Copper catalyst makes ethanol without crops

[Grandmaster_Skweeb]

Scientists have found a highly efficient way to make liquid ethanol from carbon monoxide gas. The discovery could provide an eco-friendly alternative to conventional ethanol production that uses corn and other crops.

“We have discovered the first metal catalyst that can produce appreciable amounts of ethanol from carbon monoxide at room temperature and pressure —a notoriously difficult electrochemical reaction,” says Matthew Kanan, an assistant professor of chemistry at Stanford University and coauthor of the study that appears in Nature.

Most ethanol today is produced at high-temperature fermentation facilities that chemically convert corn, sugarcane, and other plants into liquid fuel. But growing crops for biofuel requires thousands of acres of land and vast quantities of fertilizer and water.

In some parts of the United States, it takes more than 800 gallons of water to grow a bushel of corn, which, in turn, yields about 3 gallons of ethanol.

The new technique developed by Kanan and graduate student Christina Li requires no fermentation and, if scaled up, could help address many of the land- and water-use issues surrounding ethanol production today. “Our study demonstrates the feasibility of making ethanol by electrocatalysis,” Kanan says. “But we have a lot more work to do to make a device that is practical.”

More here.

An awesome discovery, though with the powers-that-be I doubt we'll ever see implemented in some form or another outside of controlled experiments that'll only ever be just that.

[Shyria Dracnoir]

So we've discovered proper dwarven moonshine. Nice.

[Aerozord]

Originally Posted by Grandmaster_Skweeb

More here.

An awesome discovery, though with the powers-that-be I doubt we'll ever see implemented in some form or another outside of controlled experiments that'll only ever be just that.

Dont be so pessimistic. Big oil isn't the political power house it once was. Not only is public opinion forming harder and harder against it but governments recognize that oil is becoming more and more costly in more ways than one. To the point that despite huge public resistance many world leaders are even turning to nuclear power.

[phil_]

Originally Posted by Aerozord

governments recognize that oil is becoming more and more costly in more ways than one.

I'm going to regret posting this when I'm homeless begging for quarters to buy booze, but here goes.

Vital resources being expensive is a good thing when you're rich and hate the poor for breathing your air. Government leaders (with negligible exceptions on the scale of maybe one or two in the entire world which I must recognize because I hate absolute statements) are rich and hate poor people for breathing their air, or are controlled by people who can be described as such. Pessimism is the only reasonable thought pattern after the Age of Aquarius turned out to be Nixon and company.

[Aerozord]

Originally Posted by phil_

I'm going to regret posting this when I'm homeless begging for quarters to buy booze, but here goes.

Vital resources being expensive is a good thing when you're rich and hate the poor for breathing your air. Government leaders (with negligible exceptions on the scale of maybe one or two in the entire world which I must recognize because I hate absolute statements) are rich and hate poor people for breathing their air, or are controlled by people who can be described as such. Pessimism is the only reasonable thought pattern after the Age of Aquarius turned out to be Nixon and company.

That only works if you believe being evil and having money are the same thing. If I gave you a million dollars would you suddenly hate poor people? The rich are human being with the same base wants and desires. They aren't sadists jerking off to the suffering of others. The rich don't want their product to be expensive, they want it to be profitable and oil is becoming less and less profitable. More over not everyone thats rich makes money off of oil, in fact they lose money because alot of the things they enjoy require oil to function.

This doesn't really threaten them either. They can easily invest in this new technology and make alot of money off of it. In fact dont you think those not invested in oil would love to see it taken down? Whether it be transportation, manufacturing, or even just power as oil becomes more expensive so too does these things. Even if you assume they are all evil and hate you, they dont hate themselves and they dont want their own businesses to make less money. A cheaper alternative to oil would increase their profits by reducing their overhead.

The reason oil was stronger politically is because it was the cheapest in town. However it is growing more and more expensive, it will NEVER get cheaper, they aren't idiots. They can see this, so they would want something else.

[phil_]

Originally Posted by Aerozord

More over not everyone thats rich makes money off of oil, in fact they lose money because alot of the things they enjoy require oil to function.

Naw, I'm pretty sure that everyone who's anyone (and that would be people worth tens of billions, not millions) are making money off of oil, because it would be stupid, if you have more money than all the civilizations which have ever existed on this Earth, to not invest in the resource that powers that wealth. And they will do what they can to stifle alternatives, because failing to do so would be stupid if they are human actors with human self-preservation instincts.

You could give me a million dollars and I'd remain the same lazy shit I already am, but I would not become part of the people my last post referred to because my wealth would be less than theirs' by four zeroes. It's a completely unrelated topic.

[Aerozord]

Originally Posted by phil_

Naw, I'm pretty sure that everyone who's anyone (and that would be people worth tens of billions, not millions) are making money off of oil, because it would be stupid, if you have more money than all the civilizations which have ever existed on this Earth, to not invest in the resource that powers that wealth. And they will do what they can to stifle alternatives, because failing to do so would be stupid if they are human actors with human self-preservation instincts.

You could give me a million dollars and I'd remain the same lazy shit I already am, but I would not become part of the people my last post referred to because my wealth would be less than theirs' by four zeroes. It's a completely unrelated topic.

I think you are vastly over-estimating the value of oil. While oil is valuable, its also costly to extract, refine, and transport. Take a look at this Forbes article listing the richest people in the world. You'll notice most of them aren't oil barons. Heck I see more people on that list who get the bulk of their fortune from walmart than oil, you dont think walmart would love to see its shipping costs take a nose dive?