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Reprocessing carbon to run in combustion, jet and turbine engines already in existence could be huge for the environment in the long run. The two best alternat
by Klinky 12y ago
Reprocessing carbon to run in combustion, jet and turbine engines already in existence could be huge for the environment in the long run.
The two best alternatives we have right now are battery or hydrogen powered engines. Both have major hurdles still to cross. Both rely on centralized power, have density issues, and have huge R&D & consumer cost/acceptance issues.
Centralize power generation, use a smart grid to efficiently transfer energy to coastal towns, create efficient pipelines to distribute hydrocarbon fuel, use existing gasoline/diesel infrastructure in cities/towns to serve consumers using their existing vehicles.
- GauntletWizard 12y agoFurther, this technology promises much cleaner, less sulfurous gasoline. Current gasoline is filled with all sorts of impurities, and needs to be significantly distilled to get the long-chain organic compounds that are needed for efficiency; This tech seems to create long-chain compounds from the base materials of carbon and hydrogen, meaning less impurities and less distillation.
- dredmorbius 12y agoThat's the theory. It's possible that in processing the volumes of seawater necessary to provide carbon to this process you'd introduce other impurities. But with a well-regulated process, it does seem to offer the option of a cleaner gasoline / diesel than we've got now.