Totally ignored by all the public hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth concerning President Obama's recent climate change saber-rattling is the fact, that, given technologies like that disclosed in our report of:
West Virginia Coal Association | CO2 & More Liquid Fuel from Thin Air | Research & Development; concerning: "United States Patent 7,459,590 - Method for Producing ... Derived Synthetic Hydrocarbons from ... Air; 2008; Inventor: George Olah, et. al.; Assignee: University of Southern California; Abstract: A method for producing methanol and dimethyl ether using the air as the sole source of materials is disclosed. The invention relates to a method for producing methanol by removing water from atmospheric air, obtaining hydrogen from the removed water, obtaining carbon dioxide from atmospheric air; and converting the carbon dioxide under conditions sufficient to produce methanol. Thereafter, the methanol can be dehydrated to produce dimethyl ether or further processed to produce synthetic hydrocarbons, polymers, and products derived from them";
and, as disclosed by other United States Patents about which we haven't even yet reported, such as:
United States Patent: 7378561 - Method for Producing Methanol, Dimethyl Ether, Derived Synthetic Hydrocarbons and their Products From Carbon Dioxide and Water
Date: May 27, 2008
Inventors: George Olah and Surya Prakash, CA
Assignee: The University of Southern California, Los Angeles
Abstract: A method for producing methanol and dimethyl ether using the air as the sole source of materials is disclosed. The invention relates to a method for separating the water (i.e., the moisture in the air) and carbon dioxide content of atmospheric air for their use in the subsequent production of methanol, dimethyl ether and derived synthetic hydrocarbons as products. The method includes the conversion of carbon dioxide and water under conditions sufficient to produce methanol and/or dimethyl ether. Methanol and/or dimethyl ether can be used as fuel or fuel additives or further converted to synthetic hydrocarbons and their products. Carbon dioxide is captured on a suitable absorbent, preferentially polyethyleneimine supported on nano-structured fumed silica. The process can also involve hydrogenation with hydrogen produced by electrolysis of water obtained from the air or from any other water source. Methanol can be dehydrated to produce dimethyl ether or further processed to produce synthetic hydrocarbons, polymers, and products derived from them by other known methods";
we can treat the Carbon Dioxide arising from our essential use of Coal in the generation of abundant and truly affordable electric power for what it truly is:
A valuable, and maybe even a precious, raw material resource from which we can efficiently synthesize anything, quite literally any "hydrocarbons, polymers, and products derived from them" we now mortgage our grandchildren's futures to the alien, and sometimes hostile, nations of OPEC to keep ourselves supplied with in the here and now.
And, when applied appropriately, when viewed in one way, especially when geared towards the production of "synthetic ... polymers" from Carbon Dioxide, such technologies would enable us to make our economically essential use of Coal a "carbon neutral" enterprise.
That fact was just quite recently confirmed by our own United States Government, through their issuance, just weeks ago, as excerpted from the initial link in this dispatch, of:
"United States Patent 8,461,215 - Rendering Coal As An Environmentally Carbon Dioxide Neutral Fuel And A Regenerative Carbon Source
Date: June 11, 2013
Inventors: George Olah and G.K. Surya Prakash, CA
Assignee: The University of Southern California, Los Angeles
Abstract: The invention provides a method for rendering coal as an environmentally essentially carbon dioxide-neutral fuel. Carbon dioxide produced from coal combustion is captured, purified, combined with coalbed methane or any other natural methane or natural gas source, or with hydrogen, and reacted under reaction conditions sufficient to form methanol and/or dimethyl ether, which can be used as fuel or feedstock for derived synthetic hydrocarbons and products.
