Are there really NO jobs in Vegas?! (Las Vegas: water heater, salvaged)
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I don't think we can get away with not using oil all together. We still need to use petrol products to make a lot of things such as tires, lubricants, jet fuel and diesel to move heavy equipment and aviation. North America has a lot of oil, and we can really use that oil for ourselves. I think America was the largest exporter of Oil in the 1950s.
I don't think we can get away with not using oil all together. We still need to use petrol products to make a lot of things such as tires, lubricants, jet fuel and diesel to move heavy equipment and aviation. North America has a lot of oil, and we can really use that oil for ourselves. I think America was the largest exporter of Oil in the 1950s.
Are you saying without oil we could not figure out a way to move heavy equipment, fly a plane or create a tire? I think you underestimate the technology that is already available and the rapid pace at which innovation moves. I sincerely doubt anyone is suggesting we come to a screeching halt and stop using oil next year or even 10 years. It would surely have to be gradual but it is incredibly possible. Almost all of what most people believe is necessary to live a happy, fruitful existence that lacks nothing is complete illusion.
"North America has a lot of oil, and we can really use that oil for ourselves"
The surface issue is certainly that we're constantly poking our noses around siphoning oil from other nations which inevitably creates tension and dependency for sure. The core issue is both the issue of using the oil despite alternatives as well as the hoarding attitude. I would actually say the attitude is even more destructive than the use of the oil itself. The idea of separation that has become so pervasive that people feel like islands unto themselves has driven people mad. What exactly is 'ourselves'? When the $hit really hits the fan, where will ourselves be? The line you draw in the sand constantly shifts and in one fell swoop you will see that ourselves really pertains to everyone and everything.
Are you saying without oil we could not figure out a way to move heavy equipment, fly a plane or create a tire? I think you underestimate the technology that is already available and the rapid pace at which innovation moves. I sincerely doubt anyone is suggesting we come to a screeching halt and stop using oil next year or even 10 years. It would surely have to be gradual but it is incredibly possible. Almost all of what most people believe is necessary to live a happy, fruitful existence that lacks nothing is complete illusion.
"North America has a lot of oil, and we can really use that oil for ourselves"
The surface issue is certainly that we're constantly poking our noses around siphoning oil from other nations which inevitably creates tension and dependency for sure. The core issue is both the issue of using the oil despite alternatives as well as the hoarding attitude. I would actually say the attitude is even more destructive than the use of the oil itself. The idea of separation that has become so pervasive that people feel like islands unto themselves has driven people mad. What exactly is 'ourselves'? When the $hit really hits the fan, where will ourselves be? The line you draw in the sand constantly shifts and in one fell swoop you will see that ourselves really pertains to everyone and everything.
I'm sure the technology is there, but if we use petroleum in a responsible manner why back down from that technology? I'm not saying alternatives are not good but we are years away from that. We stopped using rubber trees to make car tires and started to use petroleum products to make a number of things that we use everyday from plastics to current automotive tires and numerous lubricants. I just think there needs to be balance in how we use Petroleum products. But for the most part I agree with your statements
I'm sure the technology is there, but if we use petroleum in a responsible manner why back down from that technology? I'm not saying alternatives are not good but we are years away from that. We stopped using rubber trees to make car tires and started to use petroleum products to make a number of things that we use everyday from plastics to current automotive tires and numerous lubricants. I just think there needs to be balance in how we use Petroleum products. But for the most part I agree with your statements
In many senses, petroleum has already been phased out. The only think keeping it around is the thought that there is still a need for it.
Synthetic lubricants have been used in industrial environments for a decade now. Plastic is being replaced in the consumer markets by synthetic materials, or metal/glass. Some significant health risks are becoming clear now, as we have been eating and drinking from plastic materials for a number of years...... and we're only talking about the USE of the oil. How about how its found? How about its environmental impacts? Not only in the burning of cars, but for heating houses, and manufacturing of petroleum based materials. Its the same as "clean coal". Its never really clean.
Are we in danger of "running out" of oil. I seriously doubt it. The earth is huge, and we are insignificant in size compared to it. Is it still a viable way to do things? Yes....for now. But that doesn't mean we can't embrace other methods. New technology. And, like this thread is about, new jobs created by and with those technologies. The only real thing that makes oil viable is the thought that we don't need to change.
E85, and CNG are great for fuels. Carbon fiber is just waiting to pounce into the consumer market. As soon as we get a cheap way to get carbon in mass quantities (Its like hydrogen. Its VERY common, yet hard to attain...but its another subject). Synthetic/recycled plastics are already in a lot of packing materials (Though the health risks haven't been tested much for food grade synthetic materials). Synthetic lubricants are already used in 90% of industrial applications. The average consumer just needs to pick up the ball with their engine oil.
In many senses, petroleum has already been phased out. The only think keeping it around is the thought that there is still a need for it.
Synthetic lubricants have been used in industrial environments for a decade now. Plastic is being replaced in the consumer markets by synthetic materials, or metal/glass. Some significant health risks are becoming clear now, as we have been eating and drinking from plastic materials for a number of years...... and we're only talking about the USE of the oil. How about how its found? How about its environmental impacts? Not only in the burning of cars, but for heating houses, and manufacturing of petroleum based materials. Its the same as "clean coal". Its never really clean.
