Microbe-powered 'fart' machine stores energy

[Dr.Phool]

Source: MSNBC.com

Microbe-powered 'fart' machine stores energy
Could improve fuel cell technology by turning CO2 into methane

By Eric Bland
updated 3:18 p.m. ET, Thurs., April 23, 2009

It sounds like a gag gift instead of serious science, but a new electrical farting machine could improve fuel cell technology by turning C02 in the atmosphere into methane.

The technique won't combat global warming directly, since both CO2 and methane are potent greenhouse gases, but it could help store alternative energies such as wind and solar more efficiently.

It works like this: giving small jolts of electricity to single-celled microorganisms known as archea prompts them to remove C02 from the air and turn it into methane, released as tiny "farts." The methane, in turn, can be used to power fuel cells or to store the electrical energy chemically until its needed.

We found that we can directly convert electrical current into methane using a very specific microorganism," said Bruce Logan, a professor at Pennsylvania State University, who details his discovery in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

We envision this as a way to store electrical energy, to convert electricity into a biofuel," he said.

(more)

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30372491/

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Something about this stinks.

[LSparkle]

1. OMG, now I think I have heard EVERYTHING ... n/t

[flakey_foont]

2. just wait til this news hits the 6th grades of America

imagine the yucks at the lunch table.....no more need to stick your hand in your armpit and flap

[Dr.Phool]

3. Who knew that Terrance and Phillip were scientists?

[pink-o]

14. 6th graders? How many people have emailed Stephanie Miller by now?? n/t

[Lasher]

4. Oboy, this is gonna be good!

[valerief]

5. Love it! I hope this isn't just hot air.

:rofl:

[BlueJazz]

6. Hook it up to my Dog.....He'll power half the country.

[TNDemo]

9. You must have a Boston Terrier.

I do - and an oily toxic sulfuric cloud follows him.

[bemildred]

7. What's the efficiency of the conversion?

I think this is good, it's a way to convert solar,geothermal,wind,tidal, etc. to portable fuel, but efficiency is going to matter.

[kristopher]

16. Sensible question

However the more likely limiting factor will be the relatively low concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. While 380ppm is sufficient to cause our problems with the greenhouse effect, it is much too low to act as feedstock for an organism that is going to create a biofuel from the CO2.

There are carbon streams such as organic wastes that are available though, and it would be in an efficiency competition with other schemes like algae that process CO2 into oil for biodiesel.

[bemildred]

18. It does leave some questions.

It says the electricity to methane conversion is 80% efficient. When you use the methane for energy, your are going to have a greater loss, so I would not think the overall conversion would be that great. How it would match up against a battery or direct use I don't know.

The story implies (I think) that they do use atmospheric CO2 as a feedstock. That could be good because the process would not add net new CO2 or methane to the atmosphere (theoretically).

And I wonder why they want to use a fuel cell when you can just burn it like natural gas. Efficiency maybe? Since compressing it would cost energy, maybe they want to avoid that and store it some other way?

[kristopher]

19. I agree with your reading,

the point I was trying to highlight is that they CANNOT use atmospheric CO2 and achieve any meaningful production values. Operations like this have to piggyback on things like the concentrated CO2 in coal power plant exhausts. That sounds Ok but it provides the false sense that the coal CO2 emissions are being dealt with in an ecologically friendly manner. Since the CO2 in the coal eventually end up in the air, we haven't really done anything except achieve a marginal increase in the overall energy value of the coal with zero decrease in carbon emitted.

Fuel cells are much more efficient than burning it. However until the costs of fuel cells achieve a major breakthrough, the methane would probably be burned.

[bemildred]

20. Same to you, that makes sense.

It occurs to me that these could come in handy in a car, if you could make them small and cheap enough, plenty of CO2, a need for something battery-like.

I imagine geothermal sources could be used for electricity and CO2, in some cases.

But I don't think I'm going to invest in it yet.

[izquierdista]

23. Or biogas

Biogas out of the fermenter is around 40-50% CO2, so this bug could be useful in processing or upgrading biogas.

[TNDemo]

8. My husband could get us completely off the grid.

Finally - some use for all that methane around here.

[Canuckistanian]

11. LOL

You should put a meter on him and get rich!

[dixiegrrrrl]

10. Is it legal to give electric shocks to archea ?

Maybe we need a legal opinion on that first...
or afterwards..

[Canuckistanian]

12. Congress is drafting an "Archea Commissions Act"

The President will be immune to all fart-related legal challenges.

[dixiegrrrrl]

17. oh...god...can you just see the Mel Brooksdoing a court scene ...with beans.

[ohio2007]

13. hit it with a gas tax nt

[mikekohr]

15. And You Thought Diesel Smoke Smelled Bad

[KittyWampus]

21. is the word "archea" a plural and if it is, what is the singular? Assuming it's Latin

[formercia]

22. Now they're torturing microbes.

I wonder if Junior got a tape?

[Hugin]

24. Oh great, one my last pleasures in life and soon it'll be commoditized.

:sigh:

:rofl: