Bacteria making deisel fuel

[adam_grif]

they need a way that doesn't consume so much energy as to make the idea pointless.

Skip the middle man shit and go straight to capturing, storing and utilizing solar energy. Other systems and proposals are just injecting greater complexity and inefficiencies to our primary energy source.

If you can make a bacterium that spits out petrol, it will be hugely advantageous despite inefficiencies because bacterium replicate for free. Obviously there are associated costs with harvesting it, but it's not difficult to think that this could potentially turn out more cost effective.

[someone_else]

If you can make a bacterium that spits out petrol

In the article they claim the bacterias that do the photosinthesis also make the diesel (most other methods require algae to make biomass and then the biomass is fed to bacterias that make the diesel, less efficient). They say that have problems in harvesting it though.

because bacterium replicate for free.

Bacteriums use energy to replicate, and guess from where that energy comes? That "feature" is in fact a loss of efficiency.

Also, they don't live outside of your piping, panels and vats, to augment the production you must build new structures.

[keen320]

because bacterium replicate for free.

Bacteriums use energy to replicate, and guess from where that energy comes? That "feature" is in fact a loss of efficiency.

It might be more efficient then a method where you must build everything separately. Besides, that really only applies when you are trying to start production. Theoretically, you just set up the apparatus and input the bacteria, and after some time it's all ready to go. After the set up you just get a small loss of efficiency from the bacteria replacing dead ones. It's not really a big surprise that they don't produce much while they are producing themselves. Solar panels don't give you energy while you build them, after all. Think of it like a solar panel factory producing panels to power itself. The factory reduces the amount of energy you can use for other stuff, but so what? Eventually your solar farm is complete and it just needs to produce replacements for any broken ones, or it produces product (obviously I'm ignoring that the factory needs other outside input besides electricity and air).

[Singular Intellect]

If you can make a bacterium that spits out petrol, it will be hugely advantageous despite inefficiencies because bacterium replicate for free.

No they don't, they use energy to replicate, energy from the sun that could be better used generating electrical power.

[Skgoa]

Also, do you even know how many internal combustion engines are in active use right now? Don't you think that providing fuel for them would be a good thing?

[someone_else]

Also, do you even know how many internal combustion engines are in active use right now? Don't you think that providing fuel for them would be a good thing?

If new cars/trucks stop to use oil (or use much less like hybrids) there will be enough fossil oil (at a decent price since the demand drops) for the older ones to be used until obsolescence. I don't see the problem.

Solar panels don't give you energy while you build them, after all.

But solar panels don't have such anemic efficiency to start with (a 5% at best Vs a 20-30% commercially) and don't clog the pipes with deposits of dead biomass.

[Skgoa]

Also, do you even know how many internal combustion engines are in active use right now? Don't you think that providing fuel for them would be a good thing?

If new cars/trucks stop to use oil (or use much less like hybrids) there will be enough fossil oil (at a decent price since the demand drops) for the older ones to be used until obsolescence. I don't see the problem.

Powering cars isn't the only use of petrochemicals and the current usage (+ what is going to be added to that in the next decades, due to India, China etc. industrializing) is so high that "electric and fuel efficient cars will safe us!" is not really something you should count on.

[someone_else]

Powering cars isn't the only use of petrochemicals and the current usage

But they tend to use around 60% of the oil production.
It's a significant quantity.

(+ what is going to be added to that in the next decades, due to India, China etc. industrializing)

Their industrialization doesn't have to mimic our own. And with the current oil prices, it isn't.

[madd0ct0r]

Can't find the evapouration point of diesel.

Could we use solar stills to split the fuel out from the water?

[someone_else]

Wikipedia claims that "contains hydrocarbons having a boiling point in the range of 180-360°C (360-680°F)". Water boils much before, so boiling it away seems to be an option.

It is also less dense so it should float on the top of the water. And I'm sure of that since even the oily crap used to run seagoing vessels (still diesel, but heavier and dirtier) tends to float over sea water.

Even if it is in an emulsion (microscopic droplets in the liquid, and that's likely the case since it's each single photosinthetic bacteria making it) and you don't bother to evaporate the water, you can centrifugate the emulsion, so that the water (heavier) stays at the bottom while the oil (lighter) migrates on the top.

I don't think it is particularly hard to do.
That's why I tend to find suspicious their claims about "technical difficulties".