Dynamically consistent oil import tariffs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karp, L.; Newbery, D.M.

1992-01-01

The standard theory of optimal tariffs considers tariffs on perishable goods produced abroad under static conditions, in which tariffs affect prices only in that period. Oil and other exhaustable resources do not fit this model, for current tariffs affect the amount of oil imported, which will affect the remaining stock and hence its future price. The problem of choosing a dynamically consistent oil import tariff when suppliers are competitive but importers have market power is considered. The open-loop Nash tariff is solved for the standard competitive case in which the oil price is arbitraged, and it was found that the resulting tariff rises at the rate of interest. This tariff was found to have an equilibrium that in general is dynamically inconsistent. Nevertheless, it is shown that necessary and sufficient conditions exist under which the tariff satisfies the weaker condition of time consistency. A dynamically consistent tariff is obtained by assuming that all agents condition their current decisions on the remaining stock of the resource, in contrast to open-loop strategies. For the natural case in which all agents choose their actions simultaneously in each period, the dynamically consistent tariff was characterized, and found to differ markedly from the time-inconsistent open-loop tariff. It was shown that if importers do not have overwhelming market power, then the time path of the world price is insensitive to the ability to commit, as is the level of wealth achieved by the importer. 26 refs., 4 figs

Political oil import diversification by financial and commercial traders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kashcheeva, Mila; Tsui, Kevin K.

2015-01-01

International politics affects the oil trade. But do financial and commercial traders who participate in spot oil trading also respond to changes in international politics? We construct a firm-level dataset for all U.S. oil-importing companies over 1986–2008 to examine how these firms respond to increases in “political distance” between the U.S. and her trading partners, measured by divergence in their UN General Assembly voting patterns. Consistent with previous macro evidence, we first show that individual firms diversify their oil imports politically, even after controlling for unobserved firm heterogeneity. However, the political pattern of oil imports is not entirely driven by the concerns of hold-up risks, which exist when oil transactions via term contracts are associated with backward vertical FDI that is subject to expropriation. In particular, our results indicate that even financial and commercial traders significantly reduce their oil imports from U.S. political enemies. Interestingly, while these traders diversify their oil imports politically immediately after changes in international politics, other oil companies reduce their oil imports with a significant time lag. Our findings suggest that in designing regulations to avoid harmful repercussions on commodity and financial assets, policymakers need to understand the nature of political risk. -- Highlights: •American firms diversify their oil imports politically. •Financial and commercial traders diversify their oil imports politically immediately. •Other oil companies reduce their oil imports with a significant time lag. •Policymakers need to understand the nature of political risk

Investigating oiled birds from oil field waste pits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gregory, D.G.; Edwards, W.C.

1991-01-01

Procedures and results of investigations concerning the oiling of inland raptors, migratory water-fowl and other birds are presented. Freon washings from the oiled birds and oil from the pits were analyzed by gas chromatography. In most instances the source of the oil could be established by chromatographic procedures. The numbers of birds involved (including many on the endangered species list) suggested the need for netting or closing oil field waste pits and mud disposal pits. Maintaining a proper chain of custody was important

Switching from monoculture to polyculture farming benefits birds in oil palm production landscapes: Evidence from mist netting data.

Science.gov (United States)

Yahya, Muhammad S; Syafiq, Muhamad; Ashton-Butt, Adham; Ghazali, Amal; Asmah, Siti; Azhar, Badrul

2017-08-01

Monoculture farming is pervasive in industrial oil palm agriculture, including those RSPO plantations certified as sustainably managed. This farming practice does not promote the maintenance of farmland biodiversity. However, little scientific attention has been given to polyculture farming in oil palm production landscapes. Polyculture farming is likely to increase the floristic diversity and stand structural complexity that underpins biodiversity. Mist nets were used to sample birds at 120 smallholdings in Peninsular Malaysia. At each site, 12 vegetation structure characteristics were measured. We compared bird species richness, abundance, and composition between monoculture and polyculture smallholdings and used predictive models to examine the effects of habitat quality on avian biodiversity. Bird species richness was significantly greater in polyculture than that of monoculture smallholdings. The number of fallen and standing, dead oil palms were also important positive predictors of species richness. Bird abundance was also strongly increased by standing and dead oil palms and decreased with oil palm stand height. Our results indicate that polyculture farming can improve bird species richness in oil palm production landscapes. In addition, key habitat variables that are closely associated with farming practices, such as the removal of dead trees, should and can be managed by oil palm growers in order to promote biodiversity. To increase the sustainability of oil palm agriculture, it is imperative that stakeholders modify the way oil palms are currently planted and managed. Our findings can guide policy makers and certification bodies to promote oil palm production landscapes that will function more sustainably and increase existing biodiversity of oil palm landscapes.

Evaluating U.S. oil security and import reliance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, Stephen P.A.; Huntington, Hillard G.

2015-01-01

We examine the literature that considers the consequences of U.S. reliance on imported oil. We take an approach that covers many ideas about the costs arising from U.S. reliance on imported oil, and we identify which of those ideas have broad support in the economics literature and which ideas have only limited support. We also quantify the costs of U.S. reliance on imported oil using two approaches. One is fairly narrow, conforms to the economics view of externalities, and yields small cost estimates. The other is relatively expansive, is favored by some policy analysts, and yields much larger cost estimates. We estimate these costs as expected U.S. economic losses over a time horizon from 2010 through 2035, while taking into account world oil market conditions, market power, probable oil supply disruptions, and the oil-market response to those supply disruptions. - Highlights: • A variety of perspectives on the consequences of U.S. reliance on imported oil. • Quantify and evaluate the costs of U.S. reliance on oil imports. • Narrower approaches are more consistent with the economic definition of externalities. • Narrower approaches yield recommendations for relatively modest policy. • Expansive approaches favored by some policy analysts support more aggressive policy

The US's group of seven: US oil import dependence grows

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1993-01-01

The latest available import data from the US Department of Energy show greater US dependence on imported crude oil, a two percentage point increase in 1992 above 1991. In fact, the share of imported crude oil of the sum of the US crude production and imports has grown from less than one-third in 1986 to nearly 46% in 1992. A closer look at the data reveals that US crude oil dependence is become increasingly centered on a small number of countries. In 1992, more than 85% of crude oil imports originated in seven countries: Saudia Arabia, Nigeria, Venezuela, Canada, Mexico, Angola, and the United Kingdom. Many people worry that US import dependence is at dangerous levels. However, the recent trend of joint ventures between US companies and oil producers should allay those fears by providing oil producers an incentive for stable oil supply in the US

U.S. oil-import vulnerability: The technical replacement capability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-10-01

The report examines the changes that have taken place in world oil markets and the U.S. economy since 1984 and provides revised estimates of the technical oil replacement potential that might be attained in the event of a severe and long lasting cutoff of imported oil. The analysis focuses on technologies that are commercially available today or will be within the next 5 years and that are among the most cost-effective methods for replacing oil use in applicable sectors. It also considers the economic impacts of adopting an aggressive oil replacement strategy in a severe oil emergency. The report presents a variety of policy options that could help accelerate the adoption of oil replacement technologies in preparation for, or in response to, a severe supply disruption, or as part of a long-term national policy to reduce import vulnerability. The report concludes that U.S. capability to replace lost oil imports is shrinking. Market forces alone will not be sufficient to overcome the substantial economic and social dislocations that could result from a prolonged major oil disruption

The potential of domestic production and imports of oil and gas in China: an energy return on investment perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhao-Yang Kong

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Concerns about China’s energy security have escalated because of the country’s high dependency on oil and gas imports, so it is necessary to calculate the availability of domestic oil and gas resources and China’s ability to obtain foreign energy through trade. In this work, the calculation was done by using the energy return on investment (EROI method. The results showed that the EROIstnd (i.e., standard EROI of China’s oil and gas extraction decreased from approximately 17.3:1 in 1986 to 8.4:1 in 2003, but it increased to 12.2:1 in 2013. From a company-level perspective, the EROIstnd differed for different companies and was in the range of (8–12:1. The EROI2,d (EROI considering energy outputs after processed and direct energy inputs for different companies was in the range of (3–7:1. The EROI of imported oil (EROIIO declined from 14.8:1 in 1998 to approximately 4.8:1 in 2014, and the EROI of imported natural gas (EROIING declined from 16.7:1 in 2009 to 8.6:1 in 2014. In 2015, the EROIIO and EROIING showed a slight increase due to decreasing import prices. In general, this paper suggests that from a net energy perspective, it has become more difficult for China to obtain oil and gas from both domestic production and imports. China is experiencing an EROI decline, which demonstrates the risk in the use of unsustainable fossil resources.

Venezuela No. 1 oil import source in S. America

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Darukhanavala, P.P.; Davidson, M.C.; Tyler, T.N.; Blaskovich, F.T.; Smith, C.

1992-01-01

This paper reports that with the exception of Venezuela, the U.S. is likely to import much oil from South American countries through 2010, the General Accounting Office reports. GAO, a congressional watchdog agency, noted the U.S. imports about 4% of its oil from Colombia, Ecuador, and Trinidad and Tobago and possibly could import from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, and Peru in the future. It the the eight countries' crude oil reserves are expected to increase about 30% by 2000, then slide about 2% by 2010. Their oil production is expected to climb about 21% over 1990 by 2000, then level off until 2010

Analysis Monthly Import of Palm Oil Products Using Box-Jenkins Model

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Nurul F. Y.; Khalid, Kamil; Saifullah Rusiman, Mohd; Ghazali Kamardan, M.; Roslan, Rozaini; Che-Him, Norziha

2018-04-01

The palm oil industry has been an important component of the national economy especially the agriculture sector. The aim of this study is to identify the pattern of import of palm oil products, to model the time series using Box-Jenkins model and to forecast the monthly import of palm oil products. The method approach is included in the statistical test for verifying the equivalence model and statistical measurement of three models, namely Autoregressive (AR) model, Moving Average (MA) model and Autoregressive Moving Average (ARMA) model. The model identification of all product import palm oil is different in which the AR(1) was found to be the best model for product import palm oil while MA(3) was found to be the best model for products import palm kernel oil. For the palm kernel, MA(4) was found to be the best model. The results forecast for the next four months for products import palm oil, palm kernel oil and palm kernel showed the most significant decrease compared to the actual data.

Transporting US oil imports: The impact of oil spill legislation on the tanker market

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rowland, P.J.

1992-05-01

The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (''OPA'') and an even more problematic array of State pollution laws have raised the cost, and risk, of carrying oil into and out of the US. This report, prepared under contract to the US Department of energy's Office of Domestic and International Policy, examines the impact of Federal and State oil spill legislation on the tanker market. It reviews the role of marine transportation in US oil supply, explores the OPA and State oil spill laws, studies reactions to OPA in the tanker and tank barge industries and in related industries such as insurance and ship finance, and finally, discusses the likely developments in the years ahead. US waterborne oil imports amounted to 6.5 million B/D in 1991, three-quarters of which was crude oil. Imports will rise by almost 3 million B/D by 2000 according to US Department of energy forecasts, with most of the crude oil growth after 1995. Tanker demand will grow even faster: most of the US imports and the increased traffic to other world consuming regions will be on long-haul trades. Both the number of US port calls by tankers and the volume of offshore lightering will grow. Every aspect of the tanker industry's behavior is affected by OPA and a variety of State pollution laws

Transporting US oil imports: The impact of oil spill legislation on the tanker market

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rowland, P.J. (Rowland (P.) Associates (United States))

1992-05-01

The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 ( OPA'') and an even more problematic array of State pollution laws have raised the cost, and risk, of carrying oil into and out of the US. This report, prepared under contract to the US Department of energy's Office of Domestic and International Policy, examines the impact of Federal and State oil spill legislation on the tanker market. It reviews the role of marine transportation in US oil supply, explores the OPA and State oil spill laws, studies reactions to OPA in the tanker and tank barge industries and in related industries such as insurance and ship finance, and finally, discusses the likely developments in the years ahead. US waterborne oil imports amounted to 6.5 million B/D in 1991, three-quarters of which was crude oil. Imports will rise by almost 3 million B/D by 2000 according to US Department of energy forecasts, with most of the crude oil growth after 1995. Tanker demand will grow even faster: most of the US imports and the increased traffic to other world consuming regions will be on long-haul trades. Both the number of US port calls by tankers and the volume of offshore lightering will grow. Every aspect of the tanker industry's behavior is affected by OPA and a variety of State pollution laws.

Giant Oil Fields - The Highway to Oil: Giant Oil Fields and their Importance for Future Oil Production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robelius, Fredrik

2007-01-01

Since the 1950s, oil has been the dominant source of energy in the world. The cheap supply of oil has been the engine for economic growth in the western world. Since future oil demand is expected to increase, the question to what extent future production will be available is important. The belief in a soon peak production of oil is fueled by increasing oil prices. However, the reliability of the oil price as a single parameter can be questioned, as earlier times of high prices have occurred without having anything to do with a lack of oil. Instead, giant oil fields, the largest oil fields in the world, can be used as a parameter. A giant oil field contains at least 500 million barrels of recoverable oil. Only 507, or 1 % of the total number of fields, are giants. Their contribution is striking: over 60 % of the 2005 production and about 65 % of the global ultimate recoverable reserve (URR). However, giant fields are something of the past since a majority of the largest giant fields are over 50 years old and the discovery trend of less giant fields with smaller volumes is clear. A large number of the largest giant fields are found in the countries surrounding the Persian Gulf. The domination of giant fields in global oil production confirms a concept where they govern future production. A model, based on past annual production and URR, has been developed to forecast future production from giant fields. The results, in combination with forecasts on new field developments, heavy oil and oil sand, are used to predict future oil production. In all scenarios, peak oil occurs at about the same time as the giant fields peak. The worst-case scenario sees a peak in 2008 and the best-case scenario, following a 1.4 % demand growth, peaks in 2018

U.S. oil import vulnerability: The technical replacement capability. Summary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-10-01

The report examines the changes that have taken place in world oil markets and the U.S. economy since 1984 and provides revised estimates of the technical oil replacement potential that might be attained in the event of a severe and long lasting cutoff of imported oil. The analysis focuses on technologies that are commercially available today or will be within the next 5 years and that are among the most cost-effective methods for replacing oil use in applicable sectors. It also considers the economic impacts of adopting an aggressive oil replacement strategy in a severe oil emergency. The report presents a variety of policy options that could help accelerate the adoption of oil replacement technologies in preparation for, or in response to, a severe supply disruption, or as part of a long-term national policy to reduce import vulnerability. The report's conclusion that U.S. capability to replace lost oil imports is shrinking should be sobering to those who believe that there are quick and easy technological solutions, or that market forces alone will be sufficient to overcome the substantial economic and social dislocations that could result from a prolonged major oil disruption

Scheduling of Crude Oil Operations in Refinery without Sufficient Charging Tanks Using Petri Nets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yan An

2017-05-01

Full Text Available A short-term schedule for crude oil operations in a refinery should define and sequence the activities in detail. Each activity involves both discrete-event and continuous variables. The combinatorial nature of the scheduling problem makes it difficult to solve. For such a scheduling problem, charging tanks are a type of critical resources. If the number of charging tanks is not sufficient, the scheduling problem is further complicated. This work conducts a study on the scheduling problem of crude oil operations without sufficient charging tanks. In this case, to make a refinery able to operate, a charging tank has to be in simultaneous charging and feeding to a distiller for some time, called simultaneously-charging-and-feeding (SCF mode, leading to disturbance to the oil distillation in distillers. A hybrid Petri net model is developed to describe the behavior of the system. Then, a scheduling method is proposed to find a schedule such that the SCF mode is minimally used. It is computationally efficient. An industrial case study is given to demonstrate the obtained results.

Does China factor matter? An econometric analysis of international crude oil prices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Gang; Zhang, Yue-Jun

2014-01-01

Whether China’s crude oil imports are the culprit of oil price volatility these years has not been quantitatively confirmed. Therefore, this paper empirically investigates the role of China’s crude oil net imports in Brent price changes from October 2005 to November 2013 based on an econometric analysis. The results indicate that, during the sample period, China’s crude oil imports do not significantly affect Brent price changes, no matter in the long run or short run. Therefore, the blame for China’s crude oil imports to cause the dramatic fluctuations of international oil price has no solid evidence. Also, there exists significant uni-directional causality running from the Brent price to China's crude oil imports at the 5% level. Besides, the response of the Brent price to China's crude oil imports is found positive but slight, and the Brent price responds more significantly to US dollar exchange rate and OECD commercial inventory than to China’s crude oil imports in the short run. Finally, the contribution of China's crude oil imports to Brent price movement is about 10%, which is less than that of US dollar exchange rate but larger than that of Indian crude oil imports or OECD commercial inventory. - Highlights: • The paper detects the role of China’s crude oil imports in Brent oil price changes. • China’s crude imports do not matter for oil prices in the long run or short run. • The blame for China’s crude imports on oil price changes has no solid evidence. • Significant causality runs from Brent prices to China's crude oil net imports. • China's crude imports contribute less to Brent prices than US dollar exchange rate

Oil and gas trends and implications in Malaysia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahim, Khalid Abdul; Liwan, Audrey

2012-01-01

The trends of reserves, production and consumption of oil in Malaysia to meet the ever-increasing demands do not seem to show that oil and gas will be depleted soon, contrary to many reports. Malaysia’s net exporter status of oil continues to expand over time for as long as the value of exports is greater than the value of imports. Only in physical quantities of oil that Malaysia’s imports exceed exports, but this does not mean that Malaysia will be a net importer by then. Given higher prices of exports, the value of exports outweighs the value of imports. If the current reserves are extracted based on the domestic consumption trend of 1980–2010, Malaysia’s reserves will last until 2027 but based on the 1998–2010 trend, the reserves will be depleted by 2035. Malaysia has adopted a four fuel diversification strategy comprising oil, gas, coal and hydro, instead of heavily dependent on oil. Gas has a huge potential for domestic utilization as well as for exports to increase revenues. Malaysia is one of the few countries having many types of renewable energy sources. Malaysia has great potential in biomass utilization as renewable resources mostly from the existing natural forest and planned plantations. - Highlights: ► The quantities of petroleum production and consumption are expected to converge. ► Malaysia’s status as a net exporter in value terms is expected to expand. ► With slower consumption trend, petroleum reserves will be depleted by 2035. ► There is a large potential in natural gas utilization in Malaysia. ► Renewable energy is abundant for the fuel diversification policy for Malaysia.

Revisiting the impacts of oil price increases on monetary policy implementation in the largest oil importers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nurtac Yildirim

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to test the impacts of oil price increases on monetary policy implementation in the largest oil importers. For that purpose, we estimate structural vector error correction (SVEC models to show the impacts of oil price increases on industrial production, consumer prices and immediate interest rates which are the elements of Taylor rule for the four largest oil importers (the USA, the EU, China and Japan. Our results indicate that oil price increases transmit to output and inflation and lead to fluctuations in industrial production, consumer prices and immediate interest rates which in turn influence the monetary policy stance in the following periods. The basic conclusion of research is that the channels through which oil prices affect output, inflation and interest rates should be identified by the monetary policy authorities of the USA, the EU, China and Japan. We also emphasize the importance of the determination of the optimal monetary policy framework to eliminate the negative consequences of oil price increases.

Diversification of oil import sources and energy security. A key strategy or an elusive objective?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vivoda, Vlado

2009-01-01

This paper explores the relationship between the diversification of sources of imported oil and energy security of oil-importing countries. It examines the importance of diversification policy for oil importers, explains why oil importers implement oil diversification policy, and contextualizes the oil import diversification strategy in the overall energy security policy of oil importers. The paper analyzes the factors and the contexts that affect the level of importance assigned to oil import diversification policy in oil-importing countries, and the limitations that may affect the successful implication of oil import diversification policy. The examples are drawn from the world's top three oil importers, the United States, Japan, and China. The policymakers in these and other oil-importing countries place much importance on energy security. The diversification of oil import sources is used as one of the strategies to enhance energy security in oil-importing countries. This paper is important for policymakers in oil-importing countries as it provides them with a qualitative conceptual framework with which to evaluate the need to diversify their countries' sources of imported oil, and with which to identify the likely limitations to the successful implementation of oil import diversification policy. (author)

Drawing a Roadmap for Oil Pricing Reform

OpenAIRE

Kojima, Masami

2013-01-01

In 2011, the median oil imports rose to 5 percent of gross domestic product for net importers. In the past several years, many governments have not passed through the world oil price increases to consumers fully. As a sign of divergent pricing policies, the retail prices of gasoline, diesel, and cooking gas in January 2013 varied by a factor of 190, 250, and 70, respectively, across develo...

Crude oil import policy of Turkey: Historical analysis of determinants and implications since 1968

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ediger, Volkan S.; Berk, Istemi

2011-01-01

Turkey is one of the most energy import dependent countries in the world, suffering deeply from the economic and strategic burdens of oil importation. Our purpose is to determine the factors behind the crude oil import policy of Turkey and to measure their contribution to a well-organized import strategy. We implemented a principle component analysis to construct an Oil Import Vulnerability Index (OIVI) based on four factors, which are crude oil import dependency of primary energy consumption, crude oil import bill as a share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), non-diversification of import sources, and share of oil in total energy import. The contribution of these factors to the OIVI is found to be approximately equal. While an overall deterioration in the OIVI has been observed during periods of increasing oil prices, better diversification of oil import sources has lead to significant improvements. We suggest Turkish policy-makers implement sound policies, emphasizing diversification of crude oil import sources and reduction of the share of crude oil in primary energy imports to increase energy supply security. This study has also demonstrated that it is possible to construct an index representing crude oil vulnerability caused by import dependency. - Research highlights: →We examine the factors lying behind the crude oil import policy of Turkey. → We measure the contribution of each factor to a well-organized import strategy. → We constrtuct an Oil Import Vulnerability Index using principle component analysis. → We suggest that four factors affect oil import policies with almost equal weights. → Source diversification is found to be the core issue in oil import policies.

Crude oil import policy of Turkey: Historical analysis of determinants and implications since 1968

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ediger, Volkan S., E-mail: volkanediger@gmail.co [Izmir University of Economics, Sakarya Caddesi, No. 156, 35330 Izmir (Turkey); Berk, Istemi [Izmir University of Economics, Sakarya Caddesi, No. 156, 35330 Izmir (Turkey)

2011-04-15

Turkey is one of the most energy import dependent countries in the world, suffering deeply from the economic and strategic burdens of oil importation. Our purpose is to determine the factors behind the crude oil import policy of Turkey and to measure their contribution to a well-organized import strategy. We implemented a principle component analysis to construct an Oil Import Vulnerability Index (OIVI) based on four factors, which are crude oil import dependency of primary energy consumption, crude oil import bill as a share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), non-diversification of import sources, and share of oil in total energy import. The contribution of these factors to the OIVI is found to be approximately equal. While an overall deterioration in the OIVI has been observed during periods of increasing oil prices, better diversification of oil import sources has lead to significant improvements. We suggest Turkish policy-makers implement sound policies, emphasizing diversification of crude oil import sources and reduction of the share of crude oil in primary energy imports to increase energy supply security. This study has also demonstrated that it is possible to construct an index representing crude oil vulnerability caused by import dependency. - Research highlights: {yields}We examine the factors lying behind the crude oil import policy of Turkey. {yields} We measure the contribution of each factor to a well-organized import strategy. {yields} We constrtuct an Oil Import Vulnerability Index using principle component analysis. {yields} We suggest that four factors affect oil import policies with almost equal weights. {yields} Source diversification is found to be the core issue in oil import policies.

