Image via WikipediaHate It, Love It, OIl is Here to Stay
Updated: Tuesday, 06 Jul 2010, 12:43 PM CDT
Published : Tuesday, 06 Jul 2010, 12:43 PM CDT
Published : Tuesday, 06 Jul 2010, 12:43 PM CDT
HOUSTON - With so very much crude on collision course with the gulf coast there remains one enormously inconvenient, but undeniable truth.
That is, like or not, we'll need as much oil as we can possibly suck out of the ground for at least a full century.
Those who think differently have yet to dismantle the hard facts of global demand as assembled by Texas based writer and researcher Robert Bryce.
"If oil didn't exist we'd have to invent it. No other substance can compare when it comes to energy density, flexibility, convenience, cost, ease of handling. It is almost a miraculous substance," says Bryce.
"Oil allows mobility and without mobility we don't have commerce," adds the author of Power Hungry-The myths of "green" energy and the real fuels of the future.
Bryce says those who'd like alternatives to take the place of hydrocarbons, sooner rather than later, simply haven't done the math or reviewed the science. He has, and concludes that in a world which demands 223 million barrels of oil equivalent each and every day, alternatives don't have the fundamental energy density to make much of a dent, at least in the near term.
For example, it takes more than 800 square miles filled with giant wind turbines to match the out put of a single nuclear power plant.
"The wind energy business makes the corn ethanol business look like chump change. This is the biggest scam of the modern era. Cellulosic ethanol is like the Easter bunny or the tooth fairy. A lot of people believe in it, but nobody ever sees it," says Bryce, who backs his arguments with convincing mathematical calculations.
As for solar, Bryce says the 35th biggest coal mine in America, by itself, produces roughly twice as much raw energy per day as all the nation's solar panels and cells combined. Bottom line.
"Nine out of ten units of power we consume come from hydrocarbons - coal, oil and natural gas. Love them, hate them, don't care, they are here to stay, because we simply don't have replacements for them."
That is, like or not, we'll need as much oil as we can possibly suck out of the ground for at least a full century.
Those who think differently have yet to dismantle the hard facts of global demand as assembled by Texas based writer and researcher Robert Bryce.
"If oil didn't exist we'd have to invent it. No other substance can compare when it comes to energy density, flexibility, convenience, cost, ease of handling. It is almost a miraculous substance," says Bryce.
"Oil allows mobility and without mobility we don't have commerce," adds the author of Power Hungry-The myths of "green" energy and the real fuels of the future.
Bryce says those who'd like alternatives to take the place of hydrocarbons, sooner rather than later, simply haven't done the math or reviewed the science. He has, and concludes that in a world which demands 223 million barrels of oil equivalent each and every day, alternatives don't have the fundamental energy density to make much of a dent, at least in the near term.
For example, it takes more than 800 square miles filled with giant wind turbines to match the out put of a single nuclear power plant.
"The wind energy business makes the corn ethanol business look like chump change. This is the biggest scam of the modern era. Cellulosic ethanol is like the Easter bunny or the tooth fairy. A lot of people believe in it, but nobody ever sees it," says Bryce, who backs his arguments with convincing mathematical calculations.
As for solar, Bryce says the 35th biggest coal mine in America, by itself, produces roughly twice as much raw energy per day as all the nation's solar panels and cells combined. Bottom line.
"Nine out of ten units of power we consume come from hydrocarbons - coal, oil and natural gas. Love them, hate them, don't care, they are here to stay, because we simply don't have replacements for them."
So, in a world with 1.6 billion people who still lack, but desperately desire electricity, how exactly do we reduce global warming by moving away from coal and petroleum consumption ?
Laced with frustration, Bryce's answer is measured in BTU's.
Laced with frustration, Bryce's answer is measured in BTU's.
"We now have galaxies of natural gas in the U.S., a hundred year supply or more. But Dick Cheney will have to water board Barrack Obama before we ever hear the words natural gas. I cannot understand. He'll talk about solar and wind all day," says Bryce.
Gauging what he calls "the hard reality of thermodynamics", Bryce believes expanding natural gas usage as a bridge fuel to a future filled with highly efficient nukes is both a no-brainer and America's best bet
"There is no such thing as a free lunch in the energy business or anything else," he insists.
As for ideology, political or otherwise, Bryce says his only true loyalty is to uninterrupted air-conditioning and cold beer.
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