The legendary German science journalist Jean Putz outlines a global methanol economy in his latest book just in time for the UN Climate Change Conference COP28 in Dubai
New book “Prosperity and Economic Growth without Regrets: Climate Rescue Yes – Deindustrialization No”, Jean Putz with Andreas Dripke, 124 pages, Diplomatic Council Publishing, ISBN 978-3-98674-104-4
Dubai/UAE, Cologne/Germany, 27 November 2023 – Renewable-based methanol (“green methanol”) is best suited to replace fossil fuels as the world’s major energy source. This is a core thesis of the new book “Prosperity and economic growth without regrets” by legendary science journalist Jean Putz (ISBN 978-3-98674-104-4). The book is available in international bookshops in time for COP28.
For this strategy to succeed, methanol production should take place in sunny regions around the equator. The solar energy required for production is available there in abundance. As methanol is liquid at normal temperatures, it could be transported using the existing infrastructure that is currently used for oil: pipelines, tankers and tanker trucks through to delivery at the filling station in the form of e-fuels. The new book describes in detail how the production process works and how it can be distributed worldwide.
According to Jean Putz’s research, there are more than enough deserts and fallow land on which solar panels and methanol plants could be built on a large scale. The plants could operate largely self-sufficiently because the electricity is generated locally by photovoltaics and the water required for methanol production, from which hydrogen is produced, can be obtained from the air anywhere in the world. The highlight: this process removes carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air, meaning that the global methanol economy would be climate-neutral.
Transforming the global economy to renewable energy
In his new book, the world-renowned science journalist Jean Putz outlines a way to transform the global economy to renewable energy. His credo: the switch to renewable energy sources will only succeed on a global scale if they are more cost-effective than fossil fuels. This is precisely the case with green methanol, he calculates in his book.
Jean Putz sees a major advantage of the methanol economy in the fact that manufacturing companies could switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy with little effort and without incurring higher costs. He thus also sees his proposal as a measure against the threat of deindustrialization due to the migration of energy-intensive industries. The book is therefore subtitled “Climate Rescue Yes – Deindustrialization No!”.
Rejection of the hydrogen strategy
Jean Putz clearly rejects a hydrogen strategy in his book. He argues that hydrogen, also known as “oxyhydrogen”, is far too dangerous; the safety precautions required for transportation would make it so expensive that it would not be economically competitive with fossil fuels.
The famous TV science journalist also takes a close look at other energy sources under discussion in science and energy policy, such as ammonia, but dismisses them because he considers methanol to be superior.
E-fuels better than e-cars
Jean Putz has dedicated a separate chapter to synthetic fuels (e-fuels), which are basically nothing more than green methanol. Instead of replacing the one billion cars on the road around the world with combustion engines with battery-heavy e-cars, it is more climate and environmentally friendly and socially acceptable to refuel the existing vehicle fleet with e-fuels. Jean Putz believes that the concept of e-cars storing electricity in heavy batteries and transporting them permanently is fundamentally wrong. Energy storage in batteries is particularly inefficient due to physical principles: the energy density of green methanol, for example, is around eight to ten times higher than that of electricity storage in batteries.
In his book, TV legend Jean Putz describes the principle of a so-called hyperhybrid vehicle, which is powered by an electric motor like an electric car, but draws its energy not from heavy batteries but from an extremely compact combustion engine. If this is refueled with e-fuels, the car is CO2-neutral. The concept presented in the book combines the advantages of the electric motor and the combustion engine: rapid acceleration, a quiet whirring driving noise and fast refueling instead of time-consuming charging.
In his new book, Jean Putz explains how he proposed this concept to the automotive industry years ago. So far, none of the car manufacturers have taken it up. Jean Putz says: “In view of this development, which is already well advanced, it is astonishing that, as we enter the year 2024, the all-electric car à la Tesla is being praised as the only way to save the climate in the automotive sector. This speaks neither for the foresight of politicians nor for the previously so creative innovative power of the automotive industry.