Do high oil prices justify an increase in taxation in a mature oil province? The case of the UK continental shelf

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakhle, Carole

2007-01-01

In response to the structural shift in oil price coupled with greater import dependency, concerns about security of supply have once again emerged as a major policy issue. The UK, the largest producer of oil and natural gas in the European Union, became a net importer of natural gas in 2004, and according to Government estimates will become a net importer of oil by the end of the decade. A weakened North Sea performance means extra reliance, both for the UK and Europe as a whole, on global oil and gas network and imports. In 2002, the UK Government introduced a 10% supplementary charge and in 2005, doubled the charge to 20% in an attempt to capture more revenues from the oil industry as a result of the increase in the price of crude oil. However, higher tax rates do not necessarily generate higher fiscal revenue and in the long term may result in materially lower revenues if investment is discouraged as indeed occurred when the 2007 UK Annual Budget statement showed a shortfall in North Sea oil revenues below forecasts of Pounds 4 billion. It is therefore argued that the increase in the fiscal take came at the wrong time for the UK Continental Shelf and that the UK Government's concern should have been to encourage more oil production from its declining province, especially in the light of the rising concern surrounding the security of supply

Separated influence of crude oil prices on regional natural gas import prices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ji, Qiang; Geng, Jiang-Bo; Fan, Ying

2014-01-01

This paper analyses the impact of global economic activity and international crude oil prices on natural gas import prices in three major natural gas markets using the panel cointegration model. It also investigates the shock impacts of the volatility and the increase and decrease of oil prices on regional natural gas import prices. The results show that both global economic activity and international crude oil prices have significant long-term positive effects on regional natural gas import prices. The volatility of international crude oil prices has a negative impact on regional natural gas import prices. The shock impact is weak in North America, lags in Europe and is most significant in Asia, which is mainly determined by different regional policies for price formation. In addition, the response of natural gas import prices to increases and decreases in international crude oil prices shows an asymmetrical mechanism, of which the decrease impact is relatively stronger. - Highlights: • Impacts of world economy and oil prices on regional natural gas prices are analysed • North American natural gas prices are mainly affected by world economy • Asian and European natural gas prices are mainly affected by oil prices • The volatility of oil prices has a negative impact on regional natural gas prices • The response of natural gas import prices to oil prices up and down shows asymmetry

Renewable and non-renewable energy consumption and economic growth: Evidence from MENA Net Oil Exporting Countries.

OpenAIRE

Kahia, Montassar; Ben Aissa, Mohamed Safouane

2014-01-01

This study investigate the relationship between renewable and non-renewable energy consumption and economic growth in a sample of 13 MENA Net Oil Exporting Countries covering the period 1980–2012 within a multivariate panel framework. The Pedroni (1999, 2004), Kao (1999) as well as the Westerlund (2007) panel cointegration tests indicate that there is a long-run equilibrium relationship between real GDP, renewable energy consumption, non-renewable energy consumption, real gross fixed capital ...

Net energy analysis - powerful tool for selecting elective power options

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baron, S. [Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY (United States)

1995-12-01

A number of net energy analysis studies have been conducted in recent years for electric power production from coal, oil and uranium fuels; synthetic fuels from coal and oil shale; and heat and electric power from solar energy. This technique is an excellent indicator of investment costs, environmental impact and potential economic competitiveness of alternative electric power systems for energy planners from the Eastern European countries considering future options. Energy conservation is also important to energy planners and the net energy analysis technique is an excellent accounting system on the extent of energy resource conservation. The author proposes to discuss the technique and to present the results of his studies and others in the field. The information supplied to the attendees will serve as a powerful tool to the energy planners considering their electric power options in the future.

Dominant Middle East oil reserves critically important to world supply

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riva, J.P. Jr.

1991-01-01

This paper reports that the location production, and transportation of the 60 million bbl of oil consumed in the world each day is of vital importance to relations between nations, as well as to their economic wellbeing. Oil has frequently been a decisive factor in the determination of foreign policy. The war in the Persian Gulf, while a dramatic example of the critical importance of oil, is just the latest of a long line of oil-influenced diplomatic/military incidents, which may be expected to continue. Assuming that the world's remaining oil was evenly distributed and demand did not grow, if exploration and development proceeded as efficiently as they have in the U.S., world oil production could be sustained at around current levels to about the middle of the next century. It then would begin a long decline in response to a depleting resource base. However, the world's remaining oil is very unevenly distributed. It is located primarily in the Eastern Hemisphere, mostly in the Persian Gulf, and much is controlled by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Scientific resource assessments indicate that about half of the world's remaining conventionally recoverable crude oil resource occurs in the Persian Gulf area. In terms of proved reserves (known recoverable oil), the Persian Gulf portion increase to almost two-thirds

Transporting US oil imports: The impact of oil spill legislation on the tanker market. Draft final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rowland, P.J. [Rowland (P.) Associates (United States)

1992-05-01

The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (``OPA``) and an even more problematic array of State pollution laws have raised the cost, and risk, of carrying oil into and out of the US. This report, prepared under contract to the US Department of energy`s Office of Domestic and International Policy, examines the impact of Federal and State oil spill legislation on the tanker market. It reviews the role of marine transportation in US oil supply, explores the OPA and State oil spill laws, studies reactions to OPA in the tanker and tank barge industries and in related industries such as insurance and ship finance, and finally, discusses the likely developments in the years ahead. US waterborne oil imports amounted to 6.5 million B/D in 1991, three-quarters of which was crude oil. Imports will rise by almost 3 million B/D by 2000 according to US Department of energy forecasts, with most of the crude oil growth after 1995. Tanker demand will grow even faster: most of the US imports and the increased traffic to other world consuming regions will be on long-haul trades. Both the number of US port calls by tankers and the volume of offshore lightering will grow. Every aspect of the tanker industry`s behavior is affected by OPA and a variety of State pollution laws.

Sensory properties of Californian and imported extra virgin olive oils.

Science.gov (United States)

Delgado, Claudia; Guinard, Jean-Xavier

2011-04-01

Production and consumption of extra-virgin olive has been increasing in the United States, particularly in California. The objective of this study was to compare the sensory characteristics of 22 extra virgin olive oils (EVOO) from California, Italy, Spain, Chile, and Australia using a generic descriptive analysis. A total of 22 sensory attributes were identified and defined by the descriptive panel. With the exception of thick and citrus, all sensory attributes were significantly different among the oils. Canonical Variate Analysis (CVA) showed that California oils differed from some imported EVOOs, mainly by their absence of defects. A second analysis, of only those attributes included in the International Olive Council (IOC) official scorecard, provided a less detailed description of the samples and did not allow for a full characterization of the oils. While the IOC attributes allowed for faster classification in terms of clean versus defective EVOOs, the more comprehensive descriptive analysis provided both more information and a more refined classification of the samples. Variety and region of origin were important factors in the classification of both Californian and imported EVOOs.   Measuring olive oil sensory quality using the IOC method-positive attributes of fruitiness, bitterness, and pungency, and defects including fusty, musty, winey, and rancid-allows for the certification of oils as extra virgin but it provides limited information on the sensory characteristics of the oils. A full descriptive profile, on the other hand, provides information that can be used by producers in the processing and marketing of their oils, and is a useful tool in the education of consumers about the wide range of (positive) sensory attributes in EVOO and the various sensory styles of EVOO.

Comparison of China's oil import risk. Results based on portfolio theory and a diversification index approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Gang; Liu, Lan-Cui; Wei, Yi-Ming

2009-01-01

In recent years, the international oil price has fluctuated violently, bringing about huge risk for the international oil trade. In fact, the risk of crude oil and petroleum product imports is different because of the different import origins and prices. Which import risk is lower for China? From the perspective of oil supply security, how should China portfolio crude oil and petroleum product imports to minimize its oil import risk? Using portfolio theory and a diversification index approach, this paper compares and analyzes the supply, price and transport risks of crude oil and petroleum product imports. Our results show that the following: (1) Specific risk (diversification risk) and marine transport risk of China's petroleum product imports are lower than that of crude oil imports. (2) The average rate of return of China's petroleum product imports is higher than that of crude oil imports. Moreover, the average import price variance of petroleum product imports is lower than that of crude oil imports. Thus, the systematic risk (price risk) of petroleum products is lower too. Therefore, from the perspective of oil supply security, China should increase petroleum product imports to decrease its oil import risk. (author)

Import demand of crude oil and economic growth. Evidence from India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ghosh, Sajal

2009-01-01

This study establishes a long-run equilibrium relationship among quantity of crude oil import, income and price of the imported crude in India for the time span 1970-1971 to 2005-2006 using autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach of cointegration. Empirical results show that the long-term income elasticity of imported crude in India is 1.97 and there exists a unidirectional long-run causality running from economic growth to crude oil import. So reduction of crude oil import will not affect the future economic growth in India in the long-run. India should take various energy efficiency and demand side management measures in transport sector along with other measures like expanding and strengthening indigenous resource-base, substituting imported fuels by domestic fuels and de-controlling the price of petroleum products to reduce its import dependence. (author)

An empirical analysis of the risk of crude oil imports in China using improved portfolio approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Gang; Wei, Yi-Ming; Fan, Ying; Liu, Lan-Cui

2007-01-01

This paper quantifies the diversification index of China's crude oil imports during the period 1996-2004, and explores the relationship between the monthly prices and Brent crude oil cash prices. Accordingly, we calculate the systematic and specific risks using portfolio theory of China's crude oil import over the period 1996-2004. Because China's crude oil import increased rapidly since 1996, we improve upon the traditional portfolio theory and develop a risk index model of portfolio theory for crude oil imports in order to explore objectively the changes in China's crude oil import risks. The results show that China's crude oil import risk is affected extensively by the fluctuation of international oil prices. So the traditional portfolio theory is insufficient to measure China's crude oil import risk. The improved portfolio theory risks index model reflects the effect of international oil prices, diversification, imports, and geopolitics factors etc., on crude oil import risk, and changes in crude oil import risk. Therefore, the risk index model of portfolio theory provides greater theoretical and methodological robustness as an indicator of China's crude oil import security than that offered from the application of traditional measures of dependence. (author)

Oil price shocks and long run price and import demand behavior

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kleibergen, F.; Van Dijk, H.K.; Urbain, J.P.

1997-01-01

The effect which the oil price time series has on the long run properties of Vector AutoRegressive (VAR) models for price levels and import demand is investigated. As the oil price variable is assumed to be weakly exogenous for the long run parameters, a cointegration testing procedure allowing for weakly exogenous variables is developed using a LU decomposition of the long run multiplier matrix. The likelihood based cointegration test statistics, Wald, Likelihood Ratio and Lagrange Multiplier, are constructed and their limiting distributions derived. Using these tests, we find that incorporating the oil price in a model for the domestic or import price level of seven industrialized countries decreases the long run memory of the inflation rate. Second, we find that the results for import demand can be classified with respect to the oil importing or exporting status of the specific country. The result for Japan is typical as its import price is not influenced by gnp in the long run, which is the case for all other countries. 31 refs

Oil price fluctuations and U.S. dollar exchange rates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lizardo, Radhames A.; Mollick, Andre V.

2010-01-01

Adding oil prices to the monetary model of exchange rates, we find that oil prices significantly explain movements in the value of the U.S. dollar (USD) against major currencies from the 1970s to 2008. Our long-run and forecasting results are remarkably consistent with an oil-exchange rate relationship. Increases in real oil prices lead to a significant depreciation of the USD against net oil exporter currencies, such as Canada, Mexico, and Russia. On the other hand, the currencies of oil importers, such as Japan, depreciate relative to the USD when the real oil price goes up. (author)

In situ net N mineralisation and nitrification under organic and conventionally managed olive oil orchards

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gomez Muñoz, Beatriz; Hinojosa, M. B.; García-Ruiz, R.

2015-01-01

Olive oil orchard occupies a great percentage of the cropland in southern Spain. Thus, changes in nitrogen (N) fertilization might have a great effect on N dynamics at least at regional scale, which should be investigated for a sustainable N fertilization program. In situ net N mineralization (NM......) and nitrification (NN) were investigated during a year in comparable organic (OR) and conventional (CV) olive oil orchards of two locations differing their N input. Soil samples were collected in two soil positions (under and between trees canopy) and both buried-bags and soil core techniques were used to quantify...... soil TN. Soil TN and PMN explained together a 50 % of the variability in soil N availability, which suggests that these two variables are good predictors of the potential of a soil to provide available N. The highest rates of soil N availability were found in spring, when olive tree demand for N...

An estimation of crude oil import demand in Turkey: Evidence from time-varying parameters approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ozturk, Ilhan; Arisoy, Ibrahim

2016-01-01

The aim of this study is to model crude oil import demand and estimate the price and income elasticities of imported crude oil in Turkey based on a time-varying parameters (TVP) approach with the aim of obtaining accurate and more robust estimates of price and income elasticities. This study employs annual time series data of domestic oil consumption, real GDP, and oil price for the period 1966–2012. The empirical results indicate that both the income and price elasticities are in line with the theoretical expectations. However, the income elasticity is statistically significant while the price elasticity is statistically insignificant. The relatively high value of income elasticity (1.182) from this study suggests that crude oil import in Turkey is more responsive to changes in income level. This result indicates that imported crude oil is a normal good and rising income levels will foster higher consumption of oil based equipments, vehicles and services by economic agents. The estimated income elasticity of 1.182 suggests that imported crude oil consumption grows at a higher rate than income. This in turn reduces oil intensity over time. Therefore, crude oil import during the estimation period is substantially driven by income. - Highlights: • We estimated the price and income elasticities of imported crude oil in Turkey. • Income elasticity is statistically significant and it is 1.182. • The price elasticity is statistically insignificant. • Crude oil import in Turkey is more responsive to changes in income level. • Crude oil import during the estimation period is substantially driven by income.

Oil market in Asia. Now and future up to year 2000 and beyond

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shibutani, Yu

1995-01-01

Asia's growing oil demand will be met by imports from the Middle East to an overwhelmingly extent. Therefore, more refining capacity will be needed to cope with the oil demand. New refineries will require the increasingly sophisticated technology to produce higher yields of transportation fuels and older ones will have to be upgrated, which will reshape the integration of downstream activities in this region. Further, East Asia, including China, as a net importer of oil, is vulnerable because of low oil sufficiency and inadequate stockpiling, while oil demand is increasing at remarkable rates. (author)

Importance of algae oil as a source of biodiesel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Demirbas, Ayhan; Fatih Demirbas, M.

2011-01-01

Algae are the fastest-growing plants in the world. Industrial reactors for algal culture are open ponds, photobioreactors and closed systems. Algae are very important as a biomass source. Algae will some day be competitive as a source for biofuel. Different species of algae may be better suited for different types of fuel. Algae can be grown almost anywhere, even on sewage or salt water, and does not require fertile land or food crops, and processing requires less energy than the algae provides. Algae can be a replacement for oil based fuels, one that is more effective and has no disadvantages. Algae are among the fastest-growing plants in the world, and about 50% of their weight is oil. This lipid oil can be used to make biodiesel for cars, trucks, and airplanes. Microalgae have much faster growth-rates than terrestrial crops. the per unit area yield of oil from algae is estimated to be from 20,000 to 80,000 l per acre, per year; this is 7-31 times greater than the next best crop, palm oil. The lipid and fatty acid contents of microalgae vary in accordance with culture conditions. Most current research on oil extraction is focused on microalgae to produce biodiesel from algal oil. Algal-oil processes into biodiesel as easily as oil derived from land-based crops.

CONTAGIOUS EFFECTS OF OIL PRICES ON ASIAN STOCK MARKETS’ BEHAVIOUR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jok-Tong Wan

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The main objective of this study is to examine the stock markets’ shock due to the effect of the price of oil in the East Asia Region. Particularly, this study examines if there is stock market interdependence during global oil price shocks (sudden changes for a sample of five total oil importers (the Philippines, Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan, four net oil importers (Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, and China, and one net oil exporter (Malaysia between 1999 and 2014. From the result, an oil price change is collectively found to have a small but significant positive impact on the stock markets, in particular where a sudden decrease in oil prices tends to cause a stock market downturn and volatility. The world economy’s spending, financial investments in oil futures and foreign investment by oil rich nations are some underlying motives for inducing this oil-stock positive relation. The same direction of time-varying conditional correlations is found across East Asian stock markets during negative oil price shocks. The integration among East Asian stock markets is inducing the oil shock contagion to be transmitted from direct oil-affected countries (South Korea, Hong Kong, and Singapore to non-direct oil affected countries’ (Japan and Taiwan stock markets. In spite of a long practiced ASEAN+3 macroeconomics surveillance process and Early Warning System (EWS which can be customized for stock markets to prevent or detect the oil risk, hedging against initial oil-affected stock markets and a stronger influence by the East Asian countries in the global world of oil and capital investment are strongly suggested.

Quantifying China's oil import risks and the impact on the national economy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun, Mei; Gao, Cuixia; Shen, Bo

2014-01-01

With an increase in China's oil imports, China's oil supply will also continue to be effected by the socio-economic stability of oil-exporting countries and the safety of oil transport routes. This paper introduces a systematic and quantitative method to evaluate the influence of China's oil import risks (OIR) on the national economy and industrial sectors from a perspective of apply chain process. For this analysis, China's OIR is quantified by integrating oil exporting country risk and the risks from oil transportation routes. Country risk is defined as the oil-exporting country's political risk caused by political changes or internal conflicts. Transport risk is defined as the risk of shipping routes affected by pirate attacks and geopolitics. Second, the relationship between China's OIR and oil import costs is analyzed using a multiple linear approach. Third, an input–output analysis method is used to research the effect of the cost of China's oil imports on the cost of investment within China's domestic sectors. This research finds that the corresponding impact on GDP is 3494.5 million dollars given an increasing by 10% of China's OIR. And the impact on domestic sectors differs from sector to sector. Finally, this paper puts forth recommendations to improve long-term oil supply security in China. - Highlights: • Quantifies China's OIR while taking into consideration the risks from oil-exporting countries and the risks from oil transportation routes. • Explores the relationship between China's OIR and oil import costs using a multiple linear regression approach. • Analyzes the effects of China's OIR on the investment cost of domestic sectors with an input–output analysis. • Investigates the impact of China's OIR on the domestic economy

The importance of education to increase the use of bed nets in villages outside of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ndjinga Julie K

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Malaria is the most prominent disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, and long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs have been distributed free of charge since 2006 to combat the disease. However, the success of this bed net campaign depends on sufficient bed net use in all age groups. This study was designed to examine the factors affecting bed net use in villages outside of Kinshasa. Methods Two villages along the Congo River, totalling 142 households with 640 residents, were surveyed using a standard questionnaire. The interview determined the number, ages, and sexes of family members; the education level of the family head; the number, colour, and type of nets owned; and the number of nets used in the previous night. The size of house was also measured, and numbers of rooms and beds were recorded. These variables were examined to reveal important factors that affect bed net use. Results A total of 469 nets were counted, and nearly all nets were white LLINs. Of these nets, 229 (48.8% nets were used by 284 (44.4% residents. Bed nets were used by over 90% of children 5 to 15 years of age, whereas less than 50% of the residents in other age groups used bed nets. The important variables affecting bed net use were numbers of beds and rooms in the house and the education level of the family head of household. Conclusion Education was the most important factor affecting bed net use in the villages outside Kinshasa. Development of an educational programme, particularly one directed toward parents, is necessary to reduce misconceptions and increase prevalence of bed net use among all age groups.

Ex-USSR: Oil exporter or importer?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khartukov, E.M.

1993-01-01

Political disintegration and economic perestroika in the former Soviet Union (FSU) have major international ramifications and some of these can be found in the oil sector. An overview is presented of the FSU oil industry, including the conditions preceding and following the breakup. Early effects of the breakup included shortages of liquid fuels and the introduction of a strict export quota and license system. The likelihood of disruptions in oil exports, caused by political clashes between Russia and the other oil-transporting republics is low. Rapid decentralization of the Soviet oil trade is likely to bring forth currency-starved national exporters that may add substantially to international market competition and further undercut unstable world oil prices. In the short term, the FSU oil industry will suffer from inevitable imbalances which will manifest themselves in regional oil shortages and gluts spreading towards neighbouring international markets. In the medium and longer term the cooperating parts will become more self-reliant or infrastructurally independent and will speed natural growth and integration into neighbouring petroleum markets. Crude oil and oil product balances of the FSU republics are presented. 2 refs., 2 figs., 7 tabs

Assessment of the use of dispersants on oil spills in California marine waters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trudel, K.; Ross, S.; Belore, R.; Buffington, S.; Ogawa, C.; Panzer, D.

2002-01-01

The technical issues regarding the use of dispersants to clean up oil spills from offshore production sources and transportation sources in California were assessed in this study which examined both operational and environmental issues. The operational issues included the dispersibility of produced and imported oils, along with the capabilities of California response resources to deal with typical spills and limiting environmental impacts to offshore environments. The environmental issues include the risks associated with typical spills and potential net environmental benefit of chemically dispersing oil spills. Most crude oils produced offshore California are heavy and border on the undispersable range, but the imported crudes are somewhat lighter. Modeling has shown that most produced oils and some imported oils emulsify quickly and weather more quickly to the point where they are no longer dispersible. There is a very narrow window of time for chemical dispersions to be used effectively. The net environmental benefit analysis demonstrates that the use of dispersants lessens the total environmental impact of spill scenarios. It was emphasized that it is necessary to act quickly if chemical dispersion is to be effective. Rapid response strategies are needed, including locally based vessel and helicopter spraying systems. 19 refs., 8 tabs., 1 fig

Oil price, capital mobility and oil importers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gonzalez-Romero, A.

1992-01-01

A three-region, three-commodity general equilibrium model is constructed to explore the impact of OPEC's pricing policies on major macro variables of importer economies. The aim of this paper is to explore general macro characteristics of the trading economies to aid understanding of the world economy response after OPEC I and OPEC II in terms of the evolution of North - South terms of trade, rates of profit and output levels. We support the view of a world economy in a three regions setting, North - South - OPEC. The analysis increases our understanding of why regions respond differently to the same external shock and how from different regimes of capital mobility we should derive alternative policy implications. With the current rise in oil prices, the topic promises to be relevant for some time, although the direction of the shocks has been reserved. (Author)

Price and income elasticities of crude oil import demand in South Africa: A cointegration analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ziramba, Emmanuel

2010-01-01

This paper examines the demand for imported crude oil in South Africa as a function of real income and the price of crude oil over the period 1980-2006. We carried out the Johansen co integration multivariate analysis to determine the long-run income and price elasticities. A unique long-run cointegration relationship exists between crude oil imports and the explanatory variables. The short-run dynamics are estimated by specifying a general error correction model. The estimated long-run price and income elasticities of -0.147 and 0.429 suggest that import demand for crude oil is price and income inelastic. There is also evidence of unidirectional long-run causality running from real GDP to crude oil imports. - Research Highlights: →The paper examines the demand for imported crude oil in South Africa over the period 1980-2006. → The estimated long-run price and income elasticities are -0.147 and 0.429, respectively. → There is evidence of unidirectional long-run causality running from real GDP to crude oil imports.

