Biomass or Ethanol?

By aerka |

Sunday, July 19, 2009

0 comments

What I just wrote up there is obviously true. I mean, I am in no way surprised by that, but apparently it's a big story. I suppose the story, really, is that somebody actually got out a pen and paper and did the math.

Here are the results, "biomass converted into electricity produced 81 percent more transportation miles and 108 percent more emissions offsets compared to ethanol." Those are some good numbers, and I think we can all agree that, in an ideal world, we would all have electric vehicles.

Buuut, we don't. We have vehicles that run on liquid fuels, and a transportation and infrastructure that relies on liquid fuels. The average car in America stays on the road for ten years, meaning that, for quite a while anyway, we're stuck with liquid fuels.

Creating ethanol, by design, is less efficient than burning it for electricity. There are a half-dozen energy-intensive steps necessary to turn cellulose into ethanol. But ethanol is a more convenient fuel than electricity. We don't need advanced batteries, we've got the pumping stations in place and there are already a lot of flex-fuel cars on the roads.

I hope we can all agree that electric cars would be better than ethanol-powered cars...but we should also agree that both are better than gasoline.

Tes

By aerka |

Friday, July 3, 2009

0 comments

Tes

Cooking Vegetables

By aerka |

Saturday, May 23, 2009

0 comments

Vegetables are an important source of vitamins. For example, carrot contains vitamin A and tomato contains plenty of vitamin C. In addition, vegetables are also source for vitamin B 1 (thiamin) and some of Calcium (Ca) and iron (Fe). Unfortunately, vitamins in general do not have a stable nature. Vitamin C, for instance, oxydized  and damaged by light and high temperature easily. 

So, to minimize the loss of vitamins in cooking processes, wash vegetables first before cutting them into small pieces. Don't reverse this process. Comparison between vegetables and water is important too. Good comparison between the vegetables and water for cooking is 1: 3, with the nutrients that are on vegetables do not lose much because the dissolve in the water solvent. Meanwhile, the processing time will be vary depend on what kind of vegetables that are processed.

Algae

By aerka |

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

0 comments

“Sargassum muticum” and “Undaria pinnatifida” are the names of two kinds of algae brought by the ships coming from Japan and the Sargassi sea. The algea grows over the seaport of Venice, causing problems for gondolas and ferry boats. But today it could be turned into a resource.

Italy recently announced a 200 million euro eco-friendly project to harvest the prolific seaweed that lines Venice’s canals and transform it into emissions-free energy. The idea is to set up a power plant fuelled by algae, the first facility of its kind in Italy. The plant, to be built in collaboration with renewable energy services company Enalg, will be operative in two years and will produce 40 megawatts of electricity, equivalent to half of the energy required by the entire city centre of Venice.


The algae will be cultivated in laboratories and put in plastic cylinders where water, carbon dioxide, and sunshine can trigger photosynthesis. The resulting biomass will be treated further to produce a fuel to turn turbines. The carbon dioxide produced in the process will be fed back to the algae, resulting in zero emissions from the plant. “Venice could represent the beginning of a global revolution of energy and renewable resources. Our goals are to achieve the energetic self-sufficiency for the seaport and to reduce CO2 emissions, including those one produced by the docked ships”, says the president of the seaport of Venice Authority, Paolo Costa.

The idea sounds good and seems to open great possibilities for zero emission energy production; Venice could represent the first step of a real innovative evolution even if there are still some doubts about the huge amount of money required for this project and the authorization needed to built the plant.

For more information about biomass energy, see also Solena Group.

Action Points

By aerka |

Friday, February 20, 2009

0 comments

4. How to reduce water pollution

Liquid detergents

The main problem with these is their phospate content. Use phospate-free or low-phospate washing-up liquid if you can obtain. If not, try reducing the quantity you use.

Washing powders

No-one with a washing machine can avoid using these. However, try experimenting with reduced quantities-remember manufacturers have an interrest in making you use more than is actually necessary.

Bleach and scouring powders

Again, the problem here is one of quantity. Very dilute bleach left to work for longer is just as effective as a strong solution poured away after a few minutes.

Water fresheners

Don't use them. They do not "freshen" water at all-rather they pollute it with synthetic perfumes and colours.

Garden chemicals

If you garden organically, using only natural products on the garden, you will avoid causing any water contamination.

DIY chemicals

None of these should ever be poured down a drain or sink. Pure cellulose wallpaper paste can go on the compost heap: other chemicals should be poured into a deep hole well away from plants.

Car cleaning and maintenance

The same rule applies here as for DIY chemicals-do not pour oil, battery acid or car polishes down the drain. Do not use detergents in  excessive quantities.

5. Cleaning up coasts and estuaries

Keep a watch

Many inshore pollution incidents are the results of illegal dumping. Water belongs to all of us: reporting offenders helps to prevent them repeating their actions.

Boycott polluters

A number of household products, perticularly paints and plastics, can cause severe water pollution during mnufacture. Although pollution may be within legal levels, it does not have to happen at all. It can be stopped by consumers boycotting persistent polluters.

Prevent pollution afloat

To protect the marine environment, boat-owners should dispose of rubbish on land. We do not have a right to pass on our rubbish to marine life.

Action on sewage

If you live in an area where sewage is disposed of by dumping it at sea, let the authorities in charge of waste disposal know that they should use land-based methods of disposal instead.

Do not use anti-fouling paints

These toxic paints, which are used to prevent encrustation of boat hulls, kill shellfish not only on boats but also around them. Responsible boat-owners should not use them.

Watch out for plastic hazards

Clear plastic is particularly dangerous to aquatic animals because it is invisible underwater. Fishing lines and the plastic retainers from packs of cans can strangle birds and seals. Picking it up will prevent this happening.

6. How to help the preservation of rare breeds

Buy local varieties

Buying local varieties of fruit and vegetables will help to prevent them being replaced by their standarized big-business counterparts.

Use a seed bank

Some organic farming and gardening associations maintain seed banks which presere old varieties of cultivated plants for the future. Joining an association will allow you to grow and exchange unusual and valuable seeds.

Rare breeds preservation societies

A number of organizations now exist to safeguard the future of rare farm animal breeds.

7. How to reduce the use of biocides

Buy organically grown food

Because organic farmers do not use biocides, buying their produce will ensure that an increasing area of land is farmed without the use of chemicals

Buy fresh produce

Significantly more chemicals are used on food crops which are destinated to be packed and sold far away from their place of origin. Although fresh produce may take time to prepare, it does not encourage the use of biocides.

Ban biocides at home

It is not good insisting that farmers should not use chemicals if they are still used in and around home. Avoiding the use of garden biocides is an important part of reducing the general level of these poisons.

facebook