Posted: 11/9/2012 6:55:17 PM EDT
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It isn't too often that you hear of teenagers halfway around the globe creating something cool from almost nothing. Today however is different, four teenagers (The oldest of whom is only fifteen) have developed a very amazing way to generate electricity in their remote village in Africa. CoC10...VA-gunnut Source |
Flatulence forever! 
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One of the most crucial features of this device is that it does not used platinum to generate the hydrogen. Here in the US, our electrolysis cells contain highly valuable platnum which costs a whopping $1500 per pound. Instead, the girls are using nickel, which is extremely abundant, and quite cheap at only $7 per pound. On top of this, they are not feeding the pure hydrogen into a expensive fuel cell, rather a cheap Chinese generator. The result is cheap, rugged and will run off 6 hours from one liter of urine. Urea: 
There are 9.3 grams of urea per liter of urine. Hydrogen makes up 6.6% of urea by weight so that gives us 6.6% of 9.3 grams = 0.62 grams of hydrogen. So they are telling us that they are burning 0.62 grams of hydrogen in a 'cheap Chinese generator' for 6 hours. Platinum is $1500 per ounce, not pound. The article is retarded. Where does the urea in urine come from? It ultimately comes from fertilizers that are used to grow their food. Why not recycle the urea to produce more food? |
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One of the most crucial features of this device is that it does not used platinum to generate the hydrogen. Here in the US, our electrolysis cells contain highly valuable platnum which costs a whopping $1500 per pound. Instead, the girls are using nickel, which is extremely abundant, and quite cheap at only $7 per pound. On top of this, they are not feeding the pure hydrogen into a expensive fuel cell, rather a cheap Chinese generator. The result is cheap, rugged and will run off 6 hours from one liter of urine. Urea: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Harnstoff.svg/150px-Harnstoff.svg.png There are 9.3 grams of urea per liter of urine. Hydrogen makes up 6.6% of urea by weight so that gives us 6.6% of 9.3 grams = 0.62 grams of hydrogen. So they are telling us that they are burning 0.62 grams of hydrogen in a 'cheap Chinese generator' for 6 hours. Platinum is $1500 per ounce, not pound. The article is retarded. Where does the urea in urine come from? It ultimately comes from fertilizers that are used to grow their food. Why not recycle the urea to produce more food? I'd love to buy some platinum for $1500/pound |
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One of the most crucial features of this device is that it does not used platinum to generate the hydrogen. Here in the US, our electrolysis cells contain highly valuable platnum which costs a whopping $1500 per pound. Instead, the girls are using nickel, which is extremely abundant, and quite cheap at only $7 per pound. On top of this, they are not feeding the pure hydrogen into a expensive fuel cell, rather a cheap Chinese generator. The result is cheap, rugged and will run off 6 hours from one liter of urine. Urea: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Harnstoff.svg/150px-Harnstoff.svg.png There are 9.3 grams of urea per liter of urine. Hydrogen makes up 6.6% of urea by weight so that gives us 6.6% of 9.3 grams = 0.62 grams of hydrogen. So they are telling us that they are burning 0.62 grams of hydrogen in a 'cheap Chinese generator' for 6 hours. Platinum is $1500 per ounce, not pound. The article is retarded. Where does the urea in urine come from? It ultimately comes from fertilizers that are used to grow their food. Why not recycle the urea to produce more food? Urea isn't the only source of hydrogen in urine. There is also water itself. Even so, the claim seems highly dubious. Also, the urea does not come from fertilizer. Urea is often used as fertilizer, but the human body produces urea as a waste product in order to sequester toxic free ammonia from amino acid metabolism. |
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Quoted: It isn't too often that you hear of teenagers halfway around the globe creating something cool from almost nothing. Today however is different, four teenagers (The oldest of whom is only fifteen) have developed a very amazing way to generate electricity in their remote village in Africa. CoC10...VA-gunnut Source Created it from nothing.... And a gas powered generator.  Could also power an airship... You can't make this shit up.  |
