Synthetic Fuels from electricity

[edpell]

I am trying to find out how much it costs to make synthetic fuels from electricity and appropriate feed stock. Some fuels that are interesting are methanol and dimethyl ether. Any pointer to books or article or info is appreciated.

[uby]

I suspect that modern processes are sensitive to the quality of catalysts used in the chemical reactions used to create alternative fuels.

I would suggest searching google with some of the following terms in conjunction with the fuels of interest: "cost analysis", "cost study", "fischer-tropsch", "catalytic conversion"

[Enthalpy]

Electricity is an expensive energy, especially as compared to fuels. Using electricity to produce a fuel looks like a bad start.

Little-taxed edible sugar (from beet or cane) costs less than heavily-taxed gasoline and beer bacteria working essentially for free convert sugar into ethanol, so why use electricity? Unless, of course, you want to store and transport electricity from wind turbines in Patagonia to North America and Europe.

Then, it's a matter of taxes hence politics. Remove taxes from petroleum-gained fuels, then no other fuel has a chance. But produce a synthetic fuel cheaper than taxed gasoline, and politicians will put taxes on it or forbid it.

You mention dimethyl ether: I'd hate it as a fuel. It's hugely volatile, making it even more flammable than gasoline or ethanol, and its vapours are highly toxic to the brain. Yuk!