Price and income elasticities of crude oil import demand in South Africa: A cointegration analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ziramba, Emmanuel, E-mail: zirame@unisa.ac.z [Department of Economics, University of South Africa, P.O Box 392, Unisa 0003 (South Africa)

2010-12-15

This paper examines the demand for imported crude oil in South Africa as a function of real income and the price of crude oil over the period 1980-2006. We carried out the Johansen co integration multivariate analysis to determine the long-run income and price elasticities. A unique long-run cointegration relationship exists between crude oil imports and the explanatory variables. The short-run dynamics are estimated by specifying a general error correction model. The estimated long-run price and income elasticities of -0.147 and 0.429 suggest that import demand for crude oil is price and income inelastic. There is also evidence of unidirectional long-run causality running from real GDP to crude oil imports. - Research Highlights: {yields}The paper examines the demand for imported crude oil in South Africa over the period 1980-2006. {yields} The estimated long-run price and income elasticities are -0.147 and 0.429, respectively. {yields} There is evidence of unidirectional long-run causality running from real GDP to crude oil imports.

Well-to-refinery emissions and net-energy analysis of China's crude-oil supply

Science.gov (United States)

Masnadi, Mohammad S.; El-Houjeiri, Hassan M.; Schunack, Dominik; Li, Yunpo; Roberts, Samori O.; Przesmitzki, Steven; Brandt, Adam R.; Wang, Michael

2018-03-01

Oil is China's second-largest energy source, so it is essential to understand the country's greenhouse gas emissions from crude-oil production. Chinese crude supply is sourced from numerous major global petroleum producers. Here, we use a per-barrel well-to-refinery life-cycle analysis model with data derived from hundreds of public and commercial sources to model the Chinese crude mix and the upstream carbon intensities and energetic productivity of China's crude supply. We generate a carbon-denominated supply curve representing Chinese crude-oil supply from 146 oilfields in 20 countries. The selected fields are estimated to emit between 1.5 and 46.9 g CO2eq MJ-1 of oil, with volume-weighted average emissions of 8.4 g CO2eq MJ-1. These estimates are higher than some existing databases, illustrating the importance of bottom-up models to support life-cycle analysis databases. This study provides quantitative insight into China's energy policy and the economic and environmental implications of China's oil consumption.

Administration of structured lipid composed of MCT and fish oil reduces net protein catabolism in enterally fed burned rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Teo, T C; DeMichele, S J; Selleck, K M; Babayan, V K; Blackburn, G L; Bistrian, B R

1989-01-01

The effects of enteral feeding with safflower oil or a structured lipid (SL) derived from 60% medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) and 40% fish oil (MCT/fish oil) on protein and energy metabolism were compared in gastrostomy-fed burned rats (30% body surface area) by measuring oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, nitrogen balance, total liver protein, whole-body leucine kinetics, and rectus muscle and liver protein fractional synthetic rates (FSR, %/day). Male Sprague-Dawley rats (195 +/- 5g) received 50 ml/day of an enteral regimen containing 50 kcal, 2 g amino acids, and 40% nonprotein calories as lipid for three days. Protein kinetics were estimated by using a continuous L-[1-14C] leucine infusion technique on day 2. Thermally injured rats enterally fed MCT/fish oil yielded significantly higher daily and cumulative nitrogen balances (p less than or equal to 0.025) and rectus muscle (39%) FSR (p less than or equal to 0.05) when compared with safflower oil. MCT/fish oil showed a 22% decrease (p less than or equal to 0.005) in per cent flux oxidized and a 7% (p less than or equal to 0.05) decrease in total energy expenditure (TEE) versus safflower oil. A 15% increase in liver FSR was accompanied by a significant elevation (p less than or equal to 0.025) in total liver protein with MCT/fish oil. This novel SL shares the properties of other structured lipids in that it reduces the net protein catabolic effects of burn injury, in part, by influencing tissue protein synthetic rates. The reduction in TEE is unique to MCT/fish oil and may relate to the ability of fish oil to diminish the injury response. PMID:2500898

Price and income elasticities of crude oil import demand in South Africa. A cointegration analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ziramba, Emmanuel [Department of Economics, University of South Africa, P.O Box 392, Unisa 0003 (South Africa)

2010-12-15

This paper examines the demand for imported crude oil in South Africa as a function of real income and the price of crude oil over the period 1980-2006. We carried out the Johansen co integration multivariate analysis to determine the long-run income and price elasticities. A unique long-run cointegration relationship exists between crude oil imports and the explanatory variables. The short-run dynamics are estimated by specifying a general error correction model. The estimated long-run price and income elasticities of -0.147 and 0.429 suggest that import demand for crude oil is price and income inelastic. There is also evidence of unidirectional long-run causality running from real GDP to crude oil imports. (author)

Net soil respiration and greenhouse gas balance along a sequence of forest disturbance to smallholder rubber and oil palm plantations in Sumatra

Science.gov (United States)

Khusyu Aini, Fitri; Hergoualc'h, Kristell; Smith, Jo; Verchot, Louis; Martius, Christopher

2017-04-01

The rapid increase in demand for land to establish oil palm and rubber plantations has led to the conversion of forests, with potential impacts on greenhouse gas emissions and on climate change. This study evaluates the net greenhouse gas balance following forest change to other land uses, i.e. one year rubber plantation, twenty-year rubber plantation and eight year oil palm plantation on Sumatran mineral soils. None of the plantations had ever been fertilized previously. During this study they were fertilized to provide nitrogen at the recommended rate used by farmers (33.3 kg N ha-1 y-1). The ecosystem stores carbon in litterfall, standing litter biomass (undergrowth vegetation, leaves, twigs, litter on the soil surface), soil organic matter, root biomass, and standing tree biomass. It releases carbon to the atmosphere through soil respiration fluxes, negative values indicating that carbon is stored by the land use change and positive values indicating emissions to the atmosphere. Net soil respiration was assessed using a mass balance approach: standing litter and tree biomass were measured once; the rate of carbon accumulation from standing litter and tree biomass was calculated by dividing the stock by the age of plantation or the time since logging started in the disturbed forest. The carbon accumulation in standing litter, tree biomass in the forest and soil organic matter for all land-uses was estimated from available in the literature. Root biomass for each land-use system was calculated using the root:shoot ratio. The net soil respiration of carbon dioxide from the forest, disturbed forest, one year rubber plantation, twenty-year rubber plantation and oil palm plantation were calculated to be -6 (± 5), 12 (± 6), 11 (± 15), 10 (± 5), 39 (± 7) Mg ha-1 y-1, respectively. Soil nitrous oxide, methane and litterfall were measured for 14 months and respiration fluxes were measured for 5 months across land uses and different seasons. The measured emissions of

U.S. demand and imports wither in recession: Oil loses share

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1992-01-01

This issue of Energy Detente finds that the economic recession and very low prices for natural gas have cut US use of oil and reduced its oil-import dependency. The period 1985 through 1991 is examined by petroleum product. The 1991 decline in crude oil imports is felt to be an anomaly that will reverse itself in the short term; it was caused by the recession and the flurry of additional production during the Persian Gulf conflict. This issue also presents the following: (1) The ED Refining Netback Data Series for the US Gulf and West Coasts, Rotterdam, and Singapore as of April 10, 1992; and (2) the ED Fuel Price/Tax Series for countries of the Western Hemisphere, April 1992 Edition

Nutraceutical Importance of Sesame Seed and Oil: A Review of the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Sesame seed is widely used in food and nutraceutical industries in many countries because of its high oil, protein and antioxidant contents. Sesame oil contains sesamin, sesamolin and sesaminol lignan fractions, which are known to play an important role in its oxidative stability and antioxidative activity. It is widely known ...

Estimating oil product demand in Indonesia using a cointegrating error correction model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dahl, C.

2001-01-01

Indonesia's long oil production history and large population mean that Indonesian oil reserves, per capita, are the lowest in OPEC and that, eventually, Indonesia will become a net oil importer. Policy-makers want to forestall this day, since oil revenue comprised around a quarter of both the government budget and foreign exchange revenues for the fiscal years 1997/98. To help policy-makers determine how economic growth and oil-pricing policy affect the consumption of oil products, we estimate the demand for six oil products and total petroleum consumption, using an error correction-cointegration approach, and compare it with estimates on a lagged endogenous model using data for 1970-95. (author)

SolarOil Project, Phase I preliminary design report. [Solar Thermal Enhanced Oil Recovery project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baccaglini, G.; Bass, J.; Neill, J.; Nicolayeff, V.; Openshaw, F.

1980-03-01

The preliminary design of the Solar Thermal Enhanced Oil Recovery (SolarOil) Plant is described in this document. This plant is designed to demonstrate that using solar thermal energy is technically feasible and economically viable in enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The SolarOil Plant uses the fixed mirror solar concentrator (FMSC) to heat high thermal capacity oil (MCS-2046) to 322/sup 0/C (611/sup 0/F). The hot fluid is pumped from a hot oil storage tank (20 min capacity) through a once-through steam generator which produces 4.8 MPa (700 psi) steam at 80% quality. The plant net output, averaged over 24 hr/day for 365 days/yr, is equivalent to that of a 2.4 MW (8.33 x 10/sup 6/ Btu/hr) oil-fired steam generator having an 86% availability. The net plant efficiency is 57.3% at equinox noon, a 30%/yr average. The plant will be demonstrated at an oilfield site near Oildale, California.

The importance of North Sea oil to European energy supply

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bauw, R. De

1992-01-01

There is no doubt about the importance of North Sea oil to the energy supply of the European Community. One might however be used to it and forget about the nature and the size of its impact on our economies. Firstly, this paper intends to estimate this impact - past, present and future. Secondly, a more qualitative approach will explore possible consequences of the implementation of the internal market for North Sea oil. Thirdly, the assistance given by the Community to innovative technologies which enabled North Sea oil to contribute, under better economic conditions and within a safer environment, to our supply is recalled. And finally, some remarks on energy policy form an EC perspective, are offered. (author)

BP fusion model for the detection of oil spills on the sea by remote sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Weiwei; An, Jubai; Zhang, Hande; Lin, Bin

2003-06-01

Oil spills are very serious marine pollution in many countries. In order to detect and identify the oil-spilled on the sea by remote sensor, scientists have to conduct a research work on the remote sensing image. As to the detection of oil spills on the sea, edge detection is an important technology in image processing. There are many algorithms of edge detection developed for image processing. These edge detection algorithms always have their own advantages and disadvantages in the image processing. Based on the primary requirements of edge detection of the oil spills" image on the sea, computation time and detection accuracy, we developed a fusion model. The model employed a BP neural net to fuse the detection results of simple operators. The reason we selected BP neural net as the fusion technology is that the relation between simple operators" result of edge gray level and the image"s true edge gray level is nonlinear, while BP neural net is good at solving the nonlinear identification problem. Therefore in this paper we trained a BP neural net by some oil spill images, then applied the BP fusion model on the edge detection of other oil spill images and obtained a good result. In this paper the detection result of some gradient operators and Laplacian operator are also compared with the result of BP fusion model to analysis the fusion effect. At last the paper pointed out that the fusion model has higher accuracy and higher speed in the processing oil spill image"s edge detection.

Oil and Gas Emergency Policy: Germany 2012 update

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2012-07-01

Germany has very little domestic oil and natural gas production and relies heavily on imports. It has well diversified and flexible oil and natural gas supply infrastructure, which consists of crude, product and gas pipelines and crude and oil product import terminals. Natural gas is imported into Germany exclusively by cross-border pipeline. The country has no LNG infrastructure, although some German companies have booked capacities in overseas LNG terminals. Oil continues to be the main source of energy in Germany although it has declined markedly since the early 1970s. It now represents approximately 32% of Germany’s total primary energy supply (TPES). Natural gas consumption in Germany has declined 10% since 2006. Demand was 90 bcm in 2010, down from 100 bcm in 2005. According to government commissioned analysis, the total consumption of natural gas in Germany is expected to continue to decline over the long term. The share of natural gas in Germany’s TPES is currently around 22%. German oil stock levels are generally well above the required 90-days. Total oil stock levels in Germany were equivalent to 140 days net imports in April 2012. Since 1998, the German oil stockholding agency (EBV) has been solely responsible for meeting Germany's 90-day stockholding obligation. The Oil Stockholding Act stipulates that the EBV shall constantly maintain stocks of oil and petroleum products at a level equivalent to or above 90 days of net imports. There is no minimum stockholding obligation on industry, so industry held commercial stocks are held in addition to the EBV stocks. There are several legal tools available to German authorities for natural gas emergency response. These include Ordinances that can be used to restrict the sale, purchase or use of goods, both in terms of quantity and time, or permit them only for certain priority purposes, to ensure that vital energy needs are met. There are no compulsory natural gas storage requirements in Germany, and no

Net energy levels on the lipid profile of pork

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephan Alexander da Silva Alencar

2017-09-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT: This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of net energy levels on the lipid profile of adipose tissue and muscle of swines. A total of 90 animals, with initial weight of 71.94±4.43kg, were used, and distributed in a randomized block design in five net energy levels (2,300, 2,425, 2,550, 2,675, and 2,800Kcal kg-1 feed, with nine replicates and two animals per experimental unit. Lipid profiles of adipose tissue and muscle were analyzed using gas chromatography. Increasing the levels of net energy using soybean oil, improved the lipid profile of adipose tissue and muscle, increased linearly (P<0.05 the concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially linoleic and α-linolenic acid, reduced linearly (P<0.05 the monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids and omega 6: omega 3. In adipose tissue was observed linear reduction (P<0.05 of atherogenic and thrombogenic indexes. In conclusion, increasing the level of net energy of the diet using soybean oil improved the lipid profile of adipose tissue and muscle.

Measuring the importance of oil-related revenues in total fiscal income for Mexico

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reyes-Loya, Manuel Lorenzo; Blanco, Lorenzo [Facultad de Economia, Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon, Loma Redonda 1515 Pte., Col. Loma Larga, C.P. 64710, Monterrey, Nuevo Leon (Mexico)

2008-09-15

Revenues from oil exports are an important part of government budgets in Mexico. A time-series analysis is conducted using monthly data from 1990 to 2005 examining three different specifications to determine how international oil price fluctuations and government income generated from oil exports influence fiscal policy in Mexico. The behavior of government spending and taxation is consistent with the spend-tax hypothesis. The results show that there is an inverse relationship between oil-related revenues and tax revenue from non-oil sources. Fiscal policy reform is urgently needed in order to improve tax collection as oil reserves in Mexico become more and more depleted. (author)

Measuring the importance of oil-related revenues in total fiscal income for Mexico

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reyes-Loya, Manuel Lorenzo; Blanco, Lorenzo

2008-01-01

Revenues from oil exports are an important part of government budgets in Mexico. A time-series analysis is conducted using monthly data from 1990 to 2005 examining three different specifications to determine how international oil price fluctuations and government income generated from oil exports influence fiscal policy in Mexico. The behavior of government spending and taxation is consistent with the spend-tax hypothesis. The results show that there is an inverse relationship between oil-related revenues and tax revenue from non-oil sources. Fiscal policy reform is urgently needed in order to improve tax collection as oil reserves in Mexico become more and more depleted. (author)

The impacts on U.S. energy markets and the economy of reducing oil imports. Service report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-09-01

The General Accounting Office (GAO) has responded to a request from Representative John Kasich by requesting that the Energy Information Administration (EIA) use the National Energy Modeling System (NEMS) to estimate the cost to the U.S. economy of reducing oil imports. The analysis summarized by this paper focuses on two approaches toward a target reduction in oil imports: (1) a set of cases with alternative world crude oil price trajectories, and (2) two cases which investigates the use of an oil import fee

The nature of oil shocks and the global economy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Archanskaïa, Elizaveta; Creel, Jérôme; Hubert, Paul

2012-01-01

This paper identifies the main driving force behind oil price shocks in 1970–2006 by applying a simple identification strategy of supply-driven and demand-driven price shocks. The identification hypothesis states that supply-driven oil price shocks have a negative impact on the macroeconomic activity of countries, which are net consumers of oil while demand-driven oil price shocks do not have negative effects. In order to identify global demand-driven shocks, a weighted aggregate GDP series of countries, which are net consumers of oil, is constructed over 1970–2006. The key result is that the main driving force behind oil price shocks has changed from supply-driven shocks in 1970–1992 to demand-driven shocks in 1992–2006. - Highlights: ► We characterize the oil–macroeconomy relationship at the global level. ► We identify oil supply and oil demand shocks drawing on a AS/AS model. ► We construct an indicator of global activity for countries net consumers of oil. ► We use Qu-Perron break tests, TVP, Cyclical correlations and VARs. ► We show that the main driving force behind oil price shocks has changed around 1992.

Short-run and long-run elasticities of import demand for crude oil in Turkey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altinay, Galip

2007-01-01

The aim of this study is to attempt to estimate the short-run and the long-run elasticities of demand for crude oil in Turkey by the recent autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach to cointegration. As a developing country, Turkey meets its growing demand for oil principally by foreign suppliers. Thus, the study focuses on modelling the demand for imported crude oil using annual data covering the period 1980-2005. The bounds test results reveal that a long-run cointegration relationship exists between the crude oil import and the explanatory variables: nominal price and income, but not in the model that includes real price in domestic currency. The long-run parameters are estimated through a long-run static solution of the estimated ARDL model, and then the short-run dynamics are estimated by the error correction model. The estimated models pass the diagnostic tests successfully. The findings reveal that the income and price elasticities of import demand for crude oil are inelastic both in the short run and in the long run

ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF PEAK OIL FOR THE MAJOR MULTINATIONAL OIL AND GAS COMPANIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonio García-Amate

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The main goal of this work is to analyze the financial statements of the five major multinational oil and gas companies, for the 2011-2015 period, in the framework of the peak oil phenomenon. Peak oil can affect key financial indicators (e.g., earnings volatility, leverage that are used by managers, investors, and stockholders and which may potentially lead to changes in the decision making by management. Our results show that the decline in oil production affects the decisions about investment in new oil wells, leverage, dividends paid, shares purchased and net income involving the five major companies. In addition, we study the evolution of oil prices, and its influence in several items of the financial statements. Even though oil prices were at high levels during 2011-2014, however, the net income of the five companies actually declined due to the impact of peak oil. Finally, data for the last year studied (2015 indicate a general deterioration in return ratios and other accounting variables. Although the new investments should have been profitable, they have been influenced by peak oil, compromising the economic position of the companies. The advice to these companies would be to relax their investments, especially during a period of falling oil prices. Company managers need to recognize the prolonged duration of peak oil and price trends to promote profitability recovery decisions.

Ex-Soviet Union: oil exporter or importer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khartukov, E.M.

1993-01-01

Perestroika of the Soviet economy and the political disintegration of the USSR have raised questions about the international ramifications of the ongoing economic and political developments in the world's largest oil-producing country. First of all, it relates to their impact on the quantity and quality of oil exports from the former Soviet Union (FSU). On the other hand, the opening of the national oil industry to foreign investors focuses their ever growing attention on the complicated internal, inter-republic oil issues which emerged after the sudden fragmentation of the Soviet oil empire into a dozen of sovereign but still interdependent parts. 1 fig., 7 tabs

31 CFR 560.513 - Importation of Iranian-origin oil.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Importation of Iranian-origin oil. 560.513 Section 560.513 Money and Finance: Treasury Regulations Relating to Money and Finance... the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran of January 19, 1981, or where the proceeds are...

The Definitive Guide to NetBeans™ Platform 7

CERN Document Server

Bock, Heiko

2011-01-01

The NetBeans Platform is the world's only modular Swing application framework, used by very large organizations in mission-critical scenarios, such as at Boeing and Northrop Grumman, as well as in the financial sector and in the oil/gas industry. For these large customers in enterprises who are increasingly interested in Maven and OSGi, the book will have particular relevance. The Definitive Guide to NetBeans Platform 7 is a thorough and authoritative introduction to the open-source NetBeans Platform, covering all its major APIs in detail, with relevant code examples used throughout. * Provide

The equivalency between logic Petri workflow nets and workflow nets.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jing; Yu, ShuXia; Du, YuYue

2015-01-01

Logic Petri nets (LPNs) can describe and analyze batch processing functions and passing value indeterminacy in cooperative systems. Logic Petri workflow nets (LPWNs) are proposed based on LPNs in this paper. Process mining is regarded as an important bridge between modeling and analysis of data mining and business process. Workflow nets (WF-nets) are the extension to Petri nets (PNs), and have successfully been used to process mining. Some shortcomings cannot be avoided in process mining, such as duplicate tasks, invisible tasks, and the noise of logs. The online shop in electronic commerce in this paper is modeled to prove the equivalence between LPWNs and WF-nets, and advantages of LPWNs are presented.

The Equivalency between Logic Petri Workflow Nets and Workflow Nets

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jing; Yu, ShuXia; Du, YuYue

2015-01-01

Logic Petri nets (LPNs) can describe and analyze batch processing functions and passing value indeterminacy in cooperative systems. Logic Petri workflow nets (LPWNs) are proposed based on LPNs in this paper. Process mining is regarded as an important bridge between modeling and analysis of data mining and business process. Workflow nets (WF-nets) are the extension to Petri nets (PNs), and have successfully been used to process mining. Some shortcomings cannot be avoided in process mining, such as duplicate tasks, invisible tasks, and the noise of logs. The online shop in electronic commerce in this paper is modeled to prove the equivalence between LPWNs and WF-nets, and advantages of LPWNs are presented. PMID:25821845

Importance of the slick thickness for effective in-situ burning of crude oil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van Gelderen, Laurens; Brogaard, Nicholas L.; Sørensen, Martin X.

2015-01-01

height. The experiments were performed in a new experimental apparatus, the Crude Oil Flammability Apparatus (COFA), which has been developed to study ISB of oil on water in a controlled laboratory environment with large water-to-oil ratios. The regression rate, average mass loss rate and burning...... efficiency reached a constant maximum value for all oils at slick thicknesses exceeding 10–20 mm. For thinner initial slick thicknesses, these values were greatly reduced, most likely due to heat losses to the water. A further increase in the initial slick thickness could not improve the burning efficiency......In order to improve the potential of in-situ burning (ISB), the importance of the oil slick thickness on two pure oils (n-octane and dodecane) and two fresh crude oils (Grane and REBCO) was studied in relation to the regression rate, boilover tendency, mass loss rate, burning efficiency and flame...