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One of the most crucial features of this device is that it does not used platinum to generate the hydrogen. Here in the US, our electrolysis cells contain highly valuable platnum which costs a whopping $1500 per pound. Instead, the girls are using nickel, which is extremely abundant, and quite cheap at only $7 per pound. On top of this, they are not feeding the pure hydrogen into a expensive fuel cell, rather a cheap Chinese generator. The result is cheap, rugged and will run off 6 hours from one liter of urine. Urea: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Harnstoff.svg/150px-Harnstoff.svg.png There are 9.3 grams of urea per liter of urine. Hydrogen makes up 6.6% of urea by weight so that gives us 6.6% of 9.3 grams = 0.62 grams of hydrogen. So they are telling us that they are burning 0.62 grams of hydrogen in a 'cheap Chinese generator' for 6 hours. Platinum is $1500 per ounce, not pound. The article is retarded. Where does the urea in urine come from? It ultimately comes from fertilizers that are used to grow their food. Why not recycle the urea to produce more food? Urea isn't the only source of hydrogen in urine. There is also water itself. Even so, the claim seems highly dubious. Also, the urea does not come from fertilizer. Urea is often used as fertilizer, but the human body produces urea as a waste product in order to sequester toxic free ammonia from amino acid metabolism. Water is a product of oxidation. There is no energy left. The hydrogen in urea still has a lot of potential energy. They are using some form of nitrogen as fertilizer whether it is urea, ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, etc. That nitrogen is used by plants to make proteins. The plants are consumed and part of the proteins are converted to carbohydrates with ammonia being split off first. This ammonia is then converted to less toxic urea and ends up in the urine. So the nitrogen fertilizer ends up as urea in the urine. I understand all of that. My point is it takes a lot of energy to produce nitrogen fertilizers so they are better off recycling as much of it as they can and using it as fertilizer rather than what they are doing. Yes, we agree the claim is highly dubious. |
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One of the most crucial features of this device is that it does not used platinum to generate the hydrogen. Here in the US, our electrolysis cells contain highly valuable platnum which costs a whopping $1500 per pound. Instead, the girls are using nickel, which is extremely abundant, and quite cheap at only $7 per pound. On top of this, they are not feeding the pure hydrogen into a expensive fuel cell, rather a cheap Chinese generator. The result is cheap, rugged and will run off 6 hours from one liter of urine. Urea: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Harnstoff.svg/150px-Harnstoff.svg.png There are 9.3 grams of urea per liter of urine. Hydrogen makes up 6.6% of urea by weight so that gives us 6.6% of 9.3 grams = 0.62 grams of hydrogen. So they are telling us that they are burning 0.62 grams of hydrogen in a 'cheap Chinese generator' for 6 hours. Platinum is $1500 per ounce, not pound. The article is retarded. Where does the urea in urine come from? It ultimately comes from fertilizers that are used to grow their food. Why not recycle the urea to produce more food? Someone has read your critique - the text has now changed. |
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Water is a product of oxidation. There is no energy left. The hydrogen in urea still has a lot of potential energy. They are using some form of nitrogen as fertilizer whether it is urea, ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, etc. That nitrogen is used by plants to make proteins. The plants are consumed and part of the proteins are converted to carbohydrates with ammonia being split off first. This ammonia is then converted to less toxic urea and ends up in the urine. So the nitrogen fertilizer ends up as urea in the urine. I understand all of that. My point is it takes a lot of energy to produce nitrogen fertilizers so they are better off recycling as much of it as they can and using it as fertilizer rather than what they are doing. Yes, we agree the claim is highly dubious. The article is describing electrolytic generation of hydrogen. Why do you think that water is not being split into hydrogen and oxygen here? That would make a lot more sense than talking about the electrolysis of urea. The problem, of course, is the net balance of energy. Using electrolysis to generate hydrogen, then burning that hydrogen in an engine, will always be a net loser. Synthetic fertilizers and manures are not the only source of dietary nitrogen. Plants also get nitrogen via nitrogen fixation by symbiotic bacteria in the root nodules of certain plants, like beans. There's no reason to assume that fertilizer is fueling this process. |
