Since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution carbon-based fuels have been utilized to power our

cities, to produce a staggering array of products, and to ensure our survival when natural disaster
strikes. As the demand for energy increases with a swelling worldwide population, electrical grid
systems become overwhelmed. What we need now more than ever is a reliable and consistent
supply of sustainable energy a need that can no longer be served by carbon-based fuels.
In 2008 three Oregon-based scientists began researching a method of removing carbon dioxide
from the atmosphere as a byproduct of a new industrial process that would produce a nitrogenbased fuel and large quantities of iron, cement and other construction materials. They called it
The Mining Option and filed a patent with their partners in Great Britain.
Despite the projects potential, European patent examiners stated that the scientists invention
was non-patentable based on similarities in the Inventive Step - a series of chemical
engineering processes that were already well known. Even so, the patent examiner clarified that
this patent application was in some ways both Unique and Industrially applicable.
The question that anchors this presentation is whether this method of removing carbon dioxide
from the atmosphere has merit and can be done profitably.
If The Mining Option has merit the end result will be driven by profit motives with a major shift
in how dozens of different metals and construction commodities are manufactured and
distributed across a variety of industries. This would mean more jobs and more competition on
an international scale while also creating new business opportunities in nearly every country
across the globe. And with a large-scale implementation of The Mining Option, the
sequestration of carbon dioxide can become a reality in massive capacities an environmentally
sustainable situation that would benefit us all.
The four problems that you see on your screen are, arguably, profitably addressed with The
Mining Option.
1. The need to slow or reverse the increase in the atmospheric CO2 concentration.
2. The ability to sustainably feed a growing world population through agriculture.
3. Sustainably store and transport energy in the form of nitrogen-based fuels, rather
than carbon-based fuels.
4. Sustainably provide the industrial raw materials needed to maintain and meet the
demands of our worlds infrastructure.
In the past, considerable effort has been devoted to the solution of each problem separately. The
new approach that the Oregon scientists took was to develop technology that addressed these
problems simultaneously.
Focus your attention on the 4-electrolysis chambers at the top of the (next) page. Just assume for
the moment that everything else involves time-honored chemical engineering steps that are
efficient, well known and mature.

3H2O + NaCl (aq) => 2H2 + O2 + NaOH (aq) + HCl (aq)

Electrical energy from any renewable source, e.g.,
Wind, Solar, Geothermal, Hydro, Wave, or Tidal
(Also wasted energy, i.e., flared gas from oil wells)

Vent to
atmosphere or use
for industrial
application

Transportable
fuel or fertilizer

4-Chamber
ElectrolysisElectrodialysis

O2
NaCl (aq)

CO2

Ammonia-
Ammonium-Urea-
Guanidine moiety
synthesis

2H2

N2

H2O

CO2

NaHCO3
CO2

NaOH

HCl

(Strong base)

(Strong acid)

Atmosphere or industrial
source

Na2CO3

MgCl2

Olivine
(Mg,Fe)2SiO4

Fe(II)Cl2 + Na2CO3
Reaction vessel

Fe(II)Cl2

Heating
Unit

H4SiO4

H2O

FeCO3
Fe(III)Cl3

NaCl

(SiO2)
Fume silica
40-400
m2/gm

(Na2CO3 + H2O)
CO2

Fe(III)(OH)3

Cl2

NaCl
H2O

Fe(III)(OH)3
Dryer

Electrolysis
of molten
MgCl2

Magnesium
metal

(Fe2O3)
Pure Hematite

(Na2CO3)

(NaCl)

MgCl2 + Na2CO3
Reaction vessel

(CO2)

Portland
Cement

5-85%

Eco-Cement
Tec-Eco, Inc.
Australia

15-95%

MgO

Sintering
heat

Magnesium
Carbonate
Hydroxide
Mg(OH)2 4MgCO3

Notice that the each of the electrolysis chambers produces something. Hydrogen comes out of
one, oxygen comes from another and a strong acid and strong base come from the other two.
1. The hydrogen is utilized as a locally manufactured fuel, thereby eliminating the need to
import expensive fuels when operating mining equipment or is easily converted to
ammonia, a substance that can also be used as either a transportable fuel or sold as a
fertilizer. It is well known that hydrogen can be used as a fuel but safely storing and
transporting hydrogen is the primary reason the Hydrogen Economy never became a
reality. The Mining Options core thesis recognizes that ammonia can be easily
manufactured by combining hydrogen with nitrogen from the air, thus producing an
essential fertilizer currently sold to millions of American farmers. Although ammonias
toxicity is a widely understood fact, relatively few people know that ammonia has a long
history as a non-carbon, nitrogen-based fuel with an octane rating of 120. The next time
you buy gasoline, check out the octane rating. Youll see that gasolines octane rating is
far less.
Here are some historical and more recent examples of ammonia being used as a
fuel: The focus is for massive off-road vehicles, locomotives, and even ships that are
associated with mining.

