Thread: Something to ponder

Originally Posted by Fifth Columnist

I've still to understand how anyone can identify an electric car as 'zero pollution'.

You're missing a single word there that changes the whole meaning of the phrase. It's "zero tailpipe pollution". I'm told that it's particularly difficult to do a "rolling coal" stunt in an electric car although tyre smoke may be possible in certain vehicles.

Originally Posted by cuppabillytea

Do the Farmers amongst us rely on the BOM or do they dismiss their information and bunk.

Clearly you're not up to speed with modern necromancy as applied to the farming industry. It's chicken entrails all the way down.

How much dangerous pollution will be created during the manufacture and recycling of all the batteries that are to be used in future transport?

Originally Posted by Fifth Columnist

How much dangerous pollution will be created during the manufacture and recycling of all the batteries that are to be used in future transport?

That does depend rather a lot on who you get to do each step of the job. But that's true of every technological product ever, no industry is without its scandals. If the fast buck merchants get a look-in there will be dumped piles of batteries just like there are dumped piles of everything else as we speak.

Organised network shifting waste to 'dumping capital of Australia' to avoid tariffs - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Not that dead lithium batteries are particularly toxic as waste products go.

Originally Posted by 350RRC

Yeah I know I'm quoting myself, but to add to the 'science' and 'data' issue, Elders have completely changed their 12 month outlook for rain where I am, in the last 24 hours. This forecast has changed a few times this year, but not as radically as today.

Get a screen shot of the BOM's 3 month rain outlook tonight and see if it is the same in a day or two also.

I never rely on either, and the fisheries model I referred to previously has never been right in 15 years.

The whole point is that all data going into any model needs to be treated with respect, or the model has no chance right from the start.

cheers, DL

The BOM 3 month outlook was indeed changed in the last day or so. The map for August is gone (with 11 days still to go and obviously going to be wrong).

The outlook is now completely different for the next couple of months.

Climate Outlooks

DL

It was mooted long long ago, that Hydrogen would be the replacement for fossil fuels. One scientist i seem to remember suggested that they could dam tidal basins in WA for the production of Electricity to produce Hydrogen and pipe it around the country.
Bearing in mind that Hydrogen takes as much energy to produce as it delivers, would it turn out to be more energy efficient to run Internal Combustion Engines on Hydrogen?

Originally Posted by cuppabillytea

It was mooted long long ago, that Hydrogen would be the replacement for fossil fuels. One scientist i seem to remember suggested that they could dam tidal basins in WA for the production of Electricity to produce Hydrogen and pipe it around the country.
Bearing in mind that Hydrogen takes as much energy to produce as it delivers, would it turn out to be more energy efficient to run Internal Combustion Engines on Hydrogen?

It would be more efficient to run hydrogen in fuel cells. Honda used to produce the Odessy as a fuel cell vehicle for Californian market. Now they produce the Clarity.
The fuel cell was invented many decades ago. During the Gemini missions (FEED phase of the Apollo missions) batteries weren't able to provide the energy for the length of time required for a flight to the Moon. Gemini 5 was the first of the Gemini missions to utilise the fuel cell technology in a mission that lasted eight days.
And the beauty of the fuel cell, when you run out of hydrogen, you can quickly fill the tank. Well, that has been the experience in California.

Some old news:

California Fuel Cell Partnership - Wikipedia

California Hydrogen Highway - Wikipedia

Thank you Mr Marsh. I'd let all that slip from my consciousness.