There's a lot of discussion on replacing steam power at an early age with clean electric generators. I think this is misguided because steam engines are not inherently polluting, its the burning of coal that's the problem. Even with electric generators you can't escape the need to power them with steam engines.
The alternative is biomass, a renewable, carbon neutral resource. Perhaps we can start with briquette burning steam engines and moving up with earlier understanding of wood gasification process. Would this work to replace coal as the standard fuel of the industrial era? Coal would still be cheaper. But like oil its only available in some parts of the world and there's the cost of developing coal mining and processing industry.
The reason Britain was the first to industrialize, it has been said, was due to its abundant and accessible coal reserves. With a briquettes, industrialization can proceed elsewhere. And with wood gasification technology off to a head start, the need to invest in coal industrial infrastructure would make investing in this fuel uneconomical.
The alternative is biomass, a renewable, carbon neutral resource. Perhaps we can start with briquette burning steam engines and moving up with earlier understanding of wood gasification process. Would this work to replace coal as the standard fuel of the industrial era? Coal would still be cheaper. But like oil its only available in some parts of the world and there's the cost of developing coal mining and processing industry.
The reason Britain was the first to industrialize, it has been said, was due to its abundant and accessible coal reserves. With a briquettes, industrialization can proceed elsewhere. And with wood gasification technology off to a head start, the need to invest in coal industrial infrastructure would make investing in this fuel uneconomical.