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Perez says that he is confident that the magnetic fields will "more than pay for themselves," offsetting the cost of the magnets and their power supply. Applications for patents on the technique have been filed--patents that Perez believes will be applicable to processes that use feedstocks other than sugarcane, such as corn and biomass, to produce ethanol. But Perez acknowledges that more research is needed before the magnetic effect can be applied commercially. "Studies in pilot plants and on the industrial scale need to be carried out to conclude a more complete analysis of the impact on the process cost," he says.
Hermann Berg, a biochemist at the Saxonian Academy of Sciences, in Leipzig, Germany, says that the Brazilian researchers' results corroborate evidence that he and others have found for magnetic fields' ability to boost bacterial and yeast metabolism. "I believe that it works," says Berg.
James Weaver, associate director of the Biomedical Engineering Center at Harvard and MIT's joint Division of Health Sciences and Technology, counsels caution while scientists sort out the causes of the increased yields. "This is a controversial area," he says.
But Weaver adds that there is a lot of research under way that bears watching. For example, he points to a report published in June in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showing that alternating, low-intensity electric fields can stop tumor cells from dividing by disrupting the "molecular machinery" of cell division. (Electric fields attract charged molecules in much the same way that magnets attract metallic particles.) That work, led by researchers at Haifa-based Israeli biotech firm NovoCure, is now in phase III clinical trials as a treatment for patients with glioblastoma multiforme--the most common form of brain cancer.
The fermentation boost, too, could be due to an electric field induced by the alternating magnetic field, but Weaver believes that all such hypotheses are pure speculation. "Plainly, the effect is very large. It's very interesting, but it's hard to say anything beyond that," he says. "It's the proverbial 'It raises lots of questions but at this time [offers] no answers.'"
Yeast that tolerates more ethanol than usual could bring down the cost of making the renewable fuel.
One startup is scaling up experimental techniques to demonstrate the commercial potential of cellulosic ethanol.
Genetically engineered organisms can more efficiently produce ethanol from cheap and abundant sources of biomass, such as agricultural waste. It could make ethanol cost competitive.
This report, and, in deed, the experimental
details raises very serious controversies.
The scientific mechanism of action supporting
the claimed ethanol increase has not been
provided to afford fair comment(s)and methodology
appreciation.
Known knowledge indicates that exposure of live cells to either, electric or magnetic flux
density produces adverse effect on shelf life and survival of bioreactants, concentration of reactants, bioactivity, ambient temperature and pressure etc.
Role play of magnetic field to the culture must
be explained, as the cited increase bears no
correlation to, either, mechanical or electrical
modification of bioreactors. (contact: martin@mpgatechnology.com)
everyone knows that electromagnetic radiation is a stimulant to growth of cells, especially plant cells. this is no surprise...in fact it's been long since tested and documented.
grow some plants in a cup, subject them to electromagnetic radiation, set up a control and see for yourself.
You mean... light? Yeah, I'll agree with you that light is "electromagnetic radiation". LOL!!! ^_^'
Quite unbelievable actually... probably that explains the nature of some of those responses. Now I know, it's not our job to sit and weave theories while someone else is slogging behind the actual research, but I've been thinking... Can it have anything to do with ionic transfer across the cell membrane? That's the first thing that springs up when one thinks of magnetic fields. Are there any other documented effects of magnetic fields on cellular activity?
AZ Industries, Inc. http://www.azind.com/ has, for over twenty years, sold magnetic water and fuel treatment devices that have numerous endorsements and patent protection for their efficacy in improving performance, mileage, and reduction of salt buildup (water treatment). Email: azind@centurytel.net . In fact, their founder, Les Adam, was a speaker at the first IRI Conference on Future Energy in 1999 on "Magnet Power" and his video is still available from www.lightworksav.com .
Another company that offers similar products is The Magnetizer Group http://www.magnetizer.net/index2.htm which has water and fuel magnetic energizers. Therefore, the Brazilian discovery is not new. However, the US Patent Office still considers this magnetic treatment of fuel to be unscientific, for unknown reasons (ref. MPEP online).
Crystal energy is a colloidal mineral product created by US scientist Patrick Flanagan , which has the ability to catalyse the function of water , ie. lower the surface tension , increase fluidity and increase the solvent power of the water . In his investigations whilst creating this product he studied the effects of magnets , amongst other things , on the physical properties of water . He says that magnets do affect the water's properties but the effects diminish over time . As a result of these studies he created the colloidal mineral product which permanently affects the water properties . It may well be that the magnets are are affecting the water in the fermentation reaction , rather than just the living organisms , thereby catalyzing all of the reactions taking place in the vessel making the reactions take place more efficiently . To find out more visit www.phisciences.com , the official Flanagan website . I've tried this product out on plant growth and it increases plant growth , although it is being sold as a nutritional supplement for humans it seems to have a wide variety of other uses .
Hmm. Are people just suspicious because it involves magnets?
I mean, I understand that reaction... I find myself disinclined to believe anything involving magnets as a fix, due to their use in a vast number of free-energy schemes, miracle cures and other quackery. But the effects of magnetic fields on living cells are just beginning to be understood in any depth... So I wonder if that's causing people to unduly snub this report. It's not necessarily hogwash.
Re: Hmm. Are people just suspicious because it involves magnets?
i agree with you monster . people seem to forget that magnets are a source of ENERGY , which does have an EFFECT on things . maybe other sources of energy like ionising radiation would have a beneficial effect . ionised air is good for people to breath........ maybe...........?
Is it possible to get the links of the references you have used especially the links of the corresponding research paper. Thanks
I played with words to explain a simple matter. Yes, improvement is a reality in any field. The will to create, introduce and implement a more radical approach will face the giant magnets from politics and lobbies groups.
Albert Roy Davis and Walter C. Rawls were the first to discover that the North and South poles of magnetism are two separate energies with different effects on all matter. The North pole spins counterclockwise, contracts matter, and slows biological growth. The South pole spins clockwise, expands matter, and increases biological growth.
They developed a technology called Biomagnetic Bioremediation that utilizes unipolar magnetic fields (South pole) to stimulate the growth of microbes in the bioremediation process. This invention can clean up toxic waste better than any other known method and it has been successfully tested by the EPA.
Davis and Rawls discovered that water was affected differently depending on which magnetic pole it was exposed to. They also found that plant growth could be increased by placing seeds on the North or South pole of a magnet for a few days just prior to planting them, and watering the plants with magnetized water. Depending on the species of plant, most grow best with South pole exposure, but some respond best to the North pole. All of the information from the Magnetizer website came from the discoveries of Davis and Rawls.
These two scientists found that fermentation could be sped up by using South pole magnetic fields too.
In their books they state that they have not found any field of human inquiry that these discoveries cannot be applied to.
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walt
66 Comments
hogwash
Yes, it has been demonstrated: this newsletter will publish anything.
Reply
devassocx
111 Comments
Re: hogwash
I sure don't know about the specific claims made in the article but magnetism can certainly have effects on living things...I think you can find some interesting work done some time ago in a book by
Becker, titled "the Body Electric". Its a lay book
but the guy (a PHD) was an FDA researcher and he
describes some of their experiments.
Reply
amulekii
10 Comments
Re: hogwash
Sounds like Horse Puckey to me. Read the research you say? I'll read research that sounds reasonable. This sounds like nonsense.
Reply
g8oz
1 Comment
Re: hogwash
Agreed. For one, how much of the increase was due simply to the circulation of the fermenting fluid?
Reply
michaelebradley
1 Comment
Re: hogwash
Your question can be answered by a direct quote from the paper: "The control experiment was accomplished by maintaining the the recycling loop during all fermentation processes but without the application of the magnetic field."
Reply
bvink1
1 Comment
Re: hogwash
Actually, the company I work with in Brazil has been producing electromagnetic collars for over 15 years for the ethanol industry along with sulfur free sugar bleaching. This technology is well documented and produces fantastic results. With our technology we are able to sterilize the must (without chemicals) eliminate antibiotics reducing bactericides and yeast. We also obtain an extra 14 liters per ton of syrup as well as increase the efficiency of fermentation by 0.5%. Other benefits include regulation of the pH, better brix, conductivity, etc. If you would like more detailed and technical info, please feel free to email me at bruce@gasilusa.com
Reply