24 November 2015
In chemistry, limiting reagents are the chemical compounds that prevent further reactions from taking place. This is important for hybrid and all-electric vehicles because batteries, their limiting reagent, still hamper them.
19 November 2015
Sustained population and economic growth have almost doubled both primary and final energy demand in the East Asia Summit (EAS) region. This rising energy demand is posing an increasing threat to energy security.
Examination of potential energy saving is key to reducing energy demand and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and findings can shed light on policy implications for decision making to ensure the region can enjoy economic growth without compromising energy security or causing environmental problems.
18 November 2015
Russia's central bank recently warned about the growing financial risks to the Russian economy from Saudi Arabia encroaching upon its traditional export market for crude oil. Russia sends 70 percent of its oil to Europe, but Saudi Arabia has been making inroads in the European market amid the oil price downturn.
12 November 2015
The January Brent oil futures contract has broken down in the last 48 hours to approach its late-August lows. It has fallen a little more than 10% over the past week. The January light sweet crude contract is also heading south, falling about 12% since the recent high on November 3. It too sold through the October lows. The late-August low was just below $40.
10 November 2015
Oil and gas companies have had a tough time over the past year trying to weather the storm of falling oil prices. However, the political and financial winds are moving in the wrong direction for the industry, raising more "above ground" problems at a time that they can ill-afford it.
9 November 2015
Estimates are that household air pollution kills more than 500,000 people in Africa each year. Through solar energy, people can stop using dirty and extremely polluting fuels like kerosene in their homes. However, with domestic solar energy comes an unintended consequence. When the light bulbs switch on, they can attract disease-carrying bugs.
6 November 2015
One casualty of the oil price downturn could be the megaproject.
For years, as conventional oil reserves depleted and became increasingly hard to find, oil companies ventured into far-flung locales to find new sources of production. Extracting oil from these frontier areas required advanced technology and a lot more capital: Ultra deepwater, Arctic offshore, heavy oil sands, and increasingly, the Lower Tertiary.
5 November 2015
At first glance, it seems an almost inexplicable paradox. A right-wing British government has invited companies controlled by the Chinese Communist Party – and in one case, the Chinese military – into the heart of the UK’s strategically vital energy infrastructure. The nuclear deal between Britain and China goes against the advice of the security services, the military, and the US government.
4 November 2015
The giant Ivanpah solar power plant in the California Mojave Desert recently detailed how much natural gas it burned to generate power when the sun wasn’t sufficient – the equivalent to 46,000 tons of CO2 emissions in its first year, according to reports.
Along with its impacts on wildlife and its receipt of federal incentives, news of the CO2 emissions has renewed criticism of the 377-megawatt facility, which supplies 140,000 California homes during peak hours of the day.
30 October 2015
The cost of solar energy continues to fall, so it is no surprise that more people are adopting solar.
This rapid growth of rooftop solar, however, has led many electric utilities to try to apply the brakes. A number have lobbied to change the “net metering” policies that credit consumers for the excess solar power they generate. Does this make sense?