#DAPL-DME

by Lyno, Mon Nov 28, 2016

Full honor goes to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and those who came to their defense. It is fortuitous timing by the BLM because it helps those needing to go home for the winter. Others vow to remain until spring of 2017. It is time for the tribal leaders to support the idea that the oil be refined in North Dakota and transported above the waters of the Oahe resevoir and it must be in a liquid gas form rather than an oil form. The biggest issue of all is the possibility of an oil spill. At least with gas the spill quickly ends up in the atmosphere until the nearby valves shut the pipeline flow off. Please be aware that the eagle eye view sees the issue as one of moving BTU capacity within the constraints of thermodynamics and the laws of physics.

Twitter: @StandingRockST

Benefits and Costs

The oil will go under or over the river somewhere because the stakes are too high. The pipeline company already owns the right of way for the new crude oil pipeline and will complete the last section soon thereafter. Or they will find another route. There is over $3.4 billion dollars already invested and a few miles remaining. Income from the oil flow will be huge. The the oil has to flow. The pipeline hegemony demands it and will get its way. 

Income = Oil Barrels * Price per Barrel

$14.1 million per day = 470,000 barrels per day * $30

$18.8 million per day = 470,000 barrels per day * $40

$25.5 million per day = 470,000 barrels per day * $50

$5.1 billion income from oil sales per year @ $30

$3.8 billion cost of pipeline

This fact alone must give the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe pause because of the money that flows in the pipeline. Rising above the matter of the money involved, let us consider the liquid BTU energy and consider sensible alternatives.

The Facts

The Dakota Access Pipeline Project is a new approximate 1,172-mile, 30-inch diameter pipeline that will connect the rapidly expanding Bakken and Three Forks production areas in North Dakota to Patoka, Illinois. The pipeline will enable domestically produced light sweet crude oil from North Dakota to reach major refining markets in a more direct, cost-effective, safer and environmentally responsible manner. The pipeline will also reduce the current use of rail and truck transportation to move Bakken crude oil to major U.S. markets to support domestic demand.

It will transport approximately 470,000 barrels per day with a capacity as high as 570,000 barrels per day or more – which could represent approximately half of Bakken current daily crude oil production. Shippers will be able to access multiple markets, including Midwest and East Coast markets as well as the Gulf Coast via the Nederland, Texas crude oil terminal facility of Sunoco Logistics Partners.

From http://www.daplpipelinefacts.com/

 

The Risks

Passing an oil pipeline underneath the Missouri River poses a risk to some of the downstream best Walleye fishing waters in the USA.  Along the Missouri River are the towns built in steamboat days. Downstream devastation from upstream oil spills would create an environmental disaster.

Elevated Pipeline Alternative

It seems obvious that an above ground pipeline with nearby shutoff valves offers the best solution for major river crossings. The pipe would live in a trough with leakage detectors. Additional elevated infrastructure can share the river crossing with the pipeline. A communications conduit and security system would be a sensible accompaniment of an above river oil or gas pipe crossing.

Were the DAPL companies to build an above ground segment over all waterways, it would serve as a field switchable alternative to a total shutdown upon leakage. At the daily loss of $14 to $25 million dollars per day of income, the cost of delay is significant. Perhaps the DAPL oil pipeline partners would agree to a second switchable section of pipeline over major waterways, as an additional safety factor. That seems like a fair compromise on the pipeline hegemony's part.

Dimethyl Ether Alternative

All essential factors considered, the best solution is for the DAPL pipeline to carry dimethyl ether DME, which is perhaps the best gas to carry in a pipeline, in general. DME is used as a propellant in common household consumer products. It is relatively safe for human. A DME Industry emerges. DME burns as pure diesel. DME is a precursor to a polymer industry and composites industry. DME is a precursor to a plastics industry.

Wikipedia

Suppose we put an oil gasification capacity at the head end in North Dakota. This solution brings back jobs and investment dollars into the North Dakota economy. The goal of the operation is to produce pure DME for transport to Illinois. Along the way there will be DME drop off points where DME is sold to local communities. Such an arrangement lowers producer to consumer distribution costs. The pipeline need local communities to be able to provide militia skirmish capability and other protection facilities and services. The consumers need a share of the profits based on patronage of no less that 40%. The pipeline capitalists receive 60% of profits until capital costs are recovered, and then a declining share thereafter. A cooperative profit sharing arrangement if fairest to all concerned.

