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China-Japan-Koreas
China develops alternative fuel to diesel and LNG
2006-04-21
A chemical company in Shanghai has started producing an alternative fuel that could save hundreds of millions of dollars a year if used to power the cityÂ’s entire fleet of diesel buses. Bus engines must be refit before they can use the fuel, however. Shanghai Coking & Chemical Corp, a unit of domestic chemical leader Shanghai Huayi Group, put its 5,000-tonne-per-year dimethyl ether plant into operation earlier this week.

Dimethyl ether, or DME, is a clean-burning alternative to liquefied petroleum gas, liquefied natural gas, diesel and gasoline. It can be made from natural gas, coal or biological organisms. Market experts say that the new fuel can be profitably produced provided crude oil prices remain above US$40 per barrel. Currently global oil prices are around US$72 a barrel, almost triple 2002 prices. DME costs about $123 less per tonne than diesel fuel. The new fuel could help ShanghaiÂ’s diesel bus operators save more than 300 million yuan per annum. Around 15,000 of ShanghaiÂ’s 19,000 buses are diesel-powered.
Suddenly I like the Chinese a lot more.
Posted by:Fred

#9  #1: DME is essentially natural gas (methane) turned into a conveniently transportable liquid.

LNG has been around 50 years or more.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2006-04-21 23:13  

#8  While we're at it I don't understand why China hasn't cut a deal with South Africa to build a couple hundred pebble-bed nuclear reactors to provide their power needs. Its not as if Greenpeace is going to bother them.

And while they are at it why not create an Orion rocket ship. Truly take over space. Have the nations of the world complaining while also paying big bucks to get massive payloads into space. Who's gonna complain? Hell they could launch from Xinjiang, its not as if they care what the nuclear pollution might do to that Muslim dominated trouble-some corner of the Middle Kingdom.

I mean if China wants to give the finger to the world why not do it big. Why bluster over Tiawan when they could take the moon and have the Japanese Kow-towing to them for favors?
Posted by: rjschwarz   2006-04-21 17:15  

#7  The West has done nothing for 30 years about the energy problem. It's been all talk. The actions have been legislation and regulation against sane solutions. China is at least ahead of us on that score. I preaching to the Choir be were are screw folks. Crunch time is upon us.
Posted by: SPoD   2006-04-21 17:12  

#6  China, with their fuel issues, would be a prime candidate for biodiesel. I'm not sure they are all that good at feeding themselves though so producing enough to run cars might be a challenge. Perhaps seaweed beds or something. Still, I thought they were the culture with the long term view of things and I haven't seen a whole lot of impressive long term solutions to their oil issues. They watched what happened to the west and followed lock-step.
Posted by: rjschwarz   2006-04-21 10:40  

#5  If you go the the DME website it gives the impression that DME has been around for a while and was not invented by the chinese.
Posted by: Phorong Phinemp3987   2006-04-21 10:29  

#4  DME

Great. Just what we need. Another excuse for the Greens to deplete the natural gas supply.
Posted by: 11A5S   2006-04-21 00:39  

#3  Dimethyl Ether? Isn't that very touchy and likely to go "boom?" (Not that natural gas is all that harmless.)
Posted by: Jackal   2006-04-21 00:33  

#2  DME is a gas that can be compressed like propane. It would be most suitable for busses already modified to run on propane or compressed LNG.
Posted by: ed   2006-04-21 00:33  

#1  DME is essentially natural gas (methane) turned into a conveniently transportable liquid.
Posted by: phil_b   2006-04-21 00:26  

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