Rjukan 1933 Norsk Hydro picture of ammonia fueled vehicle.

An ammonia/gasoline hybrid from an engine research group at the University of Michigan. To test the vehicles
engine they drove from Detroit, Michigan to San Francisco, California; nearly a 2400 mile round trip, in 2007.

2.
The next electrolysis chamber produces sodium hydroxide, commonly called lye. When
sodium hydroxide is exposed to the atmosphere it quickly combines with carbon dioxide from
the air to form sodium bicarbonate, more commonly called baking soda. A second product
formed by the lye is sodium carbonate, commonly called washing soda. Both products can be
locally sold. However, the massive volume of either soda product that is manufactured presents a
logistical roadblock with local markets due to mass of volume produced. One method of getting
rid of millions, even billions of metric tonnes of baking soda is to consider the possibility of
adding baking soda to the ocean as a delicate de-acidifying agent. That said, whether this option
is feasible or foolish requires further discussion. If dumping massive tonnages of baking soda
into the ocean for purposes of de-acidification creates more problems than it solves, a better
method of disposing of this tonnage is to bury these sodas within the holes created by Part 3 as
well go on to explain.
3.
The third electrolysis chamber produces a strong acid. Where hydrochloric acids
potency and volume are taken into account, this acid can be used to separate metals from
commonly mined ores, rather than importing the more commonly used sulfuric or nitric acid
from distant manufacturers. The ore used in The Mining Option flowchart is called olivine
which is approximately 25 % iron, 25% magnesium with the remainder being mostly silica.
Think about it. What we are discussing is a new method of mining that would result in changing
how the iron and steel industry obtains not only iron ore but a new method of processing this ore,
while also supplying equally massive tonnages of magnesium that can be used to make a type of
cement. This magnesium-based cement manufacturing approach requires less than half of the
energy needed to make the more common calcium-based cement. Together, both steel and
cement production currently contribute a bit more than 10% of the global carbon dioxide
emissions. Should The Mining Option survive intense scrutiny, this example and method of
mining iron ore will compete with these industries while also offering the added bonus of
sequestering massive quantities of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
4.
The fourth and last electrolysis chamber produces pure oxygen. Of course, there are
many uses for oxygen and O2 byproduct can surely be sold from small production facilities
using this technology. But like sodium hydroxide and the soda byproducts, volume remains an
issue. Future industrial applications are yet to be defined but, as of now, bulk volume of pure
oxygen produced would most likely vent directly into the atmosphere.

To be profitable The Mining Option must first and foremost have a source of very inexpensive
electricity near a source of ore containing the necessary minerals and metals.
And heres the exciting part: Wind-powered generation has one unique attribute that most people
are not aware of. Turbines have the ability to produce exponential increases in power. For
example, doubling the wind speed harnesses eight times the power.
Most people who listen to this presentation have seen wind turbines spinning and understand that
these turbines are downloading their generated electricity to a grid that distributes power.
However, The Mining Option turbines will rarely be attached to any grid. The reason for that is
that these wind turbines will be strategically placed in geographic areas with higher than average

wind speeds more than what is commonly found in most of Europe, the lower 48 States of the
USA, or near most of Asias densely populated cities.

(In Conclusion)
The first consideration is the cost of electricity, as this is the key to powering the four chambers
and making The Mining Option a profitable project. Should the wind speed be reasonably
consistent and swift, a lesser quality of ore might also be profitably considered, as the costs of
importing fuel and acids used in mining any mineral are eliminated. The second economic
consideration is the transportation costs for moving bulk quantities of concentrated ores, pure
metals, and/or construction materials.
The question is whether The Mining Option will stand up to dozens, even hundreds of different
economic, mining, and chemical engineering analyses. A wide-ranging debate is needed and
hoped for.
If you have a further interest or input please make your voice heard on one of The Mining
Options blog sites. As this project aims for worldwide appeal, a variety of language translations
are available online.
For more details, background information and debate please visit our website at:

www.the-mining-option.com