information needed for oil project

new type of engine
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=d1105470-0f64-476d-a0ab-15046c3e5708
situation of oil in the states as of this month
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=6309b71b-925f-4e42-83c7-8b01ca4ebf12
instance of oil companys influence on other industry(honeywell)
oil is growing, so why are they raising prices
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=3573cde1-5556-40e8-b456-07b8a0b05fce
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=331a45dd-3d3d-4c5b-b930-5c90702534fd
http://www.oilandgasonline.com/content/news/article.asp?DocID={520F3A80-7D2A-4DEB-8DC1-97563D19C2B3}&Bucket=Current+Headlines

synopsis of Hubbert Peak Theory and relative information

MIT, the end of oil
http://www.technologyreview.com/BizTech/wtr_14178,296,p1.html
my site for this project
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/
numbers on US and international oil
http://www.gravmag.com/oil.html

ethanol information
http://www.ilsr.org/columns/1997/22apr97.htmlgasoline information

gasoline informationhttp://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/analysis_publications/primer_on_gasoline_prices/html/petbro.html

 

March 30, 2006. Uncategorized. No Comments.

chapter 20 questions for review

1.)    Drive less, take the stairs, insulate your house and add more insulation to the existing amount, turn thermostats down in the winter and up in the summer, eat locally grown food in season.

2.)    Net energy yield is based on the total useful energy produced during the lifetime of an entire energy system minus the energy required to make useful energy available.  Nuclear power, and hybrid cars are good examples.

3.)    Active solar energy generally pumps a heat-absorbing, fluid medium through a relatively small collector, rather than passively collecting heat in a stationary medium like masonry. Passive uses natural materials or absorptive structures with no moving parts to simply gather and hold heat.

4.)    Capture solar energy and convert it directly to electrical current by separating electrons from their parent atoms and accelerating them across a one way electrostatic barrier formed by the junction between two different types of semiconductor material.

5.)    Fuel cells are devices that use ongoing electrochemical reactions to produce an electric current.

6.)    Problems with burning wood in industry are the film it creates on things near the source, also the high amounts of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons emitted.

7.)    Methane is produced by anaerobic decomposition of any moist organic material. It is a fuel that burns efficiently.

8.)    Hydroelectric dams are very efficient and don’t hurt the air, however they do affect water flow, and can damage aqueous habitats.

9.)    Ethanol, methanol, and bio fluid.

10.) Tidal power or ocean wave power generate electricity by tidal stations’ turbines spinning as the tide flows through them.

March 27, 2006. Uncategorized. No Comments.

chapter 20 notes

More efficient energy use and a greater reliance on renewable sources, could reduce or even eliminate our dependence on fossil fuels and nuclear energy.
There are many opportunities to conserve energy through greater efficiences in lighting, space and water heating, insulation, better industrial motors and controls, and simply turning off appliances when not in use.
Cogeneration of heat and electricity can double the efficiency of home or business energy use.
Transportation is one of our biggest energy uses as well as a great opportunity for conservation.
Hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles have the highest efficiency rating and lowest emissions of any commercially available option.
Solar energy is one of the most useful resources at our disposal.
Remote, large-scale solar arrays, the best way to transport energy may be to use it to generate hydrogen gas that can be shipped to markets via underground pipelines.
Fuel cells are devices that use electrochemical react6ions and semipermeable membranes to generate an electrical current.
Biomass has long been used as a fuel for heat and light.
Firewood, dung, and charcoal are the main forms of biomass used in most places.
Hydropower once produced most electricity in the world, but largely been replaces by fossil fuels.
Wind power is th fastest growing energy source in the world and offers a huge potential for clean, renewable power.
Wind could easily supply all the electricity we need and free us from the economic, social, and environmental problems associated with fossil fuels and nuclear power.
Nearly everywhere, the constant temperature of the earth a few meters below the surface can provide a useful heat sink for heating or cooling.

March 27, 2006. notes and vocab. No Comments.

chapter 20 vocabulary

Energy efficiency- a measure of energy produced compared to energy comsumed

Hybrid gasoline electric vehicles- the highest efficiency rating and lowest emissions available in the US

Net energy yield- based on the total useful energy produced during the lifetime of an entire energy system minus the energy required to make useful energy available

Cogeneration- the simultaneous production of both electricity and steam or hot water in the same plant

Passive heat absorption- using natural materials or absorptive structures with no moving parts to simply gather and hold heat

Active solar energy- generally pump a heat absorbing fluid medium through a relatively small collector rather than passively collecting heat in a stationary medium

Green pricing- allows utilities to profit from conservation programs and charge premium prices for energy from renewable sources

Photovoltaic cells- capture solar energy and convert it directly to electrical current by separating electrons from their parent atoms

Fuel cell- devices that use ongoing electrochemical reactions to produce an electric current

Reformer- or converter that strips hydrogen from fuels such as natural gas

Biofuel- a mixture of gasoline and ethanol

Low head hydropower- can extract energy from a small headwater dam that cause much less damage than larger projects

