[geeks] [rescue] Computerfests (was: first real server hardware) -OT

[Sandwich Maker]

" From: Dan Duncan <dand at pcisys.net>
" 
" On Wed, 28 Apr 2004 wa2egp at att.net wrote:
" > Actually the distillation process does require the most energy.  In
" > the right place, you don't have to pump the water and plowing can be
" > minimal since you don't want to increase erosion.  Although I
" > don't know why they can't use solar to distill.
" 
" You could, but solar is tough to manage in real time.  You'd need some
" sort of intermediate storage.  Hydrogen fuel cell maybe?  You could
" use an array of mirrored parabolic dishes to focus sunlight onto
" a boiler or something... but again it would only work when the sun is
" shining and if it clouded up your boiler would cool off and you'd
" have to heat it up all over again.

i'm surprised that distilling takes that much.  it should be possible
to recover everything but the heat of solution...

and the end fuel could keep a lot of water.  dunno how this would work
in an engine, but the priginal proof test for liquor was the mixture
that would still burn when poured on gunpowder and lit, 56% alcohol in
water.  [in britain, this is still 100 proof]  leaving the water in
the fuel would make it bulkier, but would be like running water
injection.

" > I'm surprised external combustion engines were not more intensely
" > investigated.  Burn clean with plenty of oxygen, no pressure so
" > minimal nitrogen-oxygen compounds.  Darn efficiency no better than
" > internal but more potential to reduce pollution.
" 
" Parhaps a lot of it is inertia.  I dunno.

never underestimate the investment in the existing manufacturing
stream/process.
________________________________________________________________________
Andrew Hay                                  the genius nature
internet rambler                            is to see what all have seen
adh at an.bradford.ma.us                       and think what none thought