Alt fuels was Re: [AT] Gasoline $

[Steve W.]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "ken knierim" <wild1 at cpe-66-1-196-61.az.sprintbbd.net>
To: "Antique tractor email discussion group"
<at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 10, 2005 1:10 PM
Subject: OT: Alt fuels was Re: [AT] Gasoline $


> George,
>     Not everywhere is solar such a low-density thing. Here in AZ the
> number shot around is around 1KW per square meter... if you've been
here
> in the summer you know there's a lot of power in it. :) The technical
> issues with pushing it into mainstream are considerable though. My
guess
> is that with the energy costs we'll see a lot more exploration into
> using it. I know I'm working on a couple of alternative fuels/energy
> projects.
>
> 1. Propane conversions for new vehicles. I'm not in the middle of this
> one but I'm doing some support for a couple of guys working out the
> software and hardware. The new vehicles have some pretty stringent
> requirements and can be very finicky about what you feed them for
> fuels... and again, sometimes they aren't. GM and Ford have been
> building a lot of vehicles that will run on ethanol/gasoline blends
far
> in excess of the 85% gasoline. With the modern fuel controls, it's
going
> to be a lot better than some of the previous experiences (carburetor
> conversions) and they have higher compression ratios that will take
> better advantage of the amount of energy in the ethanol. Yes, there is
> less energy available than gasoline, but if the engine isn't designed
> for the fuel you're burning, it's going to be inefficient.

True BUT do you realize that propane ismade from oil? It is actually a
byproduct of gasoline production. It is also MUCH more expensive to use
(current gasoline price here 2.56 gal. current propane price 3.08 and
that is with a lot of discounts and I was told it is going up next week
again)

>
> 2. A lot of energy goes into domestic usage (heating and cooling) and
> that CAN be directly affected by alternative sources a lot easier than
> transportation. Simple things like using a fan and bumping the A/C
> setting up a few degrees saves a LOT. Couple that to addition of
> insulation, newer windows, servicing HVAC systems and filters, and a
LOT
> of energy can be saved. When I moved into my house (built in 1979,
2300
> square feet) the previous owner was paying over $600 per month for
> cooling in the summertime. Last month's bill for me, 10 years after I
> moved in and started improving things, was under $200, and energy
costs
> have not gone down in the last 10 years...

The problem there is that you need to spend BIG money to do all of the
improvements to save the energy. When you add it all up it costs much
more than just paying the money for the oil. Not saying it is bad to do
but don't think it isn't a wash in the long run.

>
> 3. Another idea that I'm going to attempt is a solar powered air
> conditioner. There's an experimental system being tested in several
> locations that uses low pressure water as a refrigerant. They use
solar
> panels to capture the heat, boil the water and use a venturi to
generate
> a pumping action that generates chilled water out the other side. My
> guess is that with a ground loop (something I've been reading about on
> this group with close and careful attention) and some controls could
be
> added to the system.
>    I plan on building a carport roof this winter and making it strong
> enough to support the solar collectors on top of it. The idea is to
> generate cooling that I will be using on my shop (where I work on my
> tractors!). With a solar system it should reduce the cooling
> requirements on the main shop. I do not expect it to eliminate them by
> any stretch but knocking the edge off it is a good start. While it's
not
> the do-all and end all, reducing our reliance on foreign energy is
going
> to be more and more critical. I feel China is waking up and is going
to
> become ravenously energy-hungry and I just don't see fuel costs ever
> coming down.
>     I've already done a few things to improve my transportation fuel
> costs. First, I don't drive my Blazer as much; only when hauling stuff
> or for recreation. I'm running a fuel injected, manual transmission
> Camaro which gets about twice the fuel mileage. Trip planning helps
but
> does not eliminate driving; I commonly have 2 to 8 stops on a daily
trip
> (picking up and dropping off parts, visiting customers and vendors,
all
> the trappings of a small business). I also do a lot of shopping
online.
>
>
> I'd like to hear of more ideas; this group is great for them.
>
> Ken
>
> Gilbert, Arizona
>
>
In the long run the only real solution to 99 percent of the problem is
Nuclear power. Use it instead of oil and oil derived products for
electrical generation and you will see large gains.
Solar sounds good BUT the cost of making the cells, maintenance and the
back-up storage systems for the times when power spikes or low sun days
wipes out any perceived advantage for large scale use. The last time I
checked it would run almost 20K for a system that would deliver
equivalent power to my home/shop and that was just the array, no storage
or backup systems.