. This is why male plants are culled early in illicit grow operations. Growing hemp outdoors on an industrial scale would probably make most illicit outdoor growth impossible for just that reason.
The wiki link to "bast" refers to a dozen species that produce basts, including flax, wisteria, mulberry, and kudzu.
Is there a reason to go for hemp in particular, aside from the usual hemp-will-solve-everything? Flax is also produced in industrial quantities. TFA doesn't mention why they chose hemp bast.
Look, I'm all for legalized weed and hate the propaganda that makes it out as a devil drug, but I'm not any bigger fan of exaggerations about the wonders of hemp. At least on this web site, it would be nice to look at actual data, rather than who can out-propagandize everybody else.
You're right. The correct thing to do is openly advocate for legal recreational Cannabis. There are absolutely no sensible arguments against it, which is why the government won't even discuss the issue.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
OMG not the hops too! Think of the children!
you could hide them in properly designed tanks in a building that was also used for industrial hemp research.
Funny, I have read most of the Bible and I never came across any commandment saying "thou shall not toke it up at 4:20"
The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
biology is divided on the "subspecies" vs. varieties issue, see wikipedia for Cannabis
Done. Well, two crops --- corn and soy, to cover sugar, fat, and protein. And we don't even have to wait for government mandates --- private industry has taken the lead in pushing the entire food supply towards a processed corn/soy goop monoculture.
You could hide them in a closet too. Your idea is no better than that. There will not be very many places growing hemp indoors for research, nor would it be practical for much illicit production to be done there.
You could make meth in a college chemistry lab, does not mean it is very common nor going to supply many users.
Your coworkers/students would soon notice what you are doing.
If Linux is truly superior, then why isn't everyone using it? Surely Microsoft would jump all over that bandwagon.
For all I know this is valid scientific research. But I can't even be bothered to find out because potheads have stigmatized hemp. "Dude, do you know hemp is 85% more efficient biomass than bacon?" "You know that hemp fibers can be turned into inferior yet expensive paper, right?" "Hemp-o-lene, it's either hemp biofuel or something you jump on." Which all are quite obviously thin excuses to grow more "medicinal"* hemp.
And hemp is a pretty great material, but every time I see an article that talks about a new industrial use I can't help thinking it comes from the same people who giggle when they hear "420" and snerk when they mention how they're into 'hydroponics'.
Seriously folks, if you want me to take you (hemp or pot smokers) seriously you need to clean up your game. Don't smoke a bowl on April 20th, instead bring to my attention how we really don't know the medical properties of cannabis because of government overregulation (or whatever, anything that has real promise to someone who has no interest in smoking pot.)
*Medicine is sold at drug stores, not in shadowy places with a bouncer at the door and punny names like "Grass Roots Clinic" or "Foggy Daze Dispensary".
there are verses saying to be sober though
if you want a boring life you could obey them
you forget we're talking of the reasonings of a third party, not about what would actually work or be logical
Yes, a third party who wants to commit a crime and get away with it.
Illicit drug production is big business. These folks are not interested in growing 1 plant in the middle of a lab. If they wanted to do that they would just tinfoil a closet.
anytime an application needing plant fiber comes along, there's always a group that starts extolling the virtues of hemp for the purpose,
If you just need biomass for something, there's lots of agricultural waste around. Find a use for straw, or corn husks and cobs, or bagasse (the leftover part of sugar cane). There are other long bast fibers available commercially - jute (used to make burlap), flax (used to make linen), and kenaf (sometimes used to make paper). For even longer fibers, there are plants from the banana family, such as abaca (once called "manila hemp", but it's unrelated) and sisal, which make good rope.
There's a lot of cellulose out there, waiting for someone to come up with a process for making ethanol from cellulose cheaply. There are processes that work, but they still cost too much.
It ruins it from a sales perspective.
Other than high schoolers no one is buying this product with seeds in it. At least they did not when I was in college.
There are also verses about partying down with plenty of booze --- after all, a certain Nazarene carpenter's son's first biblical miracle was making sure a wedding party wouldn't run out of wine *after the guests were already pretty soused*. The overall message one might take away from the scriptures is "there are times to be sober, and times to not."
Yeah, I'm sure that the potheads would rather go through all sorts of rigamarole to get legal hemp when they can just live in Colorado or Washington and have as much actual pot as they'd like without worrying about it. They're well on their way to making pot legal throughout the country. There's also absolutely no evidence that potheads have any serious difficulty in acquiring pot. That makes the "well, it's industrial hemp really" argument completely pointless.
And hemp does appear to be useful for a lot of things, including cordage, beer, plastics, building material, and clothing. The market has spoken, and made hemp cultivation a profitable business in places that allow it to exist.
And for the record, I've never toked the reefer myself.
I am officially gone from
Illicit drug production is big business.
I provide care for those who are terminally ill, you insensitive clod!
Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.
Actually, there are often seeds when you buy from a dispensary here in Colorado. I'm not sure if this is because the plant actually produced those seeds, or if it is because they are simply including them as a free gift with purchase.
