Anything into oil...

Alferd Packer · Post by **Alferd Packer** » 2003-04-17 03:09am

Dunno if it's been posted before but hot damn, this is an exciting prospect.

http://www.discover.com/may_03/gthere.h ... atoil.html

Cthulhu-chan · Post by **Cthulhu-chan** » 2003-04-17 04:02am

Well shit, it's about time someone figured out how to put waste products to use. Really hoping this pans out.

Sokar · Post by **Sokar** » 2003-04-17 04:23am

Well I'll be damned.......tell all thoes eco-freaks to stick this in their pipe and smoke it......science isnt the problem its the answer fuckheads

Post by **Dalton** » 2003-04-17 05:33am

The government will find some way to shut it down so that it can no longer threaten the oil companies' profit margins.

[/cynicism]

Queeb Salaron · Post by **Queeb Salaron** » 2003-04-17 08:23am

If a 175-pound man fell into one end, he would come out the other end as 38 pounds of oil, 7 pounds of gas, and 7 pounds of minerals, as well as 123 pounds of sterilized water. While no one plans to put people into a thermal depolymerization machine, an intimate human creation could become a prime feedstock.

This is a Stephen King novel waiting to happen.

DarthBlight · Post by **DarthBlight** » 2003-04-17 08:33am

ok, now how many barrels of oil does it take to run the thing?

Morat · Post by **Morat** » 2003-04-17 08:39am

ok, now how many barrels of oil does it take to run the thing?

Its probably an organism that was engineered to do this. That means it would almost certainly be using a percentage of the energy in the materials to fuel the process.

[edit]

Just read the article. Appearantly I was quite wrong.

However, I doubt it takes much energy to run, since it is sounds like a fairly simple chemical process. It doesn't sound like anything that you wouldn't find in most industrial chemical plants.

Post by **Lagmonster** » 2003-04-17 08:48am

It's an interesting concept. Not yet ready for prime time, but the groundwork is certainly there for better processes down the road. Interestingly enough, I seem to remember hearing that there's a company in Toronto that is maybe three or four steps behind these guys. So, it's probably a fairly promising line of thinking these guys have.

Ted C · Post by **Ted C** » 2003-04-17 10:10am

Turning the random mix of organic waste they're using as "feedstock" into crude oil and natural gas (with some other by-products) is inherently going to be an endothermic process; this is a simple conservation of energy issue. In all likelihood, the power will come from a coal plant, so it's generating at least as much pollution as it consumes.

Morat · Post by **Morat** » 2003-04-17 10:17am

Turning the random mix of organic waste they're using as "feedstock" into crude oil and natural gas (with some other by-products) is inherently going to be an endothermic process; this is a simple conservation of energy issue. In all likelihood, the power will come from a coal plant, so it's generating at least as much pollution as it consumes.

Except that organic beings are already low in entropy. Assuming it allows some of the material to go all the way to CO2, there's no reason to assume that the chemical processes will have to bring in energy.

Remember, the same process happens naturally over time. Fossil Fuels don't come from the energy fairy, after all.

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-04-17 12:43pm

I read it in the magazine a week ago; apparently they can get 85% efficiency (e.g. 15 liters of fuel burned to get 85 liters out).

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-04-17 12:44pm

Dalton wrote:The government will find some way to shut it down so that it can no longer threaten the oil companies' profit margins.

[/cynicism]

Bah. This technique can also be used to increase the efficiency of refining crude oil into various products, thus allowing them to increase or at least maintain their profit margins.

Peregrin Toker · Post by **Peregrin Toker** » 2003-04-17 01:56pm

I like the idea behind it, but on the turkey offal bit - what would the PETA say??

Ted C · Post by **Ted C** » 2003-04-17 01:59pm

Simon H.Johansen wrote:I like the idea behind it, but on the turkey offal bit - what would the PETA say??

Hey, it's something to do with those 30,000 chickens put through the wood chipper.

