Roundtable Discussion; The Future of Mineral Sands. Watch the video here.
I am from an engineering backgound and go by what I feel is the most promising technology . I am a novice at investment especially AIM. I am now finding out the hard way what a pit of iniquity it is! Never mind, you have to laugh. At least I started using what I could afford to loose as the golden rule says.
Pilltick . I have looked back a long way in posts and can only find Muscorum commenting on Hydrogen trains. Do tou know him ( her) That he has posted with some knowledge ? Reply appreciated. Incidently , I have also posted on Trains recently lamenting lack of progress despite enthusiasm from Rail engineers AND the government (back when reported !) No comments back . I feel I am talking to myself !
Hi Kenny100. Yes this has been posted before ref. the German trains. I am more interested in what the UK is doing ( or rather not doing at the moment) to roll out Hydrogen trains here. I was eagerly waiting to be the first passenger on a trial service between Liverpool (or possibly Chester) and Manchester LAST year. I am sure there was an announcement about this in 2018 but Eversholt denied it when I asked. (see https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cars/news/hydrogen-fuel-cell-trains-run-british-railways-2022/ As you will see, it is a collaboration between Eversholt supplying the standard electric class 321 trains and Alstom converting them to hydrogen. I am particularly keen to see this succeed as the Alstom factory doing the work is in Widnes close to where I used to live. The reason we can't just buy the German train is that it is too tall to go under our industrial revolution bridges and tunnels!
Another attempt is this : https://www.porterbrook.co.uk/innovation/case-studies/the-flex-family (see " HydroFlex") The Company called Porterbrook are using a rather old fashioned looking Class 319 train but probably fine for the slow speeds needed for local, non electrofied lines that the experts say are suitable. This is a train that has actually had a trial run but AGAIN , no customers as far as I know. Rail Engineers give a qualified thumbs up see : https://www.railway-technology.com/features/hydrogen-trains-uk/ and even the government seemed enthusiastic. The trouble is I can't see any progress is likely for a while with the present government now changing Ministers almost every week!
I thought that was a one off Kenny. The basic module was 25 tonnes. I am not a waste disposal expert so I don't know how big the average unit is. but I think the principle still holds. Isn't PHE /W2T talking about hundreds of sites? I was trying to answer the point about liquifying the hydrogen i.e the hydrogen could be used locally without doing that. However ,the hole in the argument is that ,apart from first users , the average driver of private vehicles will not want to go to their nearest waste depot for hydrogen fuel. My only solution was to run a private pipe to the nearest main road and set up a filling station there. I think that leaves ITM in the driving seat for that market.
Tetrolyte .The point about the DMG units are that they are meant to be sited where both the waste input and the hydrogen can be used directly ,e.g. in a waste disposal site using local waste collection (hydrogen powered) trucks. Hence the term Distributed (around a large number of local sites) of various sizes (hence Modular). This is in direct contrast to most designs that are on a massive scale requiring fleets of trucks bringing the waste to a central location. For efficient transportation in tankers to other locations would require liquification at extra energy to convert it . OR using pipe lines (like the national gas grid!)
Actually I think the present limit is 5% but tests at Keel Uni are working on getting at least 20% . To get more than that as per the Bosh boiler will require converting all gas using boilers and hobs etc to run on pure hydrogen or a mixture like the old "Town" gas that those of us old enough to remember was replaced by the present "natural" gas (or as we called it then "North Sea" gas). For that, we had to get all our old gas stoves converted to North sea gas! Funnily enough, "Town" gas or "Coal" gas ( so called because every town produced their own from coal ha ha) was very like the Syngas produced by the DMG ,i.e hydrogen 50-75% , carbon monoxide 15-20% , Methane 5-10% and a supeson of carbon dioxide. I think the Boch must have dual nozzles with a change over tap (ONLY to be used by a gas fitter!) The carbon monoxide in Town gas was of course was what caused people to be "gassed" ether by accident or design. History lesson over!
http://www.railtechnologymagazine.com/Rail-News/alstom-and-eversholt-team-up-to-fit-hydrogen-tanks-on-class-321s
Just a reminder to those who missed it way back in 2017 . This manufacture or rather conversion of already existing trains supplied by Eversholt was announced with great fanfair and since then NOTHING. There was even an announcement that a test service would be started on the Manchester to Chester or Liverpool line but this has since been denied by Eversholt.