Oil price and the dollar

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coudert, V.; Mignon, V.; Penot, A.

2007-01-01

Oil prices and the United States (US) dollar exchange rate are driving the evolution of the world economy. This paper investigated long-term relationships between oil prices and the US effective exchange rate. An empirical study was performed on oil prices and the dollar real effective exchange rate between 1974 to 2004. The impact of the dollar exchange rate was also explored, and the effects of oil prices on supply and demand were considered. A dynamic partial equilibrium framework study was evaluated in order to compare how other countries used revenues from oil exports in dollars. The study showed that both variables had similar evolutions when price fluctuations were low. Strong increases in the dollar were associated with lower oil prices. However, adjustment speeds of the dollar real effective exchange rate was slow. Co-integration and causality tests showed that oil prices influenced the exchange rate, and that the link between the 2 variables was transmitted through the country's net foreign asset position. It was concluded that higher oil prices improved US net foreign asset position in relation to other countries, and had a positive impact on dollar appreciation. 24 refs., 6 tabs., 1 fig

Analysis of China Fiscal System for Deepwater Oil and Gas Development under Uncertainty

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mingming Liu

2014-05-01

Full Text Available World deepwater is famous for its rich oil and gas reserves, and has become an important source of global oil and gas supply, with a rising investment which will be over the shallow water counterparts in the next few years, as well as an expansion of oil and gas output. The ‘Deepwater Golden Triangle’ of the North American Gulf of Mexico, Brazil and West Africa has been leading the most exploration, development and investment activities in the world, and their experience on fiscal system during different development stages has great reference value other than advanced technologies. Under the assumptions of uncertain oil price and producing cost, this paper analyzed China fiscal system for deepwater oil and gas development, modeled the free natural resource tax, uplifting the threshold of special oil levy, and other scenarios, and compared their results on contractor’s net presented value, internal return rate and present index. Based on net present value, internal return rate, profitability index, as well as the domestic fiscal policies, this paper found that Special Oil Levy levied only on profit oil and the cancel of government share oil would have the most significant incentives, while lower the income tax rate to 15%, raising the threshold price at which the Special Oil Levy payable by 15 $/bbl and zero Value-added tax have much higher feasibility.

Oil production, oil prices, and macroeconomic adjustment under different wage assumptions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harvie, C.; Maleka, P.T.

1992-01-01

In a previous paper one of the authors developed a simple model to try to identify the possible macroeconomic adjustment processes arising in an economy experiencing a temporary period of oil production, under alternative wage adjustment assumptions, namely nominal and real wage rigidity. Certain assumptions were made regarding the characteristics of actual production, the permanent revenues generated from that oil production, and the net exports/imports of oil. The role of the price of oil, and possible changes in that price was essentially ignored. Here we attempt to incorporate the price of oil, as well as changes in that price, in conjunction with the production of oil, the objective being to identify the contribution which the price of oil, and changes in it, make to the adjustment process itself. The emphasis in this paper is not given to a mathematical derivation and analysis of the model's dynamics of adjustment or its comparative statics, but rather to the derivation of simulation results from the model, for a specific assumed case, using a numerical algorithm program, conducive to the type of theoretical framework utilized here. The results presented suggest that although the adjustment profiles of the macroeconomic variables of interest, for either wage adjustment assumption, remain fundamentally the same, the magnitude of these adjustments is increased. Hence to derive a more accurate picture of the dimensions of adjustment of these macroeconomic variables, it is essential to include the price of oil as well as changes in that price. (Author)

Oil and Gas Emergency Policy: China 2012 update

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2012-09-06

Although coal is the dominant energy source in China, accounting for some 70% of the country's Total Energy Consumption (TEC) in 2009, oil and gas are also essential energy sources. Despite strong growth in consumption of oil, its share of TEC fell from 22% in 2000 to 18% in 2009, as coal use rose even faster to meet burgeoning demand for electricity. A strong policy push boosted natural gas supplies, particularly to residential customers, so that the share of natural gas doubled from 2% in 2000 to 4% in 2009. China is one of the important oil and natural gas producing counties in the world. In 2010, China's crude oil production exceeded 4 million barrels per day (mb/d). However, with strong and sustained economic growth, its demand for oil has also increased, from 4.6 mb/d in 2000 to over 8 mb/d in 2009. In the New Policy Scenario (NPS) of the IEA World Energy Outlook (WEO) 2011, China's primary oil demand rises to 12.2 mb/d in 2020. Although China is now the world's fifth largest oil producer, the country has been a net oil importer since 1993. In 2011, China imported over 5 mb/d of crude oil, accounting for about 54% of its total demand. More than 50% of the total crude oil imports came from counties of the Middle East. To prevent a potential shock to the economy caused by an oil supply disruption, the Chinese government has been steadily pushing building an oil stock reserve system. China has completed four stockpiling facilities with a capacity of around 103 mb in the first phase of its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) plan, and has begun construction of its second phase, which comprises eight storage sites that will reportedly have a combined capacity of around 207 mb. Among them, two sites were completed in the second half of 2011 and the Tianjin site is reportedly set to be completed in 2012. According to unofficial reports, the remaining four SPR-II sites are expected to become operational by 2013. The third phase is expected to boost

Energy Security Analysis: The case of constrained oil supply for Ireland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glynn, James; Chiodi, Alessandro; Gargiulo, Maurizio; Deane, J.P.; Bazilian, Morgan; Gallachóir, Brian Ó

2014-01-01

Ireland imports 88% of its energy requirements. Oil makes up 59% of total final energy consumption (TFC). Import dependency, low fuel diversity and volatile prices leave Ireland vulnerable in terms of energy security. This work models energy security scenarios for Ireland using long term macroeconomic forecasts to 2050, with oil production and price scenarios from the International Monetary Fund, within the Irish TIMES energy systems model. The analysis focuses on developing a least cost optimum energy system for Ireland under scenarios of constrained oil supply (0.8% annual import growth, and –2% annual import decline) and subsequent sustained long term price shocks to oil and gas imports. The results point to gas becoming the dominant fuel source for Ireland, at 54% total final energy consumption in 2020, supplanting oil from reference projections of 57% to 10.8% TFC. In 2012, the cost of net oil imports stood at €3.6 billion (2.26% GDP). The modelled high oil and gas price scenarios show an additional annual cost in comparison to a reference of between €2.9bn and €7.5bn by 2020 (1.9–4.9% of GDP) to choose to develop a least cost energy system. Investment and ramifications for energy security are discussed. - Highlights: • We investigate energy security within a techno-economic model of Ireland to 2050. • We impose scenarios constraints of volume and price derived from IMF forecasting. • Continued high oil prices lead to natural gas supplanting oil at 54% TFC by 2020. • Declining oil production induces additional energy system costs of 7.9% GDP by 2020. • High oil and gas prices are likely to strain existing Irish gas import infrastructure

Drilling, alternative fuels and efficiency. Can the United States wean itself from imported oil?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fairey, Philip [Florida Solar Energy Center, 1679 Clearlake Road, Cocoa, FL 32922-5703 (United States)

2009-04-15

Perhaps the most daunting challenge the next generation of Americans will face is what President Bush called our 'addiction to oil'. The challenge is to find the means to provide for our transportation needs in the face of declining world oil production. Perhaps the central question is whether we will export the great wealth of America to foreign countries in payment for oil before we tackle the grand challenge of creating a new transportation future that does not rely completely on oil. This article presents the historical facts relative to America's oil demand and domestic and world oil production resources. These historical trends are used to construct a scenario of future supply and demand for oil in the US. A range of existing technologies, which can reduce the need for petroleum imports, are then evaluated using wedges analysis, giving projections to the year 2030. (author)

Drilling, alternative fuels and efficiency: Can the United States wean itself from imported oil?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fairey, Philip [Florida Solar Energy Center, 1679 Clearlake Road, Cocoa, FL 32922-5703 (United States)], E-mail: pfairey@fsec.ucf.edu

2009-04-15

Perhaps the most daunting challenge the next generation of Americans will face is what President Bush called our 'addiction to oil'. The challenge is to find the means to provide for our transportation needs in the face of declining world oil production. Perhaps the central question is whether we will export the great wealth of America to foreign countries in payment for oil before we tackle the grand challenge of creating a new transportation future that does not rely completely on oil. This article presents the historical facts relative to America's oil demand and domestic and world oil production resources. These historical trends are used to construct a scenario of future supply and demand for oil in the US. A range of existing technologies, which can reduce the need for petroleum imports, are then evaluated using wedges analysis, giving projections to the year 2030.

Drilling, alternative fuels and efficiency. Can the United States wean itself from imported oil?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fairey, Philip

2009-01-01

Perhaps the most daunting challenge the next generation of Americans will face is what President Bush called our 'addiction to oil'. The challenge is to find the means to provide for our transportation needs in the face of declining world oil production. Perhaps the central question is whether we will export the great wealth of America to foreign countries in payment for oil before we tackle the grand challenge of creating a new transportation future that does not rely completely on oil. This article presents the historical facts relative to America's oil demand and domestic and world oil production resources. These historical trends are used to construct a scenario of future supply and demand for oil in the US. A range of existing technologies, which can reduce the need for petroleum imports, are then evaluated using wedges analysis, giving projections to the year 2030. (author)

Role of oil imports in economic development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madduri, V.B.N.S.; Radhika, G.

1990-01-01

This paper reports that energy has a vital role to play in a developing economy. The process of industrialization calls for continuous increase in energy use. In general, the greater the use of energy, the higher the economy is placed in the order of developed countries. Countries with high per-capita income have a high consumption level of energy too. On a per-capita basis, energy consumed in U.S.A. is 51.7 barrels of oil equivalent per year while in India, it is 0.9 barrels of oil equivalent only. Therefore, energy consumption, industrial development and economic growth are interlinked. Energy became a significant part in the process of development. In the case of developing countries, any change in the price of oil has a negative effect on economic growth. It was stated in one of the Oil and Natural Gas Commission reports that a fivefold increase in the international price of oil, in real terms, over the past 15 years has had profound effects on balance of payments and growth prospects in developing countries

Coals to Newcastle: Will Alberta become a crude oil importer?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haessel, W.; Foley, D.J.

1991-01-01

The security of markets for Canadian heavy crude oil (HCO) under different conditions is examined. The emphasis of the study is on the conditions under which bitumen blend from Alberta could penetrate certain markets that have generally been identified as potential prospects. A secondary question concerns the cost reductions in bitumen production and upgrading that would be needed for bitumen blend and synthetic crude oil (SCO) to penetrate these same markets if long-term oil prices settle at US$18/bbl for Saudi light delivered to the USA Gulf Coast in 2010. A brief overview is first presented of some of the world and US factors that will affect the demand for Canadian HCO, with specific reference to the demand in the northern USA in 2010. The determination of the volume of HCO that can or will be processed at a refinery or a combination of refineries in a given market is then discussed. The cost and volume numbers for 2010 as provided in the National Energy Board's latest Canadian energy supply and demand forecast are used in the analysis. It is concluded that all traditional markets outside of the Canadian prairies could be lost if world oil prices stay below US$18/bbl for extended periods. At prices below US$17/bbl, bitumen producers would have trouble competing with imported crude oils in Edmonton unless bitumen production costs decline from current levels. The potential for bitumen production costs to decline enough for diluted bitumen to compete with US$18/bbl oil is better than the prospect for SCO costs to decrease enough to compete in eastern Canada or the northern USA at those price levels. 9 figs., 8 tabs

Effect of crude oil and refined petroleum product imports on the national security. Critical technologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-01-01

The report contains the results of an investigation requested under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act to study the effect of oil imports on the domestic petroleum industry and on United States energy security. It reviews previous energy security assessments and resulting initiatives, assesses current US energy security, and studies emergency petroleum requirements. The report finds that there have been substantial improvements in US energy security since the last Section 232 Petroleum finding in 1979. However, declining domestic oil production, rising oil imports, and growing dependence on potentially insecure sources of supply raise concerns of vulnerability to a major supply disruption

Oil Producers vulnerability: restrictions for oil supply strategy - OPEC, Mexico and Norway; Indicadores de vulnerabilidade do produtor de petroleo: restricoes a estrategia de oferta - OPEP, Mexico and Norway

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Delgado, Fernanda; Schaeffer, Roberto; Szklo, Alexandre [Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), RJ (Brazil). Coordenacao dos Programas de Pos-Graduacao de Engenharia (COPPE)

2008-07-01

Few analysts address the socio-economic vulnerability faced by large oil producers countries that restricts their oil supply strategies. However, such as net import countries may be vulnerable to oil supply, large oil exporters countries may also become vulnerable due to their socio-economic dependence on oil, as export revenues are so important to their wealth generation and their populations' well-fare status. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the vulnerabilities of some oil exporters as the OPEC's member-countries, Mexico and Norway face, or may face, and that may restrict their degree of freedom for productive decision making (including investments) and for elaborating oil supply strategies (aiming at taking a larger share of the oil revenue). In order to do that this paper is divided in 3 sections. Initially, socio-economic vulnerability indicators for the oil exporting countries are presented, built and analyzed. Socio-economic vulnerability indicators comprehend, for instance, the following dimensions: physical, productive, fiscal, commercial, macroeconomic and social. The next section regards the application of a multi criteria method, the AHP - Analytic Hierarchy Process in order to summarize and organize the indicators. Finally, implications of the socio-economic vulnerabilities of these oil export countries for the world oil supply and price are derived. (author)

Development of Bottom Oil Recovery Systems. Revised

Science.gov (United States)

2014-02-01

ahead of the filtration process. Stage 6 Disposal: Collection of oil , oiled debris, and decontaminated sand/sediments. 7 NET ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT......Sea HFO / 10.7 X 1983 T/V Hanon Jade Yosu, South Korea Heavy Arabian Crude Oil X (salt) ( burn residue) 1984 T/V Alvenus Louisiana Merey

Crude oil prices: Speculation versus fundamentals

Science.gov (United States)

Kolodziej, Marek Krzysztof

Beginning in 2004, the price of crude oil fluctuates rapidly over a wide range. Large and rapid price increases have recessionary consequences and dampen long-term infrastructural investment. I investigate whether price changes are driven by market fundamentals or speculation. With regard to market fundamentals, I revisit econometric evidence for the importance of demand shocks, as proxied by dry maritime cargo rates, on oil prices. When I eliminate transportation costs from both sides of the equation, disaggregate OPEC and non-OPEC production, and allow for more than one cointegrating relation, I find that previous specifications are inconsistent with arguments that demand shocks play an important role. Instead, results confirm the importance of OPEC supply shocks. I investigate two channels by which speculation may affect oil prices; the direct effect of trader behavior and changes in oil from a commodity to a financial asset. With regard to trader behavior, I find evidence that trader positions are required to explain the spread between spot and futures prices of crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The inclusion of trader positions clarifies the process of equilibrium error correction, such that there is bidirectional causality between prices and trader positions. This creates the possibility of speculative bubbles. With regard to oil as a commodity and/or financial asset, I use a Kalman Filter model to estimate the time-varying partial correlation between returns to investments in equity and oil markets. This correlation changes from negative to positive at the onset of the 2008 financial crisis. The low interest rates used to rescue the economy depress convenience yields, which reduces the benefits of holding oil as a commodity. Instead, oil becomes a financial asset (on net) as the oil market changed from contango to backwardation. Contradicting simple political narratives, my research suggests that both market fundamentals and speculation drive

Ranking Canadian oil and gas projects using TOPSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seyed Jafar Sadjadi

2017-08-01

Full Text Available One of the primary concerns for investment in oil and gas projects is to have a comprehensive understanding on different issues associated with this industry. The industry is mainly influ-enced by the price of oil and gas and in some events, many production units have been forced to shut down solely because of low price of oil and gas. Environmental issues are other important factors, which may put pressure on Canada’s political affairs since the country has strong com-mitment to reduce green gas effect. In this paper, we introduce a multi-criteria decision making method, which helps us rank different projects in terms of investment. The proposed study con-siders different investment factors including net present value, rate of return, benefit-cost analy-sis and payback period along with the intensity of green gas effects for ranking the present oil and gas projects in Canada.

Life cycle energy efficiency and potentials of biodiesel production from palm oil in Thailand

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Papong, Seksan; Chom-In, Tassaneewan; Noksa-nga, Soottiwan

2010-01-01

Biodiesel production from palm oil has been considered one of the most promising renewable resources for transportation fuel in Thailand. The objective of this study was to analyze the energy performance and potential of the palm oil methyl ester (PME) production in Thailand. The PME system was divided into four stages: the oil palm plantation, transportation, crude palm oil (CPO) production, and transesterification into biodiesel. The results showed that the highest fossil-based energy consumption was in the transesterification process, followed by the plantation, transportation, and CPO production. A net energy value and net energy ratio (NER) of 24.0 MJ/FU and 2.5, respectively, revealed that the PME system was quite energy efficient. In addition, if all the by-products from the CPO production (such as empty fruit branches, palm kernel shells, and biogas) were considered in terms of energy sources, the NER would be more than 3.0. The PME can be a viable substitute for diesel and can decrease the need for oil imports. Based on B100 demand in 2008, PME can be substituted for 478 million liters of diesel. Moreover, with palm oil output potential and B5 implementation, it can be substituted for 1134 million liters of diesel. (author)

The price of oil and the future of Middle East Gas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zaki Yamani, A.

1997-01-01

Most LNG contracts relate the LNG price received by the supplier at the point of delivery to a relevant oil price. Gas and oil are thus closely connected so that when the price of landed oil decreases so dose the price of delivered LNG. With large fixed transportation and liquefaction costs, accounting for around 85% of the supply cost of delivered LNG in the case of Qatari LNG supplied to japan, you can imagine how large falls in the price paid for delivered LNG would squeeze the net back to the producer back in Qatar. However, low oil price can do some damage to the economics of existing LNG projects in the Middle East. More importantly, persistently low oil prices can prevent new LNG projects from leaving the drawing board-which will stifle the exciting export potential of Middle Eastern gas

The deforestation problem in oil-importing developing countries: A capital theory approach to a renewable resource

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodriguez, A.E.

1991-01-01

This study attempts an analysis of the effects of a crude-oil price shock on the tropical rain-forest biomass of oil-importing developing countries. It establishes the logical plausibility of this relationship between price shocks and deforestation by developing a stylized capital-theoretic intertemporal model with a trade constraint. This formulation allows one to determine the correct price path at each moment in time, an efficiency consideration. A second theoretical model purports to show that justification for the building of high dams as a response to energy shocks was based on myopic expectations of crude oil supplier behavior. Once rational supplier response to natural capital stocks is taken into consideration, a different result emerges suggesting a much larger optical biomass stock. Noting that deforestation is an externality with global repercussions and appealing to the logic of the Folk Theorem of game theory, the last chapter proposes an international collaborative effort whereby concerned nations would supply crude oil to oil-importing developing countries that have witnessed the deterioration of their forest biomass as a direct or indirect consequence of oil price shocks

Imported resources - gas/oil

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jakob, K. [MOL Hungarian Oil and Gas Company, Budapest (Hungary)

1995-12-01

The goal of this presentation is to provide information on issues of crude oil and natural gas supply at a conference addressing the problems of energy in Eastern and Central Europe. Although this can inevitably be performed through the {open_quotes}binoculars{close_quotes} of the petroleum sector of my country, I will try to present the issues and challenges that are thought to be characteristic in general for the region.

NOFI oil Vee-Sweep and extension boom test at OHMSETT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bitting, K.R.; Vicedomine, J.

1993-01-01

The NOFI Vee-Sweep is an inflatable oil collection boom held in a V configuration by cross netting attached to the skirt of the boom. The NOFI 600S is an inflatable oil boom used to divert oil into the Vee-Sweep. The lower section of the 600S skirt consists of a feather net and a ballast chain. The booms are designed for open-ocean skimming where a skimmer is placed in the Vee-Sweep apex to remove the collected oil. During testing, the booms were preloaded with oil and towed in the OHMSETT tank at various speeds and wave conditions. Each boom was tested for its first and gross (continuous) oil loss speeds. The Vee-Sweep was also evaluated for wave performance, oil thickness vs tow speed, oil loss rate, and critical tow speed. Finally, a DESMI-250 oil skimmer was placed in the Vee-Sweep apex and oil loss tests were run while the skimmer was operating. During the critical tow speed testing, failures occurred due to apex submergence at ca 3.5 knots in calm water and short-crested waves, and 2.4 knots in harbor chop. The oil loss tests showed that the Vee-Sweep retains oil at speeds significantly higher than conventional booms. First oil loss speeds ranged from 1.3 knots in calm water to 1.0 knot in regular waves. The Vee-Sweep's high buoyancy/weight ratio gave it good wave performance in all conditions tested. The 600S oil loss speeds were higher than those of most conventional booms, and performance was better when the feather net was attached. 1 ref., 4 figs., 4 tabs

The importance of the oil sector in the national economy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Montenegro Santiago

2001-01-01

The paper is about the oil sector in Colombia as for their growing importance in the economy of the country in the last years, leaving of the base that this strategic sector for the economy for its high participation in the gross internal product, generates a very high percentage of the total exports and because it is also a very important source of fiscal resources for the national government as for the sectional governments. This writing is centered fundamentally in the analysis related with the production and export of raw petroleum

The Effect of Oil Spills on Marine Microbes: The Importance of Where, When, and How

Science.gov (United States)

Brock, M. L.; Ederington-Hagy, M.; Richardson, R. L.; Snyder, R.; Jeffrey, W. H.

2016-02-01

While much recent attention has been paid to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and biodegradation by microbial communities, it is important to remember that numerous factors may determine the types of environmental effects that may result from oil spills. Not all oil spills (e.g., crude, refined, weathered, fuels, use of dispersants) are created equal, and it is likely that the characteristics of different environments will affect ecosystem response to oil. Temperature, salinity, and solar radiation are three potentially important factors related to location and seasonality. The effects of some of these environmental factors on the formation of Water Accommodated Fractions (WAFs) developed from Deepwater Horizon oils and the subsequent effects on microbial growth is being investigated. WAFs were generated under varying solar but controlled temperature conditions, various temperatures and salinities, as well as from burned and weathered oil. After all WAFs were collected, each was added to a coastal seawater sample and their effects on bacterial production or phytoplankton photosynthesis determined. Results from both assays demonstrated that WAFs produced in the dark had minimal effects on growth while inhibition was proportional to the amount of solar exposure. Burning oil prior to formation of WAFs increased inhibition of production independent of subsequent solar treatment. Preliminary data suggests that temperature plays a minimal role. The results imply that the ecological effects caused by oil spills are very light dependent and thus could vary by season, location, and may occur to significant depths in the ocean.

Uranium exports could match oil imports

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McIntyre, H.C.