Peregrin Toker · Post by **Peregrin Toker** » 2003-04-17 02:22pm

Ted C wrote:
Simon H.Johansen wrote:I like the idea behind it, but on the turkey offal bit - what would the PETA say??
Hey, it's something to do with those 30,000 chickens put through the wood chipper.

Turkeys.

Not chickens.

Cthulhu-chan · Post by **Cthulhu-chan** » 2003-04-17 02:27pm

They also mention that they can fuel the process with the gasses produced. This is the preferred method to them since it's apparently a bitch to transport "natural gas".

GrandMasterTerwynn · Post by **GrandMasterTerwynn** » 2003-04-17 02:56pm

Sokar wrote:Well I'll be damned.......tell all thoes eco-freaks to stick this in their pipe and smoke it......science isnt the problem its the answer fuckheads :P :P :D

And if those eco-freaks keep whining about it, apparently you could feed them into the machine and get some use out of them. A 175 pound man who goes into one end comes out as water, several light oils, some carbon black, and a few miscellaneous minerals.

GrandMasterTerwynn · Post by **GrandMasterTerwynn** » 2003-04-17 03:00pm

Queeb Salaron wrote:
If a 175-pound man fell into one end, he would come out the other end as 38 pounds of oil, 7 pounds of gas, and 7 pounds of minerals, as well as 123 pounds of sterilized water. While no one plans to put people into a thermal depolymerization machine, an intimate human creation could become a prime feedstock.
This is a Stephen King novel waiting to happen.

Heck, it'd be the ultimate way to promote human euthanasia. Feeling suicidal? Give back to your society! Or, we could finally clear out all those homicidal maniacs crowding Death Row for pennies on the dollar. It's like Brave New World without all the eugenics.

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-04-17 03:29pm

Cthulhu-chan wrote:They also mention that they can fuel the process with the gasses produced. This is the preferred method to them since it's apparently a bitch to transport "natural gas".

Natural gas has a fairly low density unless liquified - and that is not a trivial task. Most of the time it is transported through pipelines when possible or by ship.

Queeb Salaron · Post by **Queeb Salaron** » 2003-04-17 04:05pm

GrandMasterTerwynn wrote:Heck, it'd be the ultimate way to promote human euthanasia. Feeling suicidal? Give back to your society! Or, we could finally clear out all those homicidal maniacs crowding Death Row for pennies on the dollar. It's like Brave New World without all the eugenics.

Hell yeah. Do you know how much money I'd pay to have my body turned into gasoline to be compressed and ignited in one of the 8 cylinders in a 420 big-block 'Cuda? Talk about going out with a bang! Shit!

Einhander Sn0m4n · Post by **Einhander Sn0m4n** » 2003-04-17 04:17pm

I'm just wondering: Where the frell does all that Entropy go?!

Queeb Salaron · Post by **Queeb Salaron** » 2003-04-17 04:18pm

Einhander Sn0m4n wrote:I'm just wondering: Where the frell does all that Entropy go?!

Back where you found it, young man.

Hobot · Post by **Hobot** » 2003-04-17 04:19pm

It's beautiful!

DarthBlight · Post by **DarthBlight** » 2003-04-17 05:17pm

Heck, it'd be the ultimate way to promote human euthanasia. Feeling suicidal? Give back to your society! Or, we could finally clear out all those homicidal maniacs crowding Death Row for pennies on the dollar. It's like Brave New World without all the eugenics.

"Soylent Gas is made out of people! PEOPLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-04-17 05:29pm

Queeb Salaron wrote:
GrandMasterTerwynn wrote:Heck, it'd be the ultimate way to promote human euthanasia. Feeling suicidal? Give back to your society! Or, we could finally clear out all those homicidal maniacs crowding Death Row for pennies on the dollar. It's like Brave New World without all the eugenics.
Hell yeah. Do you know how much money I'd pay to have my body turned into gasoline to be compressed and ignited in one of the 8 cylinders in a 420 big-block 'Cuda? Talk about going out with a bang! Shit!

Bah. Cadillac Sixteen