Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Methane from Windpower

Brita Bell writes in Ecomagination about a research project designed to take atmospheric carbon dioxide and convert it into methane using electricity and a methanogen called Methanobacterium palustre.  The ideal power source would be night time excessive electrical power produced by wind energy.   

http://gcep.stanford.edu/research/factsheets/electricalcurrentviamicrobes.html

In 2012, Stanford Scientists describe an unsuccessful attempt to use Methanothermobacter marburgensis, to convert waste carbon dioxide from power plants or anaerobic digestion of biowaste to methane.  They are looking at an organism that is less sensitive to methyl viologen a highly toxic compound that forms part of the pesticide paraquat and is produced when electricity is applied to stimulate the production of methane.


Some of these methanogens grow in deep sea vents in the ocean capturing hydrogen and carbon dioxide to produce methane.  They may be the type of alien life forms found on the planet mars according to a Huffington Post article.





 

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