The Recycling Machine.

Posting a link and the content of a web site that talks about this revolutionary product called "the recycling machine".

http://www.popsci.com/popsci/flat/bown/2007/innovator_2.html

INNOVATORS

Left: Frank Pringle [right] and Hawk Hogan [left] feed the Hawk recycler, which extracts oil and gas from waste like tires.

Green Tech
THE MICROWAVE MAGICIAN

Frank Pringle has found a way to squeeze oil and gas from just about anything

I’m not sure if I’m watching a magic trick, or an invention that will make the cigar-chomping 64-year-old next to me the richest man on the planet. Everything that goes into Frank Pringle’s recycling machine—a piece of tire, a rock, a plastic cup—turns to oil and natural gas seconds later. “I’ve been told the oil companies might try to assassinate me,” Pringle says without sarcasm.

The machine is a microwave emitter that extracts the petroleum and gas hidden inside everyday objects—or at least anything made with hydrocarbons, which, it turns out, is most of what’s around you. Every hour, the first commercial version will turn 10 tons of auto waste—tires, plastic, vinyl—into enough natural gas to produce 17 million BTUs of energy (it will use 956,000 of those BTUs to keep itself running).

Pringle created the machine about 10 years ago after he drove by a massive tire fire and thought about the energy being released. He went home and threw bits of a tire in a microwave emitter he’d been working with for another project. It turned to what looked like ash, but a few hours later, he returned and found a black puddle on the floor of the unheated workshop. Somehow, he’d struck oil.

Or rather, he had extracted it. Petroleum is composed of strings of hydrocarbon molecules. When microwaves hit the tire, they crack the molecular chains and break it into its component parts: carbon black (an ash-like raw material) and hydrocarbon gases, which can be burned or condensed into liquid fuel. Pringle figured that some gases from his microwaved tire had lingered, and the cold air in the shop had condensed them into diesel. If the process worked on tires, he thought, it should work on anything with hydrocarbons. The trick was in finding the optimum microwave frequency for each material—out of 10 million possibilities.

Pringle has spent 10 years and $1 million homing in on frequencies for hundreds of materials. In 2004 he teamed up with engineer pal Hawk Hogan to take the machine commercial.

Their first order is under construction in Rockford, Illinois. It’s a $5.1-million microwave machine the size of small bus called the Hawk, bound for an auto-recycler in Long Island, New York. More deals loom: The U.S. military may use Hawks in Iraq on waste such as water bottles and food containers. Oil companies are looking to the machines to gasify petroleum trapped in shale.

Back at the shop, Pringle is still zapping new materials. A sample labeled “bituminous coal” goes in and, 15 seconds later, Pringle ignites the resulting gas. “You see,” he says, “why they might want to kill me.” —RENA MARIE PACELLA

The Recycling Machine.

Posting a link and the content of a web site that talks about this revolutionary product called "the recycling machine".

http://www.popsci.com/popsci/flat/bown/2007/innovator_2.html

INNOVATORS

Left: Frank Pringle [right] and Hawk Hogan [left] feed the Hawk recycler, which extracts oil and gas from waste like tires.

Green Tech
THE MICROWAVE MAGICIAN

Frank Pringle has found a way to squeeze oil and gas from just about anything

I’m not sure if I’m watching a magic trick, or an invention that will make the cigar-chomping 64-year-old next to me the richest man on the planet. Everything that goes into Frank Pringle’s recycling machine—a piece of tire, a rock, a plastic cup—turns to oil and natural gas seconds later. “I’ve been told the oil companies might try to assassinate me,” Pringle says without sarcasm.

The machine is a microwave emitter that extracts the petroleum and gas hidden inside everyday objects—or at least anything made with hydrocarbons, which, it turns out, is most of what’s around you. Every hour, the first commercial version will turn 10 tons of auto waste—tires, plastic, vinyl—into enough natural gas to produce 17 million BTUs of energy (it will use 956,000 of those BTUs to keep itself running).

Pringle created the machine about 10 years ago after he drove by a massive tire fire and thought about the energy being released. He went home and threw bits of a tire in a microwave emitter he’d been working with for another project. It turned to what looked like ash, but a few hours later, he returned and found a black puddle on the floor of the unheated workshop. Somehow, he’d struck oil.

Or rather, he had extracted it. Petroleum is composed of strings of hydrocarbon molecules. When microwaves hit the tire, they crack the molecular chains and break it into its component parts: carbon black (an ash-like raw material) and hydrocarbon gases, which can be burned or condensed into liquid fuel. Pringle figured that some gases from his microwaved tire had lingered, and the cold air in the shop had condensed them into diesel. If the process worked on tires, he thought, it should work on anything with hydrocarbons. The trick was in finding the optimum microwave frequency for each material—out of 10 million possibilities.

