Page 18 RAIN April 1982 ACCESS ENERGY The GasoholHandbook, by V. Daniel Hunt, 1981, 580 pp., $29.50, from: Industrial Press Inc. 200 Madison Ave. New York, NY 10157 This book presents some interesting insights into “establishment" philosophy and its attendant policy toward the production of fuel grade alcohol from farm crops. As director of The Energy Institute, Hunt echoes the policies that have come from the federal government (pre-Reagan) on alcohol production. The philosophy is to commit the government to support and fund an alcohol fuels program to produce anhydrous (water-free, or 200 proof) alcohol which can be mixed with gasoline and used as car fuel. The rationale is also to turn solid fuels like coal and wood into liquid fuels to supplement the oil needed to produce that gasoline. The alcohol production systems described in the book are designed to produce anhydrous alcohol, and this process requires more energy than is derived from burning the alcohol it produces. By contrast, 190-proof alcohol consumes less energy in production and can be burned directly in most vehicles with only minor modifications. Because of this net energy loss in producing 200 proof alcohol, the production of fuel grade alcohol by the processes described in The Gasohol Handbook and sponsored by federal government policy is not economically sound without federal price supports. —Gail Katz World Energy Data Sheet (poster), 1982, 2'x3', two-sided, blue & white, $3.50 (bulk prices available) from: World Resources Inventory 3501 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19104 This poster puts an amazing amount of otherwise hard-to-locate information within easy reach. It makes possible quick reference to 32 categories of energy data for each of 147 countries (everything from uranium production in Argentina to draft horse energy output in Japan) and is accompanied by a booklet which elaborates on the data and provides access to additional source materials. As an added attraction, you get a series of maps, laid out on the model of Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion Airocean World Map, each highlighting global distribution of a particular energy source. The catch is the maps are on the reverse side of the poster, making it difficult to know which side should face out from the wall. Save yourself the dilemma by ordering two copies. —John Ferrell Lighting Power Standard: A Guide to Saving Lighting Energy Dollars, by Sheldon Steiner and Kenneth Schmider, 1979,100 pp., inquire for price from: New York Energy Office Rockefeller Plaza Albany, NY 12223 This manual is part of a New York state program to conserve the energy equivalent of a large coal plant through more efficient lighting for commercial buildings. It presents a comprehensive, simple procedure for sizing, implementing and calculating a simple payback for reduction of lighting energy requirements by about 25% for a typical building. There aren't many books around dealing with commercial energy that are both good and written for normal people. This is one of the exceptions. —Kevin Bell Wood & Coal; The Price of A.T. Xs the cost of oil and gas rises, people are increasingly turning to wood and coal to provide for their space heating needs. While reducing our dependence on the local nuclear power plant or not so local multi-national oil conglomerate is a fine idea, the environmental effects of burning solid fuels should be weighed against the personal economic benefits. A report sent to RAIN from Janet Gillaspie of the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) states: • Coal burning in hand-fired household stoves and fireplaces discharges sulfur dioxide, sulfates, particulates, and benzo(a)pyrene and other polycycli organic material into the atmosphere. More residential coal burning would increase the concentration of these chemicals in the ambient air and result in their inhalation and deposition into the bronchi and the lungs, and for some materials, absorption and spread through the blood vessels. • Time, dose, and host susceptibility factors are critical to the ability of agents to cause cancer and other illness. Young children are particularly vulnerable to low doses and because they are young, will be exposed over long periods of time. Even more than adults they should not be subjected unnecessarily to agents which may result in later development of disease. • Alternatives to burning coal in residential units are available. Large scale boilers or furnaces can burn coal much more efficiently than hand-fired units, and with effective pollution control devices can reduce the release of other pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, sulfates, and particulates. Thus there is no reason to expose the general public unnecessarily to increased health risks which may result from increased residential coal burning. Another DEQ report paints nearly as bad a pirture for wood burning and its accompanying particulate pollution: •At the low fire setting, which we believe is the most typical firing condition for stoves in the Pacific Northwest, from 5% to 7.5% of wood burned was converted to particulate matter and emitted to the atmosphere. • About 40% of total measured particulate was consistently found to be composed of “condensible" matter, which is believed to consist of creosote, terpenes, and other organic hydrocarbon materials. • The results show at least 95% of particles collected in the stack to be smaller than 2.5 micrometers in size. This result suggests that wood smoke, to the extent its emissions are quantitatively significant, will play a role in regional programs for suspended particulate. (This means it can be windborn and inhaled.) Wood stoves that burn one charge a day at high temperatures (1500°F) and use water for thermal storage (like the jet stove, see RAIN VII:3 and VII: 7) are not serious polluters. All of this forces us to remember that even “appropriate technologies" have their price. The best form of alternate energy is still conservation. —Gail Katz
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