[LINK] Risk Management [WAS: Compressed Air Hybrids]

[grove at zeta.org.au]

On Wed, 9 Sep 2009, David Boxall wrote:

> On Mon, 07 Sep 2009 at 22:41:32 +1000 Karl Auer wrote:
>> ...
>>> The air tanks are carbon fibre,
>>> which is light and fails (in an accident, for example) by tearing.
>>> There's no explosion, as there can be with batteries in that situation.
>>
>> ... When a container holding very high pressure
>> "goes" (and I think we are talking multiple thousands of bar here) I
>> suspect it goes in a big way.
>>
>> ...
> I bow to your superior knowledge of carbon fibre technology.
>
> On further reflection, I'm confirmed in my opinion that a battery - no
> matter what its technology - presents far greater safety and
> environmental risks than a carbon fibre tank of air. Looking at the
> highly toxic chemicals involved in batteries, together with their
> minuscule recycling rate, I'm wondering what sort of rod we're making
> for our own backs. What nasties are brewing in the garbage dumps?

Which segues nicely into another "green theme" that of the irrepressible 
light bulb.  Since we have all been encouraged to get rid of our old 
tradition "edison" incandescent light bulbs and replace them with the new 
fluorescent version, there has been very little interest in the mercury that 
these things carry around.   Peter Garrett mumbled something last year but it 
never went very far.

We have decided to not bin them any more, but to collect them in a box in the garage 
until we have 100's of them and then I will call the council to tell them we 
have a load of toxic waste to be properly disposed of.....


rachel

-- 
Rachel Polanskis                 Kingswood, Greater Western Sydney, Australia
grove at zeta.org.au                http://www.zeta.org.au/~grove/grove.html
    "The perversity of the Universe tends towards a maximum." - Finagle's Law