Don't matter much to me, they will still grow when watered.
Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.
I have not had any interest in it since college, but you basically could not sell that on the campus I went too. People just would not purchase anything with seeds. It was used at some parties to roll 1/8 blunts, but other than for pranks like that it was considered too low grade to consider useful.
Then I assume your production is legal in your state, but sadly not in your country.
I hope that this becomes legal medically as well as recreationally.
Right now most of the production/trafficking is big business for various groups. At least those in your care can be certain you are not spraying only FSM knows what for mites. If you are doing that, stop.
I'm not positive if they do now but they did, at one time, run their mail servers on *NIX. I'm actually willing to hazard a guess that they're using it all over the place over there. However they're not selling it for consumers because they don't see it as best suited for their customers. We can quantify what is best scientifically for things that hemp might be useful for. OSes are subjective mostly with huge weighty lists of pros and cons. I think the term is false equivalency.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
I wonder if the Manila hemp lead to the myth that one could get high smoking banana peels?
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
it's actually MORE water consuming.
More than what, a Yucca plant? Than what is needed to product polyester?
Greeley, Colorado, an agricultural locale that would likely be a good place to grow hemp, receives a little over 14 inches of rain per year, while the water requirements for hemp are shown to be right in that range (12-14 inches/year). It's really not all that different from corn.
Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.
Agreed.
As a Christian I am constantly appalled by idiots who cherry-pick verses out of context to support their prejudices. I don't think having a good time at a party (or at the wedding you referred to) is equivalent to being a drunkard. People who take verses to support their own biases, ignoring the context and what is actually being said make all Christians look bad.
The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
Well, that's just incorrect these days. Yes, a lot of the pot from the 90's and 00's was considered "not good" if it had seeds. Nowadays, most pot is pretty damn good. If there are a few seeds because the plant hermaphrodized, then not a big deal.
Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.
They're in short enough supply as it is and beer is far more important than nanosheets!
So since William Randolph Hearst demonized Hemp and forever tied to to Pot, it's been illegal to grow in the USA. You do realize that in most of the free world, you can walk into a grocery store and still buy products made from Coca leaf?
And yet in the "land of the free" almost everything is banned. Except guns. And you need those in case the government "takes away your rights". I hope you see the tremendous irony there.
If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
I need my guns in case some stoners try to steal my hemp crop.
Have gnu, will travel.
Reminds me of a story from ITER (giant tokamak being built in the south of France), where they used low-tech coconut shells to solve a really high-tech problem. Sometimes Nature provides us with solutions that work better than anything man-made.
They need to build cryocoolers to remove helium and contaminants from the reactor, and the best material they've tested so far, came from burnt shells of coconuts imported from Indonesia. So the EU has been busy stockpiling enough coconuts to last the lifetime of ITER...
http://www.iter.org/newsline/116/1681
need I remind you the federal government of the united states is one of the biggest dope dealing organizations on planet earth?
"illicit".....very funny
Notice how in the two cases where Cannabis is legal, it was legalized by referendum and not an act of the legislature. IOW, it was legalized by the people, not by the government. So my statement stands.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
Colorado is a few years behind California.
You can't sell weed with seeds for any price. Perfection gets you $2K/lb. Average good indoor/outdoor $1K/lb.
$100/oz street price.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
No need to remind. That does not change its legal status though.
victimless crimes help keep the prison system large and growing, it's big business. Big business keeps lawmakers in their pockets and contributes to campaigns. They discuss the "War on Drugs" all the time
If you favorite plant was so good, then why doesn't industry use it?
... There is no conspiracy with industry. It's just ignorant politicians listening to ignorant people
I do so love it when people answer their own questions.
An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
As a former Catholic and current Humanist minister, I applaud and thank you for not being one of those hypocritical d-bags.
An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
You could very easily engineer the THC out of the plant. I really wish one of the biotech companies would just do that... so that the next time we get one of these besides the point arguments we can just use that instead.
Understand, I want the drug legal. Its silly that pot is illegal. I see it the same as booze or tobacco. And I even think they're too heavily regulated. The taxes of Tobacco are too high and the regulations on Alchohol are too stiff. All of it needs to be relaxed to respect consent.
As to pot, I merely find it annoying that people keep telling me how amazing hemp fiber is when really it can't be that amazing. It can't be the only plant with those properties. And its beyond obvious why people keep bringing the damn plant up... its offensive. Every time I hear that it is an insult because the people making the argument are lying by omission.
Again... I have no problem with pot being legal. Legalize it. But talking about hemp oil, or hemp fiber, or nano whatever with hemp isn't going to legalize the drug. Its not relevant and it actually offends the few of us with working brains.
Just be honest about it. You don't need to trick people. And even if you did, this trick isn't going to work. If you insist on tricking us... come up with a better trick.
I'll finally say that I do not doubt that the scientists found these properties in hemp. I would suggest that there are likely many plants that can yield the same result. And even if there weren't which is extremely unlikely... the path of least resistance would be to simply engineer the THC out of the plant.
