"Chu Entertains FutureGen Alliance"

[madrchsod]

looks like the project is back in business since the bushbots put the numbers in the wrong column.


http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/energy/23258/


it is going to be interesting to see if the technology will work

[kristopher]

1. This is political not technical

CCS is certainly possible, there is little to no doubt about that. What isn't possible is doing it without incurring 1) an energy penalty that is so high that it rules coal out as an energy source; and 2) spending a massive amount of money to either build new coal plants near geologic areas where sequestration can be accomplished or a new transportation infrastructure similar to what we have for natural gas that can transport the captured CO2 to the suitable geologic sites.

Either way, it is a dead end when alternatives are considered. The coal industry is huge and the owners of the mining and generating resources are going to lose a huge amount of wealth in the next 2 decades. This is a political sop to help smooth the transition by preempting those who would say Obama is acting on "green ideology" and isn't doing everything possible.