Re: Alternate Fuel Sources

[angevin@juno.com (Joseph P Benedetto)]

> As would be cracking crude to refined petroleum.  However, if the tech
and
> some basic equipment survived past TEOTWAWKI, I could see some >pockets
of tech like hydrogen production/storage surviving. Especially where
>crude is not
>available.
 
AND

>The problem is that it requires a lot of energy to crack water, and that
>energy could easily go to other things.  I suppose if the energy was in
>abundant enough supply (a la a still functioning Hydroelectric dam after
>the Woops) that it wouldn't be that big a deal.

As Bill points out, making hydrogen is not that hard; we were doing it in
the 1860's, before electricity came into widespread use.  The problem
here is that people think you need huge refineries and chemical plants to
crack raw crude or make hydrogen gas.  Both were being done in the
1870's, and neither one REQUIRES a major source of power...just *some*
kind of power.  A guy on a bike hooked to a generator could make enough
voltage to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.

The simplest way would be to split it across two electrodes and place an
inverted tube full of water over the bubble streams.  The one that ends
up with more gas is hydrogen, the one with less is oxygen (a careful test
with a match will prove this).  When the tube fills up, use a simple
bellows-tube pump to suck the gas out, and pressurize it in an old tank,
such as a used propane cylinder or the like with a hand pump.  Dangerous,
yes, but our great great grandfathers were doing it, I suspect some
survivors might think of it as well.

Crude can, with minimal filtering--even straining through cloth to remove
sediment--be used as a rough diesel fuel.  Crude can also be "cooked" in
a column; just boil it over a fire!  (Refineries are nice, but not
necessary in a dire emergency.)  The first thing to boil off is gasoline;
collect the fumes and steam, then condense them and you get a rough
gasoline.  The next thing to boil off, the heavier element, is kerosene;
collect *it's* fumes and steam, condense them and you get a rough
fuel/lamp oil.    I don't know much about this process, but I have seen
it done and know it's not that hard.  After all, how did the "little"
producers do it back in the 1800's?  Sure, few people would be able to do
it--but SOMEONE is almost sure to be able to, and in 150 years, they
might be very powerful people indeed!

Side note about Hydrogen: I do think that alcohol is much more the way to
go, though....stills are easy to make, simpler to use and safer.

Joe
angevin@juno.com