Run of the river flow- submerged projects that are small enough not to impede navigation

Micro hydro generators- operate on small flow of streams, can generate power for a home

Geothermal energy- naturally warm water is used in electric power production, and other industrial means

Tidal station- like a hydropower dam, turbines spin as tide moves through them

Ocean thermal electric conversion(OTEC)- heat from sun warmed upper ocean layers is used to evaporate a working fluid

March 27, 2006. notes and vocab. No Comments.

chapter 19 Notes

·        The huge blackout of 2003 reminded us of how reliant we are on energy

·        86% or all commercial energy is generated by fossil fuel, 40% is petroleum, next is coal with 23% then natural gas with 22%

·        The united states consumes twice as much energy per person as countries like Switzerland who have the same standard of living.

·        Largest share of energy use in the states is for industry, transportation comes in second with 27% of energy supply

·        Coal is dirty and dangerous fuel, however some new techniques reduce emissions and contaminants.  Coal combustion is major source of acid precipitation

·        Natural gas burns clean, produces less CO2 than coal.  Russia and the Middle East have the worlds highest amounts of gas

·        Chernobyl is the reason for most concern when it comes to nuclear power.  People think the technology is too risky to pursue

·        Major problems with nuclear power are where to store the waste and how to ensure that it remains safely contained for thousands of years

March 22, 2006. notes and vocab. No Comments.

chapter 19 review questions

1.)    Energy is the capacity to do work.  Power is the rate of flow of energy.

2.)    The major sources of commercial energy are in order from greatest to least; oil, coal, gas, hydro, nuclear, and wind. Commercial energy is the most common use of this energy, it is directed towards all endeavors.

3.)    Energy use exceeds most other countries, for having only 5 percent of the global population, it consumes one quarter of available energy.

4.)    10 trillion metric tons are the estimated amounts of total resource. 90% of reserves are in the US, Russia, China, India, and Australia.

5.)    Coal bed methane is methane gas trapped under a layer of coal.  The reason it is controversial is because it is highly explosive and leads to poisoning.

6.)    Fossil fuel is the cause of serious loss of forests and soil.  It degrades air quality, creates smog, and pollutes the water supply.

7.)    Nuclear reactors start at fuel assembly, rods of uranium are bound together, put into a reactor and subjected to nuclear fission, where steam is created which powers a turbine.  The danger of it is in the cooling process, if the reactor is not manually cooled it will burn up, if coolant leeks and doesn’t reach the reactor, serious problems occur, Chernobyl occurs.

8.)    The four types of reactor designs are pressurized water reactors, using water as its coolant. European models use graphite, where the moderator and structural material for the reactor core are graphite.  High temperature Gas Cooled Reactors, and Process inherent ultimate safety reactor which has a small core that cannot generate enough heat to become dangerous.

9.)    The pros and cons of the breeder reactor are that it produces fuel rather than consumes it, creates fissionable plutonium and thorium isotopes from the abundant, but stable, forms or uranium. The cons are that the reactor core must be at a very high density to work, also liquid sodium must be used to cool it, which is very corrosive and difficult to handle.

10.) The past has shown that tossing nuclear waste into the ocean is a bad idea.  Now we usually use land disposal, some using deep water filled pools to store them, others use containers deep under ground in stable rock formations, where vaults are built to hold the waste.

March 22, 2006. Homework. No Comments.

chapter 19 vocab

Work- the application of force through a distance

Energy- the capacity to do work

Power- the rate of flow of energy, or the rate at which work is done

Joule (J)- the amount of work done when a force of 1 newton is exerted over 1 meter or 1 amp per second flows through 1 ohm

Proven Reserves- coal that is mapped, measured, and shown to be economically recoverable

Black Lung Disease- inflammation and fibrosis caused by accumulation of coal dust in the lungs or airways

Secondary Recovery Techniques- methods for squeezing more oil up from an oil reservoir

Tar Sands- Liquid petroleum can be extracted from these sands with hot water, chemicals, or other stripping processes

Oil Shale- Fine grained sedimentary rock rich in solid organic material called kerogen. When heated it liquefies and oil can be extracted from the stone

Methane Hydrate- composed of small bubbles or individual molecules of natural gas trapped in a crystalline matrix of frozen water

Fuel Assembly- uranium pellets are stacked in hollow metal rods and bundled together

Nuclear Fission- splitting or releasing energy and more neutrons

Chain Reaction- once the fun starts its hard to stop

Control Rods- such as cadmium are inserted into spaces between fuel assemblies to shut down the fission reaction or are withdrawn to allow it to proceed

 Breeder Reactor- produce fuel instead of consume it. Create fissionable plutonium and thorium isotopes from the abundant but stable forms of uranium

High-Level Waste Repository- place where intensely radioactive wastes are to be buried deep in the ground

Monitored, Retrievable Storage- alternative, holding wastes in underground facilities where was can be watched

Nuclear Fusion- energy is released when two smaller atomic nuclei fuse into one larger nucleus

March 21, 2006. notes and vocab. No Comments.