DME drop off points foster the emergence of a DME Industry in the local economies in the pipeline commerce corridor. This includes fuel distribution capacity and polymer, composite, and plastics industries. Nearby biomass, sewage, recyclables, coal, oils, and similar hydrocarbons provide a local community DME supply. As a byproduct it produces ash.

DME is easy to liquefy and transport. A shared risk with natural gases is their solubility in water. These factors are manageable with suitable risk reduction design and sensor features. Were a disaster to occur it would be safer, from a human health perspective, to have DME floating in the air, rather than methane class natural gas. Both are flammable but DME is safely breathable in small quantities.

Carbon Sinks

Polymers and plastic is a good carbon sink, meaning a place that carbon ends up is a long term stable form that is not in the atmosphere. Trees are one of the best carbon sinks available. Trees have the added advantage of being a carbon sink and removing carbon from carbon-dioxide molecules in the air. The removed carbon ends up sunk into the new wood growth of the forest.

Gasification reduces sunk carbon back to its elemental carbon form. The process also produces ash. High carbon ash is a good carbon sink on its way into bituminous or combustion sink.

Sioux Nation Compromise

Upon a convention of all tribes of the Sioux Tribal Nations the matter of the treaty passage of oil pipelines over, upon, and under the earth, taking into account the tribe's 1851 treaty rights. Because of the unique standing of treaties under the U.S. Constitution, many parts of the treaty may remain in effect. The Dakota Access Pipeline opponents are correct in citing the treaty in their efforts to stop pipeline construction on treaty lands that are privately owned and not part of the Standing Rock Reservation. They should do so immediately. Such a strategy will bring the pipeline hegemony to the bargaining table, to work out the terms of an agreement.

Being mindful of the fact that every day of delay costs the loss of $14 to $26 million dollars per day. Urgency is the pipeline hegemony’s primary goal. The protests stand in the way of the pipeline’s completion. The tribal treaty nations will file a suit and appeal it to the Supreme Court. More delay. The angst among We the People will grow as winter grows in severity. There exists a deep and abiding concern for tribal nation issues and welfare among humanitarian voters. No local cop wants to be the one hauled up on human rights abuse charges, crimes against humanity, U.N. Declaration of Human rights abuses, civil charges, and so forth. These factors and many others will result in a compromise solution when the tribes offer to do so.

These Sioux Compromise conditions should be considered and decided upon. The following DME considerations offer the potential of a DME based local economy with good paying jobs. For example, jobs manufacturing high energy efficiency, durable, and safe housing systems for the local economy and for export.

1.     Agreement to relocate the protest to tribal ground upon mutual acceptance of the Sioux Nation Compromise “treaty” agreement signed by the various tribes, upon reaching a satisfactory compromise on the following conditions and other terms and conditions added during “treaty” agreement negotiations and signing.

2.     A backup pipeline will be installed above ground on major waterway crossings. Switches placed nearby will divert the oil or gas supply from one line to the other as needed.

3.     At the North Dakota pumping site, use a gasification process and produce DME. Liquefy the DME. Transport dimethyl ether DME through the pipeline. A full analysis may indicate that a larger DME pipeline is necessary to drop off the necessary BTU's of DME along the pipeline right of away corridor to Illinois.

4.     Provide a DME drop off locations upon sensibly located and accessible tribal ground, subject to tribal requests and approval. Continue this DME dispersal pattern as the pipeline progresses eastward.

5.     Sell DME along the pipeline at market cost into local economies.

6.     Lend money to the tribes and communities at 0% interest over 30 years to build one carbon gasification plant for every 12,000 humans. Have the plant produce DME and sell excess DME based local economy carbon back into to the pipeline DME economy.

7.     Feed into the carbon gasification all kinds of readily available carbon supplies like oil, coal, gas, agriculture waste, biological waste, sewage, housing waste, plastic, foam, garbage, biological hazmat, and so forth. The final output of the gasification is DME.

~oOo~

So far it sounds like the compromise is mostly tipped in favor of the pipeline hegemony. The following treaty agreement ideas may be helpful additions to a treaty amendment designed to begin to restore the balance in a way fair to all concerned.

1. For every one hundred thousand barrel BTU equivalent DME shipped, one healthy bison mother and calf pair will loosed at a predetermined location on Indian land. This condition will apply until a sustainable bison herd of a size acceptable to the Sioux Nation has been attained.
2. For every bison pair released hire hire youth to plant trees equivalent in carbon content to one barrel of oil.

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