Methanol--a truly sustainable energy product

Nobel prize-winning chemist George Olah of the University of Southern California has long been a champion of methanol as an alternative fuel. In fact, he has a grand vision of a methanol economy that closes many of the open links in our current energy economy. Olah and his associates have been thinking about aspects of this idea for many years. But as with any grand idea, the question becomes, what is needed to sweep away a massive infrastructure that is already in place?

For one thing, what is needed is customers. Now a Danish company, ECOmove, is offering a methanol-powered car. They call it an electric car, which it must be since its drive motors are electric. But in the US, "electric car" means "car that has batteries, limited range, and must be charged frequently." Chemical fuels have much higher energy densities than batteries, meaning that cars can go farther. ECOmove claims a 500-mile (800 kilometer) range for its vehicle.


(from the ECOmove website)

Perhaps ECOmove has solved the problem of low lifetimes for fuel cells that have plagued methanol concepts until now, and perhaps they haven't. The important thing is the innovation. Having customers will spur further innovations.

As a friend says, "Food, energy and water are one thing." Methanol can be produced from a variety of materials including farm waste. Having a second product can help stabilize farm incomes and make them more sustainable. Beyond transportation in developed nations, the use of biofuels that DON'T compete with food for arable land would be an important advance in sustainability.