Pringle has spent 10 years and $1 million homing in on frequencies for hundreds of materials. In 2004 he teamed up with engineer pal Hawk Hogan to take the machine commercial.

Their first order is under construction in Rockford, Illinois. It’s a $5.1-million microwave machine the size of small bus called the Hawk, bound for an auto-recycler in Long Island, New York. More deals loom: The U.S. military may use Hawks in Iraq on waste such as water bottles and food containers. Oil companies are looking to the machines to gasify petroleum trapped in shale.

Back at the shop, Pringle is still zapping new materials. A sample labeled “bituminous coal” goes in and, 15 seconds later, Pringle ignites the resulting gas. “You see,” he says, “why they might want to kill me.” —RENA MARIE PACELLA

A little political ranting.

My blog is not about ranting or venting. It’s more about facts, real numbers and educated conclusions, than it is about opinions. Yet recently I’ve felt compelled to write something political. So here it goes.

Last month I went to the Sea-Tac airport and as I get to the top of the escalator inside the terminal I see this huge poster of a Toyota Tundra right in front of me, advertising nothing but the POWER that vehicle offers.

Why is it that in the age of Peak Oil and Global Warming we are still with the mentality of buying vehicles that have POWER? Why is it that auto manufactures (in this case Toyota) are still using POWER as the element to make their cars appeal to the American public?

Sometimes I think we in the US are such a backwards culture. We are so behind the times.

A few conclusions have been made, which are almost indisputable:

1. Oil (and all fossil fuels) are a finite resource. They will run out at some point. And we have the ability (maybe not the political will) to calculate how much time the remaining known oil reserves will last. After that, the people left on the planet will have to figure out how to carry on without relying on oil, and eventually all other fossil fuels.
2. The US has been the biggest consumer of oil, well ahead of any other country. Americans consume about ¼ of the world’s oil while Americans are about only 5% of the world population.

So how come we still allow corporations to continue to encourage people to be more wasteful with a finite resource that we know is dwindling? Well, clearly we lack leadership.

Speaking of leadership, I made another conclusion a while back. After speaking to many people, and most of my friends, I observed that the majority of the people around me have made, at one point or another, a statement to the effect of “well, things are this way but I’m not responsible – I did not vote for this president”.

My conclusion is that all American voters are responsible for the current state of affairs. Your not voting makes you an accomplice of all the crimes against humans and the environment that have been and continue to be committed.

And the same applies to the people who “did not vote for this president”. You are still an accomplice on this war for cheap oil if you are still wasting energy and consuming more oil than everyone else on the planet. Do you get it? You say you didn’t vote for the guy and yet you’re enjoying all the benefits that come from his actions. “I didn’t vote for him” is nothing but a cop-out so you can still live in your usual comfort and convenience that is not sustainable.

We are on a destructive path and no one is doing anything about it other than to get on the green bandwagon just to look good. All of the major auto manufacturers ought to be ashamed of themselves. In their insatiable desire for profit they continue bigger and inefficient cars to sell to the American public. No one wants to give up a little money in order to lead the way towards protecting our environment and creating an industry that is sustainable. Everyone is raping the planet until there’s no resource left for anyone, and then we’ll all sink together – be this in our lifetime or in future generations.

We know it’s time to give up wanting power for the sake of humanity. We know our wasteful consumption of energy means the next generation will have less time to find alternative solutions.

Major automakers have the power and capacity to produce a decent, safe and efficient EV in a year or two. The hydrogen prototypes are another scheme for companies to continue to control the supply of fuel so they can maximize their profits. Electricity is available in every home in America. Unplug your toaster and plug in your car. It’s that simple, and electricity is much cheaper than gasoline. But if you live off the grip and collect your energy from the sun or wind, you are giving no money to the oil companies because oil companies become useless in an new era of electric vehicles. Gas stations would disappear and something to be seen in a museum.

So it’s no wonder that there’s all this hype about vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells, even though hydrogen technology has some major issues that probably won’t be solved for decades to come. The oil companies are powerful and want to maintain their power. They have been making absurd profits.

We cannot expect oil companies to change the world for us. Solutions have to start with the consumer, that is, you and I. You ought to demand the product that companies will then build for you. Start slowly – drastic change doesn’t usually work, but walking in the right direction is crucial. Start demanding more fuel-efficient vehicles. Then switch to other fuel alternatives if you can: biodiesel or ethanol. Electric Vehicles are not yet an option, but I trust that they’ll come into the picture in time. Ride a bicycle and walk more. Exercising will prolong your life. Another way to look at it is “driving reduces your life”. Use mass transportation systems whenever you can. You bus and train fare supports these companies, and their service will improve if there’s more demand for mass transportation.

