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Title: Audi creates green 'e-diesel fuel of the future' using just carbon dioxide and water
Source:
International Business Times, UK
URL Source: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/audi-creat ... t-carbon-dioxide-water-1498524
Published: Apr 27, 2015
Author: Ewan Palmer
Post Date: 2015-04-27 10:34:58 by Tooconservative
Keywords: None
Views: 11976
Comments: 26
German car manufacturer Audi says it has created the "fuel of the future" made solely from water, carbon dioxide and renewable sources. The synthetic "e-diesel" was made following a commissioning phase of just four months at a plant in Dresden, Germany. Unlike regular diesel, the clear fuel does not contain any sulphur or fossil oil, while it has an overall energy efficiency of around 70%. Germany's federal minister of education and research, Dr Johanna Wanka, said she has already used the fuel in her Audi A8, while the company hopes the Dresden factory, operated by clean tech company Sunfire, will produce 160 litres of it every day in the coming months. "This synthetic diesel, made using CO2, is a huge success for our sustainability research," Wanka said. "If we can make widespread use of CO2 as a raw material, we will make a crucial contribution to climate protection and the efficient use of resources, and put the fundamentals of the 'green economy' in place." Creation of the fuel, which Audi and Sunfire are calling blue crude, first requires heating water to 800C (1,472F) to trigger a high temperature electrolysis to break down the steam to hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen then reacts with the CO2 in synthesis reactors, again under pressure and at a high temperature. The reaction product is a liquid made from long‑chain hydrocarbon compounds, known as blue crude. This synthetic fuel, which is free from sulphur and aromatic hydrocarbons, is suitable for mixing with fossil diesel or being used as a fuel in its own right. Reiner Mangold, head of sustainable product development at Audi, said: "In developing Audi e-diesel we are promoting another fuel-based on CO2 that will allow long‑distance mobility with virtually no impact on the climate. Using CO2 as a raw material represents an opportunity not just for the automotive industry in Germany, but also to transfer the principle to other sectors and countries." Poster Comment: One of a number of promising alt energy technologies on the horizon.
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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 26.
#11. To: TooConservative, *Science and technology*, *Gear Heads* (#0)
70 percent efficient? YIKES!
YIKES! So that means were looking at what about 2 gallons per mile of driving? Hell you might as well get out and push the damn thing.
YIKES! So that means were looking at what about 2 gallons per mile of driving? What are you talking about? That is more efficient than either gasoline or diesel.
I was kidding. In my career field (HVAC) 70% efficiency was 50 years ago or so. You can get natural gas furnaces as efficient as 98% nowadays, they will cost you but they are available. The problem with them is if something goes wrong it will cost you an arm and a leg to get it fixed. I "wouldn't" recommend anything over 92% because they are still reasonable to install and repair.
I didn't know that. I had a 250k Modine forced air furnace put in my shop last fall,and it was supposed to be one of the most efficient,and was only somewhere in the 80's. Mostly because it was vented. Mine burns propane because I can't get NG where I live,but I doubt there is that much,if any,difference in the efficiency. I will say this. Once that thing gets wound up it doesn't take but a few minutes to get to t-shirt temps in the shop.
That's not bad for one of those hanging unit heaters, they used to be much worse efficiency wise.
SOB puts out some serious BTU's. The day the electrician got it wired and we turned it on,the daytime temps were in the low 30's,and it was actually painful to touch the fender of my 31 Plymouth sitting under my life,or to touch one of the lift supports. Within 15 minutes both were warm to the touch,and radiating heat. I do know I need to sell something this summer to come up with the cash to get insulation sprayed on my shop walls because I can't afford another winter buying that much propane,just to keep it in the low 50's inside. Does ok in the daytime because the steel walls radiate heat from the sun,but once the sun goes down the propane starts rolling.
