Hot car in US?

[GT98]

Originally posted by DukeP
Only problem with gas turbine hybrids (which is a GREAT idea, btw) is the insanely annoying squeak, the turbines make... Dont know if You can get around that, tho...

~~DukeP~~

What about all the heat that they generate

[gt40]

there is no replacement for displacement

[Dr Mordrid]

As for other ways to reduce energy usage I think a move to LED lighting would do a lot. This technology has been growing by leaps and bounds and IMO is nearing critical mass. Imagine being able to light your house on 5-10 volts.

I have been using LED flashlights for almost a year now for our emergency kits & camping and they're very nice. You get 10-30 times the battery life plus they're bright as hell. They're also closer to daylight in color temperature, which means your eye can "see" it better than the reddish light given off by incandescant bulbs.

The use of light pipes for daylight lighting is also something that should be encouraged in things like tax code etc. It's always bugged me that stores, commercial buildings and even some homes often have to turn on the lights during daylight hours because of the adherence to "traditional" design

Dr. Mordrid

[KRSESQ]

I'm a lot less concerned about petroleum depletion now, since I heard about Thermal Depolimerization:

http://www.changingworldtech.com/home.html

If this process lives up to even half its hype, it could revolutionize waste management and energy production to a degree we can't even foresee.

When it's finally up and running, the pilot plant at the Butterball turkey plant in Carthage, MO, is expected to process 200 tons of turkey offal into 600 barrels of light fuel-grade oil per day, at a price approaching pennies per gallon once it's up to speed.

Imagine a plant like this in every city, processing all of the municiple waste and garbage into marketable fuels. The price of conventionally produced petroleum could drop to the point of bankrupting the Arabs, since they won't be able to give the stuff away.

Right now this technology is where the telephone was in 1880. It has the potential to change the world in ways no one can foresee. And I'm not going to stop yelling about it until EVERYONE is paying attention. So you know what to look forward to.

Kevin

[Kooldino]

its a nice car.

[Novdid]

Aaaaaaand back to topic!

[az]

DocM, LEDs aren't much more efficient than incandescant, flourescents on the other hand are (then again, like LEDs they don't have a continous spectrum but rather 3-5 bands that make the light look white, but give poor color rendition). Also, most people actually prefer warmer light for home lighting, which makes sense (though this would not be a problem for LEDs to produce if demanded).

AZ

[GNEP]

http://forums.murc.ws/showthread.php?postid=432099#post432099

[KvHagedorn]

Originally posted by DukeP
Oh, and You really dont need oil in a modern society.

We have a small island (Samsøe) which have been a "zero energy" island for the lsat 5 years.
They get their energy from wind, solar and biomass (mostly byproducts from their agricultur).

Actually, this only means Samsøe doesn't need oil in a modern society.

Can you say the same for other islands? Say Hong Kong or Singapore? They might get by with windmills.. if the population was about 2% what it is there.

[Technoid]

That is a FUGLY car

[KRSESQ]

Which one?

Kevin

[GuchiGuh]

Give the yankees some slack! Trying to produce some decent cars and still getting crap from you guys

[Brian Ellis]

Originally posted by DukeP
Oh, and You really dont need oil in a modern society.

We have a small island (Samsøe) which have been a "zero energy" island for the lsat 5 years.
They get their energy from wind, solar and biomass (mostly byproducts from their agricultur). The last 2 years the island have been a netto exporter of energy, have had a netto influx of CO2 (they are currently binding 19000tons CO2 a year more than they release) etc, etc. All without loosing their competivness as a large producer of agricultural goods.

This DOES require quite extensive investments in infrastructure (distributed hot water mains for heating, rigging all the windmills together in distribution points, establishing small powerplants to serve the outlying comunities etc).

But it goes to show that it is indeed possible, taking advantage of newish technology.

Off course- we dont NEED to be oilfree - Denmark is a net exporter of oil.
But just to be on the safe side...

(We are also the worlds largest producers of windmills).

~~DukeP~~

It is easy to isolate a small part out of an equation. You must look at the holistic view.

For example, how much fossil fuel was used to produce all your wierd and wonderful renewable devices, such as windmills, solar panels, biogas tractors, power lines or pipelines for exporting. How much fossil fuel was used to transport them and install them (or did you use rowing boats)? Do none of the inhabitants use any plastic materials for any purpose (including covering the digesters)? And the oil in the windmill gearboxes is never changed, is it?

In late November of each year, Denmark and the whole of N. Europe is beset by a large anticyclone, sometimes lasting up to three weeks. This means virtually no significant wind over 5 m.s^-1, which is the minimum for a windmill to start producing a useful amount of electricity (about 10% of capacity). Granted, the skies are clear during this period, but the days are short and the angle of incidence of the sun is low, meaning there is more energy absorption before the light hits the solar panels. I simply cannot believe that your little island can exist without importing energy from the mainland during this period and other times. This energy must come from thermal or nuclear plants. Even if the overall energy balance sheet is positive (exports>imports) I simply cannot believe that it lives without oil and oil products, if only to carry the right number of cans (made with fossil fuel) of Carlsberg (ditto) to keep the inhabitants happy.

Yes, I know a European island that is not, in any way, a consumer of oil or oil-derived products, the Ile de Peilz in Lac Léman (Lake of Geneva). It has one tree growing on it and the only inhabitants or visitors are cormorants and possibly a few other birds. There may be others never visited by humans, as well, but I can't quote any names.

[Technoid]

Originally posted by KRSESQ
Which one?

Kevin

The Amazingly FUGLY Chrysler 300