Discourse for all interested in all things air-quality related
A comprehensive examination of air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions must be undertaken and completed prior to any decision being made on whether or not U.S. Northwest ports can be set up for coal export to China. This, in effect, is what Gov. John Kitzhaber of Oregon and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee expressed in a … Read more
I’m no stranger to the words “inventory” and “audit.” Fact is, my very first job required that inventories regularly be taken to prevent in this case new home audio electronic equipment supplies from running low or out. It mattered not what the consumer product in question was. If in-stock quantities were down, then through the reordering process, stock was … Read more
The manufacture of Portland cement involves the grinding and heating in a rotary kiln of clay, iron ore, limestone and sand, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). After cooling and grinding and upon being mixed with gypsum this is what creates the Portland cement. If aggregate and water are added, the result is concrete. The processes of heating … Read more
Number 12 in the Clean Air Technologies Series. I don’t consider myself to be an inventor or designer, but in the late 1980s I came up with what I thought was a feasible idea: make use of piezo-electric devices to generate electricity. The specific application I was going for was in the railroad realm whereby … Read more
PBS’ America Revealed series presenter Yul Kwon, in 2012 remarking on Thomas Edison in “ELECTRIC NATION,” in no uncertain terms, said: “In 1931, Thomas Edison confided to his friend Henry Ford. ‘We are like tenant farmers, chopping down the fence around our house for fuel, when we should be using nature’s inexhaustible sources of energy: … Read more
Estimates are America has nearly 250 million vehicles, the bulk of which are fossil-fuel-driven. That’s a lot of cars, buses, motorcycles, trucks, etc. To keep not only these vehicles on the go, but the bevy of stationary internal-combustion-engine-powered motorized machines, too, takes fuel – and lots of it. While it’s no surprise the fuel available for … Read more
Number 10 in the Clean Air Technologies Series. When it comes to powering a locomotive, electricity wins hands down, or does it? Before going any farther, a brief review of 20th century U.S. transportation history is in order. I was born in the age of the diesel loco. Steam as locomotive propulsion power, although reaching a zenith right around … Read more
A segment of the Jan. 13, 2013 installment of the CBS 60 Minutes television program covered robotics. Given that I have now had plenty of time to digest what I have watched, my take is, robots, with their ranks apparently increasing, I can only imagine the effect on the electric grid supply and the environment. The presumption, of … Read more
Number eight in the Clean Air Technologies Series. Think how many fugitive vapors or emissions there are in the world. What if they could all be captured and put to good use? In “Device converts manure gases into clean and useful energy,” discussed was how methane, a biogas emitted naturally from manure and, how with the … Read more
In “Trains prove their worth in helping improve air,” I offered, “In the final analysis if the growth in passenger train ridership is to continue, then additional service will be necessary. ….Electrified California high-speed rail service, on the other hand, expected to break ground later this year, when built and operational, will provide a viable alternative to meet … Read more