Difference between revisions of "Category:Bio-fuels"

See also Energy

Bio-fuels are fuel sources derived from renewable organic matter.

Web Articles

How to Survive as a Biofuel Maker: Sell Algae to Bakers 7/13

An article discussing the disadvantages of ethanol fuels.

A study describing why ethanol is not a realistic solution to the USA's energy problems.

An article that weighs the advantages and disadvantages of ethanol.

HowStuffWorks' article on how algae-based biodiesel works.

Algae street lamps absorb CO2.

Electricity from living plants 1/15

Bio-Fuels

Bio-Energy (actually quite different than bio-fuel)

Amazing New Process Treats Wastewater, Captures Carbon and Makes Renewable Energy: An electrochemical reaction that absorbs more CO2 than it releases while creating renewable energy could transform emission-heavy industries. 8/15.

Biogas, a Low-Tech Fuel With a Big Payoff big in Germany 11/14.

Bio-bus runs on poo. 12/14.

Scientists Use E.coli To Generate Renewable Propane 9/14.

Energy Game Changer? Scientists Turn Algae into Crude Oil in Less Than an Hour. They have taken 60 minutes to do what Nature does -– at great pressures and temperatures -– over millions of years.

Turning cow dung into electricity: Dairy farmers have been burned by systems that promise to turn manure into power, but a new generation of digesters could revive this segment of the renewable energy field. 6/13.

Pig poo fuel 8/12.

Microbes Transform Wastewater to Energy LOE.org audio and text 2/12.

Juan Enriquez offers a glimpse of some ground-breaking research to explore the potential of bioenergy. Our current energy sources -- coal, oil, gas -- are ultimately derived from ancient plants -- they're "concentrated sunlight." He asks, Can we learn from that process and accelerate it? TEDtalk video.

A solar powered floating scum collector that sucks up algae and combines it with a chemical (this part is a bit vague) and transforms it into bio-oil instantly. When you need oil, you can go to your pond or swimming pool and harvest it instantly.

Craig Venter Can we create new life out of our digital universe?" asks Craig Venter. And his answer is, yes, and pretty soon. He walks the TED2008 audience through his latest research into "fourth-generation fuels" -- biologically created fuels with CO2 as their feedstock. His talk covers the details of creating brand-new chromosomes using digital technology, the reasons why we would want to do this, and the bioethics of synthetic life. TEDtalk video.

Genetically modified microbes are the new thing in biofuels. Some university labs and high-tech startups say they’ve engineered organisms that can make fuels like ethanol and diesel with just sunlight and carbon dioxide. It’s called direct solar liquid fuel. 11/09 audio

Energy from sewage/algae Loe.org 5/10

Bio-Fuel

Bio-diesel co-op 5/15.

energy from seaweed 10/14.

Brilliant teen publishes paper on saving the climate with ammonia-fueled cars 2/14

Corn based ethanol. Since 2007, the federal government has made an aggressive push into corn-based ethanol: oil companies are now required to add millions of gallons of ethanol to gasoline, and farmers are encouraged to plow more land in a bid to keep up with demand. But the stated goals of those efforts — produce more green energy and curb global warming — aren't coming to pass. In a sweeping investigation, the Associated Press reveals that "the ethanol era" has exacted a devastating environmental toll on land across the country. A whopping 5 million acres of conservation land, for instance, have been plowed by farmers trying to produce more corn — much of which now goes to ethanol production rather than livestock feed. That plundering has contaminated waterways, released heaps of greenhouse gasses, and funneled resources into coal- and gas-burning ethanol factories. 11/13. see Food Scarcity especially Lester Brown.

Union of Concerned Scientists: Expanding U.S. biofuel production will require tradeoffs between ambitious fuel production targets and other societal goals, including protection of the water we need for drinking, growing food, preserving aquatic habitats, and producing electricity. UCS Bioenergy Principles download.

Gamers Going Green: New Video Game Turns Players Into Biofuel Farmers.

Fuel From Waste, Poised at a Milestone 11/12

Starbucks' Food Waste Fuels Experimental Biorefinery 9/12.

Friends of the Earth critique 2/12

TEDTalks: Plant fuels that could power a jet. Algae plus salt water equals … fuel? At TEDxNASA@SiliconValley, Bilal Bomani reveals a self-sustaining ecosystem that produces biofuels -- without wasting arable land or fresh water. Bomani runs NASA’s Greenlab research facility, where he is developing the next generation of biofuels.

Vertical bio-reactor

Talk of the Nation Science Friday coverage NPR.org. roundup

E-coli breakthrough UK 7/10

Fuel, the Film. Winner at Sundance. Interview/overview with director. (highly recommended) follows director Josh Tickell on his quest to convert the world to biofuels extensive interview.

Greasy Rider: Two Dudes, One Fast Food Fueled Car, and a Cross-Country Search for a Greener Future "Is it possible to drive coast-to-coast without stopping at a single gas pump? Journalist Greg Melville is determined to try. With his college buddy Iggy riding shotgun, he sets out on an enlightening road trip. The quest: to be the first people to drive cross-country in a french-fry car. " Long video interview with excerptsand full version

For Chris Somerville, director of the Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI) at UCB, whether and how biofuels can be "truly positive" for carbon emissions and our energy supply is, as the saying goes, "in the details." (Video).

What's the Next Big Thing? Nova PBS 2011

The Big Green Bus is a group of 15 Dartmouth students on the ultimate 10-week cross-country journey. Our mission: to educate the American public about environmental responsibility and alternative energy. Our vehicle: a bus fueled by waste vegetable oil. Google talk (video).