US Makes $2.4 Billion Bet On Clean Coal In Stimulus Package

WASHINGTON — Energy Secretary Steven Chu says he will provide $2.4 billion from the economic recovery package to speed up development of technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and factories that burn coal.

Chu told a meeting of the National Coal Council on Friday that it's essential that ways are found to capture carbon dioxide from coal-burning power plants and industrial sources. Carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels is the leading greenhouse gas blamed for global warming.

Chu said coal will remain an essential energy source. He said even if coal plants in the United States were shut down, as some environmentalists want, China and India will not turn their back on coal.

Comments

[ecosutra]

Greenguy 25... better yet, take the CO2 from waste heat and send it through a solar thermal hydrogen chemical process to make a new transportation fuel called Urea. Lyle Rawlings, Advanced Solar Products.

Wall Street kills innovation because efficiency is no friend to profit. We don't need a revolution, we need a migration an expedition. We cant save everyone. Which is what really bothers me about Steven Chu and his remarks about China as a reason not to move beyond coal. That is disgusting and insults me.
He is thinking global with remarks like that. Lead and stop scapegoating. Does he even know he is doing it?

[freethemarkets212]

You know nothing about economics.The Free Market will crush the government in price,effi­ciency,and any thing else you can through.Government has been the problem since THE NEW DEAL,and now with this Acorn guy.You are in for a rude awakening next year(High inflation,taxes ,and unemployme­nt).You'Ll get a Republican in office in 2012 to fix it.Obama,P­elosi,Fran­k,and the rest will destroy your party for 10-20 years.I just hope the people don't associate Obama failure with black candidates.

[JoeAlvord]

Judging by the last eight years, the Repubs don't know too much about economics.

[linaya]

Republicans are over with, done, gone, dead. Newt Gingrich is putting the final nail in their coffin with his hysterics about Nancy.

RIP GOP, and meanwhile, stop yakking. You all give me migraines.

[bunnyv]

Um, well, see what those great fiscal conservatives use to do, was drop taxes and either print money, or borrow it from social security, or ring up a deficit. That usually worked out ok because then a Dem would get voted into office, raise taxes clean things up, and bring the deficit down. Social security is all but gone, and when there is already a deficit, dropping taxes further would be insane.

The argument that republicans are fiscally conservative is a big sham. So, actually you don't know anything about economics. Or history, apparently.

[Greenguy25]

Two important things happened this week, first Mr Chu eliminated funding for Fuel Cell research because he did not feel the technology was close enough to commercial acceptance. Secondly, Mr Chu turns around and throws 2.3 billion at a technology that is many years farther behind application than fuel cells.

While I agree that finding a safe and effective way to capture and store carbon is a priority, it is far less important than the development of fuel cells.

Look at it this way, both technologies are at least 10 to 20 years off in the future, but when compared side by side 10 or 20 years from now, fuel cells will deliver a net decrease of carbon equal to the output of a 1000 coal plants. FYI there are only 600 coal plants in the US now.

Ya Ya, I know production of hydrogen is energy intensive, but that is the very reason we should have a well rounded renewable energy policy in this country and I know Mr Chu agrees with that. Think solar powered hydrogen production, on site at hydrogen filling stations, just like those being tested in countries all over the world.

Mr. Chu, get your head out of your behind and set us on a path for a renewable energy future or we can vote in an administration that will.

http://www.mygreenscene.com

[greenerland]

Hey greenguy25, that's an awesome link, cheers, I agree with all the points you make, on a post in the previous page I made yesterday I brought up the cost to output if we were to take the 2.4 billion and sink it all into solar. Given less than optimal conditions all the solar cells would be producing 500 gigawatts annually. People should chew on that and then see where the governments priorities are - in a technology that already exsists but would take a massive overhaul, or in a technology that's 10-20 years off that will still take a massive overhaul.

[Bloggerrogr]

Where's the CBA on this?

[Bloggerrogr]

It's already being done in my area. SunTran is using/adding hydrogren fuel-cell busses. Guess where they're being built. Try the manufacturer name: VanHool. That's right, the Netherlands. Will we ever wise up?

[rwext]

Obama , you remember from Illinois , knows Clean Coal is FACT... Southern Illinois has more BTUs in Coal than Saudi Arabia has in oil... and Southern Illinois University is running its Physical plant on Clean Coal Technology

[Bloggerrogr]

I repeat, "Clean" coal technology is a fraud.

[ecosutra]

Hello, I am Russell Berns the President of Ecosutra. I have an urgent message.
First, So does Chu think China can come to America and mine our coal?
China builds a coal fire power plant everyday. They have peaked out their coal. They will soon reach their entropy. They have already built 3 apartments for every one china man.
China's desert grows everyday the size of Rhode Island. Desertification is exponential.

