Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Climate Fix "Science" Is Just This Stupid

When I read anything about proposed solutions to "climate change", like the Green New Deal or such things, I'm used to a certain lack of scientific rigor.
  • We can capture (sequester) carbon dioxide in the oceans by fertilizing vast tracts of open ocean to grow algae that take CO2 out of the air.  OK, but then what happens when we stop fertilizing and those algae die off?  Do they decompose and allow the carbon to escape?  
  • I've seen the statement that wind farms don't affect the weather downwind of them.  Isn't what they're doing converting wind energy to electrical energy?  Of course they affect the weather - it's called conservation of energy, one of the bedrock scientific principles that should be taught to every grade schooler.  The effects can be visible on weather radar; I've seen them. 
In light of this, I was a bit surprised at the level of idiocy in an article linked to on Watts Up With That that proposes "crowd oil" instead of crude oil.  The idea is that air conditioners all over the world can be made to remove CO2 from the air and turn it into oil. 

It turns out there's this silly little thing called the Laws of Thermodynamics that has to be overcome.  Carbon dioxide as a waste product of burning fossil fuels is the result of breaking chemical bonds.  We get energy out of those chemical bonds, the energy that's used to power everyday life.  I'd show some pictures, but there's no such thing as chemical diagram for typical oil because it's a mixture of many different molecules, but let me do an abbreviated diagram for octane, which you'll recognize as a component of gasoline. 

2 molecules of (CH3-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH3) + 25O2 --->  16CO2 + 18H2O + Heat

The problem is that the laws of physics demand that to make those 16 molecules of CO2 back into two molecules of octane, we need to put back all that energy.  It's actually more than that energy because of the energy loss in the system.  Then, we need to add the energy it takes to separate out CO2 from the rest of atmosphere.  The amount of CO2 in the air is actually very, very small, on the order of 400 parts per million, or 1 molecule of CO2 for every 2500 molecules of Nitrogen, Oxygen, water vapor, and some other gasses.  Finding that one CO2 molecule will take energy, but I don't know how that energy compares to the energy to rebuild the octane molecules.

This all adds up to say that anything that gets added to an air conditioner that pulls CO2 out of the air and creates fuel will require more energy.  It's true that air conditioners, by function, push waste heat out of the air conditioned space, however the article doesn't give an energy budget which shows how the energy required for chemical processing is paid for.  They don't come out and say the waste heat from the air conditioner could run this process.

Look, if you insist on building more complex molecules out of CO2, the most efficient things are called plants.  Plant trees, plant grasses, and more greenery.  Plants take CO2 out of the air and convert it to biomass, sequestering all that CO2 in stems, leaves, roots and all. 

I've heard it said that the three laws of Thermodynamics are 1: you can't win  2: you can't break even and 3: you can't get out of the game.   That translates as 1: energy and mass are conserved  2: every process has some loss and inefficiency and 3: absolute zero is unattainable.   Still, I thought this was a good cartoon.


(source (p.49))


7 comments:

  1. Progs don’t concern themselves with details. Not ever. They’re fools with an agenda.

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  2. It doesn't matter what the objective reality is about what the policy-imposers say; the words are just malware to attain power. A harder to answer question is, how will the victims respond? Anyone who is willing to give up their fossil-fueled first world standard of living should be encouraged to do so. After their early demise from diseases of poverty, they won't be supporting bad policies anymore.

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  3. My stock remark is: If you're *that* concerned, the best thing you can do for the planet is to compost yourself.

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  4. I demand the Democrats hold hearings on repealing the Laws of Thermodynamics; after all they were a construct of Old, Dead, White Men and we should consider replacing them with woke Laws that take into account the vibrancy of more diverse experiences. Call your local street hustlerrrr I mean Democrat Rep's office today and say "Yes" to the New Laws of Thermowokeness (anonymous [cash] donations always accepted).
    "Yes We Can." or "That guy over there is buying, put on his tab."

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    1. Look at it this way: they're getting rid of the first and second amendments to our constitution, why not the first and second laws of thermodynamics?

      Do I need that mythical sarcasm font?

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  5. When those who try to tell me how to live start living the lifestyle they tell me I should live I will pay attention to them.

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  6. Algae grown in the open ocean to capture CO2 die, and sink to a deep cold layer. Eventually that layer flows to warmer regions and in about 300 years, the algae breaks down into CO2. However, you've put the problem off for 300 years. Some say this can be done economically.

    That said, most climate change progs don't care about the climate, they use it to extort money and control from the people.

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