And last, but probably the biggest difference you can make: remember to vote, and vote wisely. Our leaders represent who we are as people, for we elect them.

Peace, and thanks for reading.

- Ricardo Parker

A little political ranting.

My blog is not about ranting or venting. It’s more about facts, real numbers and educated conclusions, than it is about opinions. Yet recently I’ve felt compelled to write something political. So here it goes.

Last month I went to the Sea-Tac airport and as I get to the top of the escalator inside the terminal I see this huge poster of a Toyota Tundra right in front of me, advertising nothing but the POWER that vehicle offers.

Why is it that in the age of Peak Oil and Global Warming we are still with the mentality of buying vehicles that have POWER? Why is it that auto manufactures (in this case Toyota) are still using POWER as the element to make their cars appeal to the American public?

Sometimes I think we in the US are such a backwards culture. We are so behind the times.

A few conclusions have been made, which are almost indisputable:

1. Oil (and all fossil fuels) are a finite resource. They will run out at some point. And we have the ability (maybe not the political will) to calculate how much time the remaining known oil reserves will last. After that, the people left on the planet will have to figure out how to carry on without relying on oil, and eventually all other fossil fuels.
2. The US has been the biggest consumer of oil, well ahead of any other country. Americans consume about ¼ of the world’s oil while Americans are about only 5% of the world population.

So how come we still allow corporations to continue to encourage people to be more wasteful with a finite resource that we know is dwindling? Well, clearly we lack leadership.

Speaking of leadership, I made another conclusion a while back. After speaking to many people, and most of my friends, I observed that the majority of the people around me have made, at one point or another, a statement to the effect of “well, things are this way but I’m not responsible – I did not vote for this president”.

My conclusion is that all American voters are responsible for the current state of affairs. Your not voting makes you an accomplice of all the crimes against humans and the environment that have been and continue to be committed.

And the same applies to the people who “did not vote for this president”. You are still an accomplice on this war for cheap oil if you are still wasting energy and consuming more oil than everyone else on the planet. Do you get it? You say you didn’t vote for the guy and yet you’re enjoying all the benefits that come from his actions. “I didn’t vote for him” is nothing but a cop-out so you can still live in your usual comfort and convenience that is not sustainable.

We are on a destructive path and no one is doing anything about it other than to get on the green bandwagon just to look good. All of the major auto manufacturers ought to be ashamed of themselves. In their insatiable desire for profit they continue bigger and inefficient cars to sell to the American public. No one wants to give up a little money in order to lead the way towards protecting our environment and creating an industry that is sustainable. Everyone is raping the planet until there’s no resource left for anyone, and then we’ll all sink together – be this in our lifetime or in future generations.

We know it’s time to give up wanting power for the sake of humanity. We know our wasteful consumption of energy means the next generation will have less time to find alternative solutions.

Major automakers have the power and capacity to produce a decent, safe and efficient EV in a year or two. The hydrogen prototypes are another scheme for companies to continue to control the supply of fuel so they can maximize their profits. Electricity is available in every home in America. Unplug your toaster and plug in your car. It’s that simple, and electricity is much cheaper than gasoline. But if you live off the grip and collect your energy from the sun or wind, you are giving no money to the oil companies because oil companies become useless in an new era of electric vehicles. Gas stations would disappear and something to be seen in a museum.

So it’s no wonder that there’s all this hype about vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells, even though hydrogen technology has some major issues that probably won’t be solved for decades to come. The oil companies are powerful and want to maintain their power. They have been making absurd profits.

We cannot expect oil companies to change the world for us. Solutions have to start with the consumer, that is, you and I. You ought to demand the product that companies will then build for you. Start slowly – drastic change doesn’t usually work, but walking in the right direction is crucial. Start demanding more fuel-efficient vehicles. Then switch to other fuel alternatives if you can: biodiesel or ethanol. Electric Vehicles are not yet an option, but I trust that they’ll come into the picture in time. Ride a bicycle and walk more. Exercising will prolong your life. Another way to look at it is “driving reduces your life”. Use mass transportation systems whenever you can. You bus and train fare supports these companies, and their service will improve if there’s more demand for mass transportation.

And last, but probably the biggest difference you can make: remember to vote, and vote wisely. Our leaders represent who we are as people, for we elect them.

Peace, and thanks for reading.

- Ricardo Parker

A world without oil (article)

This is an article that was on today's front page of The Independent, titled “A world without oil”.