1977-01-01

Apart from a temporary embargo while safeguards are negotiated, the Canadian government limits uranium exports so as to guarantee fuel for every Canadian reactor built or planned for 30 years. On the basis of present known reserves of 172 Gg of 'cheap' U 3 O 8 and 33 of 'dear', that would mean phasing out exports after the mid 1980's, but probably much more 'dear' uranium remains to be discovered. Provincial taxation and restrictions on foreign ownership may be limitations. Discoveries range over eleven areas, but production capacity at present is 14190 Mg/d from Ontario and 3400 from Saskatchewan, with 8800 mothballed and 4860 planned or being rehabilitated. The price has jumped to $95/kg, so that uranium exports may cover half the cost of oil imports. All producers use sulfuric acid leaching, except Eldorado, which uses carbonate leaching; a process using tertiary amine is being developed. Development of the organic-cooled Th/ 233 U fuelled reactor may greatly extend fuel resources. (N.D.H.)

Application of deconvolution interferometry with both Hi-net and KiK-net data

Science.gov (United States)

Nakata, N.

2013-12-01

Application of deconvolution interferometry to wavefields observed by KiK-net, a strong-motion recording network in Japan, is useful for estimating wave velocities and S-wave splitting in the near surface. Using this technique, for example, Nakata and Snieder (2011, 2012) found changed in velocities caused by Tohoku-Oki earthquake in Japan. At the location of the borehole accelerometer of each KiK-net station, a velocity sensor is also installed as a part of a high-sensitivity seismograph network (Hi-net). I present a technique that uses both Hi-net and KiK-net records for computing deconvolution interferometry. The deconvolved waveform obtained from the combination of Hi-net and KiK-net data is similar to the waveform computed from KiK-net data only, which indicates that one can use Hi-net wavefields for deconvolution interferometry. Because Hi-net records have a high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) and high dynamic resolution, the S/N and the quality of amplitude and phase of deconvolved waveforms can be improved with Hi-net data. These advantages are especially important for short-time moving-window seismic interferometry and deconvolution interferometry using later coda waves.

Full chain energy analysis of biodiesel production from palm oil in Thailand

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pleanjai, Somporn; Gheewala, Shabbir H. [The Joint Graduate School of Energy and Environment, King Mongkut' s University of Technology Thonburi, 126 Pracha-Uthit Road, Bangmod, Tungkru, Bangkok 10140 (Thailand)

2009-11-15

Biodiesel from palm oil has been considered for partial substitution of diesel fuel for transportation in Thailand. The Thai government recently has set up a production target of 8.5 million liters per day of palm oil-based biodiesel by 2011. The aim of this study is to investigate the energy consumption of palm methyl ester (PME) production in Thailand using a life cycle approach compared to other possible oil crops for biodiesel production including jatropha and coconut. The main contributors to the energy use are cultivation, oil production, transesterification and transportation. Taking into account only fossil fuel or petroleum inputs in the production cycle, the energy analysis provides results in favour of PME in Thailand. The net energy balance (NEB) and net energy ratio (NER) of PME and co-products are 100.84 GJ/ha and 3.58, respectively. The NER of PME without co-products is 2.42, which is still higher than one indicating a favourable result. The results are important in selecting an appropriate feedstock for biodiesel production and this study will support policy makers in the energy sector to make informed decisions vis-a-vis promotion of oil palm plantation for biodiesel. This will also support the Thai government in its policy to promote the use of indigenous and renewable sources for transportation fuels. (author)

Quality studies of the energy in the electric net of the gathering warehouse of reusable parts and contaminate oils of the nuclear power plant Laguna Verde

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tijerina S, F.; Vargas A, A.; Cardenas J, J.

2012-10-01

In the industry exist the high costs by faults of electronic and electric equipment s, due to during the design process, installation, tests and operation of these equipment s, is not had appropriate detection equipment to carry out quality studies of the energy. These studies give an important support to know that occurs in an electric net, the cause of the anomalous behavior of the equipment s and this way to avoid the expensive faults carrying out necessary engineering adaptations in an electric net. The elements of the electricity that are determined are the tension, current and frequency that are inside acceptable operational parameters that facilitate the operation and constant operation of the equipment s, free of interruptions and failures. The application of the quality studies of the energy is growing little by little in Mexico for the problems solution in the equipment s. This field is also developing new techniques and technologies integrated in the equipment s for its monitoring detection and protection. The present work offers the results of the first Quality Study of the Energy in the nuclear power plant of Laguna Verde to solve the problem in the gathering warehouse of reusable parts and contaminate oils, in which the failure of the two radiation monitors of the gassy effluent of ventilation HVAC of the warehouse took place. (Author)

Oil pulling and importance of traditional medicine in oral health maintenance.

Science.gov (United States)

Naseem, Mustafa; Khiyani, Muhammad Faheem; Nauman, Hiba; Zafar, Muhammad Sohail; Shah, Altaf H; Khalil, Hesham S

2017-01-01

Dental diseases have detrimental effects on the functionality and quality of life of individuals. In addition, a strong relationship has been established between various oral and systemic diseases. In fact, the prevention and treatment of dental caries and periodontal disease have been shown to reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease significantly. This goes beyond the role of oral health as a means to identify early manifestations of systemic diseases in the oral cavity. It highlights the necessity of maintaining an optimal oral hygiene to significantly modify the risk factors for serious systemic diseases. The use of oil pulling can be frequently found in ancient medical text and is supported by recent studies for its efficacy and long-term use for maintaining and improving oral health. This article provides an overview on the concept of oil pulling or oil swishing, its mechanism of action and a summary of the evidence available, which highlights the role of oil pulling in specific oral diseases. The goal of this review is to highlight the ancient procedure that has the potential to be used as an adjunct to conventional chemical means of dental plaque control, such as mouth rinses. Incorporating oil swishing as a component of daily oral hygiene can significantly improve oral and general health, specifically in lower socioeconomic groups and rural communities that may have interrupted access to health-care services and dental products such as dentifrices and mouth washes due to various factors; availability and affordability being the most important.

Macroeconomic effects of oil price shocks in Brazil and in the United States

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cavalcanti, Tiago; Jalles, João Tovar

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► We find that output growth volatility in the US has been decreasing over time. ► The contribution of oil price shocks to such volatility has also been decreasing. ► In Brazil, oil shocks do not seem to have a clear impact on growth. ► They account for a small fraction of the Brazilian inflation and output volatility. ► Counterfactuals show US output would be 10% less volatile with Brazil’s oil import share. - Abstract: This paper studies the effects of oil price shocks in the last 30 years on the Brazilian and American inflation rate and rhythm of economic activity. The Brazilian and the United States economies are interesting polar cases, since they had a completely different path on the oil import dependence rate. While the oil import dependence rate has increase sharply in the United States (US), it has decreased substantially in Brazil. We found that output growth volatility in the United States has been decreasing over time as well as the contribution of oil price shocks to such volatility, despite the increase in oil import dependence. Inflation volatility has also been decreasing but oil price shocks are accounting for a larger fraction of this volatility in the US. In Brazil, such shocks do not seem to have a clear impact on output growth and they account for a very small fraction of the Brazilian inflation and output growth rate volatility. We finally run some counterfactual experiments to analyze how real output growth in the United States would had been if net oil import share in the United States behaved similarly to what was observed in Brazil. We conclude that output level would be roughly the same, however, it would be about 10% less volatile if the US had the actual Brazilian oil import share

The use of IRMS, (1)H NMR and chemical analysis to characterise Italian and imported Tunisian olive oils.

Science.gov (United States)

Camin, Federica; Pavone, Anita; Bontempo, Luana; Wehrens, Ron; Paolini, Mauro; Faberi, Angelo; Marianella, Rosa Maria; Capitani, Donatella; Vista, Silvia; Mannina, Luisa

2016-04-01

Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS), (1)H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ((1)H NMR), conventional chemical analysis and chemometric elaboration were used to assess quality and to define and confirm the geographical origin of 177 Italian PDO (Protected Denomination of Origin) olive oils and 86 samples imported from Tunisia. Italian olive oils were richer in squalene and unsaturated fatty acids, whereas Tunisian olive oils showed higher δ(18)O, δ(2)H, linoleic acid, saturated fatty acids β-sitosterol, sn-1 and 3 diglyceride values. Furthermore, all the Tunisian samples imported were of poor quality, with a K232 and/or acidity values above the limits established for extra virgin olive oils. By combining isotopic composition with (1)H NMR data using a multivariate statistical approach, a statistical model able to discriminate olive oil from Italy and those imported from Tunisia was obtained, with an optimal differentiation ability arriving at around 98%. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fumigant Activity of Sweet Orange Essential Oil Fractions Against Red Imported Fire Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Wei; Zhang, Ning; Chen, Hongli; Zhong, Balian; Yang, Aixue; Kuang, Fan; Ouyang, Zhigang; Chun, Jiong

2017-08-01

Sweet orange oil fractions were prepared by molecular distillation of cold-pressed orange oil from sample A (Citrus sinensis (L.) 'Hamlin' from America) and sample B (Citrus sinensis Osbeck 'Newhall' from China) respectively, and their fumigant activities against medium workers of red imported fire ants (Solenopsis invicta Buren) were investigated. The volatile composition of the orange oil fractions was identified and quantified using GC-MS. Fractions from sample A (A1, A2, and A3) contained 23, 37, and 48 chemical constituents, and fractions from sample B (B1, B2, and B3) contained 18, 29, and 26 chemical constituents, respectively. Monoterpenes were the most abundant components, accounting for 73.56% to 94.86% of total orange oil fractions, among which D-limonene (65.28-80.18%), β-pinene (1.71-5.58%), 3-carene (0.41-4.01%), β-phellandrene (0.58-2.10%), and linalool (0.31-2.20%) were major constituents. Fumigant bioassay indicated that all orange oil fractions exerted good fumigant toxicity against workers of fire ants at 3, 5, 10, and 20 mg/centrifuge tubes, and B1 had the strongest insecticidal potential, followed by A1, B2, A2, B3, and A3. The fractions composed of more high volatile molecules (A1 and B1) showed greater fumigant effects than others. Compounds linalool and D-limonene, which were the constituents of the orange oil, exhibited excellent fumigant toxicity against red imported fire ant workers. Linalool killed red imported fire ant workers completely at 5, 10, and 20 mg/tube after 8 h of treatment, and D-limonene induced >86% mortality at 8 h of exposure. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Fort Hills Oil Sands Project No Net Loss Lake earthfill structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Blakely, D.; Sawatsky, L. [Golder Associates Ltd., Calgary, AB (Canada); Wog, K.; Paz, S. [Alberta Environment, Edmonton, AB (Canada). Water Management Operations; Chernys, S. [Petro-Canada, Calgary, AB (Canada)

2007-07-01

The Fort Hills Oil Sands Project (FHOSP) is located north of Fort McMurray, Alberta. The Fort Hills Energy Corporation (FHEC) must compensate for fish habitat lost as a result of mine development that would disturb natural streams and lakes. FHEC planned to construct a fisheries compensation lake on the north end of its leased property, contained in part by an earthfill structure. Unlike most dam structures, the FHOSP No Net Loss Lake (NNLL) earthfill structure was planned solely for the creation of fisheries compensation habitat. Therefore, the NNLL earthfill structure must be designed with robust features that can handle any foreseeable environmental condition without failure, so that it may be accepted as a sustainable feature of the mine closure landscape. This paper discussed the design features of the NNLL earthfill structure. The paper presented information on the background of the project including regulatory criteria for the fisheries compensation habitat; fisheries compensation habitat location; and design criteria for the NNLL. The features of the NNLL earthfill structure were also discussed. In addition, the paper outlined the dam safety classification for earthfill structure and anticipated system performance. The proposed monitoring program and permanent closure plans were also discussed. It was concluded that the earthfill structure was designed with several features that would allow it to become a part of the closure landscape. These included a high width to height ratio, significant erosion protection, and an aggressive reclamation plan. These features will provide a sound basis for FHEC to apply for a reclamation certificate at the end of mine life. 3 refs., 3 tabs., 8 figs.

The development process and its relation to oil revenues and dependence on imported labor market in Saudi Arabia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Almtairi, N.M.

1991-01-01

This study describes and analyzes the process of development in Saudi Arabia in relation to oil revenues and Saudi Arabian dependence on imported foreign labor. Modern development and societal change in Saudi Arabia began with the commercial exploitation of oil in 1939, therefore Saudi economy must be viewed from a dual perspective: a highly capital-intensive oil sector and a labor-intensive non-oil sector. In one generation the Kingdom created an infrastructure suitable to a rapid transformation from Bedouin tribes to a modern state, which became a leading regional power and now occupies an important place in international society. Important advances were made in social services, health services and education at all levels. Large-scale importation of foreign labor workers during the 1970s and early 1980s was necessary for the Development Plans. By the 1990s the major infrastructure was completed and only the maintenance work and minor projects remained for foreign labor sources

Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

During fiscal year 1992, the reserves generated $473 million in revenues, a $181 million decrease from the fiscal year 1991 revenues, primarily due to significant decreases in oil and natural gas prices. Total costs were $200 million, resulting in net cash flow of $273 million, compared with $454 million in fiscal year 1991. From 1976 through fiscal year 1992, the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves generated more than $15 billion in revenues and a net operating income after costs of $12.5 billion. In fiscal year 1992, production at the Naval Petroleum Reserves at maximum efficient rates yielded 26 million barrels of crude oil, 119 billion cubic feet of natural gas, and 164 million gallons of natural gas liquids. From April to November 1992, senior managers from the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves held a series of three workshops in Boulder, Colorado, in order to build a comprehensive Strategic Plan as required by Secretary of Energy Notice 25A-91. Other highlights are presented for the following: Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1--production achievements, crude oil shipments to the strategic petroleum reserve, horizontal drilling, shallow oil zone gas injection project, environment and safety, and vanpool program; Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 2--new management and operating contractor and exploration drilling; Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 3--steamflood; Naval Oil Shale Reserves--protection program; and Tiger Team environmental assessment of the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming

Oil prices and current account: A structural analysis for the Turkish economy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ozlale, Umit; Pekkurnaz, Didem

2010-01-01

Although there has been an increasing number of studies about the effects of oil prices on the macroeconomic performances, the literature on the interaction between oil prices and current account is limited, especially for oil importing developing countries. This paper analyzes the impact of oil prices on the current account balances for the Turkish economy using a structural vector autoregression model. Our model allows us to identify the net effect of oil prices on current account balances after controlling for other factors such as output gap and exchange rate misalignment. The results show that the response of current account ratio to oil price shock increases gradually up to the first three months and then starts to decrease, which indicates a significant effect of oil price shocks in the short-run. Moreover, when the obtained structural shocks are employed in a simple regression analysis, the parameter regarding the oil price shocks is found to be negative and statistically significant. The final section discusses the policy implications of the results.

Transfer prices and the excess cost of Canadian oil imports: New evidence on Bertrand versus Rugman

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernard, J.-T.; Weiner, R.J.

1992-01-01

Transfer pricing can be a source for contention between governments and multinational corporations, with suspicion that transfer prices are set so as to report higher income in countries where corporations are taxed more lightly. The first systematic empirical evidence on transfer pricing in multinational corporations is presented, through examination of the Canadian petroleum industry, which is dominated by foreign multinationals. The data cover the period 1974-84 and allow analysis of the allegation of excess cost paid by Canada for crude oil imports. After taking into account crude oil quality indicators, transaction characteristics, and countries of export, the merging of a comparable set of U.S. and Canadian data demonstrates evidence of transfer-price setting at levels significantly different from arm's-length prices for crude oil imports to Canada from 1974-84. However, the evidence runs contrary to Bertrand's assessment: the crude oil prices for affiliate transactions were found to be, in general, lower than comparable prices for third-party transactions. As to transport costs, the converse was found to be the case, however, the effect is much less important than transfer pricing. The overall result is that transfer prices have worked in Canada's favour. 15 refs., 7 tabs

The future of oil and bioethanol in Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moreira, Jose R.; Pacca, Sergio A.; Parente, Virginia

2014-01-01

This work compares the return on investments (ROI) of oil versus biofuels in Brazil. Although several renewable energy sources might displace oil, the country's forte is sugarcane biofuels. In our analysis we carry out simplified benefit–cost analyses of producing oil fields, pre-salt oil fields (without and with enhanced oil recovery), a business as the usual ethanol scenario, and a high ethanol scenario. Excluding the ROI from existing oil fields, which is the highest, when the discount rate is 4% or more, the ROI of the high ethanol scenario is greater than that of the ROI of pre-salt oil. Considering a US$40/t CO 2 tax, the high ethanol scenario's ROI is greater than the pre-salt oil's ROI if a discount rate of 2% or more is adopted. Moreover, the high ethanol scenario throughput up to 2070 compares to 97% of the pre-salt oil reserve without EOR, and demands 78% of its investment. Pre-salt oil production declines beyond 2042 when the country might become a net oil importer. In contrast, ethanol production reaches 2.1 million boe per day, and another 0.9 million boe of fossil demand is displaced through bioelectricity, yielding a total of 3 million boe (62% of the country's oil demand). - Highlights: • Cost-benefit analyses of pre-salt and biofuels in Brazil. • Hubbert model applied to pre-salt oil reserves. • Sustainable energy scenarios. • Carbon mitigation accounting based on biofuel scenarios. • Enhanced oil recovery effect on pre-salt oil reserves

The importance of subsample preparation practices in the analysis of crude oils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pereira, K.S.; Iorio, S.M.B.M. [Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (CENPES/PETROBRAS), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Centro de Pesquisas], e-mail: katiapereira@petrobras.com.br; Marques, M.L.S.P. [Fundacao Gorceix, Ouro Preto, MG (Brazil)

2011-01-15

There have been many subsample preparation practices proposed to reduce sources of error in analyses of crude oils. Optimal subsample preparation allows keeping the degree of representativity of the final aliquot going into the laboratory analyzer. The objective of this work was to discuss some experiences in order to understand the importance of sampling practices to obtain representative subsamples of crude oils and petroleum products, and measurements with minimized uncertainty whenever possible. Specific practices, whose effectiveness was tested by experiments, are discussed in this work. The analysis of variance showed that the subsamples should not be used in vapor pressure tests unless in case of interlaboratory cross check, and have to be considered as the first test from the bottle subsample. Sometimes long periods of crude oils samples storage are necessary for a complete evaluation, but because of the effect of this storage time it was observed a trend in the reducing of acidity and sulfur content. (author)

The importance of biomass net uptake for a trace metal budget in a forest stand in north-eastern France

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gandois, L.; Nicolas, M.; VanderHeijden, G.; Probst, A.

2010-01-01

The trace metal (TM: Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) budget (stocks and annual fluxes) was evaluated in a forest stand (silver fir, Abies alba Miller) in north-eastern France. Trace metal concentrations were measured in different tree compartments in order to assess TM partitioning and dynamics in the trees. Inputs included bulk deposition, estimated dry deposition and weathering. Outputs were leaching and biomass exportation. Atmospheric deposition was the main input flux. The estimated dry deposition accounted for about 40% of the total trace metal deposition. The relative importance of leaching (estimated by a lumped parameter water balance model, BILJOU) and net biomass uptake (harvesting) for ecosystem exportation depended on the element. Trace metal distribution between tree compartments (stem wood and bark, branches and needles) indicated that Pb was mainly stored in the stem, whereas Zn and Ni, and to a lesser extent Cd and Cu, were translocated to aerial parts of the trees and cycled in the ecosystem. For Zn and Ni, leaching was the main output flux (> 95% of the total output) and the plot budget (input-output) was negative, whereas for Pb the biomass net exportation represented 60% of the outputs and the budget was balanced. Cadmium and Cu had intermediate behaviours, with 18% and 30% of the total output relative to biomass exportation, respectively, and the budgets were negative. The net uptake by biomass was particularly important for Pb budgets, less so for Cd and Cu and not very important for Zn and Ni in such forest stands.

The importance of biomass net uptake for a trace metal budget in a forest stand in north-eastern France.

Science.gov (United States)

Gandois, L; Nicolas, M; VanderHeijden, G; Probst, A

2010-11-01

The trace metal (TM: Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) budget (stocks and annual fluxes) was evaluated in a forest stand (silver fir, Abies alba Miller) in north-eastern France. Trace metal concentrations were measured in different tree compartments in order to assess TM partitioning and dynamics in the trees. Inputs included bulk deposition, estimated dry deposition and weathering. Outputs were leaching and biomass exportation. Atmospheric deposition was the main input flux. The estimated dry deposition accounted for about 40% of the total trace metal deposition. The relative importance of leaching (estimated by a lumped parameter water balance model, BILJOU) and net biomass uptake (harvesting) for ecosystem exportation depended on the element. Trace metal distribution between tree compartments (stem wood and bark, branches and needles) indicated that Pb was mainly stored in the stem, whereas Zn and Ni, and to a lesser extent Cd and Cu, were translocated to aerial parts of the trees and cycled in the ecosystem. For Zn and Ni, leaching was the main output flux (>95% of the total output) and the plot budget (input-output) was negative, whereas for Pb the biomass net exportation represented 60% of the outputs and the budget was balanced. Cadmium and Cu had intermediate behaviours, with 18% and 30% of the total output relative to biomass exportation, respectively, and the budgets were negative. The net uptake by biomass was particularly important for Pb budgets, less so for Cd and Cu and not very important for Zn and Ni in such forest stands. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An Estimate of Recoverable Heavy Oil Resources of the Orinoco Oil Belt, Venezuela

Science.gov (United States)

Schenk, Christopher J.; Cook, Troy A.; Charpentier, Ronald R.; Pollastro, Richard M.; Klett, Timothy R.; Tennyson, Marilyn E.; Kirschbaum, Mark A.; Brownfield, Michael E.; Pitman, Janet K.

2009-01-01

The Orinoco Oil Belt Assessment Unit of the La Luna-Quercual Total Petroleum System encompasses approximately 50,000 km2 of the East Venezuela Basin Province that is underlain by more than 1 trillion barrels of heavy oil-in-place. As part of a program directed at estimating the technically recoverable oil and gas resources of priority petroleum basins worldwide, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated the recoverable oil resources of the Orinoco Oil Belt Assessment Unit. This estimate relied mainly on published geologic and engineering data for reservoirs (net oil-saturated sandstone thickness and extent), petrophysical properties (porosity, water saturation, and formation volume factors), recovery factors determined by pilot projects, and estimates of volumes of oil-in-place. The U.S. Geological Survey estimated a mean volume of 513 billion barrels of technically recoverable heavy oil in the Orinoco Oil Belt Assessment Unit of the East Venezuela Basin Province; the range is 380 to 652 billion barrels. The Orinoco Oil Belt Assessment Unit thus contains one of the largest recoverable oil accumulations in the world.

The containment of heavy oil in flowing water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, H.M.; Goodman, R.H.; Nicholson, P.