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Water is a product of oxidation. There is no energy left. The hydrogen in urea still has a lot of potential energy. They are using some form of nitrogen as fertilizer whether it is urea, ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate, etc. That nitrogen is used by plants to make proteins. The plants are consumed and part of the proteins are converted to carbohydrates with ammonia being split off first. This ammonia is then converted to less toxic urea and ends up in the urine. So the nitrogen fertilizer ends up as urea in the urine. I understand all of that. My point is it takes a lot of energy to produce nitrogen fertilizers so they are better off recycling as much of it as they can and using it as fertilizer rather than what they are doing. Yes, we agree the claim is highly dubious. The article is describing electrolytic generation of hydrogen. Why do you think that water is not being split into hydrogen and oxygen here? That would make a lot more sense than talking about the electrolysis of urea. The problem, of course, is the net balance of energy. Using electrolysis to generate hydrogen, then burning that hydrogen in an engine, will always be a net loser. Synthetic fertilizers and manures are not the only source of dietary nitrogen. Plants also get nitrogen via nitrogen fixation by symbiotic bacteria in the root nodules of certain plants, like beans. There's no reason to assume that fertilizer is fueling this process. You answered your own question in blue. Where are they getting the money to pay for the electricity? How are they generating electricity in a remote village in Africa? A nice "feel-good" article about Africa. As a total percentage, the amount of nitrogen fixation from symbiotic bacteria that appears in food for human and livestock consumption is miniscule. The population explosion on this planet would have never occurred had it not been due to Fritz Haber coming up with the process to fix nitrogen in the laboratory. 
Let's assume that there is no synthetic fertilizer used: they are still better off using the urea from their urine to increase crop yields. The 6 hours of running a generator on less than a gram of hydrogen is still ridiculous on its face. |
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You answered your own question in blue. Where are they getting the money to pay for the electricity? How are they generating electricity in a remote village in Africa? A nice "feel-good" article about Africa. As a total percentage, the amount of nitrogen fixation from symbiotic bacteria that appears in food for human and livestock consumption is miniscule. The population explosion on this planet would have never occurred had it not been due to Fritz Haber coming up with the process to fix nitrogen in the laboratory.
Let's assume that there is no synthetic fertilizer used: they are still better off using the urea from their urine to increase crop yields. The 6 hours of running a generator on less than a gram of hydrogen is still ridiculous on its face. I don't think either of us buys the story's claims, so I guess we're arguing over nothing. This reminds me of the HHO gas generator BS. I've spent some time in rural East Africa where subsistence farming is still the rule. Folks there can't afford fertilizer, so crop rotations are used to restore nitrogen content to the soil. No, it doesn't work well, but it does work. It's pretty obvious why they get a dozen bushels of corn to an acre and we get 100+ in a good year. (Manures are used there, too, but there is a lot more crop land than manure to go around.) Urine can be used as a fertilizer, but you have to keep in mind the salt content and ratio of N to K and P. Too much salt in your fields is obviously bad, but so is too much nitrogen or too little potassium and phosphorus. |
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It isn't too often that you hear of teenagers halfway around the globe creating something cool from almost nothing.
Today however is different, four teenagers (The oldest of whom is only fifteen) have developed a very amazing way to generate electricity in their remote village in Africa. CoC10...VA-gunnut Source Created it from nothing.... And a gas powered generator.
Could also power an airship... You can't make this shit up.
The hindenburg was hydrogen powered ;) |
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It isn't too often that you hear of teenagers halfway around the globe creating something cool from almost nothing.
Today however is different, four teenagers (The oldest of whom is only fifteen) have developed a very amazing way to generate electricity in their remote village in Africa. CoC10...VA-gunnut Source Created it from nothing.... And a gas powered generator.
Could also power an airship... You can't make this shit up.