At this point, I'd just like the biotech companies to do that only because I find these dumb arguments by the legalization lobby to be tedious.
I've decided to stop wasting my time responding to AC trolls/sockpuppets... so if you want a response from me... login.
tin foil is surprisingly very bad for reflecting the correct light waves.... or so im told.....
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
depends on where you live. here in NY we are spoiled, but I hear from my friends in other states that there is nothing but mexican dirt that comes around.
in general you are spot on, the only people i know who smoke weed with seeds are old hippies and high schoolers just starting off. I am no fan of high schoolers smoking pot as they dont understand everything going on, high schoolers should not be using drugs. but those are the 2 groups in NY who deal with seeds.
the same batch of the same strain with seeds will sell for under 100 an OZ while the same exact plant with no seeds could sell for 400 an OZ.
and for the record, pollination does in fact take away from the plant, The plant will have less THC and CBD if it is pollinated while is it is sensimilla (seedless) it can focus on producing more CDB and THC
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
100 an oz of good weed in cali? shit if it were not for its politics and taxes it would be an awesome place for a stoner. in NY we talk about 3500LB being a good price (5 is not unheard of) and 300 a good OZ price (400 avg for top end)
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
If I overclock my CPU will it let off a nice aroma?
I'll buy it. Weed snobbery is stupid. Pick out the seeds and smoke the rest. It gets you high and costs less per gram of smokable material.
The problem with outdoor mexican weed isn't the seeds. It's the handling. Pick it off the plant and dry it and cure it properly, and it's just as good as sensi. Smash it into a brick and store it in bales of hay, and it's pretty disgusting.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
So, corporations controlling politicians and the media to further their own interests?
Same shit, different century :-(
It gripped her hand gently. 'Regret is for humans,' it said.
> However they're not selling it for consumers because they don't see it as best suited for their customers.
They're reinventing it, poorly.
The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
some states allow it. according to the highest law of the land it is not even within the duties of the federal government to decide what things the people can ingest. it is a misconception to think the federal government is superior and ruler over the states, only within certain very limited realms is that true.
To be fair, that is all they've ever been doing. The feature set keeps increasing though. I'm not sure if you've noticed but we're moving back to the mainframe and dumb terminal days. I'd say they're doing alright. It's a commodity now.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
Hi, anyone want to talk about something OTHER than the 'hemp' thing?
The science itself is pretty cool, if maybe a bit late. Like previous work with graphene, it works by puffing up ("exfoliating") laminar carbon stock so that it has an insane surface area - like activated carbon, but much moreso. This surface area is what allows for such high capacity in electric double layer ("super") capacitors.
"But graphene is still quite expensive to make", says the article. There's the rub - while this research is pitched as a way to avoid the expense of graphene, it was recently discovered you can make graphene in your kitchen.
Caveat Emptor is not a business model.
Almost two hundred comments, and not one person has commented (that I saw) about how this might encourage engineers and users to start letting out the magic smoke on purpose.
Or maybe more like this magic smoke is REALLY magic.
Putting the magic in magic smoke.
etc...
* yes, I am quite aware that you are more likely to get cancer from putting your nose close to that super-cap when it blows than getting high, but the comment potential is still 'high'. *rimshot*
As someone who grew up in the Bay Area smoking pot, and who now lives in Colorado, I have to say that you really don't understand what the industry has done here... it's quite remarkable.
Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.
You can go argue that in front of the Supremes, but for now the executive, judicial and legislative branches disagree with you.
My kid brother lives in CO. You're still way behind and have a stupidly restrictive set of laws. In CA the feds have shut down most of the 'clubs', after all they were all registered and licensed so where very easy to close. Good thing the California law doesn't require us to register etc.
Indoor is fading as the economics of outdoor takes over in CA. 5 years ago everybody and their brother were setting up indoor grows. I was shutting mine down as their just wasn't enough money left in it.
Now you can buy used lights etc for about 20 cents on the dollar.
BTW seeds from hermaphroditic plants are generally immature as the plant didn't start growing balls until late in the growing cycle.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
Like NY politics is any better. At least our weather is good.
I know a 'farmer' that ships his whole crop to you folks. He won't sell in CA.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
Don't confuse medical with Amendment 64. "Stupidly restrictive" laws? Hardly.
Go ahead and read it yourself. I am perfectly happy with:
POSSESSING, GROWING, PROCESSING, OR TRANSPORTING NO MORE 26 THANSIXMARIJUANAPLANTS, WITHTHREEOR FEWER BEINGMATURE,FLOWERING 27 PLANTS, AND POSSESSION OF THE MARIJUANA PRODUCED BY THE PLANTS ON THE 28 PREMISES WHERETHEPLANTS WEREGROWN,PROVIDEDTHATTHEGROWINGTAKES 29 PLACEINANENCLOSED,LOCKEDSPACE, IS NOT CONDUCTEDOPENLYOR PUBLICLY, 30 AND IS NOT MADE AVAILABLE FOR SALE.
Sounds good to me!
Someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool.