0GW Blog - About Me, Brian Blackwell

I am a 78-year-old chemical engineer, with a PhD in Environmental Enginering

I like and understand inorganic chemistry, and am comfortable engaging it. I am not great at organic chemistry or biological chemistry. “There are many things that I do not know.” But what I do know, I know well.

I have an engineer’s mind. Logical. Readily understanding the basic concepts of science, and comfortable with calculations. I summarize what I have found in my blogs, so others can look at what I see, if they want.

The world’s atmosphere, oceans and land are full of science, chemistry. Some of the secrets are revealed by chemical analyses, one of the reliable sources of our globally measured data. Climate change science uses chemical isotopes of carbon and oxygen as markers. Chemists understand all this best, but chemical engineers are not far behind, equipped to do mass balances on them.

Most of my career was with one engineering consulting firm. Sandwell Engineering, a good one. Seems I was born for that. It gave me a wide variety of interesting projects. Ranging from conceptual feasibility studies to detailed design of chemical processes. Particularly kraft pulp mills. Bread and butter work, applying what I was reasonably well educated for at the University of Waterloo. Chemistry, basic physics, mathematical calculations, basic computer skills. I was comfortable living in the details. Detail comfort gave me the foundation to think conceptually. And realistically. I came from the bottom up, not the top down. It makes a difference.

I have a framework for the world’s physical and chemical systems. That framework is based on scientific principles, which give me expectations of how the systems should behave. I then go looking for measured data that I can use to test / check / verify my expectations.

When I go looking for data / information, I try to find three or more independent sources. I look at the provider. Google their name. What is their reason for being? How many scientists do they have on staff? Who funds them? Do they have a hidden agenda? What are others saying about them? What is their history? What else do they do? I do this to establish some confidence in the reliability of the information being provided.

When measured data / information is not consistent with my framework, I dig to find out why. Is the information wrong / bad? How so? Am I looking at the information incorrectly? Or is my framework faulty and in need of revision?

In my engineering work, I built an Excel-based mathematical model for all the processes in a kraft pulp mill. I do not even begin to understand climate models and do not spend much time looking at their projections. But my own process modelling has given me some appreciation for what these folks are up against and how they might proceed. I know enough to allow me to smile quietly while I listen to some people making disparaging remarks about climate models. Almost always, these people have zero experience with modelling yet are quick with hard opinions.

I do my own calculations for a lot of things in the GW/CC space. Often, these calculations are simple mass balances. An example would be taking a quantity of fossil fuel and calculating the amount of CO₂ formed on combustion. Then adding that amount of CO₂ to the global atmosphere and determining the expected increase in the CO₂ concentration in the atmosphere. For chemical engineers, these are easy calculations.

I took four courses at UBC. All for marks like the other students, doing all the assignments, quizzes, and exams. I took them one at a time. That allowed me to do all the assigned reading, plus follow leads and curiosities. About 30 hours a week.

·        Meteorology of Storms. 2^nd year Meteorology. 2018.

·        Climate Change: Science and Society 3^rd year Geography. 2019.

·        Global Climate Change. 3^rd year Geology. 2020. The Holy grail of CC courses.

·        Health Impacts of Climate Change. 2^nd year Nursing. 2021.

Chemical engineers are particularly well equipped to wade through most of the climate change theory and information. People from other disciplines are equipped for some of it. Non-science people tend to be much better at the social / political / organizational aspects of CC. My take is to do what I am good at and seek help from others where they should be better qualified.

December 2024

Blackie Manana