Nobody rides for free
EL SEGUNDO — They call him “Methane Man,” but he doesn’t care if he’s the butt of jokes — he’s laughing all the way to the biofuel bank. Lex Towns, a chemical engineer, spent 20 years working on finding new energy sources for Mobil until he was laid off and forced to take a job at a local Taco Bell in order to pay the bills. It was that career twist, however, which enabled Towns to make his fortuitous discovery: assoline.
After eating burritos repeatedly at work all week, Towns noticed while driving home one Friday that he had an awful lot of gas. He accidentally let one go while lighting a cigarette, and nearly exploded his car. It turns out that his body is particularly good at making an unusually volatile gas.
“Sure, I’m still working out the smell problem,” says the excited Towns, “so until I solve it, it’s probably best not to drive too close behind me.”
But like other biofuels, Towns’ device turns a natural, organic substance into a viable, gaseous alternative fuel source. Some major energy companies see potential in his production, and are now making him some pretty sweet offers to boost production reserves.
With the world’s oil supply dwindling, and gas prices and ocean levels rising, there’s a desperate need to utilize a new class of alternative and safe biofuels and it appears that Town’s ass is the answer.