(Before we go any further, note that we do not need "natural methane or natural gas". As seen quite clearly, for just two examples, in our reports of:West Virginia Coal Association | New York City CO2 to Methane via Artificial Photosynthesis | Research & Development; concerning: "US Patent Application 20120208903 - Conversion of Carbon Dioxide to Methane Using Visible Light;2012; Assignee: Research Foundation of City University of New York; Abstract: The invention relates to a method for converting carbon dioxide to methane"; and:
West Virginia Coal Association | NASA Improves CO2 to Methane Conversion | Research & Development; concerning: "United States Patent Application 20120029095 - Sabatier Process and Apparatus for Controlling Exothermic Reaction; 2012; (Developed under contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration); Abstract: A Sabatier process involving contacting carbon dioxide and hydrogen in a first reaction zone with a first catalyst bed at a temperature greater than a first designated temperature; feeding the effluent from the first reaction zone into a second reaction zone, and contacting the effluent with a second catalyst bed at a temperature equal to or less than a second designated temperature, so as to produce a product stream comprising water and methane";we are getting better and better at converting Carbon Dioxide itself into the needed Methane, in processes driven either by environmental sources of energy or in large part by exothermic heat generated by some of the entrained reactions in the Carbon Dioxide conversion system itself.)
Claims: A method for rendering coal as an essentially environmentally carbon dioxide-neutral fuel and regenerative carbon source, which comprises: subjecting coal to reaction conditions sufficient to produce carbon dioxide; capturing and purifying the produced carbon dioxide; and combining the purified carbon dioxide with water and a suitable hydrocarbon source (as specified) to conduct a bi-reforming reaction by: conducting steam reforming of the hydrocarbon with water to form carbon monoxide and hydrogen; conducting dry reforming of the hydrocarbon with carbon dioxide to form carbon monoxide and hydrogen; combining effluents including carbon monoxide and hydrogen from the steam and dry reforming reactions without separation of components of the reforming reactions or their effluents to produce a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide having a molar ratio of hydrogen to carbon monoxide that is about 2:1 to 2.1:1; and converting the molar mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide under conditions sufficient to exclusively form methanol ... so that the carbon dioxide generated from the coal is not introduced into the atmosphere, thus rendering the coal as an essentially environmentally carbon dioxide-neutral fuel.
The method ... which further comprises: recycling the methanol for use as a fuel or feedstock; subjecting the methanol fuel or products made from the feedstock to reaction conditions to generate carbon dioxide; and repeating the capturing, combining, recycling and subjecting steps on the generated carbon dioxide so that the carbon dioxide produced from the methanol fuel or products made from methanol feedstock also is not emitted to the atmosphere.
The method ... wherein the subjecting step generates energy and is performed in a power plant.
The method ... wherein the carbon dioxide, suitable hydrocarbon source, and water are reacted in separate steps or in a single step to produce methanol (and) wherein the suitable hydrocarbon source is methane.
(Yet again, as seen for another example in our report of:
West Virginia Coal Association | Japan Converts CO2 into Lower-Cost Methane | Research & Development; concerning: "United States Patent Application 20120018311 - Carbon Dioxide Reduction Method; 2012;
Assignee: Panasonic Corporation, (Japan); The carbon dioxide reduction method of the present invention is a method ... and a carbon dioxide reduction device, in which carbon dioxide is reduced ... to carbon monoxide, formic acid, methane, etc. and provide these substances with less energy and at lower cost";
we can, using environmental energy to drive the process, synthesize any "methane" needed for reaction with Carbon Dioxide, from Carbon Dioxide itself.)The method ... further comprises: combusting the coal to produce carbon dioxide; capturing the produced carbon dioxide on an adsorbent; and treating the adsorbent to release the captured carbon dioxide therefrom for use in producing methanol or dimethyl ether.
The method ... wherein the methane, steam and carbon dioxide are reacted in a single step in a molar ratio of about 3:2:1 to form a mixture of hydrogen and carbon dioxide in a molar ratio of about 2:1 (and) wherein the steam reforming and the dry reforming are performed simultaneously in a single step over a catalyst at a temperature between about 800 and 1100 C.
The method ... wherein the catalyst is provided on a support of a high surface area nano-structured fumed alumina or fumed silica (and) wherein the catalyst comprises Vanadium, Titanium, Gallium, Magnesium, Copper, Nickel, Molybdenum, Bismuth, Iron, Manganese, Cobalt ... or an oxide thereof
The method ... which further comprises dehydrating methanol by removing water under conditions sufficient to produce dimethyl ether and recycling the water from dehydration during subsequent reforming.