1992-01-01

Viscous bitumen from Alberta oil sand deposits is diluted with a gas condensate before pipeline transport. Because of its unique properties, the diluent/bitumen mix (dilbit) may require novel containment and recovery techniques in the case of an accidental spill. Preliminary experiments were conducted in a large flowing water channel to determine whether several conventional containment devices could be utilized to trap weathered and emulsified dilbit and bitumen. These devices included a conventional river boom, a nylon fine-weave net, and a low-pressure bubble barrier. The behavior of the oil samples during boom failure was noted in order to understand more completely the mechanisms of failure. The river boom failed to hold viscous floating oil by vortex shedding at flows of under 0.25 m/s. A fine mesh net successfully trapped both floating and mid-channel neutrally buoyant oil but the retention time depends on the oil viscosity. The bubble barrier was not successful in trapping either floating viscous oil or neutrally buoyant oil. At low water velocities, the barrier was able to divert some oils but in an inconsistent manner. The results indicate that conventional barriers need improvement to be effective at higher water velocities and suggest that new concepts in containment should be considered. 9 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs

Imported resources - oil crude oil processing in the Czech Republic and its prospectives

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soucek, I.; Ottis, I. [Kaucuk, Kralupy nad Vitavou (Czechoslovakia)

1995-12-01

This paper examines the availability of various crude oils, addressing specifically crude oil pipelines to the Czech Republic, both existing and under construction. Secondly, the economic status of two main Czech refineries is examined in comparison to international trends, technical configurations, and product supply and demand.

High-level Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

various journals and collections. As a result, much of this knowledge is not readily available to people who may be interested in using high-level nets. Within the Petri net community this problem has been discussed many times, and as an outcome this book has been compiled. The book contains reprints...... of some of the most important papers on the application and theory of high-level Petri nets. In this way it makes the relevant literature more available. It is our hope that the book will be a useful source of information and that, e.g., it can be used in the organization of Petri net courses. To make......High-level Petri nets are now widely used in both theoretical analysis and practical modelling of concurrent systems. The main reason for the success of this class of net models is that they make it possible to obtain much more succinct and manageable descriptions than can be obtained by means...

Model and calculations for net infiltration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Childs, S.W.; Long, A.

1992-01-01

In this paper a conceptual model for calculating net infiltration is developed and implemented. It incorporates the following important factors: viability of climate for the next 10,000 years, areal viability of net infiltration, and important soil/plant factors that affect the soil water budget of desert soils. Model results are expressed in terms of occurrence probabilities for time periods. In addition the variability of net infiltration is demonstrated both for change with time and differences among three soil/hydrologic units present at the site modeled

Assessment of oil content and fatty acid composition variability in two economically important Hibiscus species.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ming Li; Morris, Brad; Tonnis, Brandon; Davis, Jerry; Pederson, Gary A

2012-07-04

The Hibiscus genus encompasses more than 300 species, but kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) and roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) are the two most economically important species within the genus. Seeds from these two Hibiscus species contain a relatively high amount of oil with two unusual fatty acids: dihydrosterculic and vernolic acids. The fatty acid composition in the oil can directly affect oil quality and its utilization. However, the variability in oil content and fatty acid composition for these two species is unclear. For these two species, 329 available accessions were acquired from the USDA germplasm collection. Their oil content and fatty acid composition were determined by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and gas chromatography (GC), respectively. Using NMR and GC analyses, we found that Hibiscus seeds on average contained 18% oil and seed oil was composed of six major fatty acids (each >1%) and seven minor fatty acids (each Hibiscus cannabinus seeds contained significantly higher amounts of oil (18.14%), palmitic (20.75%), oleic (28.91%), vernolic acids (VA, 4.16%), and significantly lower amounts of stearic (3.96%), linoleic (39.49%), and dihydrosterculic acids (DHSA, 1.08%) than H. sabdariffa seeds (17.35%, 18.52%, 25.16%, 3.52%, 4.31%, 44.72%, and 1.57%, respectively). For edible oils, a higher oleic/linoleic (O/L) ratio and lower level of DHSA are preferred, and for industrial oils a high level of VA is preferred. Our results indicate that seeds from H. cannabinus may be of higher quality than H. sabdariffa seeds for these reasons. Significant variability in oil content and major fatty acids was also detected within both species. The variability in oil content and fatty acid composition revealed from this study will be useful for exploring seed utilization and developing new cultivars in these Hibiscus species.

Petroleum’s Price Transmission and Imported Demand for Crude Oil in Thailand

OpenAIRE

Papusson Chaiwat; Nantarat Tangvitoontham

2014-01-01

The study of the petroleum price structures in Thailand reveals that diesel is the important fuel because it influences inflation and productions’ costs. Government wants to keep diesel’s price stability; meanwhile, it is less control in gasohol and petrol prices. These prices are normally higher than diesel’s price in order to support the renewable energy and reduce the consumption behaviors. Real price elasticity of imported crude oil in short run is insignificant but in long run is about 0...

Risk of revolutions in the Middle East. [Of importance for oil supplies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jensen, R.

1983-01-01

Western Europe and of course also Denmark will still for many years be dependent on the oil that is recovered in the Arabian Gulf. Denmark has the largest percentage oil conservation in Western Europe. It is not only due to the power plants using more coal, but also our energy consumption decreases more than in other Western European countries. In spite of these reulsts it is obvious, that Denmarks economy entirely depends on the economy of our neighbouring countries. Security of energy supply is therefore a western problem, which Denmark cannot solve alone. The development of societies in the Middle East countries, including the key country Saudi Arabia, is so labile, that a period of crisis with insecurity in the oil supplies cannot be excluded. In addition to this is the risk of international conflicts, that stop the oil export. The probability of these risks becoming actualized in the next 10 to 15 years is hard to tell, but it is important to call the attention to the risks. These risks seem to be much underrated in the discussions of security policy, where the east-west problems dominate. Therefore it would be wrong to take the westernization of the Arabic societies for granted. Periods with extreme ideologies are very probable. As to the international conflicts one only has to refer to the present war between Iraq and Iran.

The end of cheap oil: Bottom-up economic and geologic modeling of aggregate oil production curves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jakobsson, Kristofer; Bentley, Roger; Söderbergh, Bengt; Aleklett, Kjell

2012-01-01

There is a lively debate between ‘concerned’ and ‘unconcerned’ analysts regarding the future availability and affordability of oil. We critically examine two interrelated and seemingly plausible arguments for an unconcerned view: (1) there is a growing amount of remaining reserves; (2) there is a large amount of oil with a relatively low average production cost. These statements are unconvincing on both theoretical and empirical grounds. Oil availability is about flows rather than stocks, and average cost is not relevant in the determination of price and output. We subsequently implement a bottom-up model of regional oil production with micro-foundations in both natural science and economics. An oil producer optimizes net present value under the constraints of reservoir dynamics, technological capacity and economic circumstances. Optimal production profiles for different reservoir drives and economic scenarios are derived. The field model is then combined with a discovery model of random sampling from a lognormal field size-frequency distribution. Regional discovery and production scenarios are generated. Our approach does not rely on the simple assumptions of top-down models such as the Hubbert curve – however it leads to the same qualitative result that production peaks when a substantial fraction of the recoverable resource remains in-ground. - Highlights: ► Remaining oil reserves and average costs are of limited use in forecasting. ► We present a bottom-up approach to the modeling of regional oil production. ► Producers maximize net present value under technological and physical constraints. ► Exploration is modeled as random sampling from a lognormal field size distribution. ► Regional production starts declining before half of the recoverable oil is produced.

Egypt risks to become net importer of energy toward the year 2000 according to the World Bank

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1994-01-01

Petroleum exports were about the two-third of the whole goods exports of Egypt in the eighties years, but this part is getting under 50%, because a lower growth of exported volume and because of the reduction of prices. As these kinds of things are continuing during the nineties years and the local petroleum consumption is increasing, Egypt could become a net importer of petroleum products at the end of the century

Pigouvian penalty for oil spills

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kohn, R.E.

1993-01-01

The imposition of ex ante taxes on expected spilled oil, in addition to ex post payments for damages under tort liability, would foster economic efficiency. This paper begins the analysis of the joint approach with the case in which Pigouvian taxes are used exclusively. A model is developed in which the volume of spilled oil causing environmental damage is reduced, first by spill prevention expenditures by shippers and then by clean-up expenditures by the government. The efficient Pigouvian tax on expected spilled oil equals marginal environmental damage which equals the net marginal cost of prevention which equals marginal clean-up cost. (Author)

Net Gain

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Describing the effect of tax incentives for import, production, and sale of nets and insecticides; and ..... So far, China is the only country where a system for the routine treatment of ...... 1993), and the trials in Ecuador and Peru (Kroeger et al.

Interaction of oil and mineral fines on shorelines: review and assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Owens, Edward H.; Lee, Kenneth

2003-01-01

The interaction of fine mineral particles with stranded oil in an aqueous medium reduces the adhesion of the oil to solid surfaces, such as sediments or bedrock. The net result is the formation of stable, micron-sized, oil droplets that disperse into the water column. In turn, the increase in surface area makes the oil more available for biodegradation. This interaction, referred to as oil-mineral aggregate (OMA) formation, can explain how oiled shorelines are cleaned naturally in the absence of wave action in very sheltered coastal environments. OMA formation also plays an important role in the efficacy of shoreline treatment techniques, such as physical mixing and sediment relocation that move oiled sediments into the zone of wave action to promote the interaction between oil and mineral fines. Successful application of these shoreline treatment options has been demonstrated at two spill events (the Tampa Bay response in Florida and the Sea Empress operation in Wales) and at a controlled oil spill experiment in the field (the 1997 Svalbard ITOSS program). Sediment relocation harnesses the hydraulic action of waves so that the processes of fine-particle interaction and physical abrasion usually occur in tandem on open coasts. There has been no evidence of significant detrimental side-effects of residual oil in pelagic or benthic environments associated with the use of these treatment options to enhance rates of dispersion and oil biodegradation

Interaction of oil and mineral fines on shorelines: review and assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Owens, Edward H.; Lee, Kenneth

2003-12-01

The interaction of fine mineral particles with stranded oil in an aqueous medium reduces the adhesion of the oil to solid surfaces, such as sediments or bedrock. The net result is the formation of stable, micron-sized, oil droplets that disperse into the water column. In turn, the increase in surface area makes the oil more available for biodegradation. This interaction, referred to as oil-mineral aggregate (OMA) formation, can explain how oiled shorelines are cleaned naturally in the absence of wave action in very sheltered coastal environments. OMA formation also plays an important role in the efficacy of shoreline treatment techniques, such as physical mixing and sediment relocation that move oiled sediments into the zone of wave action to promote the interaction between oil and mineral fines. Successful application of these shoreline treatment options has been demonstrated at two spill events (the Tampa Bay response in Florida and the Sea Empress operation in Wales) and at a controlled oil spill experiment in the field (the 1997 Svalbard ITOSS program). Sediment relocation harnesses the hydraulic action of waves so that the processes of fine-particle interaction and physical abrasion usually occur in tandem on open coasts. There has been no evidence of significant detrimental side-effects of residual oil in pelagic or benthic environments associated with the use of these treatment options to enhance rates of dispersion and oil biodegradation.

Imported palm oil for biofuels in the EU: Profitability, greenhouse gas emissions and social welfare effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saikkonen, Liisa; Ollikainen, Markku; Lankoski, Jussi

2014-01-01

We examine the social desirability of renewable diesel production from imported palm oil in the EU when greenhouse gas emissions are taken into account. Using a partial market equilibrium model, we also study the sectoral social welfare effects of a biofuel policy consisting of a blend mandate in a small EU country (Finland), when palm oil based diesel is used to meet the mandated quota for biofuels. We develop a market equilibrium model for three cases: i) no biofuel policy, ii) biofuel policy consisting of socially optimal emission-based biofuel tax credit and iii) actual EU biofuel policy. Our results for the EU biofuel market, Southeast Asia and Finland show very little evidence that a large scale use of imported palm oil in diesel production in the EU can be justified by lower greenhouse gas emission costs. Cuts in emission costs may justify extensive production only if low or negative land-use change emissions result from oil palm cultivation and if the estimated per unit social costs of emissions are high. In contrast, the actual biofuel policies in the EU encourage the production of palm oil based diesel. Our results indicate that the sectoral social welfare effects of the actual biofuel policy in Finland may be negative and that if emissions decrease under actual biofuel policy, the emission abatement costs can be high regardless of the land use change emissions. - Highlights: • We study the social desirability of renewable diesel production from palm oil in EU. • We also study sectoral social welfare impacts of actual biofuel policy in Finland. • Life cycle GHG emission costs of diesels are included in the economic analysis. • Extensive use of palm oil diesel in EU is difficult to justify by climate benefits. • The social welfare effects of the actual biofuel policy in Finland can be negative

Experiments and simulation of a net closing mechanism for tether-net capture of space debris

Science.gov (United States)

Sharf, Inna; Thomsen, Benjamin; Botta, Eleonora M.; Misra, Arun K.

2017-10-01

This research addresses the design and testing of a debris containment system for use in a tether-net approach to space debris removal. The tether-net active debris removal involves the ejection of a net from a spacecraft by applying impulses to masses on the net, subsequent expansion of the net, the envelopment and capture of the debris target, and the de-orbiting of the debris via a tether to the chaser spacecraft. To ensure a debris removal mission's success, it is important that the debris be successfully captured and then, secured within the net. To this end, we present a concept for a net closing mechanism, which we believe will permit consistently successful debris capture via a simple and unobtrusive design. This net closing system functions by extending the main tether connecting the chaser spacecraft and the net vertex to the perimeter and around the perimeter of the net, allowing the tether to actuate closure of the net in a manner similar to a cinch cord. A particular embodiment of the design in a laboratory test-bed is described: the test-bed itself is comprised of a scaled-down tether-net, a supporting frame and a mock-up debris. Experiments conducted with the facility demonstrate the practicality of the net closing system. A model of the net closure concept has been integrated into the previously developed dynamics simulator of the chaser/tether-net/debris system. Simulations under tether tensioning conditions demonstrate the effectiveness of the closure concept for debris containment, in the gravity-free environment of space, for a realistic debris target. The on-ground experimental test-bed is also used to showcase its utility for validating the dynamics simulation of the net deployment, and a full-scale automated setup would make possible a range of validation studies of other aspects of a tether-net debris capture mission.

A Simple Physics-Based Model Predicts Oil Production from Thousands of Horizontal Wells in Shales

KAUST Repository

Patzek, Tadeusz

2017-10-18

Over the last six years, crude oil production from shales and ultra-deep GOM in the United States has accounted for most of the net increase of global oil production. Therefore, it is important to have a good predictive model of oil production and ultimate recovery in shale wells. Here we introduce a simple model of producing oil and solution gas from the horizontal hydrofractured wells. This model is consistent with the basic physics and geometry of the extraction process. We then apply our model thousands of wells in the Eagle Ford shale. Given well geometry, we obtain a one-dimensional nonlinear pressure diffusion equation that governs flow of mostly oil and solution gas. In principle, solutions of this equation depend on many parameters, but in practice and within a given oil shale, all but three can be fixed at typical values, leading to a nonlinear diffusion problem we linearize and solve exactly with a scaling

Current Status and Future Prospect of K-NET and KiK-net

Science.gov (United States)

Aoi, S.; Kunugi, T.; Suzuki, W.; Nakamura, H.; Fujiwara, H.

2014-12-01

During 18 years since the deployment of K-NET following the Kobe earthquake, our attention has mainly focused on rapidity of the data collection and an unfailing and reliable observation. In this presentation, we review three generations of the instruments employed by K-NET and KiK-net from these two points of view.At beginning of the 2000's, we newly developed the second generation instruments (K-NET02, K-NET02A, KiK-net06) to replace the first generation instruments (K-NET95, SMAC-MDK) employed when the networks were constructed in the 1990's. These instruments have an automatic dial-out function. It takes typically 2-5 s to establish communication and a few seconds to send the pre-trigger data. After that, data is available typically within a 1.5 s delay. Not only waveform data but also strong motion indexes such as real-time intensity, PGA, PGV, PGD, and response spectra are continuously sent once a second.After the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, we have developed the third generation instruments (K-NET11, KiK-net11) and have replaced almost half of the all stations country wide. Main improvement of this instrument is more unfailing and reliable observation. Because we have often experienced very large ground motions (e.g. 45 records exceeding gravity), the maximum measureable range was expanded from 2000 gal to 4000 gal for the second generation instrument, and to 8000 gal for the third. For the third generation instrument, in case of power failure, observation (including transmission of data) works for seven days thanks to the backup battery, while for the second generation instruments it works only for one day. By adding an oblique component to the three-component accelerometers, we could automatically distinguish shaking data from noise such as electric pulses which may cause a false alarm in EEW. Implementation to guarantee the continuity of observation under severe conditions such as during the Tohoku earthquake is very important, as well as a highly efficient

Assessing the suitability of input-output analysis for enhancing our understanding of potential economic effects of Peak Oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kerschner, Christian; Hubacek, Klaus

2009-01-01

Given recent developments on energy markets and skyrocketing oil prices, we argue for an urgent need to study the potential effects of world oil production reaching a maximum (Peak Oil) in order to facilitate the development of adaptation policies. We consider input-output (IO) modelling as a powerful tool for this purpose. However, the standard Leontief type model implicitly assumes that all necessary inputs to satisfy a given demand can and will be supplied. This is problematic if the availability of certain key inputs becomes restricted and it is therefore only of limited usefulness for the study of the phenomenon of Peak Oil. Hence this paper firstly reviews two alternative modelling tools within the IO framework: supply-driven and mixed models. The former has been severely criticised for its problematic assumption of perfect factor substitution and perfect elasticity of demand as revealed by Oosterhaven [Oosterhaven J. On the plausibility of the supply-driven IO model. J Reg Sci 1988; 28:203-17. ]. The supply-constrained model on the other hand proved well suited to analyse the quantity dimension of Peak Oil and is therefore applied empirically in the second part of the paper, using data for the UK, Japanese and Chilean economy. Results show how differences in net-oil exporting and net-oil importing countries are clearly visible in terms of final demand. Industries, most affected in all countries, include transportation, electricity production and financial and trade services. (author)

Major oil exporters may profit rather than lose, in a carbon-constrained world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Persson, Tobias A.; Azar, C.; Johansson, D.; Lindgren, K.

2007-01-01

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) claims compensation for losses in expected oil export revenues due to CO 2 mitigation measures in developing countries. These losses are expected for two primary reasons: a reduction in the consumption of oil in importing countries and a reduction in the producer price of oil (taxation in an importing country implies a transfer of rents from producers to consumers). So far, most studies have focused on these two mechanisms and corroborated that revenue losses for OPEC are to be expected. However, there are also mechanisms that may be expected to raise the price of oil products. In a cost-effective regime for dealing with climate change, i.e., a regime in which all or most countries participate and in which the same carbon price is applied on all carbon-emitting activities, the cost of using unconventional oil, or synthetic diesel from coal, will increase even more than the cost of using conventional oil. Given that reserves of conventional oil are expected to dwindle over time, heavy oils and coal to liquids might set the long-run price for liquid fuels, which means that the price of oil would increase beyond the carbon fee; i.e., the rent on conventional oil would increase. We use an energy-economic optimization model to analyze these three mechanisms. We find that the net present value of OPEC revenue from conventional oil increases slightly (at most by 4 percent) with a global CO 2 restriction regime. We also consider conditions under which this result does not hold

Trends in heavy oil production and refining in California

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olsen, D.K.; Ramzel, E.B.; Pendergrass, R.A. II.

1992-07-01

This report is one of a series of publications assessing the feasibility of increasing domestic heavy oil production and is part of a study being conducted for the US Department of Energy. This report summarizes trends in oil production and refining in Canada. Heavy oil (10 degrees to 20 degrees API gravity) production in California has increased from 20% of the state's total oil production in the early 1940s to 70% in the late 1980s. In each of the three principal petroleum producing districts (Los Angeles Basin, Coastal Basin, and San Joaquin Valley) oil production has peaked then declined at different times throughout the past 30 years. Thermal production of heavy oil has contributed to making California the largest producer of oil by enhanced oil recovery processes in spite of low oil prices for heavy oil and stringent environmental regulation. Opening of Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1, Elk Hills (CA) field in 1976, brought about a major new source of light oil at a time when light oil production had greatly declined. Although California is a major petroleum-consuming state, in 1989 the state used 13.3 billion gallons of gasoline or 11.5% of US demand but it contributed substantially to the Nation's energy production and refining capability. California is the recipient and refines most of Alaska's 1.7 million barrel per day oil production. With California production, Alaskan oil, and imports brought into California for refining, California has an excess of oil and refined products and is a net exporter to other states. The local surplus of oil inhibits exploitation of California heavy oil resources even though the heavy oil resources exist. Transportation, refining, and competition in the market limit full development of California heavy oil resources

Accounting for Depletion of Oil and Gas Resources in Malaysia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Othman, Jamal, E-mail: jortman@ukm.my; Jafari, Yaghoob, E-mail: yaghoob.jafari@gmail.com [Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Faculty of Economics and Management (Malaysia)

2012-12-15

Since oil and gas are non-renewable resources, it is important to identify the extent to which they have been depleted. Such information will contribute to the formulation and evaluation of appropriate sustainable development policies. This paper provides an assessment of the changes in the availability of oil and gas resources in Malaysia by first compiling the physical balance sheet for the period 2000-2007, and then assessing the monetary balance sheets for the said resource by using the Net Present Value method. Our findings show serious reduction in the value of oil reserves from 2001 to 2005, due to changes in crude oil prices, and thereafter the depletion rates decreased. In the context of sustainable development planning, albeit in the weak sustainability sense, it will be important to ascertain if sufficient reinvestments of the estimated resource rents in related or alternative capitals are being attempted by Malaysia. For the study period, the cumulative resource rents were to the tune of RM61 billion. Through a depletion or resource rents policy, the estimated quantum may guide the identification of a reinvestment threshold (after considering needed capital investment for future development of the industry) in light of ensuring the future productive capacity of the economy at the time when the resource is exhausted.

Accounting for Depletion of Oil and Gas Resources in Malaysia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Othman, Jamal; Jafari, Yaghoob

2012-01-01

Since oil and gas are non-renewable resources, it is important to identify the extent to which they have been depleted. Such information will contribute to the formulation and evaluation of appropriate sustainable development policies. This paper provides an assessment of the changes in the availability of oil and gas resources in Malaysia by first compiling the physical balance sheet for the period 2000–2007, and then assessing the monetary balance sheets for the said resource by using the Net Present Value method. Our findings show serious reduction in the value of oil reserves from 2001 to 2005, due to changes in crude oil prices, and thereafter the depletion rates decreased. In the context of sustainable development planning, albeit in the weak sustainability sense, it will be important to ascertain if sufficient reinvestments of the estimated resource rents in related or alternative capitals are being attempted by Malaysia. For the study period, the cumulative resource rents were to the tune of RM61 billion. Through a depletion or resource rents policy, the estimated quantum may guide the identification of a reinvestment threshold (after considering needed capital investment for future development of the industry) in light of ensuring the future productive capacity of the economy at the time when the resource is exhausted.

