Synthetic.

This is coolbert:

American B-52 bombers are currently flying using a synthetic fuel.

A synthetic fuel derived from coal.

Synthetic fuel can be and is derived from coal as part of the Fischer-Tropsch process.

This IS something the U.S. military is very interested in. Making sure that all the armed services will have an abundance of fuel for future operations. Even in the most dire of circumstances.

"the original effort to look at fuel produced by the Fischer-Tropsch process started in 1999 and has been a joint program with the Army, Navy, Air Force and Department of Energy."

The Fischer-Tropsch [FT] process. First developed in Germany prior to World War Two [WW2]. A process used widely by the Germans in the final years of the war. Albert Speer in his memoirs mentions that the systematic allied bombardment of German synthetic fuel plants cripped the German war effort in a mighty way. NO FUEL, NO WAY THE MILITARY CAN OPERATE. SIMPLE AS THAT!!

[so vital is oil for the modern nation at war that during WW2, The British activated a very tiny producing oil field in the famous Sherwood Forest. Sherwood Forest from Robin Hood fame. A tiny field that prior to the war was not economically feasible to operate. Activated in the case that all British oil imports might be cut-off by U-boat attack. This info thanks to Al Nofi of StrategyPage CIC!!]

"The process was invented in petroleum-poor but coal-rich Germany in the 1920s, to produce liquid fuels. It was used by Germany and Japan during World War II to produce alternative fuels. Germany's annual synthetic fuel production reached more than 124,000 barrels per day from 25 plants ~ 6.5 million tons in 1944.

After the war, captured German scientists recruited in Operation Paperclip continued to work on synthetic fuels in the United States in a United States Bureau of Mines program initiated by the Synthetic Liquid Fuels Act."

[I recall that in the aftermath of the first oil embargo of 1973, Texas A & M suggested that the U.S. began rapid work on the FT process as a way of making sure the U.S. always has an independent source of oil. Was not then economically feasible in 1973. But IS FEASIBLE NOW!!]

[I have mentioned Paperclip in another blog entry. This was an aspect of Paperclip I was not aware of.]

"The United States Bureau of Mines employed seven German synthetic fuel scientists in a Fischer-Tropsch chemical plant in Louisiana, Missouri in 1946."

Germany during WW2 was totally reliant on oil from foreign nations. Did not have it's own reserves of oil. Was supplied from foreign sources such as the oil fields of Balaton [Hungary], Ploesti [Romania], and further east [Caucusus]. Capturing the Soviet oil fields of the Caucusus and the Caspian Sea was of primary importance to the German war effort on the Eastern Front during WW2. At the time of the debacle at Stalingrad, another German army was 400 miles TO THE EAST of Stalingrad, the objective of this army being the capture of Soviet oil fields.

The American military sees a possibility in the future where the importation of foreign oil to the U.S. will be jeopardized. At this point in time, about 70 % of America's oil needs have to be imported. Importation from parts of the world that are either unfriendly to the U.S. or are politically unstable. If some disaster was to occur, such as Saudi Arabia being taken over by jihadis, or Nigeria going down the drain in chaos, American oil imports would be in peril. Perhaps catastrophically so!!

A cut-off of imported oil would be a highly dangerous situation for our nation. The military in particular has a big demand for fuel. NO FUEL, AND AS WITH GERMANY, YOUR MILITARY CANNOT FUNCTION!!

An alternative source would have to be found. An alternative source such as synthetic fuel derived from coal. An alternative source most attractive to the military. Develop the means now so that the system is already in place if needed.

Montana and the governor of that state is particularly keen on developing this resource. Montana just by itself could be one of the world's largest producers of coal, so vast are the deposits of this mineral in that state alone [the U.S. has about 25 % of the total coal deposits world-wide].

"Montana owns 600 million tons of coal, co-located with 600 million tons owned by Great Northern Properties and 1.2 billion tons owned by the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, he said."

"The coal-conversion process produces no air pollution, uses no water and creates electricity as a byproduct. The petroleum fuels produced could be shipped out of state by pipeline."

[I would assume there would be environmental degredation from the strip mining process used to extract the coal!!]

"'It sounds too good to be true, doesn't it?' Schweitzer said in an interview Friday. 'This is a physicist at the Department of Defense saying we're getting serious about this, and we'll buy all you produce."

[it does sound too good to be true!!]

"'What you do first is the coal gasification process,' Schweitzer said. 'You crush the coal up, heat it and get your gas. From there, it's a chemical reaction. You have a big tank and use either cobalt or iron as the catalyst. What you get out of that is the building blocks to make fuel. You get carbon monoxide and you get hydrogen. With those two, you can make any fuel you would like to make - diesel, gasoline, heating fuel, plastics, fertilizer or pure hydrogen.'"

"So why hasn't anyone been using Fischer-Tropsch technology in the United States?"

"It's kind of been left on the shelf because this process costs more than oil's been worth," the governor said.

"The . . . break-even point with Fischer-Tropsch technology is when oil is $35 a barrel. When oil costs more than $35 a barrel, it's cheaper to make these fuels from coal through this technology."

"The processing steps are several, and potential environmental burdens real, yet, according to a recent Reuters story, the Governor of Montana 'wants to solve America's rising energy costs using a technology discovered in Germany 80 years ago that converts coal into gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel. The Fischer-Tropsch technology . . . was not economical as long as oil cost less than $30 a barrel...But with U.S. crude oil now hitting more than double that price, Gov. Brian Schweitzer's plan is getting more attention across the country and some analysts are taking him very seriously'. Apparently Governer Schweitzer feels that 'Montana could supply the entire United States with its aviation, gas and diesel fuel for 40 years without creating environmental damage'."

"Coal is unique as a source of energy in the United States, however, because none of the 2118 billion pounds used in 1990 was imported. Furthermore, the proven reserves are so large we can continue using coal at this level of consumption for at least 2000 years."

Pilot plants and pilot projects are being build and producing at this very moment, as we speak. Much more will have to be done for this valuable resource to be developed to it's full potential.

Again, the U.S. military is at the forefront of technology and spearheading development in this area.

What are we waiting for? A little foresight in this area could go a long way!

coolbert.