I think that we can get there !!!

[Shannow]

I'd like to find a link to share (and will, when I find one).

Some of the bits are starting to fit together, and I think that we aren't far off a future energy system, and a greenhouse bonus (whether you believe in it or not, it's a safe bet to believe in it). Could be the next step in the use of nuclear energy.

Iceland are about to go supercritical.

They use a lot of geothermal energy, and are about to take the next step, and tap magma, to produce a supercritical water/steam to power their turbines.

It will allow a huge increase in power density, but introduces other benefits of supercritical water.

Just about all minerals are dissolved, allowing mining without holes and miners.

They are developing patents to send CO2 down the hole witht the water, relying on nature to create methanol and hydrocarbons, similar to the Russian abiotic theory of oil production (also makes buckets more sense than pumping CO2 into old oil fields).

I'm really starting to think that human ingenuity can pull the coming energy challenge off !!!

 

[labman]

quote:

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Originally posted by Shannow:
snip....
I'm really starting to think that human ingenuity can pull the coming energy challenge off !!!

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Only if the governments stay out of the way. Subsidies, regulations, boondoggles, rationing, and other intervention will lead to shortages and high prices.

 

[Gerret]

What is supercritical water?

 

[XS650]

quote:

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Originally posted by Gerret:
What is supercritical water?

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It's neat stuff.

This will save me a lot of typing.

http://www.energy.iastate.edu/renewable/biomass/cs-water.html

"A supercritical fluid is defined as a substance that is at conditions of temperature and pressure that are above its vapor-liquid critical point. At supercritical conditions, a fluid does not meet the definition of a liquid because it can't be made to boil by decreasing the pressure at constant temperature. Also it is not a vapor because cooling at constant pressure won't cause it to condense. Water is a supercritical fluid above 374°C and 22 MPa, 706°F and 3191 psi. Supercritical fluids in general possess unique solvating and transport properties compared to liquids or gases. Supercritical fluids can have liquid-like densities, gas-like diffusivities, and compressibilities that deviate greatly from ideal gas behavior. Under supercritical conditions, solid solubility often is enhanced greatly with respect to solubility in the gas or liquid solvent. Supercritical water in particular has the ability to dissolve materials not normally soluble in liquid water or steam and also seems to promote some types of chemical reactions. These properties make supercritical water a very promising reaction medium for the conversion of biomass to value-added products."

Google supercritical CO2 to read about another interesting supercritical fluid. It's super critical at much lower temps and pressures and is al;ready being used to replace some solvents, paint carriers, etc.

[ August 16, 2004, 09:23 PM: Message edited by: XS650 ]