The method ... which further comprises reacting the dimethyl ether in the presence of an acidic-basic or zeolitic catalyst under conditions sufficient to form ethylene or propylene (and) which further comprises converting ethylene or propylene under conditions sufficient to produce synthetic hydrocarbons, chemicals, or polymers.
(We don't want to clutter this presentation up with too many incidental references, but, keep in mind that "dimethyl ether" is a serviceable direct replacement for both Diesel fuel and Liquefied Petroleum Gas; and, that, either it or Methanol, as seen for only one example, in our report of:
West Virginia Coal Association | ExxonMobil "Coal to Clean Gasoline" | Research & Development; "ExxonMobil’s methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) process efficiently converts crude methanol to high quality clean gasoline. When coupled with commercially proven coal gasification and methanol synthesis technology, MTG offers an effective route to premium transportation fuel from coal";
no matter which of our precious resources, whether CO2 or Coal, we make them from, can be converted into Gasoline. That, in addition to the specified "ethylene or propylene" as precursors to "polymers", wherein the Carbon Dioxide consumed by the process of our subject herein, "US Patent 8,461,215 - Rendering Coal As An Environmentally Carbon Dioxide Neutral Fuel And A Regenerative Carbon Source", would be productively and profitably "sequestered".)
Background: Energy and fuels are essential in modern life. Most widely used type of fuels are fossil fuels. Fossil fuels, including coal, are essentially hydrocarbons containing carbon and hydrogen in various ratios.
Coal, like any carbon-containing fuel, forms carbon dioxide upon its combustion, and therefore is not renewable on the human timescale. Also, because carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, combustion of coal contributes to global warming. Although clean coal technology has been developed as a solution to continued use of coal resources, it is so far directed only at reducing harmful pollutants such as sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides and heavy metals formed from burning coal and does not address carbon dioxide emission.
Thus, it would be desirable to make coal use environment-friendly and at the same time regenerative by capturing and chemically recycling carbon dioxide emissions to useful fuels and derived products.
Summary: The present invention provides a method for rendering coal as an essentially environmentally carbon dioxide-neutral fuel and regenerative carbon source for producing methanol or dimethyl ether, by capturing and chemically recycling carbon dioxide formed upon coal combustion.
In an embodiment, the method comprises:
subjecting coal to reaction conditions sufficient to produce carbon dioxide; capturing and purifying the produced carbon dioxide; combining the carbon dioxide with water and a suitable hydrocarbon source, preferably methane, or directly with hydrogen under reaction conditions sufficient to produce methanol or dimethyl ether, so that the carbon dioxide produced from the coal is not emitted to the atmosphere, thus rendering coal as a carbon dioxide-neutral fuel and regenerative carbon source."
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Since we can also, as Olah indicates above, and as seen separately for one example in our report of:
West Virginia Coal Association | The University of Oxford Converts CO2 into Methanol | Research & Development; concerning: "Process For Producing Methanol; Publication No: WO/2011/045605; International Application No: PCT/GB2010/051733; 2010;
react Carbon Dioxide "directly with hydrogen" to form stuff like Methanol, we remind you, that, as seen for just one example in our report of:
West Virginia Coal Association | General Electric 2010 Hydrogen from Sunlight and Water | Research & Development; concerning: "United States Patent 7,820,022 - Photoelectrochemical Cell and Method of Manufacture; 2010; Assignee: General Electric Company; A photoelectrochemical cell ... to produce gaseous hydrogen and oxygen";
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we have some options available to us for using environmental energy, like sunlight, to extract the needed Hydrogen from plain old Water.
Presuming you to have followed our posts, you know that there is a lot more detail we could go into concerning the supportive technologies for CO2 capture, Hydrogen generation and the conversion of the product Methanol into various fuels and plastics. But, we didn't want to dilute overmuch the essential point:
Our United States Government technical experts have just confirmed that a process invented by a Nobel Prize-winning chemist working in the United States of America can efficiently convert Carbon Dioxide into "synthetic hydrocarbons, chemicals," and "polymers", thus making "Coal ... An Environmentally Carbon Dioxide Neutral Fuel".
And, it's far, far past time what Nobel Laureate George Olah has to say about Coal and Carbon Dioxide started getting at least as many headlines in the US Coal Country press as what Nobel Laureate Barack Obama has to say about them does.