Are we in danger of "running out" of oil. I seriously doubt it. The earth is huge, and we are insignificant in size compared to it. Is it still a viable way to do things? Yes....for now. But that doesn't mean we can't embrace other methods. New technology. And, like this thread is about, new jobs created by and with those technologies. The only real thing that makes oil viable is the thought that we don't need to change.
E85, and CNG are great for fuels. Carbon fiber is just waiting to pounce into the consumer market. As soon as we get a cheap way to get carbon in mass quantities (Its like hydrogen. Its VERY common, yet hard to attain...but its another subject). Synthetic/recycled plastics are already in a lot of packing materials (Though the health risks haven't been tested much for food grade synthetic materials). Synthetic lubricants are already used in 90% of industrial applications. The average consumer just needs to pick up the ball with their engine oil.
CNG is a great fuel, however I don't think E85 is that good since it is made from corn and not sugar cane. In Asia they sell Gasohol in gas stations but they are made from Sugar cane and it is much cheaper than its gasoline counterpart. A lot of people also drive CNG converts. I have a friend in CA that uses a honda civic GX and loves it. He has a PHILL unit that he can use to fill his tank overnight. I agree that alternative fuels will create jobs and we just need the leaders to make it happen.
CNG is a great fuel, however I don't think E85 is that good since it is made from corn and not sugar cane. In Asia they sell Gasohol in gas stations but they are made from Sugar cane and it is much cheaper than its gasoline counterpart. A lot of people also drive CNG converts. I have a friend in CA that uses a honda civic GX and loves it. He has a PHILL unit that he can use to fill his tank overnight. I agree that alternative fuels will create jobs and we just need the leaders to make it happen.
Sugar is sugar. It doesn't matter if its from cane, or corn, or beets, or alge, or grass clippings.
That's like saying Rum is a better alcohol because it comes from molasses, but whiskey sucks because its just from corn.....
Corn is used because the US has a HUGE surplus of corn. The state of Iowa has enough corn to feed the entire United States....yet, just about every single mid-west state grows it. We give away (as in, for free) more corn to 3rd world countries than we consume ourselves. THAT is why corn is used in making ethanol for motor fuel.
(EDIT.... and yes, the ethanol used in E85 is the exact same ethanol in every whiskey in the liquor store. In essence, your car runs on moonshine )
Sugar is sugar. It doesn't matter if its from cane, or corn, or beets, or alge, or grass clippings.
That's like saying Rum is a better alcohol because it comes from molasses, but whiskey sucks because its just from corn.....
Corn is used because the US has a HUGE surplus of corn. The state of Iowa has enough corn to feed the entire United States....yet, just about every single mid-west state grows it. We give away (as in, for free) more corn to 3rd world countries than we consume ourselves. THAT is why corn is used in making ethanol for motor fuel.
(EDIT.... and yes, the ethanol used in E85 is the exact same ethanol in every whiskey in the liquor store. In essence, your car runs on moonshine )
I thought it cost more to extract the sugars from corn that it does from sugar cane. I know sugar is sugar but in Asia or even South America they use sugar cane to make Gasohol fuel and for some reason is cheaper to make (maybe labor and technology come to affect and its use for feedstock also). Brazil pretty much has it down pat on making ethanol since they use a E22 blend already for 100% of the fuel they use.
I thought it cost more to extract the sugars from corn that it does from sugar cane. I know sugar is sugar but in Asia or even South America they use sugar cane to make Gasohol fuel and for some reason is cheaper to make.
No man....
Sugar cane has more sugar content than corn does...so it takes more corn to make a pound of sugar, than it takes from cane. The process is the same, and cost's the same.
Over there, there is an abundance of cane. Here, there is an abundance of sugar. That's all.
I just paid $3.14/gal for e85 in my car. I get around 22mpg. On gasoline, I get around 25-27mpg, and its $3.80something (I have to use premium, and its been a while since I looked at the price ). When doing the math, I break even. Sometimes I lose a few dollars, sometimes I gain, depending on the prices. So, its kind of a selfless cause. It does nothing for me personally, but its an American made product, grown by American farmers. Its got nothing to do with the middle east. It doesn't need to go by diesel fueled tankers across the ocean.
I don't know as much about CNG as I know about e85. However I do know that there is less energy in it than even in ethanol, so the mileage is really bad, but it costs significantly less, so I'm betting the savings is still there. And, there is a significant cost in converting a gas vehicle, into a CNG vehicle...not to mention the added weight. I drive a small sports car, so I don't really want to add a hundred lb tank to the back. Snoop drives a pickup, that was made at the factory to run CNG. For his purpose, I'm sure that CNG is the way to go.
It took me 15min to convert my vehicle to run on e85, and if I ever want to run gas again, its as simple as filling my tank with gas, and 3 mouse clicks.
I have a flex fuel f150 and it gets terrible mileage when I use E85. I get 15-16 city / 19-21 highway with reg 87, and 11-12 city/ 15-16 highway with E85. I know the ECM uses a different fuel map when you put gasoline or E85 and maybe that is one of the reasons it doesn't get the optimuIm mileage it should.
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