The hindenburg was hydrogen powered ;) Somebody needs to convince some Somali warlords to build hydrogen-filled dirigibles for use as flying technicals. The LiveLeak videos would be a thing of beauty. |
| This article is retarded. First of all, these "teenagers" did not develop anything. It's quite obvious that their role is to piss into the urine tank. So while it's cool, it is hardly a scientific break-through. If this thing works, I would like to know the name of the scientist who developed this process. Secondly, if this was real, why wouldn't everyone use it? Obviously it does not produce more energy that is out into it. So the whole thing is a waste of time. |
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Is there a portable version I can use to charge my iPhone in the field? iPhones have had built-in TEPCs (Tanzania Electrolytic Piss-Crackers) since the second generation. Just pee directly in the charging port and shake the phone vigorously for 20 seconds. |
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Quoted: One of the most crucial features of this device is that it does not used platinum to generate the hydrogen. Here in the US, our electrolysis cells contain highly valuable platnum which costs a whopping $1500 per pound. Instead, the girls are using nickel, which is extremely abundant, and quite cheap at only $7 per pound. On top of this, they are not feeding the pure hydrogen into a expensive fuel cell, rather a cheap Chinese generator. The result is cheap, rugged and will run off 6 hours from one liter of urine. Urea: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Harnstoff.svg/150px-Harnstoff.svg.png There are 9.3 grams of urea per liter of urine. Hydrogen makes up 6.6% of urea by weight so that gives us 6.6% of 9.3 grams = 0.62 grams of hydrogen. So they are telling us that they are burning 0.62 grams of hydrogen in a 'cheap Chinese generator' for 6 hours. Platinum is $1500 per ounce, not pound. The article is retarded. Where does the urea in urine come from? It ultimately comes from fertilizers that are used to grow their food. Why not recycle the urea to produce more food? This kit separates struvite from urine, making the water less polluting and leaves behind usable fertilizer |
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It isn't too often that you hear of teenagers halfway around the globe creating something cool from almost nothing.
Today however is different, four teenagers (The oldest of whom is only fifteen) have developed a very amazing way to generate electricity in their remote village in Africa. CoC10...VA-gunnut Source Created it from nothing.... And a gas powered generator.
Could also power an airship... You can't make this shit up.
The hindenburg was hydrogen powered ;) Somebody needs to convince some Somali warlords to build hydrogen-filled dirigibles for use as flying technicals. The LiveLeak videos would be a thing of beauty. I LOL. At this idea Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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You answered your own question in blue. Where are they getting the money to pay for the electricity? How are they generating electricity in a remote village in Africa? A nice "feel-good" article about Africa. As a total percentage, the amount of nitrogen fixation from symbiotic bacteria that appears in food for human and livestock consumption is miniscule. The population explosion on this planet would have never occurred had it not been due to Fritz Haber coming up with the process to fix nitrogen in the laboratory.
Let's assume that there is no synthetic fertilizer used: they are still better off using the urea from their urine to increase crop yields. The 6 hours of running a generator on less than a gram of hydrogen is still ridiculous on its face. I don't think either of us buys the story's claims, so I guess we're arguing over nothing. This reminds me of the HHO gas generator BS. I've spent some time in rural East Africa where subsistence farming is still the rule. Folks there can't afford fertilizer, so crop rotations are used to restore nitrogen content to the soil. No, it doesn't work well, but it does work. It's pretty obvious why they get a dozen bushels of corn to an acre and we get 100+ in a good year. (Manures are used there, too, but there is a lot more crop land than manure to go around.) Urine can be used as a fertilizer, but you have to keep in mind the salt content and ratio of N to K and P. Too much salt in your fields is obviously bad, but so is too much nitrogen or too little potassium and phosphorus. Yes, we're on the same page. 
I love reading about this stuff. I started a backyard aquaponics system this past spring and I prepared for it for the previous year and did a ton of reading on agriculture, aquaculture, aquaponics, plant and fish physiology. I have a degree in chemistry so I can understand all the concepts. I even came across some aquaponics systems in Africa. 
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