[Vision2020] Opportunities for Research

Mon Jul 11 07:57:36 PDT 2005

Tom

They are called rhetorical questions.  You brought up the U of I's programs 
on bio-diesel and I am simply asking you to look at what that program 
actually did.

A similar research was carried out by U of I using Australian nontronite 
clays as a means of concentrating radioactive materials from wastes under a 
DOE grant that was to assist in research for WIPP storage.  Though the 
largest nontronite deposit in the USA sits just northeast of Troy, not one 
sample of local materials was tested as a possible local source to feed 
clean up efforts at Hanford.  Because that local material has not been 
tested, the Australian clay will end up being used once they start to make 
borosilicate glass in Hanford and what could have been a local business 
worth tens of millions to our area will get shipped in from down under with 
an attached transportation cost in excess of 12 million bucks.

Barbara treid to explain right here on this page that one of the reasons 
even the University does not research things that would assist us in growth 
is that the sense is that its impossible to get permits and hard to do 
business in Latah County.  I recall her getting jumped on by posters who 
thought that being business friendly was a bad thing.  Her call for a can do 
atitude was disparged, but how do we get the Engineers at the U to focus on 
things in research that are stone cold assumed to be things that will never 
be allowed to happen here?

Phil Nisbet

>From: "Tom Hansen" <thansen at moscow.com>
>To: "'Tom Hansen'" <thansen at moscow.com>,        "'Phil Nisbet'" 
><pcnisbet1 at hotmail.com>, <vision2020 at moscow.com>
>CC: <deanengr at uidaho.edu>
>Subject: RE: [Vision2020] Opportunities for Research
>Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2005 07:07:54 -0700
>
>Mr. Nisbet -
>
>Perhaps your questions may be better answered if they were directed to the
>UI College of Engineering.
>
>Tom Hansen
>Moscow, Idaho
>UI '96 (MIS)
>
>  “Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
>safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in
>sideways, chocolate in one hand, a drink in the other, body thoroughly used
>up, totally worn out and screaming 'WOO HOO. What a ride!'”
>
>-----Original Message-----
>
>From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com]
>On Behalf Of Phil Nisbet
>Sent: Monday, July 11, 2005 5:54 AM
>To: vision2020 at moscow.com
>Subject: RE: [Vision2020] Opportunities for Research
>
>FYI, Tom
>
>How much rape seed oil or canola do you see growing in Latah County?  How
>about soy beans?
>
>What we have is wheat, lentils and trees.  Where is the research on them as
>a feedstock for biodiesel?
>
>What catalysts did the U of I use?  Did they look at any local derived
>materials?  Or is it that the research was done with off the shelf 
>catalysts
>
>from the subsidaries of the Oil Companies?
>
>This county has halloysite, kaolin and other clays suitable for making
>catalysts.  Where is the research on their use to make catalysts for
>biodiesel?
>
>Lets face it, we have done wonderful things for ADM and for the boys over 
>at
>
>Monsanto, but unless we grow some of it in Idaho, how did a program using
>off the shelf catalysts and other people's crops do much for either a long
>term U of I program or the local community?
>
>Phil Nisbet
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com]
>On Behalf Of Tom Hansen
>Sent: Monday, July 11, 2005 5:07 AM
>To: 'Phil Nisbet'; vision2020 at moscow.com
>Subject: RE: [Vision2020] Opportunities for Research
>
>FYI, Mr. Nisbet.
>
>UI is actively researching bio-diesel.  The UI College of Engineering has
>competed, and have done quite well, with many other universities in this
>field.  The UI College of Engineering has presented prototype after
>prototype after prototype right here on campus year after year after year.
>
>Trust me.  Bio-diesel is not new here at UI.
>
>Tom Hansen
>Moscow, Idaho
>
>We could learn a lot from crayons: some are sharp, some are pretty, some 
>are
>dull, some have weird names, and all are different colors....but they all
>exist very nicely in the same box.
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com]
>On Behalf Of Phil Nisbet
>Sent: Monday, July 11, 2005 4:52 AM
>To: vision2020 at moscow.com
>Subject: [Vision2020] Opportunities for Research
>
>As each of us goes to the gas pump, we look at the rising price of energy,
>our dependency on overseas sources of hydrocarbon fuels and even the need
>for cleaner less environmentally harmful energy.  Then we pump our gas and
>drive home and forget about it.
>
>After all, what can a place like Latah County contribute to a solution?  We
>have no oil or gas deposits.  We raise wheat not corn, so there is no
>ethanol program.
>
>But we do have resources.  We have a University, trees and minerals.
>
>Bio-diesel and Gas to Liquid (GTL) technology is spreading and has a fair
>amount of grant funding available for research and development.  Both those
>conversion are based on use of specialty clays as catalytic feedstock.  We
>have an abundance of those clays in Latah County.
>
>The Bio-diesel folk start using corn based ethanol and the GTL folks start
>by converting methane gas to methanol.  Its actually fairly easy to use
>existing bacteria to turn wood waste into a brewed and distilled product,
>methanol, and then convert it to bio-diesel.
>
>So we have the raw resources here and we have a Research University here to
>develop the technology.  There are even funds out there to assist in
>developing that technology for a program that could enhance the University
>of Idaho while decreasing foreign energy dependence and having a cleaner
>fuel to use.
>
>If anybody is interested, New Zealand is already in production with GTL and
>Willie Nelson is using Bio-diesel.  Any bio-diesel fuels are getting a buck
>a gallon subsidy from the Feds right now as well and 60,000,000 gallons a
>year of it are being made.
>
>Would it not be interesting to be part of the solution to having renewable
>hydrocarbon fuels?
>
>Phil Nisbet
>
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