Este tipo está fabricando 'gasolina' casera a partir de plástico viejo y energía solar.

Este tipo está fabricando 'gasolina' casera a partir de plástico viejo y energía solar.

      Julian Brown/Instagram

      Las principales noticias y reseñas de automóviles, sin tonterías

      Nuestro boletín diario gratuito envía las historias que realmente importan directamente a ti, todos los días laborables.

      Es una propuesta matadora: convertir desechos plásticos en gasolina usando solo* el poder del sol. Y eso es exactamente lo que afirma hacer el empresario en serie Julian Brown (@naturejab_ en Instagram), usando todo equipo de bricolaje en lo que muy bien podría ser su propio patio trasero. Lo llama 'plastoline'. Elegante. Pero, ¿es legítimo?

      Este clip es escaso en detalles, pero parece que Brown simplemente está combinando dos mecanismos conocidos: extraer etanol de un compuesto petroquímico existente (plásticos de uso doméstico, en este caso) y destilar ese etanol hasta obtener un compuesto de octano (los químicos que dan a la gasolina su calificación) que pueda usarse como combustible. Sí, si alguna vez has visto un documental sobre el sur durante la prohibición, todo esto te resultará vagamente familiar por una razón: lo que estás viendo es, en esencia, un alambique elaborado.

      Hay varias razones por las que no puedes—o al menos por las que probablemente no deberías—intentar replicar este montaje en casa. La primera es bastante obvia: los alambiques explotan. Prácticamente cada publicación en internet titulada "¿Cómo hago mi propia gasolina?" tiene una respuesta con alta valoración que se resume en "No lo hagas. Te matarás. Prueba con diésel en su lugar." En serio, incluso la IA te dirá que es una mala idea. Piénsalo.

      Y luego está el otro elefante en la habitación: el costo. Claro, el sol no tiene contador, pero el sistema solar aquí es bastante robusto. Brown muestra el equipo con una carga eléctrica de más de 14 kilovatios—eso son aproximadamente 60 amperios en un circuito normal de 240 voltios, o suficiente para hacer funcionar un cargador doméstico de vehículos eléctricos de alta calidad a plena potencia. No vas a lograr eso con un "generador" solar de venta libre.

      Nuestro químico emprendedor podría haber obtenido el plástico de desecho de casi cualquier lugar, pero aquí estamos viendo equipo industrial de alta calidad. Los recipientes clasificados para presión y temperatura no son baratos—y mucho menos gratuitos—y dudo que la mayoría de la gente tenga un medidor de octanaje por ahí tirado. Aunque no tengo duda de que un aficionado al bricolaje emprendedor podría replicar este sistema, hacerlo no es posible con un rápido viaje a Home Depot.

      Esto nos lleva a otra trampa: la curva de costes del hobby. Pregúntale a cualquiera que se sumara a la moda del biodiésel durante la Gran Recesión: al principio era bastante "gratis", pero cuando suficiente gente se enteró, conseguir la grasa residual se volvió tanto más difícil como, eventualmente, a menudo prohibitivamente caro.

      Julian Brown/Instagram

      Probablemente este concepto exista en otros lugares con un nombre más sofisticado, pero a lo que me refiero aquí es a una curva de oferta y demanda bastante simple. El equipo especializado para hobbies de nicho tiende a ser caro. Si el hobby se vuelve más popular, la demanda a menudo forzará la expansión de la producción de equipos, posiblemente provocando competencia con precios (potencialmente) más bajos. Al volverse más popular, se vuelve más accesible.

      Pero si la demanda sigue aumentando y los costes siguen bajando, lo que antes era un producto de nicho prohibitivo en coste puede convertirse en algo atractivo para producir en masa y convertir en una mercancía. Cuando esto sucede, la curva de accesibilidad se invierte. Las materias primas se vuelven atractivas para los inversores, y la cadena de suministro de residuos baratos empieza a secarse, arruinando la relación coste-beneficio para los aficionados y los pequeños operadores.

      En otras palabras, aunque esto pueda parecer atractivo para el aficionado al bricolaje, no es algo comercialmente viable a escala—al menos, no todavía. ¡Así es el capitalismo!

      ¿Tienes un dato o una pista de noticia? Háznoslo saber en [email protected].

Este tipo está fabricando 'gasolina' casera a partir de plástico viejo y energía solar. Este tipo está fabricando 'gasolina' casera a partir de plástico viejo y energía solar.

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Either he will find the strength to recover quickly, or the beautiful fairy tale about Oscar will not have a happy ending. 4 – Sainz. In one weekend he slid from prince to the dirt. In the sprint the former Ferrari driver, now racing for Williams, deservedly finished in the top three. But apparently he was overwhelmed by emotions, and because of that he crashed into the blameless Kimi Antonelli. Of course, the Spaniard's actions are regrettable, but I feel even more sorry for the lad from Bologna. When Ferrari delights its fans, Leo Turrini, whose comments we periodically cite, does not stint on praise. The veteran of Italian motorsport journalism is generally distinguished by the fact that he always tries to spot some positive moments – of course, if they exist. After the United States Grand Prix he rated the main protagonists on a 10-point scale, and even one character well known to us, who usually remains off-camera, made it into his personal ranking. 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Este tipo está fabricando 'gasolina' casera a partir de plástico viejo y energía solar.

Este tipo está fabricando 'gasolina' casera a partir de plástico viejo y energía solar.