Features and application of amino acid oil gelatinizer for controlling oil spills on the sea

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Uemura, Hiroyuki

1987-10-01

Diffusion of oil spills is prevented and the oil can be easily recovered if it is solidified. Features and application of gelling agent for amino acid series oil are introduced. The gelatinizer for amino acid is made of amino acid derivative with solvent added thereto so that oil can be gelatinized by mere spraying of the agent over oil spills. The agent can be intermixed with oil because it floats on the sea. Oil spill is gelatinized instantly and diffusion of the oils is prevented. The oil can easily be recovered with a fishing net and the like. The influence of oil spills to living aquatic resources is greatly lessened, and the gel is safe for workers. It can gelatinize everything except alcohol. Gelatinization has the depressor effect for volatization and is effective for the prevention of fire. The gelatized oil can be burnt up although it contains 10-20 % of water. Oil film on the water can be completely controlled when the agent is sprayed over it. It contributes to the purification of nature since it is readily decomposed. (1 fig, 4 tabs, 3 refs)

Neste in 1996: Oil integration and new Chemicals plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ihamuotila, J.

1997-01-01

Neste's net sales in 1996 continued at the previous year's level. Although trading losses weakened the Group's performance, the debt burden decreased substantially and there was a fundamental improvement in the equity-to-assets ratio. Neste's integrated downstream oil business began operations, oil production in Norway and Oman increased, and Chemicals commissioned several production units. In addition, a number of interesting oil and natural gas pipeline projects were moving forward. (orig.)

Amendment of oil related systems. Abolishment of the temporary measure law for importing specific petroleum products and amendment of the oil storage law and the volatile oil selling business law; Sekiyu kanren no seido kaisei ni tsuite. Tokutei sekiyu seihin yunyu oyobi kihatsuyu hanbaigyoho no kaisei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kobayashi, I. [Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, Tokyo (Japan)

1995-07-20

This paper describes the following matters related to amendment of oil related systems which will be enforced according to the result of discussions at the Petroleum Council on the ways the oil product supply should be in the future. The temporary measure law for importing specific oil products shall be abolished when it will be expired in March 1996. This is because the law has limited the oil product importing organizations only to oil companies who have oil refining capabilities, and the continuation of the law would lose its justifiability under the present circumstances in the petroleum industry. The oil reservation law is then amended so that the emergency handling ability on oil supply will not be hampered even after possible expansion in the number of oil product importing organizations as a result of the abolishment of the temporary measure law. The quality management systems for oil products will also be revised so that the present level on quality items of the minimum necessity will not be declined with respect to the environments and safety. Furthermore, the area designating system that has been limiting erection of oil service stations will be repealed by October 1996. 2 tabs.

Process for oil shale retorting

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, John B.; Kunchal, S. Kumar

1981-10-27

Particulate oil shale is subjected to a pyrolysis with a hot, non-oxygenous gas in a pyrolysis vessel, with the products of the pyrolysis of the shale contained kerogen being withdrawn as an entrained mist of shale oil droplets in a gas for a separation of the liquid from the gas. Hot retorted shale withdrawn from the pyrolysis vessel is treated in a separate container with an oxygenous gas so as to provide combustion of residual carbon retained on the shale, producing a high temperature gas for the production of some steam and for heating the non-oxygenous gas used in the oil shale retorting process in the first vessel. The net energy recovery includes essentially complete recovery of the organic hydrocarbon material in the oil shale as a liquid shale oil, a high BTU gas, and high temperature steam.

Estimating the short-term economic damages from the Prestige oil spill in the Galician fisheries and tourism

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garza-Gil, M. Dolores; Prada-Blanco, Albino; Vazquez-Rodriguez, M. Xose [Department of Applied Economics, Faculty of Economics, University of Vigo Lagoas-Marcosende, 36310 Vigo (Spain)

2006-07-01

The Prestige oil spill may be considered as one of the worst in the last years because of the amount of oil spilled (59,000 tons at the moment) and the wide zone affected: almost all the coastline in Galicia (Spanish region with a very important coast fishing and tourist activity) and some points in North Spain and in Southwest France. In this paper, we estimate the short-term economic damages from the Prestige oil spills in the Galician fishing and tourist activities. The economic losses arising from the Prestige oil spill exceed those items that can be indemnified under the IOPC system. Their magnitude could reach 5 times more than the applicable limit of compensations in the Prestige case. The consequence is net losses from repeated oil spills and internationally accepted incentives to risky strategies in the marine transport of hydrocarbons. (author)

Estimating the short-term economic damages from the Prestige oil spill in the Galician fisheries and tourism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garza-Gil, M. Dolores; Prada-Blanco, Albino; Vazquez-Rodriguez, M. Xose

2006-01-01

The Prestige oil spill may be considered as one of the worst in the last years because of the amount of oil spilled (59,000 tons at the moment) and the wide zone affected: almost all the coastline in Galicia (Spanish region with a very important coast fishing and tourist activity) and some points in North Spain and in Southwest France. In this paper, we estimate the short-term economic damages from the Prestige oil spills in the Galician fishing and tourist activities. The economic losses arising from the Prestige oil spill exceed those items that can be indemnified under the IOPC system. Their magnitude could reach 5 times more than the applicable limit of compensations in the Prestige case. The consequence is net losses from repeated oil spills and internationally accepted incentives to risky strategies in the marine transport of hydrocarbons. (author)

Oil and Gas Emergency Policy: India 2007 update

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2007-07-01

With almost 1.1 billion inhabitants, India is the second most populous country in the world and the seventh-largest country by geographical area. In 2005, India’s GDP was about USD 644 billion. In terms of purchasing power parity (PPP)21, GDP stood at USD 3 362 which makes it the fourth-largest economy in the world (after the United States, China and Japan). Per capita income in PPP terms is around USD 3 582, about one-tenth of the OECD average. GDP growth in 2005 was 9.2%. India has about 5.6 billion barrels of proven oil reserves (January 2007). The combination of rising oil consumption and fairly stable production levels leaves India increasingly dependent on imports to meet consumption needs; most of these imports are coming from the Middle East. In 2006, the country produced an average of 792 kb/d of total oil liquids, of which 87% (687 kb/d) was crude oil. During 2006, India’s demand for oil reached 2.64 mb/d. In 2004, India decided to build a strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) in a phased manner. The work on the first phase started in 2007, with invitations for tender for the construction of rock caverns with a capacity of some 37 mb (5 Mt), which equates to 20 days of net imports or 15 days of consumption in 2005. The work is planned to be fi nished in 2010, after which the rock caverns will begin to be filled. A second phase is projected (but not yet scheduled), which would expand the storage capacity to 45 days of consumption (roughly 110 mb or 15 Mt). The Integrated Energy Policy of 2006 states that the effectiveness of the reserves can be increased through co-operative operation with the reserves of other countries, such as IEA member countries.

Globally sourced mineral commodities used in U.S. Navy SEAL gear—An illustration of U.S. net import reliance

Science.gov (United States)

Brainard, Jamie; Nassar, Nedal T.; Gambogi, Joseph; Baker, Michael S.; Jarvis, Michael T.

2018-01-25

A U.S. Navy SEAL (an acronym for sea, air, land) carries gear containing at least 23 nonfuel mineral commodities for which the United States is greater than 50 percent net import reliant. The graphics display the leading world producers of selected nonfuel mineral commodities used to manufacture U.S. Navy SEAL gear. SEALs are members of the U.S. Navy's special operations forces.

Causality Relationship between Crude Oil Variables and Budget Variables in Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Zakaria, Zukarnain; Shamsuddin, Sofian

2017-01-01

As an oil and gas exporter, Malaysia profited from higher world energy prices. However, the fall in oil prices from highs in 2014 significantly affected Malaysia’s government revenue (GR), hence its expenditure since the Malaysian GR still largely depends on oil revenues. Malaysia also has problems with high spending on energy subsidy, shrinking in its net crude oil export, and narrowing the gap between its crude oil production and consumption. Given this scenario, not only shocks in crude oi...

Visual Studio 2010 and NET 4 Six-in-One

CERN Document Server

Novak, Istvan; Granicz, Adam

2010-01-01

Complete coverage of all key .NET 4 and Visual Studio 2010 languages and technologies. .NET 4 is Microsoft's latest version of their core programming platform, and Visual Studio 2010 is the toolset that helps write .NET 4 applications. This comprehensive resource offers one-stop shopping for all you need to know to get productive with .NET 4. Experienced author and .NET guru Mitchel Sellers reviews all the important new features of .NET 4, including .NET charting and ASP.NET charting, ASP.NET dynamic data and jQuery, and the addition of F# as a supported package language. The expansive coverag

Mitigation of Oil in Water Column: Mitigation Prototype Tests

Science.gov (United States)

2017-06-01

designed with an open end to allow aquatic animals to escape. After the treated foam becomes saturated with submerged oil, the net would be lifted...needed openings to allow the frame to pass through the water column without causing severe drag resistance . However, this also allows oil to flow...to the water and should only help the regions of hypoxia caused by microbial degradation of the oil. However, the proposed field set up with

The Importance of the Oil and Gas Complex for the Brazilian Economy and Its States

OpenAIRE

Guilhoto, Joaquim Jose Martins; Ichihara, Silvio Massaru; Postali, Fernando Antonio Slaibe

2006-01-01

This paper presents the results of a research conducted to measure the importance of the oil and gas complex in the Brazilian economy and in its states. Initially, the efforts were concentrated in the construction of an interregional input-output system for the 27 states of the Brazilian economy at the level of 42 industries, for the year of 2002. Using this system it was possible to make an analysis of role played by the oil and gas complex in the Brazilian economy and its states. First it i...

Exploring the core factors and its dynamic effects on oil price: An application on path analysis and BVAR-TVP model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chai Jian; Guo, Ju-E.; Meng Lei; Wang Shouyang

2011-01-01

As the uncertainty of oil price increases, impacts of the influential factors on oil price vary over time. It is of great importance to explore the core factors and its time-varying influence on oil price. In view of this, based on the PATH-ANALYSIS model, this paper obtains the core factors, builds an oil price system VAR model, which uses demand, supply, price, and inventory as endogenous variables, and China's net imports as well as dollar index as exogenous variables. Then we set up a BVAR-TVP (Time varying parameter) model to analyze dynamic impacts of core factors on oil price. The results show that: (1) oil prices became more sensitive to oil supply changes, and the influence delays became shorter; (2) the impact of oil inventories on oil prices with a time lag of two quarters but has a downward trend; (3) the impact of oil consumption on oil prices with a time lag of two quarters, and this effect is increasingly greater; (4) the US dollar index is always the important factor of oil price and its control power increases gradually, and the financial crisis (occurred in 2008) further strengthens the influence of US dollar. - Highlights: ► We build an oil price VAR model based on the PATH-ANALYSIS results. ► The dynamic effects of core factors on oil price was studied by BVAR-TVP model. ► Oil prices became more sensitive to oil supply changes. ► The effect of oil consumption on oil prices is increasingly greater. ► Financial crisis further strengthens the influence of US dollar on oil price.

NetBeans GUI Builder

OpenAIRE

Pusiankova, Tatsiana

2009-01-01

This work aims at making readers familiar with the powerful tool NetBeans IDE GUI Builder and helping them make their first steps to creation of their own graphical user interface in the Java programming language. The work includes theoretical description of NetBeans IDE GUI Builder, its most important characteristics and peculiarities and also a set of practical instructions that will help readers in creation of their first GUI. The readers will be introduced to the environment of this tool ...

Towards a Standard for Modular Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kindler, Ekkart; Petrucci, Laure

2009-01-01

concepts could or should be subject to import and export in high-level Petri nets. In this paper, we formalise a minimal version of modular high-level Petri nets, which is based on the concepts of modular PNML. This shows that modular PNML can be formalised once a specific version of Petri net is fixed....... Moreover, we present and discuss some more advanced features of modular Petri nets that could be included in the standard. This way, we provide a formal foundation and a basis for a discussion of features to be included in the upcoming standard of a module concept for Petri nets in general and for high-level...

Transporting US oil imports: The impact of oil spill legislation on the tanker market

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-06-01

This report looks at the impact of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and the developing State oil spill regulations on the tanker and coastal barge markets, and at the implications for the future of the U.S. seaborne petroleum trades. The analysis relied on a dual approach. Because much of the legislation, both State and Federal, is still evolving--particularly with respect to implementing regulations--as yet there can be no definitive assessment of its impact. Consequently a quantitative analysis of fleets, trades, and vessel movements, was complemented by extensive interviews. Discussions have been held with oil companies large and small, shipowners, charterers, insurance companies, classification societies, and a variety of public and private institutions active in the maritime industry. All interviews were conducted in confidence: no individual views are identified in the report. (AT)

Insight conference reports : Far north oil and gas forum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

The emerging issues and opportunities for developing oil and gas resources in the North were outlined during this conference, along with recent developments, the current climate from an exploration perspective and the current state of play in the North. It highlighted Yukon's oil and gas potential and emphasized the importance of both the Mackenzie Gas Project and the Alaska Highway Pipeline Project. The activities of gas producers, pipeline proponents and governments regarding the construction of gas pipelines to connect northern gas to markets in North America were reviewed along with net fiscal and social benefits; community and First Nations' involvement; federal regulatory processes that have First Nations support; and securing federal funding to help prepare for the pipelines. The conference featured 19 presentations, of which 3 have been catalogued separately for inclusion in this database. refs., tabs., figs

The impacts of oil price fluctuations on the economy of sub-Saharan African countries, importers of oil products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sacko, I.

1997-01-01

This work comprises three parts. The first part aims at presenting the energy situation of sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries grouped in five regions. Because of the demographic pressure and of the petroleum shocks, the commercial energy consumption is growing up rapidly and the energy prices are high for the end-users (because the energy is imported and paid in dollars, and the fiscality share is increased by governments in the case of prices drop in the international market). The important problem of wood fuel is considered, together with the energy-economic growth relations and the determining factors of the energy demand in SSA. Some econometric relations are tested. The second part analyzes the mechanisms generated by petroleum shocks and counter-shocks, and stresses first on the transfers induced by these fluctuations. Then, it presents some macro-economical models which try to integrate the effects of a petroleum shock and makes some calculations based on a decomposition of imports and exports global and partial coefficients. Some important conclusions are inferred from this study: 1 - the second petroleum shock strikes more seriously the oil importing SSA countries because they do not benefit from a favorable international context, like during the first shock (also because the second shock is accompanied by a dollar shock); 2 - the absence of symmetry in oil shocks-counter-shocks; 3 - the crisis of SSA countries is not only of petroleum origin but is also linked with the drop of the export incomes (which itself is partially explained by the impact of petroleum shocks on the industrialized economies), with their bad insertion in the world economy, and with unsuitable domestic economies. The third part proposes some solutions to attenuate the energy and economical difficulties of these countries. It is necessary to implement an energy planning mainly based on the mastery of the demand and on a better management of local resources. The policies of

Oil and Gas Emergency Policy: Japan 2013 update

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2013-06-01

Oil remains the most significant energy source in Japan, accounting for some 45% of the country’s total primary energy supply (TPES) in 2011. Japan’s oil demand steadily decreased from 5.71 mb/d in 1997 to 4.47 mb/d in 2010. However, its oil demand increased to 4.48 mb/d in 2011 and 4.73 mb/d in 2012 due to the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011 and its subsequent impacts. The transport sector represented around 38% of total consumption in 2010, while the industry sector accounted for 30%. A significant proportion of the industry sector’s oil demand comes from the chemical industry. Of the 4.8 mb/d of oil imported by Japan in 2012, 3.5 mb/d consisted of crude oil, 209 kb/d of NGLs and feedstocks, and some 1.2 mb/d of refined products. About 83% of Japan’s crude oil imports in 2012 came from the Middle East. The country has 27 operational refineries with a total crude distillation capacity of around 4.5 mb/d. Japan meets its 90-day stockholding obligation to the IEA by holding government emergency stocks and by placing a minimum stockholding obligation on industry. JOGMEC’s primary role is to manage public stocks under the Oil Stockpiling Act, while industry (refineries, specified distributors and importers) is obliged to hold the equivalent of 70 days of their daily imports, sales or refinery production, based on the average of the previous 12 months. The public stocks mostly consist of crude oil, but the Administration has expanded its emergency inventory to include four categories of refined products - gasoline, kerosene, fuel oil and diesel oil. Japan held some 591 million barrels (mb) of oil stocks at the end of January 2013, equating to 166 days of 2011 net-imports (92 days of government stocks and 74 days of industry stocks). Around 72% of total stocks were held in the form of crude oil. Japan has consistently met its minimum IEA stockholding obligation. The share of natural gas in the country’s TPES increased significantly from 17% in 2010

Rare, but challenging tumors: NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanova, D.; Balev, B.

2013-01-01

Full text: Introduction: Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors (GEP - NET) are a heterogeneous group of tumors with different locations and many different clinical, histological, and imaging performance. In a part of them a secretion of various organic substances is present. The morbidity of GEP - NET in the EU is growing, and this leads to increase the attention to them. What you will learn: Imaging methods used for localization and staging of GEP - NET, characteristics of the study’s protocols; Classification of GEP - NET; Demonstration of typical and atypical imaging features of GEP - NET in patients registered at the NET Center at University Hospital ‘St. Marina’, Varna; Features of metastatic NET, The role of imaging in the evaluation of treatment response and follow-up of the patients. Discussion: The image semiotics analysis is based on 19 cases of GEP - NET registered NET Center at University Hospital ‘St. Marina’. The main imaging method is multidetector CT (MDCT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI ) has advantages in the evaluation of liver lesions and the local prevalence of anorectal tumors. In patients with advanced disease and liver lesions the assessment of skeletal involvement (MRI/ nuclear medical method) is mandatory. The majority of GEP - NET have not any specific imaging findings. Therefore it is extremely important proper planning and conducting of the study (MDCT and MR enterography; accurate assessment phase of scanning, positive and negative contrast). Conclusion: GEP - NET is a major diagnostic challenge due to the absence of typical imaging characteristics and often an overlap with those of the tumors of different origin can be observed. Therefore, a good knowledge of clinical and imaging changes occurring at different locations is needed. MDCT is the basis for the diagnosis, staging and follow-up of these neoplasms

System analysis for effective use of palm oil waste as energy resources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chiew, Yoon Lin; Iwata, Tomoko; Shimada, Sohei

2011-01-01

Biomass refers to renewable energy sources and comes from biological materials such as trees, plants, manure as well as municipal solid wastes. Effective utilization of biomass as an energy resource requires the use of an optimization model to take into account biomass availability, transportation distances, and the scales and locations of power facilities within a region. In this study, we develop a new analytical tool that integrates cost, energy savings, greenhouse gas considerations, scenario analysis, and a Geographic Information System (GIS) to provide a comprehensive analysis of alternative systems for optimizing biomass energy production. The goal is to find a system that optimizes the use of biomass waste by analyzing the cost, net avoided CO 2 emission, and net energy savings with the objective of profit maximization. In this paper, we describe an application of the modeling tool described above to one of the fastest growing agriculture industries in Asia, the palm oil industry, for the case of Malaysia. Five scenarios utilizing palm oil waste as energy resources are discussed. The scenario of installing of new Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants in the region yielded a number of benefits in terms of net energy savings, net avoided CO 2 emission, and profits. The results also demonstrate the benefits of utilizing excess heat for biomass pre-treatment. The choice of a suitable CHP plant scale, management strategies for biomass seasonal availability, and market price of biomass are also important factors for effective use of the biomass in a region. -- Highlights: → We develop an optimization model for energy production from agricultural biomass. → We model 5 scenarios to optimize plant size, plant location and biomass distribution. → We evaluate the net energy savings, net avoided CO 2 emission, and profits. → We demonstrate the benefits of utilizing excess heat for biomass pre-treatment. → We determine additional factors which may impact

High freight rates hinder oil markets' return to equilibrium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon

2005-01-01

Hurricane damage to refineries in the US has created shortages of refined products there, boosting imports and sending freight rates across the Atlantic to record levels. The situation was made worse for a time by a strike at France's main oil terminals in the Mediterranean, which prevented some oil tankers from being rapidly redeployed to routes across the Atlantic. Worldscale (WS) rates for routes from the UK and Europe to the US Atlantic and Gulf Coasts rose well above WS500 for clean tonnage during October. High rates were nevertheless not simply confined to product tankers crossing the Atlantic. Rates for crude tankers to the US have also risen, and tightness has begun to appear in some other markets as well. The net result has been to slow down the movement of oil from regions of surplus to those of scarcity, depressing prices in the former and keeping them at high levels in the latter. Atlantic tanker markets look like remaining tight for the rest of the year and perhaps beyond. (author)

Life cycle GHG emissions from Malaysian oil palm bioenergy development: The impact on transportation sector's energy security

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hassan, Mohd Nor Azman; Jaramillo, Paulina; Griffin, W. Michael

2011-01-01

Malaysia's transportation sector accounts for 41% of the country's total energy use. The country is expected to become a net oil importer by the year 2011. To encourage renewable energy development and relieve the country's emerging oil dependence, in 2006 the government mandated blending 5% palm-oil biodiesel in petroleum diesel. Malaysia produced 16 million tonnes of palm oil in 2007, mainly for food use. This paper addresses maximizing bioenergy use from oil-palm to support Malaysia's energy initiative while minimizing greenhouse-gas emissions from land-use change. When converting primary and secondary forests to oil-palm plantations between 270-530 and 120-190 g CO 2 -equivalent per MJ of biodiesel produced, respectively, is released. However, converting degraded lands results in the capture of between 23 and 85 g CO 2 -equivalent per MJ of biodiesel produced. Using various combinations of land types, Malaysia could meet the 5% biodiesel target with a net GHG savings of about 1.03 million tonnes (4.9% of the transportation sector's diesel emissions) when accounting for the emissions savings from the diesel fuel displaced. These findings are used to recommend policies for mitigating GHG emissions impacts from the growth of palm oil use in the transportation sector. - Research highlights: → We modeled greenhouse gas emissions in the production of palm-biodiesel. → Five land types were included to model emissions associated with land-use change. → Land-use change has the biggest impact on the emissions in making palm-biodiesel. → Emissions from fertilizer use and effluent treatment are still significant. → At 5% biodiesel grown on suitable lands Malaysia would obtain an emissions savings.

The adaptive internet application for interpretation of the transformer oil gas chromatographic analysis results

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Polužanski Vladimir

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes an adaptive Internet application for the interpretation of the transformer oil gas chromatographic analysis results. The first version of the application is developed by following an evolutionary software development concept. The most important software development risks and the appropriate solutions are described. An open-source web framework named Bootstrap is used for an application implementation. The application is developed by using ASP.NET and MS SQL server.

