• Question: Do you think we will find a fuel resource to replace fossel fuels?

    Asked by matthewhill to Allan, Angela, Diva, Harriet, Nathan on 2 Jul 2012. This question was also asked by jordanikin.
    • Photo: Allan Pang

      Allan Pang answered on 2 Jul 2012:

      I can confidently say yes.

      One of the future aims of my current research on bacterial microcompartment is to re-engineer this protein assembly that can produce fuels! But there’s so much work to be done! We still haven’t understand how the protein assembly can be produce outside of the bacteria, also how it assembles into a polygon with 20 faces.

      Once we have those answers, the next challenge is to try to create a reaction pathway that can lead to creation of fuel inside this compartment. Maybe we have to wait a little more longer for that to happen….

    • Photo: Nathan Langford

      Nathan Langford answered on 3 Jul 2012:

      Without a doubt, I’m sure we will. Already there are a wide range of possibilities which aren’t quite there yet, but which are improving all the time. And researchers are making good progress into finding the answers to questions like, “why does photosynthesis work so well?” Such questions will be critical to discovering how to make the best solar cells possible.

      The more uncertain question and perhaps more critical question is: will we find such a replacement fuel resource soon enough? How much damage will we do to our own living environment before we do?

      While I’m sure we will find replacement fuel sources, and almost certainly before our fossil fuels run out, at this rate, it’s not clear that we will do it in time to stop the irreversible environmental damage that is already perhaps starting to happen. There are only two things that we can do to improve our chances with this. Firstly, we have to immediately start drastically cutting down on unnecessary fuel usage – we can all make a difference here, but we really need governments to step in and force the issue to make it happen fast enough, like putting a price on carbon generation. Secondly, we need to massively increase funding towards research into clean energy sources and clean energy industries, both in the more applied and “soft” sciences and in the fundamental, “enabling” sciences, like physics, etc. Again, we need politicians to push this to happen, but they won’t do it unless we push them to (at least, they won’t do it anywhere near fast enough).

      This is where it gets hard, but start talking with your parents. It’s your future… make it an issue now.

Comments