Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumCelanese to make ethanol from Natural Gas
... this would not be a renewable fuel, but it would add to the ethanol we are already making and increases the prospect of stopping the rise in the price of gasoline/oil (it's likely, that if we produce ethanol in a volume equal to somewhere between 20% and 30% of the light transportation fuel supply, we would see gas prices stop rising). Furthermore, with a large enough volume of ethanol being produced, we could even reverse the rise in the price of gas/oil.
Currently, the rising price of oil is adversely impacting our economic growth and this will only get worse in the future. Slowing the rise in the price of gas or stopping its rise would give a boost to economic growth. Decreasing our dependence on mid-East oil would have significant geo-political ramifications too. Right now, we are gambling our entire economy on there being an uninterrupted supply of oil world-wide - for the foreseeable future. That's a pretty big bet to be placing.
http://www.icis.com/Articles/2012/03/07/9539405/us-celanese-eyes-world-markets-for-its-fuel-ethanol.html
HOUSTON (ICIS)--US-based acetyls producer Celanese is looking at markets worldwide for its hydrocarbon-based ethanol, an executive said on Wednesday.
Celanese's recently developed technology, TCX, allows it to produce ethanol from natural gas or coal by using acetic acid as an intermediary, according to a recent patent.
Celanese said its process costs less than bio-based production, on which most of the world relies.
In 2013, Celanese plans to start ethanol production in China, using coal as a feedstock.
(more)
mike_c
(36,281 posts)Every carbon molecule has to go somewhere. Combusting it-- in any form-- produces good 'ole CO2.
Bill USA
(6,436 posts)gamble.
We are getting close to the limit Congress put on renewable fuels from plant sources (15 billion gallons). We need to do something as quickly as possible to reduce our dependence on oil before we have an economic disaster caused by an interruption in the supply of oil - or just the threat of an interruption - that's enough to cause petroleum speculators to drive the price of oil up to economy killing levels.
We can also make methanol from forest and agricultural waste material, and blend that with the ethanol we currently make. THis would be a renewable fuel. But somebody in Washington needs to push it (- well, they need to recognize it's an option ... THEN push it). But I don't think the Oil industry will allow this to happen.
Warpy
(111,339 posts)How dumb can you get?
Seriously, China produces a lot of sorghum straw, especially in the northern provinces. This can be converted to ethanol very easily, the straw is very high in sugars.
Unless they've completely tapped that resource and are looking for more alternatives, this operation might be interesting on a theoretical level but will do the environment much more harm than good.
No thanks.
Bill USA
(6,436 posts)What if China burned natural gas based ethanol instead of Athabasca Tar sands oil?
I agree, renewables would be better, but they may be limited in how fast they can grow their renewables. I don't know this, but I'm just considering possibilities, here.
Warpy
(111,339 posts)They'd be much better off using the natural gas in their electrical plants and making ethanol from sorghum straw.
Bill USA
(6,436 posts)but then, I wish we would get off coal faster too.
.. actually, I wasn't so much focussed on what China does, as what this can mean to us. MOre energy security in less time.
kristopher
(29,798 posts)It is worth noting that, by far, most of our meager government spending for renewables goes to the ethanol industry.