The article is worth reading, especially for those not yet familiar with Peak Oil. I do think some day all people will realize how precious petroleum is, and we will consider our choice of internal combustion engines for moving cars an absurd way to use our finite oil.

The article says that our coal reserves (coal is a source of energy we’ll likely start relying on more heavily once oil starts becoming scarce) is enough to last 155 years. I believe that number is incorrect. It is incorrect because it does not account for the expected increase in demand worldwide. It is a fact that China, a country that's #2 in coal reserves, is importing coal for their energy needs.

Furthermore, the demand for coal will be much higher once it becomes evident that oil reserves are depleting – something the public has not been warned about.

So I’ll write Daniel Howden (the writer of this article) an email to bring this issue to his attention.

- Ricardo Parker

A world without oil (article)

This is an article that was on today's front page of The Independent, titled “A world without oil”.

The article is worth reading, especially for those not yet familiar with Peak Oil. I do think some day all people will realize how precious petroleum is, and we will consider our choice of internal combustion engines for moving cars an absurd way to use our finite oil.

The article says that our coal reserves (coal is a source of energy we’ll likely start relying on more heavily once oil starts becoming scarce) is enough to last 155 years. I believe that number is incorrect. It is incorrect because it does not account for the expected increase in demand worldwide. It is a fact that China, a country that's #2 in coal reserves, is importing coal for their energy needs.

Furthermore, the demand for coal will be much higher once it becomes evident that oil reserves are depleting – something the public has not been warned about.

So I’ll write Daniel Howden (the writer of this article) an email to bring this issue to his attention.

- Ricardo Parker

How much oil is required for manufacturing, maintaining and driving a vehicle?

Well, this question is definitely hard to answer. There's so much that goes behind building a car in terms of energy expenditure, that I consider impossible to get an accurate number. But we may be able to get an estimate. Here's a great question: which requires more energy - manufacturing a car or driving and maintaining it? In the case of electric vehicles no oil is necessary to power the car and the energy can come from 100% renewable sources as mentioned in my previous post. EVs require very little maintenance in comparison to ICEs; something I'll get into details later.

According to Colin Campbell, it takes between 17 and 50 barrels of oil to manufacture a single car. Of course no auto plant is built for the purpose of building a single car (not typically anyway), so this information is broken down and the impact on the environment is always from manufacturing large numbers of vehicles and not just one. But let's use these numbers as a basis until we get something more accurate. What is the amount of oil that it takes to drive a car? This last question is a little easier to answer, though it'll require some research. I'll probably use the Toyota Camry for this measurement since it's the "best-selling passenger car in America". I'll use the average miles-per-gallon (MPG) of the Toyota Camry to calculate how much gasoline it uses in its lifetime. For the lifetime I'll probably use 300,000 miles since I believe that's how long those engines last on average. Then the last step will be to convert the energy in a gallon of gasoline to the energy in a barrel of oil. This should give us an estimate. If anyone has any ideas or pointers, please let me know. In the meantime I'll be working on this. Please check back soon!
- Ricardo Parker

Source: http://www.energy.ca.gov/gasoline/whats_in_barrel_oil.html

How much oil is required for manufacturing, maintaining and driving a vehicle?

Well, this question is definitely hard to answer. There's so much that goes behind building a car in terms of energy expenditure, that I consider impossible to get an accurate number. But we may be able to get an estimate. Here's a great question: which requires more energy - manufacturing a car or driving and maintaining it? In the case of electric vehicles no oil is necessary to power the car and the energy can come from 100% renewable sources as mentioned in my previous post. EVs require very little maintenance in comparison to ICEs; something I'll get into details later.

According to Colin Campbell, it takes between 17 and 50 barrels of oil to manufacture a single car. Of course no auto plant is built for the purpose of building a single car (not typically anyway), so this information is broken down and the impact on the environment is always from manufacturing large numbers of vehicles and not just one. But let's use these numbers as a basis until we get something more accurate. What is the amount of oil that it takes to drive a car? This last question is a little easier to answer, though it'll require some research. I'll probably use the Toyota Camry for this measurement since it's the "best-selling passenger car in America". I'll use the average miles-per-gallon (MPG) of the Toyota Camry to calculate how much gasoline it uses in its lifetime. For the lifetime I'll probably use 300,000 miles since I believe that's how long those engines last on average. Then the last step will be to convert the energy in a gallon of gasoline to the energy in a barrel of oil. This should give us an estimate. If anyone has any ideas or pointers, please let me know. In the meantime I'll be working on this. Please check back soon!
- Ricardo Parker

Source: http://www.energy.ca.gov/gasoline/whats_in_barrel_oil.html

Welcome Folks!