Yes you do need to get some insulation in there that would help immensely. But even a lot of insulation won't help if you have high ceilings, that's where all your heat goes cause heat rises. My guess is that Modine is mounted at least 6-8 feet off the ground so the only way for the heat to get to ground level is if the fan in the heater is strong enough to get it there. But it doesn't stay there very long cause heat rises and cold air sinks, a quandary ehhh but a somewhat fixable quandary. What you could do to help out is install a couple of 60" or larger residential ceiling fans to pull the heat from the peak and send it down to the floor. When I first picked up the Montgomery Cty Water and Waste Treatment Plant they were having issues with it getting too cold in one of the pump buildings. This building was well insulated and had 15-18' ceiling in it and the heater was mounted up about 12' high on one wall. They were convinced there was something wrong with the heater when there wasn't, just a simple physics issue "Heat rises and cold sinks". They had a one man lift in there so I told the customer to take the lift up near the ceiling and tell me what he felt. He got up within 6' or so of the ceiling and said "Damn it's getting hot up here", then he said "there ain't nothing wrong with the heater all the heat is just rising"... (Duhhhhh)... So I proposed putting in three 60" residential ceiling fans dropped down about 6-8' on rods to push the heat down from the ceiling to the floor where all the pumps where. Also made them thermostat controllable and mounted the stat about 2' off the floor instead of the usual 5' high. Worked like a charm brought the temp down at floor level up about 15-20 degrees and the customer was happier than a pig in schitt. This all went down about 15 years ago and to this day the fans are still working beautifully. Albeit they need to have the blades cleaned every few years so they don't get off balance and ruin the bearings. There is another solution but it would be more expensive and that would be installing some infrared type tube heaters and have certain areas of the shop be warm and others well who cares. http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/hvac/heaters/gas-infrared/propane-heater- infrared-tube-125000-btu-40l? infoParam.campaignId=T9F&gclid=CP24vo7uncUCFQEGaQodJnYAqQ They are mounted overhead in certain areas of the shop/building and have a reflector on top to reflect the heat downwards, but they are intended to warm up surfaces more than designed to warm up the whole shop. Now I have seen them used to warm up the whole shop but the bill for gas is astronomical. There is also a vertical type of infrared they use to warm up people sitting on decks or patios but I haven't really had any experience with them so don't know what to tell you about them.. http://www.mycoolingstore.com/commercial-stainless-steel-glass-tube-patio- heater.html#.VUILQ2DwuM8 Hope this helps pete, anyway gotta go jump in the shower and head off to work.
My ceiling is 18 feet high in the shop part. My guess is that Modine is mounted at least 6-8 feet off the ground Closer to 12 feet. The roof of my "office" is close to 9 feet off the floor,and it's mounted above the flat office roof. The office is built inside the structure as a free-standing structure. so the only way for the heat to get to ground level is if the fan in the heater is strong enough to get it there. I have louvers on the front of the furnace,and you can feel the hit hitting you standing underneath the car lift. I have 7 cars inside the shop right now,plus maybe 4 tool boxes and shelves 4 high running 50 feet down one side and 30 feet down the other side that are loaded with steel and aluminum auto parts and tools. Plus stuff like my English Wheel,my sheet metal brakes,etc,etc,etc that are sitting on the floor. All that stuff gets warm pretty quickly and helps warm the floor area via radiation. Also,there is a plastic insulation pad beneath the cement floor that helps keep the floor from getting so cold. I built my 9x20 "office/bathroom" from 2x6's with half inch plywood walls inside and out,and insulated it with R-19. I can pretty much heat that with a candle since it sits inside the big building and gets no wind or outside temperature exposure. I've thought about your ceiling fan solution,but pretty much dismissed it after installing ac early last summer. I had been using a attic fan rated at handling around 1600 sq feet in each end of the building and on opposite sides to get the air moving inside and to exhaust the humidity,and had been worried about my electric bill climbing after installing the ac units. Damned if it didn't drop. It was cheaper to cool it with AC than it was to run exhaust fans out the gable ends. Plus it is a workshop,and I really don't want it to get over 60F in there in the winter unless I am doing body work and painting. When I'm doing mechanical work I like to keep it cool enough I can wear a long sleeved shirt or a hoodie so I can protect my arms and head from debris without sweating. To me,60-65 degrees is a perfect inside temperature for working. The big propane expense comes from heating all those cars and the other steel inside. Yeah,they heat easily,but they also get cold easily when the sun goes down and the steel building is leaking heat instead of radiating it. I'm thinking this won't be a problem once I get the insulation sprayed in. I'm even thinking about spraying it over my sun lights in the roof,but I really hate the idea of turning the place into a dark cave. I have been thinking of building a sliding skylight cover that I can open and close with a remote so I have sunlight in the day,and can close it up at night so the heat doesn't escape. Probably won't do it because I am not as agile as I used to be,and have no business climbing up that high.
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#16. To: sneakypete (#11)
70 percent efficient?
#17. To: CZ82 (#16)
70 percent efficient?
#18. To: sneakypete (#17)
#19. To: CZ82 (#18)
You can get natural gas furnaces as efficient as 98% nowadays,
#22. To: sneakypete (#19)
#24. To: CZ82 (#22)
That's not bad for one of those hanging unit heaters, they used to be much worse efficiency wise.
#25. To: sneakypete (#24)
#26. To: CZ82 (#25)
Yes you do need to get some insulation in there that would help immensely. But even a lot of insulation won't help if you have high ceilings, that's where all your heat goes cause heat rises.
Replies to Comment # 26.
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