Power Plant Fueled By Nut Shells

sbszine writes "The Sydney Morning Herald is running an article about a green power plant that runs on the discarded shells of macadamia nuts. The power plant, located in Gympie, Queensland, is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by around 9500 tonnes in its first year of operation."

Some times you feel like a nut...

[Powercntrl]

...sometimes a volt.

waiting for the laptop version...

[Anonymous Coward]

So, all these sunflower seed husks must be good for something. I wonder if we'll get "Mr. Nuthusk" personal portable systems someday.

Nuts

[CGP314]

The power plant, located in Gympie, Queensland, is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by around 9500 tonnes in its first year of operation.

In an unrelated story, macadamia nut consumption is up 10,000%

This is a failed experiment...

[shadowcabbit]

...after trying to harness the power of looney, wacky, zany, or crazy, they succeeded only in making use of nutty power.

Now if only...

[thesuperjason]

we could develop a plant that converted empty XXXX (local QLD beer) cans into usable power. Now that'd be something! Well, it'd ease my concience anyway...

Can you see the O'Reilly user manual?

[WIAKywbfatw]

Nutshell Power in a Nutshell.

I'm guessing it'd have a monkey on the cover. Or perhaps, sticking with the power plant theme, a picture of Homer Simpson eating nuts.

I know I'd pay good money for that book.

Yeah, cos macademia nut shells are a big problem

[Moderation abuser]

Unlike the thousands of tonnes of domestic rubbish we throw into huge steaming pits every day.

I'm moving to Australia...

[thracky]

...so I can start up my new macadamia nut shell recycling business! Seriously, I'll make a killing! I'll take away macadamia nut shells for a nominal fee every week and sell them to the plant. I mean come on, how hard can it be to cart 1680 kilograms of macadamia nut shells every hour?

I'll be rich I tell ya... rich like the planters peanut guy and such, although I hope they don't turn me into a macadamia nut... I don't think my monacle and top hat would fit me anymore. (Come on... everyone knows the planters peanut guy was the original creator of ridiculously priced tins of super salty peanuts and was genetically modified into a giant peanut snob)

Rogue Nation

[Potor]

How did they get the technology to split the nut?

No Simpsons joke yet?

[BenjyD]

Nearly thirty posts and no Simpsons joke yet? You guys are slipping.

Mmm ... macamadamia nuts

Re:i am an environmentalist

[mcpkaaos]

Bah, poser. I have peanuts for a salary.

Re:Hello, 1970?

[thesuperjason]

Glad to see that some third-world technology had finally made it to the rich west.

You've obviously never been to Gympie...

Sounds like a...

[jabbadabbadoo]

...nut version of The Matrix.

I'll be here all week.

[Docrates]

So, in a Nut shell, there's a lot of energy.

Re:No Simpsons joke yet?

[narkotix]

Homer: Awww... 20 dollars!? I wanted a peanut.
Homer's brain: 20 dollars can buy many peanuts!
Homer: Explain how.
Homer's brain: Money can be exchanged for goods and services!
Homer: Woo hoo!

Ow my gawd!

[varjag]

Do they really burn O'Reilly Nutshell series there? Fascist pigs! As if they couldn't power it with 'The Road Ahead', 'Mein Kampf' or Clancy books instead..

Re:Now if only...

[Hittite Creosote]

> we could develop a plant that converted empty XXXX (local QLD beer) cans into usable power

It would finally give a reason for XXXX to exist. Unless the stuff you export to the UK is some sort of revenge tactic. 'I got it, Bruce! We'll put kangaroo piss in XXXX cans and send it to England! Those poms will never spot the difference...'

Re:Rogue Nation

[Mattcelt]

Well, basically, they take another nut and shoot it at high velocity at a group of nuts. (This group must be large enough to have a "critical mass".) When the accelerated nut hits the group of nuts, it breaks, sending portions of its innards (the meat, in technical terms) into the other nuts, which break open other nuts, which cause them to release their meat, with each nut releasing its potential energy in an ever-increasing "chain reaction".

But they need to control this highly dangerous process, so they use a fluid which surrounds the nuts to slow the reaction at the edges of the mass. They looked for a long time before they chose just the right formula, but they've settled on a standard, something physicists call "dark chocolate".

The major byproduct is a nutmeat-filled candy bar called "Hershey's", named after the scientist/confectioner who invented the process. While highly dangerous to a small portion of the population, most people are only subject to a small subset of detrimental effects.

In related news, recently the doorways in the plant had to be widened considerably to accomodate the plant's regular staff, who seem to have taken to eating the power plant's byproduct.

Sounds like...

[nate]

a bunch of nut cases...

(a power plant run by nut cases? :-)

Re:The Fallacy of "Green" power

[ONOIML8]

"Only if one calculates the whole energy balance, one can determine the "greenness" of a power plant."

Actually you can just use a light meter or similar photographic device aimed at the power plant. Or you could hire one of those gay decorators off of TLC and have him tell you how green it is.

Quoting the article...

[big.ears]

...If a 175-pound man fell into one end, he would come out the other end as 38 pounds of oil, 7 pounds of gas, and 7 pounds of minerals, 12 pounds of nutritious green wafers, as well as 123 pounds of sterilized water.

Re:Reduction in Co2?

[Anonymous Coward]

So you are that Santa fellow

Re:Reduction in Co2?

[WolfWithoutAClause]

If there were enough people, they would get fired into the building at high speed; I suppose you could employ bouncers to deflect them into elevators.

I don't think these kinds of things are a good idea. If there is a big enough crowd the door would speed up until people would get liquidised by the whirling door of death.

You asked for it:

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, I, for one, welcome our new nutty overlords...

Re:Reduction in Co2?

[Desert Raven]

Think nothing is impossible? Try slamming a revolving door.

Ah, heck, that's easy.

Just wait for someone to get *partway* in or out of it. The sound is even more satisfying if it's someone you don't like.

Nut power: Unenvironmental

[Anonymous Coward]

I personally find the conssumption of a vast quantity of nuts greatly enhances the output of greenhouse gasses. The subsidiary wind power created is alas unharnessed...

Aren't macadamia nuts expensive?

[BitterOak]

I seem to remember a Saturday Night Live Weekend Update joke where Jimmy Fallon reported that scientists had developed an engine that ran on hazelnuts. After commenting on the price of hazelnuts, he added that the same scientists were working on an even better engine that ran on bald eagle heads and Faberge eggs.