Beyond Oil and Gas

Completely revised and updated, the third edition of this bestseller discusses the concept and ongoing development of using methanol and derived dimethyl ether as a transportation fuel, energy storage medium, and as a chemical raw material to replace fossil fuels. The contents have been expanded by 35% with new and up to date coverage on energy storage, methanol from biomass and waste products, as well as on carbon dioxide capture and recycling. Written by the late Nobel laureate George Olah, Alain Goeppert and G. K. Surya Prakash, this is an inspiring read for anyone concerned with the major challenge posed by environmental problems including global warming and ocean acidification due to massive increase in fossil fuel use. The book provides a comprehensive and sustainable solution to replace fossil fuels in the long run by chemical recycling of carbon dioxide through renewable methanol utilizing alternative energy sources such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and nuclear. The Methanol Economy is being progressively implemented in many parts of the world.

Auteur
George A. Olah obtained his doctorate at the Technical University of Budapest in 1949 and was the Donald P. and Katherine B. Loker Distinguished Professor of Organic Chemistry and Director of the Loker Hydrocarbon Institute at the University of Southern California, USA. He passed away on March 8, 2017. Olah received numerous awards and recognitions worldwide, including memberships in various academies of science and 12 honorary degrees. He had some 1,400 scientific papers, 20 books and more than 140 patents to his name. Professor Olah's research spanned a wide range of synthetic and mechanistic organic chemistry. But most notably, his work on the chemistry of carbocations earned him the 1994 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Alain Goeppert is a research associate in the groups of Profs. George A. Olah and G. K. Surya Prakash at the Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute at the University of Southern California, USA, since 2002. After obtaining his diploma in chemistry from the University Robert Schuman in Strasbourg, France, he received his engineering degree from the Fachhochschule Aalen, Germany. He then returned to Strasbourg to obtain his PhD in 2002 under the direction of Prof. Jean Sommer at the Universite Louis Pasteur. Dr. Goeppert's current research is focused on the transformation of methane and CO2 into more valuable products and CO2 capture technologies.

G. K. Surya Prakash is currently a Professor and Olah Nobel Laureate Chair in Hydrocarbon Chemistry and Scientific Co-Director at the Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute at University of Southern California, USA. After gaining his bachelor and master degrees from India, he obtained his PhD from the University of Southern California under the direction of Prof. Olah in 1978. Professor Prakash has close to 600 scientific papers, 9 books and 25 patents to his name, and has received many accolades, including two American Chemical Society National Awards. His primary research interests are in superacid, hydrocarbon, synthetic organic & organofluorine chemistry, energy and catalysis areas.

Contenu

Preface xiii

About the Authors xv

Acronyms xvii

1 Introduction 1

2 Coal in the Industrial Revolution and Beyond 13

3 History of Petroleum Oil and Natural Gas 21

3.1 Oil Extraction and Exploration 26

3.2 Natural Gas 27

4 FossilFuel Resources and Their Use 31

4.1 Coal 32

4.2 Petroleum Oil 38

4.3 Unconventional Oil Sources 43

4.4 Tar Sands 44

4.5 Oil Shale 46

4.6 Light Tight Oil 47

4.7 Natural Gas 48

4.8 Coalbed Methane 56

4.9 Tight Sands and Shales 56

4.10 Methane Hydrates 57

4.11 Outlook 60

5 Oil and Natural Gas Reserves and Their Limits 63

6 The Continuing Need for Hydrocarbon Fuels and Products 73

6.1 Fractional Distillation of Oil 77

6.2 Thermal Cracking and Other Downstream Processes 78

6.3 Petroleum Products 79

7 Fossil Fuels and Climate Change 85

7.1 Mitigation 95

8 Renewable Energy Sources and Atomic Energy 101

8.1 Hydropower 104

8.2 Geothermal Energy 108

8.3 Wind Energy 113

8.4 Solar Energy: Photovoltaic and Thermal 117

8.4.1 Electricity from Photovoltaic Conversion 118

8.4.2 Solar Thermal Power for Electricity Production 121

8.4.3 Electric Power from Saline Solar Ponds 125

8.4.4 Solar Thermal Energy for Heating 125

8.4.5 Economics of Solar Energy 126

8.5 Bioenergy 127

8.5.1 Electricity from Biomass 128

8.5.2 Liquid Biofuels 130

8.5.2.1 Biomethanol 135

8.5.3 Advantages and Limitation of Biofuels 135

8.6 Ocean Energy: Thermal, Tidal, and Wave Power 136

8.6.1 Tidal Energy 136

8.6.2 Wave Power 138

8.6.3 Ocean Thermal Energy 139

8.7 Nuclear Energy 140

8.7.1 Energy from Nuclear Fission Reactions 142

8.7.2 Breeder Reactors 146

8.7.3 The Need for Nuclear Power 148

8.7.4 Economics 149

8.7.5 Safety 151

8.7.6 Radiation Hazards 153

8.7.7 Nuclear Byproducts, Waste, and Their Management 154

8.7.8 Emissions 156

8.7.9 Nuclear Fusion 156

8.7.10 Nuclear Power: An Energy Source for the Future 160

8.8 Future Outlook 161

9 The Hydrogen Economy and Its Limitations 165

9.1 Hydrogen and Its Properties 166

9.2 The Development of Hydrogen Energy 168

9.3 Production and Uses of Hydrogen 171

9.3.1 Hydrogen from Fossil Fuels 172

9.3.2 Hydrogen from Biomass 174

9.3.3 Photobiological Water Cleavage and Fermentation 175

9.3.4 Water Electrolysis 175

9.3.4.1 Electrolyzer Types 176

9.3.4.2 Electricity Source 177

9.3.5 Hydrogen Production Using Nuclear Energy 179

9.4 The Challenge of Hydrogen Storage 180

9.4.1 Liquid Hydrogen 182

9.4.2 Compressed Hydrogen 182

9.4.3 Metal Hydrides and Solid Adsorbents 184

9.4.4 Chemical Hydrogen Storage 185

9.5 Centralized or Decentralized Distribution of Hydrogen? 186

9.6 Hydrogen Safety 188

9.7 Hydrogen as a Transportation Fuel 189

9.8 Fuel Cells 191

9.8.1 History 191

9.8.2 Fuel Cell Efficiency 192

9.8.3 Hydrogenbased Fuel Cells 194

9.8.4 PEM Fuel Cells for Transportation 197

9.8.5 Regenerative Fuel Cells 200

9.9 Outlook 203

10 The Methanol Economy: General Aspects 205

11 Methanol and Dimethyl Ether as Fuels and Energy Carriers 211

11.1 Background and Properties of Methanol 211

11.1.1 Methanol in Nature 213

11.1.2 Methanol in Space 213

11.2 Chemical Uses of Methanol 214 11.3 Methanol as a Tra...