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Carbon Journal
Welcome to the Carbon Journal.
- Pages dedicated to the element carbon. -
- Pages dedicated to the element carbon. -
Corridor Plants grow on the side of the road and are mostly overlooked by humanity as invasive pests. Once you read the articles I have composed you may have a different perspective of these plants and rightfully so. These plants are indeed very useful and should be appreciated for the succesful plant species that they are! Click the button above to have a read for yourself!
How to pyrolysis.
The video below demonstrates a series of experiments I completed in the domain of pyrolysis ('pyro' is Greek for fire and 'lysis' is Greek for seperating). Watch as I break down carbon based materials into gas, fuel and biochar through a process of fractional distillation, all done from my backyard.
Iniatially I learnt how to pyrolysis in an attempt to better understand how we as a species could better process plastic waste into something extremly useful, while at the same time reducing waste plastics' impact on the environment.
Learning how to pyrolysis was one of the more empowering processes I have ever learnt. I soon recognised that having the ability to make your own fuel and gas from scratch is a very powerful skill to learn, especially because we live in a world that is leveraged by carbon fuel. The entire world economy has been based around carbon fuels and therefore is major issue in the future of humanity, afterall the earth is not a fuel tank, the fuel will eventually run out. This is why it is more important than ever to prioritise energy use while limiting waste. Energy efficiency is one of the most pressing concerns of the future. It is for this reason that this video is a good place to start in better understanding where energy is stored, how it is transformed and how it can be utilised.
Iniatially I learnt how to pyrolysis in an attempt to better understand how we as a species could better process plastic waste into something extremly useful, while at the same time reducing waste plastics' impact on the environment.
Learning how to pyrolysis was one of the more empowering processes I have ever learnt. I soon recognised that having the ability to make your own fuel and gas from scratch is a very powerful skill to learn, especially because we live in a world that is leveraged by carbon fuel. The entire world economy has been based around carbon fuels and therefore is major issue in the future of humanity, afterall the earth is not a fuel tank, the fuel will eventually run out. This is why it is more important than ever to prioritise energy use while limiting waste. Energy efficiency is one of the most pressing concerns of the future. It is for this reason that this video is a good place to start in better understanding where energy is stored, how it is transformed and how it can be utilised.
Prickly pear fermentation jar
The video below shows the demonstration of a fermentation jar I made using a glass water dispenser. The red liquid that can be seen fermenting is infact Nopal Juice harvested from the Nopal Cactus also known as the 'Prickly Pear'. These Nopal cacti grow by the thousands along the highways leading into my home town and I figured it was about time that I found a use for a plant that was so obviously being overlooked. The fruits of the Nopal cactus can be eaten raw, they can also be juiced. The paddles (leaves) can also be roasted, eaten raw or juiced, preferably when they are young. The plants were originally harvested by the Aztec and Maya people of Central and northern South America. The main use of the plant was to promote the growth of an insect that lived on its leaves. This insect, called the cochineal, was collected, crushed and used to make a blood red dye that was in high demand by both the Aztec and Mayan empires. After the Spanish conquest of the Aztec empire cochineal dye become the second-most valued export out of South America, the most valued export was silver. In the 1750's the dye was used for colouring the jackets of the soldiers who were to become known as the Red Coats.