Chapter 19 Web Exercise

Could not reach this website for the Canadian portion of the project.

            http://ccrs-gad1.cgdi.ca/resources/EngNRAtlas.html

1.) Total U.S. energy use increased around sixty-seven quadrillions from 1949 to 2000.

2.) 9,600 billion dollars was the increase during that time.

3.) 73% change in energy, where money increased by 98%. A possibility is that money levels increase, we experience price inflation.

4.) The four ports in the US are Everett, Massachusetts; Lake Charles, LA; Elba Island Georgia; and Cove Point, Maryland.

5.) This is important because a lot of environmental disruption occurs at these sites.

6.) Our prices were considerably lower, increasing the incentive to use them.  It put a price on the use of them so conservation was put on the back burner.

7.) United States, Central and South America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, the former USSR, China, Australia, Africa.

8.) The US ranks number one.

9.) More than 60 percent are thought to be in the United States.

10.) The United States come in second to China and close to Russia.

11.) The US, Venezuela, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Iran, Iraq, Quatar, Saudi Arabia, and Algeria.

12.) 3% is held by the US.

13.) We consume about 23% of the total.

14.) The countries with the highest oil reserves are US, Venezuela, Russia, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emerites.

15.) 3% is held by the US.

16.) 25% is consumed by the US.

17.) We are the gluttons of the energy in the globe, we take what we surely cant replenish.

March 21, 2006. Homework. 9 Comments.

Chapter 18 notes

Water pollution control laws have greatly reduced the worst water pollution in most industrialized countries; in many developing countries, water pollution is getting worse, but access to safe drinking water is improving slowly, especially in urban areas.

Water pollution- any physical, biological, or chemical change in water quality that adversely affects organisms or makes it unsuitable for other uses.

Major types of water pollution include infectious agents, oxygen demanding wastes, nutrients, inorganic salts, metals, acids and bases, organic chemicals, sediment, and thermal pollution

Eutrophication is caused by nutrient enrichment and warming

Oligotrophic lakes and streams are cold, and oxygen rich, but have low biological productivity

US Clean Water Act requires the EPA to monitor water quality and regulate discharge. Only 10 percent of water pollution in the US comes from point sources.

Groundwater can be contaminated by waste in recharge zones, through abandoned wells, and by buried waste. Leaking underground storage tanks release contaminants.

Ocean pollution comes from many sources, garbage, sewage, nutrients, and oil spills

Cheapest, best way to reduce water pollution is source reduction. Recycling, Land use planning.

Water legislation, Clean Water Act remains controversial; costs can be high and are largely borne by producers; it can be difficult to identify the best way to do things.

March 16, 2006. notes and vocab. No Comments.

Chapter 18 Questions for Review

1.)    Water pollution is any physical, biological, or chemical change in water quality that adversely affects living organisms or makes water unsuitable for desired uses can be considered pollution.

2.)    Eight major categories of water pollutants are infectious agents(bacteria, viruses), organic chemicals (pesticides, plastics), inorganic chemicals (acids, caustics), radioactive materials production (uranium, thorium), sediment (soil, silt), plant nutrients (nitrates, phosphates), oxygen demanding wastes (animal manure and plant residues), and thermal (heat).

3.)    Sources for water pollution are human and animal excreta, industrial, farm and house use, industrial effluents, mining and processing of ores, power plants and weapons, land erosion, agricultural and urban fertilizers, paper mills, and industrial cooling.

4.)    Pfiesteria is an extraordinarily poisonous dinoflagellate that only recently has been recognized as a killer of finfish and shellfish in polluted rivers and estuaries such as North Carolina’s Pamlico Sound. Under the right conditions, a population explosion can produce a dense bloom of these cells.

5.)    Eutrophication is the increase in biological productivity and ecosystem succession caused by human activities.

6.)    The origins of siltation are the runoff of sediment that build up and block normal flow of water.  It is a literal roadblock for many natural processes.

7.)    Primary treatment removes, strains, and settles out solids. Secondary treatment, including aeration, digestion, and chlorination, removes pathogens and organic material. Tertiary treatment removes inorganic nutrients and oxidizes remaining organics. 

8.)    Combining storm and sewer system is a problem because waste will be introduced into the environment condensed and will deteriorate that area rapidly; if these wastes are put through a treatment facility, clean water that is from the storm pipes will be cleaned, that means unnecessary energy was used.  Whereas it is also a problem that they be separated, the amount of pipes for this digs into the natural environment twice as much as before.

9.)    The Clean Water Act works to get specific “point” sources of pollution such as industrial discharge pipes or sewage outfalls, the act requires discharge permits and best practicable control technology.

10.) End to all dumping of industrial wastes, plastic trash and tank washing effluents into the ocean, designation of places to put toxic substances.  Also the rules are to be tightened, they have been too lax.

March 16, 2006. Homework. No Comments.

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