What is methanol made with that makes so environmentally friendly?
nuclear powered something
Here is a link to the Methanol Institute’s definition of Renewable Methanol:
PS> Also known as Bio-Methanol, or “Green Methanol”
I am all for green methanol its just a little vague when you ask about biomass and where did that come from?
Green algae from the would seem good as its pulling carbon from the oceans?
Chopping trees down seems the most popular.
Here’s another link for reading:
Somehow, methanol is dependent on crop growers specializing in monocultures, and to maintain a steady supply, fertilizers and pesticides are used in large amounts.
In opposition, regenerative agriculture uses crop remnants as soil cover, mulch or compost, so very little carbon gets displaced to be used for fuel manufacturing.
So, afaic, methanol is yet another energy intensive fuel that has false attributes of environmental benefits. It’s even worse than pumping oil out of the ground.
To fully replace the current petroleum usage, how is it sustainable or even remotely regenerative?
Ethanol can also be used to fuel cars, or tugs.
It can be made from wood waste, corn husk, or other waste material from forestry and agricultural activity:
Using renewable energy in the process makes it :“Green”:
In Scandinavia Ethanol has long been a by product from pulp and paper production,
In Norway the energy used in the process is exclusively hydroelectric, thus making it “Green Ethanol”.
The interest in biofuel and biogas to power everything, incl. ships also heighten the interest in improving the process:
Drivers and barriers in retrofitting pulp and paper industry with bioenergy for more efficient production of liquid, solid and gaseous biofuels: A review - ScienceDirect .
Methanol is also produced from:
Methanol can be produced from methane made by organic waste material of any kind.
Manure from animals are an excellent source of Methane:
Solving two problems simultaneously
yes methanol is a very useful product but I dont think any the the green feed stock can deal with the volume so I wonder what percentage in the worlds supply is actually green?
I would be happy if it all was green methanol and we had more molten salt solar power.
Not enough renewable energy to fully replace oil. And how does it work with windmills and solar panels?
Cow manure is best left on pasture to maintain and even rebuild the life in the soil. If the intention is to capture carbon/not pollute the air, this is preferable to turning it into methanol.
You have to have infrastructure (expending energy and resources) to use the cow manure for methanol, while the natural biological processes create local wealth: healthy pastures feed more cattle quality food they were meant to eat instead of relying on grain that has to be bought in advance and require infrastructure to store. Trying to monetize manure produced in industrial barns is well-meaning but it is still under-utilizing a resource that can make a greater profit with less hard work and cost.
Producing grain for methanol distorts the price of commodities such as corn, soy and palm oil. Industrial grain production with chemicals to support cows who get shot with chemicals, and manure that needs transportation and a chemical plant to be transformed into fuel that needs to be stored for distribution and sale. Still uses combustion engines.
The cow manure for ethanol comes from not very healthy industrial practices as nobody is going to be picking up the stuff spread around a field. It comes from cattle, pigs and chickens kept in horrid conditions.
It’s labor intensive, creates immense pollution and is a bacteria and viral risk to everybody as there are plenty of antibiotic resistant strains.
If the farmer decides to power his/her own farm with methanol that comes from their farm, then I think it’s good. For large scale to supply large industry and cities, I don’t believe it’s good at all and there are serious risks to consider with methanol as it can very easily kill and maim should there be a leak or spill.
If you are interested, there is also this: