Scientists Find Bugs That Eat Waste and Excrete Crude Oil

[tucsonlib]

Sounds like the setup to a joke, but this is apparently on the level. Silicon Valley scientists have genetically altered bugs – very, very small ones – so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips or wheat straw, they do something extraordinary. They excrete crude oil. Where's the U.S. media on this? Isn't this potentially the story of the century?

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article4133668.ece

[panader0]

1. I always thought that something like this might happen

Like in "Signs" where the big evil monsters die from water. There are so many unbekieveable possibilities.........

[Daveparts]

2. If it sounds too good to be true ...

It probably is, theres got to be a catch. The Bugs probably cost $1,000,000 each and only live for a week. always a catch

[gordianot]

3. Sounds good but what happens if they get loose in the environment?

Maybe we could swim in oil.

[papau]

5. Oil leaks natuarally into the ocean and the ocean has always had oil eating bateria

[papau]

4. This was well known - with ongoing experiments in the ocean 30 years ago - this is an

advancement however and is indeed a "big deal" as it has the bugs that produce oil exposed to a "production" (hopefully) process.



A past article from 5 years ago:

"For the past 25 years it has been known that certain bacteria are useful for cleaning up oil spills in warmer climates, where the microorganisms easily reproduce and decompose contaminants. This technique might now be used in Antarctica, thanks to the discoveries of two Argentine scientists.

Biologist Walter MacCormack, of the Argentine Antarctic Institute, and biochemist Lucas Ruberto, of the University of Buenos Aires, set out to find an efficient "biological remediation process" for extremely cold conditions, like those in Antarctica, where the average temperature is below freezing.
Such processes, using microorganisms to clean up soil contaminated by fossil fuels or heavy metals, have an established history.

But "the bacteria that break down fossil fuels tend to reproduce at temperatures between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius," MacCormack told Tierramérica.

"At four degrees, they do not grow, and the (decontamination) processes were not successful or were too slow to be considered efficient," he added.

And there was another problem.

The Madrid Protocol, which establishes environmental protection standards for Antarctica, prohibits the introduction of viruses, bacteria or any microorganism from other regions, and also bans taking samples from the frozen continent, except for previously authorized scientific purposes.

The Protocol is an annex of the Antarctic Treaty, which has been in force since 1961. There are 45 member states, with 12 holding consultative status: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Britain, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, South Africa and United States.

These restrictions forced the Argentine scientists to use locally available bacteria in all of their tests. The solution came from the "sicrofilo facultativo", which can grow at very low temperatures but can adapt to a climate of more than 20 degrees Celsius."

[tucsonlib]

6. But Isn't This the Exact Opposite of What You Describe?

You're talking about organisms that break down fossil fuels. These little guys apparently excrete crude oil.

[Tutonic]

7. Sounds like Perez HIlton.

[damntexdem]

8. Then you're not talking about Dick Cheney?

Just wanted to make sure.

[hokies4ever]

9. It's much cheaper to drill for oil than to create it

with these bugs. It's about money, not how scientifically interesting something is. Drilling for oil is cheap, plain and simple.

[tucsonlib]

10. Re: It's much cheaper to drill for oil than to create it with these bugs.

And you base this cost analysis on what, exactly? Do you know how much it would cost to utilize this new technology? First time I've ever heard someone claim that drilling for oil is "cheap".

[hokies4ever]

11. Exxon Mobil's profits last year

The bio route isn't something new. While working for a chemical company, I was involved in some discussions about using microorganisms to create certain polymers (chemical engineer by training; not as dumb as you thought I was, huh?). The basic analysis boiled down to the fact that it's just so much cheaper to CONTINUE the other processes. The same analysis holds here.

Gasoline prices aren't skyrocketing because the oil supply is almost gone or because it's becoming much more expensive to drill the oil. The prices are where they're at because that is what the market will bear. Drilling for oil IS cheap, so don't let the gas prices fool you. The capital equipment has already been bought and money already invested in these drilling practices. Any reasonable economic analysis will factor this in. Exxon Mobil will pay for their drilling equipment whether or not they use it. This is one of the biggest impediments to innovation in industries like the oil or chemical industries. Managers have already invested money in capital equipment, so they can't just switch over away from it without realizing the cost of buying equipment that you won't use. Think of it like buying a car that gets 30 mpg, then realizing that another car gets 35 mpg, but you can't sale the first car for anywhere near face value.

These aren't magic bugs you know. Even if this process was going to be utilized from an economic perspective, you wouldn't use the bugs. I guarantee that their process for creating the oil is inefficient in the sense that it creates other byproducts. If one were to use this technology, it would be to exploit the chemical reaction the bugs use to create the 'oil'. Oh, and it's necessary to put 'oil' in quotation marks because it's not a single compound. Actually a combination of various hydrocarbons, which, by the way, we already know how to chemically manufacture. Much easier and cheaper to isolate the chemical processes and just make the 'oil' than to have bugs produce them.

Also, don't be hoodwinked by the 'waste-eating bugs' concept. Oil consists of long carbon chains which these waste materials have, just like many other materials. All that happens is a chemical reaction to break down these compounds. The only real news about it is it takes place inside something living instead of a chemical reactor made out of metal (which would be much easier to scale up by the way).

It's just cheaper to drill for it than to make it, plain and simple. :patriot:

[classysassy]

12. Dick

just signed the adoption papers,those are his bugs.