MIT Technology Review indicates plasma burning of garbage generates 6 times the energy consumed. There’s enough energy in U.S. municipal and other waste to replace as much as a quarter of the gasoline the country uses, says Daniel Cohn, cofounder of IET and senior research scientist at the MIT center.
Previously this site covered microbial fuel cells. Waste water fuel cells can produce 18 watts per 260 gallons of water and achieved a charge efficiency of more than 70 percent.
Lesser developed countries discharge approximately (the equivalent of) 100 trillion gallons (380×10**9 m³) of untreated sewage per annum. This could potentially generate 7 Terawatts of power for them and clean up their waste water.
These kinds of approaches plus a lot more nuclear power and shifting to more electrical transportation (hybrids and all electric.)can be used to blunt peak oil.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
A frequent speaker at corporations, he has been a TEDx speaker, a Singularity University speaker and guest at numerous interviews for radio and podcasts. He is open to public speaking and advising engagements.