Welcome to ElectricKar.com!

My goal is to make this the #1 site for electric vehicles with the intention of educating the public, answering all questions and promoting EV technology. We will use a blog to start and upgrade as needed. After 6 months of research I believe I can provide the answers to most questions that are out there. So please challenge me with your questions! If I don't have the answer I promise to do the research necessary to get it. I'm that passionate about electric vehicles.

Why Electric Vehicles?

Unlike conventional cars which use an Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) and require some sort of liquid fuel for propulsion, Electric Vehicles (EVs) require only electricity. The large majority of cars on the planet run on gasoline, which is a product of oil. Aside from the numerous disadvantages of burning oil - air pollution, contribution to Global Warming and the threat to US national security that comes from importing energy that comes mostly from unfriendly nations - oil is a finite resource. It's estimated that we humans have burned just over 50% of all the oil available, in a period of roughly 150 years. Because world demand for oil keeps increasing in an oil-fueled global economy that is conditioned to grow, it's estimated that at current rates it will take us 91 more years to use up the remaining oil. So, whether this happens sooner or later is irrelevant: the fact is that the primary source of energy used to move our vehicles (among other activities) will come to an end, and not too far from now. Electric Vehicles are one answer to this serious issue that we all face. EVs do not require the burning of fossil fuels for propulsion since electricity can be generated from renewable energy sources such as solar power, wind power, biomass, and other sources that we may discover and develop. Unlike other fuel alternatives for vehicles (hydrogen, biofuels, etc) which require the building of an infrastructure for providing the fuel, it's fair to say that the infrastructure for powering EVs already exists: electric outlets can be found in our homes and offices. Cars are not being driven most of the time, so when they are parked they could be charged for the next trip. While the typical 110v electric outlet is not ideal for charging an electric car because it can take up to 8 hours to fully charge one, power stations with a much faster energy transfer rate can be installed at parking lots, rest areas, and convenience stores. With a power outlet an electric car, such as the soon to be released Tesla Roadster, can be charged in 30 minutes or less. The amount of time to charge any electric car will likely decrease greatly once EV technology is developed further. But even if it will take 8 hours to fully charge a car on an 100v outlet: this may be a good alternative for some people already, who have their cars parked for 8 hours or more in their workplace while they work.
- Ricardo Parker

Welcome Folks!

Welcome to ElectricKar.com!

My goal is to make this the #1 site for electric vehicles with the intention of educating the public, answering all questions and promoting EV technology. We will use a blog to start and upgrade as needed. After 6 months of research I believe I can provide the answers to most questions that are out there. So please challenge me with your questions! If I don't have the answer I promise to do the research necessary to get it. I'm that passionate about electric vehicles.

Why Electric Vehicles?

Unlike conventional cars which use an Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) and require some sort of liquid fuel for propulsion, Electric Vehicles (EVs) require only electricity. The large majority of cars on the planet run on gasoline, which is a product of oil. Aside from the numerous disadvantages of burning oil - air pollution, contribution to Global Warming and the threat to US national security that comes from importing energy that comes mostly from unfriendly nations - oil is a finite resource. It's estimated that we humans have burned just over 50% of all the oil available, in a period of roughly 150 years. Because world demand for oil keeps increasing in an oil-fueled global economy that is conditioned to grow, it's estimated that at current rates it will take us 91 more years to use up the remaining oil. So, whether this happens sooner or later is irrelevant: the fact is that the primary source of energy used to move our vehicles (among other activities) will come to an end, and not too far from now. Electric Vehicles are one answer to this serious issue that we all face. EVs do not require the burning of fossil fuels for propulsion since electricity can be generated from renewable energy sources such as solar power, wind power, biomass, and other sources that we may discover and develop. Unlike other fuel alternatives for vehicles (hydrogen, biofuels, etc) which require the building of an infrastructure for providing the fuel, it's fair to say that the infrastructure for powering EVs already exists: electric outlets can be found in our homes and offices. Cars are not being driven most of the time, so when they are parked they could be charged for the next trip. While the typical 110v electric outlet is not ideal for charging an electric car because it can take up to 8 hours to fully charge one, power stations with a much faster energy transfer rate can be installed at parking lots, rest areas, and convenience stores. With a power outlet an electric car, such as the soon to be released Tesla Roadster, can be charged in 30 minutes or less. The amount of time to charge any electric car will likely decrease greatly once EV technology is developed further. But even if it will take 8 hours to fully charge a car on an 100v outlet: this may be a good alternative for some people already, who have their cars parked for 8 hours or more in their workplace while they work.
- Ricardo Parker