Carbon Sequestration clean coal. Here is the big secret. The CO2 capture green technology is Algae bio diesel.
If Wall Street launches a manhattan project for Algae bio diesel, it will unleash the infrastructure of parts and labor to fractionally explode the green energy technology onto the people. Like the internet. They can not stop it once they go into manufacturing. That is why you only see big wind power towers, and there is a 3 year waiting list on wind turbines.

Now is the time to enter the new gold rush of eco village designs. Sustainable power park models that are energy producers that pay back in 5 years and pays off in 25 -75 years depending on the interface.
Municipalities have failed us, they can not install green energy commercially. We have to redesign culture if we are going to make this work.

I urge the people or who ever will listen, rally around my permaculture design course that will be launching soon. www.ecosutra.com

[jmpurser]

It's not "clean coal". It's "Shoot ourselves in the foot instead of the head" coal. It's "Oh well, we've got two kidneys right?" coal. It's "Just a flesh wound" coal.

We're desperate and stuck. The best we can do now is doing stupid the smartest way possible.

[mioffe]

Dear Steven Chu, please give me possibilities to use that money and I promise during one year 100% of employment in USA, during five years Canada, USA and Mexico working alone will win global warming battle with huge profit for themselves.
We will stop our dependence from foreign oil supply.

[mioffe]

The best way to use sun energy for electricity production is growing forests for wood.
Old trees anyway will be decayed and produce more carbon dioxide. In small power plant we could solve all exhaust gases in water to watering trees and use not only electricity (less than 20% of fuel energy), but also heat energy.

Most computer modeling looks at water vapor as static element in air, when they trapped infrared radiation and heats the air.
Water vapor is the most important greenhouse gas, more important, than carbon dioxide. Molecular weight of water vapor is 18, nitrogen-28, oxigen-32, carbon dioxide-44. That means that water vapor is lighter than almost all others gases in the air.

It takes 339 kcal of energy to evaporate 1 kg of water. It takes only one kcal to heat one kg of water on 1º C.
It take 80 kcal of energy to melt one kg of ice, when its temperature will be 0º C.

In atmosphere we have water vapor, small droplet of fog, clouds and droplets of rain. If water vapor as GHG will trap infrared radiation that energy will evaporate droplets of fog etc., and cool the air lifting up lighter water vapor close to clouds and beyond, where heat can escape to space.
If you will look in dynamic water vapor actually cool the air.
Attitude to water vapor as static component misleads many scientists, Al Gore and our Government.
This is huge problem!

[JnrNorman]

Yes Obama is a total sell-out!
He must be protested at every chance.
LEGALIZE HEMP Applachia could grow hemp.

[quidam56]

Appalachia can't stand anymore of the prosperity thanks to the mountaintop removal, clean, green, new and improved, hybrid coal industry ! http://www.wisecountyissues.com/?p=138 We are being bombed, blasted and bulldozed right into 3rd world America.

[American50]

Clean coal will put thousands more out of work

[crazylikeafox]

everyday Obama is in office he shows more and more how much he is in the pockets of the corporations.

If the coal industry paid for this, I would say great.

That I am going to pay for this, I say (extreme curse word here so I don't get censored by Huffington Post)

[Overtone]

Inexpensive revolutionary alternatives to coal (and all fossil fuels) will be widely available in a few years.

Breakthrough technologies will rapidly make possible future electric and hybrid cars that need no fuel or external battery charge.

The cars can turn into power plants when parked. Imagine vehicles that need no fuel and pay for themselves - by wirelessly selling power to the local utility.

This will become a cost-competitive alternative to building new coal (and nuclear) power plants.

It reflects one application of new technologies that tap energy sources never yet commercialized - such as ambient heat, Zero Point Energy, and hydrinos.

Scientists will be understandably skeptical until independent laboratory validation takes place.

That is on the horizon, as is production of self-powered generators - as well as demonstration devices for schools and universities.

See http://www.chavaenergy.com for more information concerning magnetic motors and generators, and self powered internal combustion engines that utilize hydrinos.

These technologies are inherently inexpensive. They have surprising potential to supersede coal plants and accelerate reversal of our economic and energy concerns.

[susan20515]

No clean coal = no USA

[Simon Leufstedt]

"Clean coal" is a lie!

[dsws]

No one will know until the R&D gets done. If the coal people say it definitely will work, that's a lie. If the anti-coal people say it definitely won't, that's a lie too.

[Haditup2here]

You know what . . . I think I might just fan you. As someone working in the research of coal gasification to use coal more efficiently in addition to reducing emissions, I appreciate someone outside the field sticking up for those who are working on the research and development. Neither parties (liberal/c­onservativ­e) tries to look into the science of what is being done. As in all research, technology takes time and if people are so concerned about climate change, they would do more to boost the science curriculum at the primary and secondary school level and will try to change people's attitudes on science and engineering.

[SammyD]

perhaps they can first try to heat the pipes in the home of the future in Michigan