Do emerging markets matter in the world oil pricing system? Evidence of imported crude by China and India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong Li; Lin Xiaowen, Sharon

2011-01-01

This paper provides empirical evidence on the changing structure of world oil price system by identifying an additional driver-emerging market factor. We choose China and India as a representative of emerging markets to examine if the quantity of crude oil imported by China and India is significant in the existing oil pricing system (. Our data starts from January 2002 and ends in March 2010, which includes the oil shock of 2007-2008. We utilize cointegration and error correction model framework developed by and in the analysis. Our results indicate that demand from emerging markets has become a significant factor in the world oil pricing system since 2003. This result is significant as it lends empirical support to the widely held conjecture that the oil shock of 2007-2008 is a demand-led shock (). Our result also has significant policy implications that go beyond the oil shock. The emerging market factor is there to stay and reflects the changing power between emerging and developed economies in the world economic system as a result of decades of fast economic development in the former. It will certainly influence policy issues related to oil and beyond. - Highlights: → We test the existing oil price modelling with data from 2002-2010. → We find evidence of structural breaks in the world oil pricing model. → We find that emerging market factor is a new driver in the world oil pricing system since 2003. → The emerging market factor lends empirical support to 'consumption-led' conjecture of oil shock. → New factor reflects significant changes of oil demand landscape following shifting economic power.

Net metering in British Columbia : white paper

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, T.

2003-01-01

Net metering was described as being the reverse registration of an electricity customer's revenue meter when interconnected with a utility's grid. It is a provincial policy designed to encourage small-distributed renewable power generation such as micro-hydro, solar energy, fuel cells, and larger-scale wind energy. It was noted that interconnection standards for small generation is an important issue that must be addressed. The British Columbia Utilities Commission has asked BC Hydro to prepare a report on the merits of net metering in order to support consultations on a potential net metering tariff application by the utility. This report provides information on net metering with reference to experience in other jurisdictions with net metering, and the possible costs and benefits associated with net metering from both a utility and consumer perspective. Some of the barriers and policy considerations for successful implementation of net metering were also discussed. refs., tabs., figs

A Brief Introduction to Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt

1997-01-01

Coloured Petri Nets (CP-nets or CPN) is a graphical oriented language for design, specification, simulation and verification of systems. It is in particular well- suited for systems in which communication, synchronisation and resource sharing are important. Typical examples of application areas a...

Global patterns in human consumption of net primary production

Science.gov (United States)

Imhoff, Marc L.; Bounoua, Lahouari; Ricketts, Taylor; Loucks, Colby; Harriss, Robert; Lawrence, William T.

2004-06-01

The human population and its consumption profoundly affect the Earth's ecosystems. A particularly compelling measure of humanity's cumulative impact is the fraction of the planet's net primary production that we appropriate for our own use. Net primary production-the net amount of solar energy converted to plant organic matter through photosynthesis-can be measured in units of elemental carbon and represents the primary food energy source for the world's ecosystems. Human appropriation of net primary production, apart from leaving less for other species to use, alters the composition of the atmosphere, levels of biodiversity, energy flows within food webs and the provision of important ecosystem services. Here we present a global map showing the amount of net primary production required by humans and compare it to the total amount generated on the landscape. We then derive a spatial balance sheet of net primary production `supply' and `demand' for the world. We show that human appropriation of net primary production varies spatially from almost zero to many times the local primary production. These analyses reveal the uneven footprint of human consumption and related environmental impacts, indicate the degree to which human populations depend on net primary production `imports' and suggest policy options for slowing future growth of human appropriation of net primary production.

Trends in business management strategies of major international oil companies; Kokusai sekiyu kigyo meja no keiei senryaku no doko

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kashio, H. [The Institute of Energy Economics, Tokyo (Japan)

1995-07-01

This paper summarizes the former half part of the analysis made on business strategies of major international oil companies. The net earning of R/D Shell in fiscal 1994 increased by 1.8 billion dollars to 6.3 billion dollars. Its loan rate decreased to 16.7%. It increased the crude oil production by 3% to 2.2 million B/D, and the natural gas production by 1.2% to 7.3 billion cfd. The upstream department had the net earning decreased by 23% to 2.4 billion dollars because of decline in crude oil price. The net earning of the downstream department showed an increase by 20% over that in the previous year to 3.2 billion dollars. The chemical department had its business turned to black ink. The net earning of Exxon in the same year decreased by 200 million dollars to 5.1 billion dollars due to the reduced crude oil price and low refining margin. The upstream and downstream departments showed a decrease of 530 million and 630 million dollars respectively. The chemical department had an increase of 130% to 950 million dollars as a result of the recovery in the European markets. The net earning of Mobile in the same year showed a decrease of 2.1 billion dollars, ending in the amount of 1.1 billion dollars. The decrease has been caused by the decline in crude oil and natural gas prices and a 30% reduction in the refining margin. The chemical department changed for the better, with improved sales margins in oil products sold in overseas markets. 28 figs.

Horizontal ichthyoplankton tow-net system with unobstructed net opening

Science.gov (United States)

Nester, Robert T.

1987-01-01

The larval fish sampler described here consists of a modified bridle, frame, and net system with an obstruction-free net opening and is small enough for use on boats 10 m or less in length. The tow net features a square net frame attached to a 0.5-m-diameter cylinder-on-cone plankton net with a bridle designed to eliminate all obstructions forward of the net opening, significantly reducing currents and vibrations in the water directly preceding the net. This system was effective in collecting larvae representing more than 25 species of fish at sampling depths ranging from surface to 10 m and could easily be used at greater depths.

Higher-moment measurements of net-kaon, net-charge and net-proton multiplicity distributions at STAR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sarkar, Amal

2014-01-01

In this paper, we report the measurements of the various moments, such as mean, standard deviation (σ), skewness (S) and kurtosis (κ) of the net-kaon, net-charge and net-proton multiplicity distributions at mid-rapidity in Au + Au collisions from √(s NN )=7.7 to 200 GeV with the STAR experiment at RHIC. This work has been done with the aim to locate the critical point on the QCD phase diagram. These moments and their products are related to the thermodynamic susceptibilities of conserved quantities such as net baryon number, net charge, and net strangeness as well as to the correlation length of the system which diverges in an ideal infinite thermodynamic system at the critical point. For a finite system, existing for a finite time, a non-monotonic behavior of these variables would indicate the presence of the critical point. Furthermore, we also present the moment products Sσ, κσ 2 of net-kaon, net-charge and net-proton multiplicity distributions as a function of collision centrality and energy. The energy and the centrality dependence of higher moments and their products have been compared with different models

Reachability Trees for High-level Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt; Jensen, Arne M.; Jepsen, Leif Obel

1986-01-01

the necessary analysis methods. In other papers it is shown how to generalize the concept of place- and transition invariants from place/transition nets to high-level Petri nets. Our present paper contributes to this with a generalization of reachability trees, which is one of the other important analysis...

Preliminary use of cashew kernel oil in Clarias gariepinus fingerlings diet: comparison with fish oil and palm oil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Morgane Paul Magouana Anvo

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract The present study was performed to investigate the effect of fish oil (FO, palm oil (PO, and cashew kernel oil (CKO as the dietary lipid sources on the growth performance, tissues fatty acids composition and economical profitability in Clarias gariepinus fingerlings. Three isonitrogenous (49.32%, isolipidic (15.18%, and isoenergetic (21 kJ/g diets were formulated, differed only to the added lipid source and coded accordingly as D1 (fish oil, D2 (palm oil, and D3 (cashew kernel oil. Catfish fingerlings (initial body weight = 2.43 ± 0.04 g were stocked at 1 fish/L and fed to trial diets at 5.6%. At the end of 8 weeks, C. gariepinus fingerlings fed with D1 and D3 had significantly identical growth and feed utilization efficiency. Those fed with D2 exhibited significantly and numerically low growth performance compared, respectively, to D1 and D3. Contrary to whole-body composition of fish, the muscle lipids fatty acids composition was influenced by the fatty acids profile of the dietary lipid sources. High net profit value (NPV of 24.59$, high investment cost analysis (ICA of 10.14$ and low benefit: cost ratio (BCR of 2.42 were observed in fish fed with D1 while those fed with D3 allowed to have high NPV (23.15$, low ICA (7.86$ and high BCR (2.95. Like others vegetable oils, cashew kernel oil can replace expensive fish oil in C. gariepinus fingerlings diet without negatively affecting its growth performances.

Oil and Gas Emergency Policy: Turkey 2013 update

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2013-06-01

Oil has been one of the main energy sources in Turkey, accounting for some 28% of the country’s total primary energy supply (TPES) in 2011. Turkey’s oil demand slightly increased from 637 kb/d in 2003 to 670 kb/d in 2012, although it dropped down from 678 kb/d in 2009 to 650 kb/d in 2010. The transport sector accounted for half of total oil consumption in 2010. Domestic oil production is in decline in Turkey, amounting to 45 kb/d or about 6.7% of total consumption in 2012. In 2012, Turkey imported 712 kb/d, consisting of about 392 kb/d of crude oil and some 320 kb/d refined products. Around 39% of total crude oil imports came from Iran. Crude oil and petroleum products are mainly undertaken by tankers and two major international pipelines running through the country with a total annual handling capacity of 2.8 mb/d. In the country, there are four operational refineries with a total crude distillation capacity of around 610 kb/d. Turkey meets its 90-day stockholding obligation to the IEA by placing a minimum stockholding obligation on industry. Under the relevant acts, refineries and fuel distribution companies are obliged to hold at least 20 days of product stocks based on the average daily sales of previous year, while eligible consumers that use more than 20,000 tonnes annually are required to hold 15 days’ consumption of each type of liquid fuel. Turkey held some 61 million barrels of oil stocks at the end of January 2013, equating to 99 days of 2011 net-imports. Around 55% of total oil stocks are held in the form of crude oil. The use of emergency oil stocks is central to Turkey’s emergency response policy, which can be complemented by demand restraint measures. The share of natural gas in the country’s TPES significantly increased at 32% in 2011. Turkey’s gas demand significantly increased from 0.7 billion cubic meters (2 mcm/d) in 1987 to 45.3 bcm (124 mcm/d) in 2012, while indigenous natural gas production totalled some 0.63 bcm in the same year

Oil markets to 2010: the impact of non-Opec oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Enav, Peter

1998-09-01

This report provides an in-depth assessment of oil development scenarios in every non-Opec oil producing country from 1998 to 2010, in addition to evaluating the extent and direction of future oil trade for Opec and non-Opec countries alike. It re-assesses world oil consumption patterns in light of the Asian financial crisis, providing a concise yet comprehensive coverage of an often-neglected oil production group. The oil market development scenario is analysed in each country, with detailed consideration of the major players providing historical production, consumption, import and export data; current oil balance - production, imports and exports; an assessment of oil development policy; analysis of potential development obstacles considering regulatory, financial, political and environmental issues; oil production and consumption projections to 2010, by type; and import and export projections to 2010, by destination and source. More than 80 tables supplying essential statistics on the world's non-Opec markets accompany the report, with maps and schematic diagrams showing existing and potential infrastructure and fields. (Author)

Accounting for Depletion of Oil and Gas Resources in Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Othman, Jamal; Jafari, Yaghoob

2011-01-01

This paper provides an assessment of the changes in the availability of oil and gas resources in Malaysia. The physical and monetary balance sheets for crude oil and natural gas for the period 2000- 2007 was constructed. The net present value of expected future incomes to reflect the value of resource change was calculated based on a physical extraction and a resource rent scenario. Resource rent is gross operating surplus less the estimated user cost of produced capital in the crude oil and ...

19 CFR 212.11 - Net worth exhibit.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Net worth exhibit. 212.11 Section 212.11 Customs Duties UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION INVESTIGATIONS OF UNFAIR PRACTICES IN IMPORT TRADE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EQUAL ACCESS TO JUSTICE ACT Information Required From Applicants § 212.11 Net worth exhibit...

Short‑Term and Long‑Term Relationships Between Prices of Imported Oil and Fuel Products in the U. S.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Václav Adamec

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In this study, we analyzed a system of five monthly time series integrated I(1: average price of crude oil imported to the U.S. from OPEC countries (Opec, imported oil price from other than OPEC countries (NonOpec in USD per barrel, average price of regular gasoline in the U.S. (Regular, premium quality gasoline price (Premium and kerosene price (Kerosene in U.S. cents per gallon. Cointegration was established by EG test and the series were analyzed by VECM model with lag selected via BIC criterion. Cointegration rank was determined by the Johansen procedure. According to VECM coefficients, prices of oil from OPEC countries and beyond OPEC exert influence upon all commodity prices in the system, but in a contradictory manner. Responses to innovation shocks in Opec and NonOpec stabilized within 8 to 10 months upon a nonzero shift and further became permanent. Innovation shock in both types of gasoline and Kerosene had only short-term significant impact upon the system. Forecast error variance in all variables is explained mainly by variation in oil prices, especially Opec, which persists with increased horizon. For a short horizon h = 1, FEVDs in gasoline and kerosene prices are primarily made of variation in the respective fuel prices.

The Chinese Olive Oil Market Today Import Prices,Market Segments, Opportunities and Challenges%The Chinese Olive Oil Market Today Import Prioes,Market Segments, Opportunities and Challenges

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Mateo Radnic

2011-01-01

@@ Ⅰ .EDIBLE OIL CONSUMPTION IN CHINA According to the data of Edible Oil Consumption in China,this market has constantly growth over the last years, doublingits size in only 8 years.For the past year 2010, the market sizereaches over 29 thousand tons.

Oil and resource-backed aggression

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Colgan, Jeff

2011-01-01

A common misperception about oil politics is that it has a uniform, monolithic effect on policy development. This paper argues that in fact the net political effect of oil varies dramatically depending on the nature of the petrostate. It shows that oil income, when combined with revolutionary governments in petrostates, generates strong incentives for foreign policy aggression and international conflict. The aggressiveness of petro-revolutionary states is shown to have consequences in both military and economic spheres of international relations. Militarily, the aggressiveness of this type of state leads to a high rate of armed conflicts. Economically, the aggressiveness of petro-revolutionary states shapes global oil markets and international economic relations. The argument is tested using statistical analysis of international conflicts and economic sanctions. The policy implications are then considered, focusing on the negative global impacts of dependence on oil consumption. - Research highlights: → A radical reconsideration of the link between oil and international conflict is needed. → Resource-backed aggression, not resource-competition, is the major source of conflict. → Petro-revolutionary states instigate 250% more military conflicts than typical states. → Petro-revolutionary states are also more frequently targeted for economic sanctions.

Energy Return on Investment for Norwegian Oil and Gas from 1991 to 2008

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mikael Höök

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Norwegian oil and gas fields are relatively new and of high quality, which has led, during recent decades, to very high profitability both financially and in terms of energy production. One useful measure for profitability is Energy Return on Investment, EROI. Our analysis shows that EROI for Norwegian petroleum production ranged from 44:1 in the early 1990s to a maximum of 59:1 in 1996, to about 40:1 in the latter half of the last decade. To compare globally, only very few, if any, resources show such favorable EROI values as those found in the Norwegian oil and gas sector. However, the declining trend in recent years is most likely due to ageing of the fields whereas varying drilling intensity might have a smaller impact on the net energy gain of the fields. We expect the EROI of Norwegian oil and gas production to deteriorate further as the fields become older. More energy-intensive production techniques will gain in importance.

Barite: a case study of import reliance on an essential material for oil and gas exploration and development drilling

Science.gov (United States)

Bleiwas, Donald I.; Miller, M. Michael

2015-01-01

Global dependence on a limited number of countries for specific mineral commodities could lead to sudden supply disruptions for the United States, and barite is one such commodity. Analyses of barite supply amounts and sources for the United States are demonstrative of mineral commodities on which the country is import reliant. Mineral commodity trade flows can be analyzed more easily than import reliances for commodities in which U.S. domestic demand is primarily met by materials contained within manufactured products, as with the rare-earth elements in cellular phones and computers. Barite plays an essential role as a weighting material in drilling muds used in oil and gas drilling, primarily to prevent the explosive release of gas and oil during drilling. The Nation’s efforts to become more energy independent are based largely on the domestic oil and gas industry’s ability to explore and develop onshore and offshore fuel deposits. These activities include increased efforts by the United States to locate and recover oil and gas within unconventional deposits, such as those in the Bakken, Eagle Ford, and Marcellus Formations, using advanced drilling technologies.

Application of modified Martinez-Silva algorithm in determination of net cover

Science.gov (United States)

Stefanowicz, Łukasz; Grobelna, Iwona

2016-12-01

In the article we present the idea of modifications of Martinez-Silva algorithm, which allows for determination of place invariants (p-invariants) of Petri net. Their generation time is important in the parallel decomposition of discrete systems described by Petri nets. Decomposition process is essential from the point of view of discrete system design, as it allows for separation of smaller sequential parts. The proposed modifications of Martinez-Silva method concern the net cover by p-invariants and are focused on two important issues: cyclic reduction of invariant matrix and cyclic checking of net cover.

The interaction of fine particles with stranded oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Owens, E.H.

1999-01-01

The interaction of micron-sized mineral particles with stranded oil reduces its adhesion to solid surfaces, such as sediments or bedrock. The net result is the formation of stable, micron-sized, oil droplets that disperse into the water column. In turn, the increase in surface area makes the oil more available for biodegradation. Oil and Fine-particle Interaction ('OFI') can explain how oiled shorelines are cleaned naturally in the absence of wave action in very sheltered coastal environments. Fine-particle interaction can be accelerated during a spill response by relocating the oiled sediments into the surf zone. This has been achieved successfully on two occasions to date: the Tampa Bay response in Florida, and the Sea Empress operation in Wales. Sediment relocation also causes physical abrasion by the hydraulic action of waves so that the processes of fine-particle interaction and surf washing usually occur in combination on open coasts. (author)

A Primer on Alberta’s Oil sands Royalties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah Dobson

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Fulfilling its campaign promise, the new NDP government announced a review of Alberta’s royalty framework in June 2015. The province receives royalty revenue from three main sources – natural gas, crude oil, and oil sands. Since the 2009-10 fiscal year the largest contributor to Alberta’s royalty revenues has been the oil sands. If you want a sense of how important oil sands royalties have been for Alberta’s finances, consider this: In the 2014–15 fiscal year, the government collected just over $5 billion from oil sands royalties. These royalties covered over 10 per cent of the province’s operational expenses of $48.6 billion in the same fiscal year. Over the last six fiscal years the oil sands have contributed an average of 10 per cent of revenues to provincial coffers. This makes oil sands royalties the fourth largest contributor behind personal income taxes (23 per cent, federal transfers (13 per cent and corporate income taxes (11 per cent. But how many Albertans really understand how the royalty system works? What do we mean when we say “royalty”? How does the Alberta Government calculate royalties on oil sands producers? If the system is going to change, it’s important that Albertans understand how the current system works. That is what this paper is designed to do. For Albertans to properly judge the impact of new policy, they need a solid understanding of the current policy environment. We all know that oil prices have dropped and oil sands producers are losing profitability. As such, changes to the royalty system could have a deep and profound impact on the sector. Here are some of the issues this primer will study: • Pre-payout projects vs. post-payout projects, in other words, the classification of projects for royalty purposes based on whether the cumulative costs of a project exceed its cumulative revenues • Monthly payment of royalties vs. annual payment • Understanding the unit price of bitumen and how that

The Effects of Oil Price Shocks on Turkish Business Cycle: A Markov Switching Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vasif Abiyev

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Purpose - The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between oil price changes and the output growth in Turkey. Design/methodology/approach - The data were taken from International Financial Statistics databases, consisting of monthly data for the period 1986:01-2014:09. Different univariate Markov - switching regime autoregressive models are specified and estimated. Among them we selected univariate MSIH(3 - AR(2 model for output and extended it to verify if the inclusion of various asymmetric oil price shocks as an exogenous variable improves the ability of the Markov switching model. Four different oil price shocks are considered. Findings - We find that among various oil price shocks, only net oil price increases have negative effects on output growth and mitigate the magnitude of some recessionary periods in Turkey. However, it doesn’t strongly explain the behavior of business cycle in Turkey. Research limitations/implications - Our results suggest that the inclusion of other fundamental financial factors in the bivariate Markov switching model of aggregate economic activity and oil price changes becomes important to explicitly detect the negative impact of oil price shocks on output in Turkey. Originality/value - Our results support the existence of a negative relationship between oil price increases and output growth mentioned in the literature and empirical studies on Turkey.

A meta-analytic review of life cycle assessment and flow analyses studies of palm oil biodiesel.

Science.gov (United States)

Manik, Yosef; Halog, Anthony

2013-01-01

This work reviews and performs a meta-analysis of the recent life cycle assessment and flow analyses studies palm oil biodiesel. The best available data and information are extracted, summarized, and discussed. Most studies found palm oil biodiesel would produce positive energy balance with an energy ratio between 2.27 and 4.81, and with a net energy production of 112 GJ ha(-1) y(-1). With the exception of a few studies, most conclude that palm oil biodiesel is a net emitter of greenhouse gases (GHG). The origin of oil palm plantation (planted area) is the foremost determinant of GHG emissions and C payback time (CPBT). Converting peatland forest results in GHG emissions up to 60 tons CO(2) equivalent (eq) ha(-1) y(-1) leading to 420 years of CPBT. In contrast, converting degraded land or grassland for plantation can positively offset the system to become a net sequester of 5 tons CO(2) eq ha(-1) y(-1). Few studies have discussed cradle-to-grave environmental impacts such as acidification, eutrophication, toxicity, and biodiversity, which open opportunity for further studies. Copyright © 2012 SETAC.

On properties of royalty and tax regimes in Alberta's oil sands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plourde, Andre

2010-01-01

Simulation models that include royalty and tax provisions are used to examine the distribution between developers and governments of net returns from the development of Alberta's oil sands deposits. A specific focus is to assess the effects on the level and distribution of net revenues associated with a number of changes in assumed revenue and expenditure conditions. Developers typically bear a greater share of the consequences of variations in capital expenditures than they do of changes in operating expenditures, prices, and exchange rates. A comparison across royalty and tax regimes suggest that there is a positive relationship between the level of net revenues estimated to accrue to either developers or governments and the share of the consequences of changes in conditions borne by that party. Some differences across production technologies are noted. The role of the federal government as a fiscal player in oil sands development has shrunk over time. In contrast, under the current regime, the Government of Alberta captures a higher share of net returns and typically bears a greater proportion of the consequences of changes in conditions than at any time since the introduction of an explicit royalty and tax regime in 1997.

Asia-Pacific lube oil markets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, N.

2001-01-01

An overview of the Asia-Pacific (AP) lubricating oils market, its special characteristics, and its role in the global economy are presented. In the 'boom and bust' years of 1997-1999, the Asia-Pacific market was even bigger then the US market. For the short-term, the scenario is surplus capacity and poor margins, but in the long term there is enormous potential for growth. How fuel demand and quality is related to engine type is discussed. The three basic grades of baseoils are described, and the Asia-Pacific lube demand and the Asia-Pacific lube oil supply are discussed. There are 15 diagrams giving data on: (i) finished lubes in world markets as a percentage of total; (ii) how lube demand follows GDP per capita in Asia; (iii) AP baseoil capacity relationships; (iv) AP baseoil disposition by end use; (v) AP changing shares of baseoil demand; (vi) AP finished lube demand by subregion; (vii) AP finished lube demand growth, indexed; (viii) AP baseoil capacity by region; Singapore baseoil vs. Dubai crude prices, 1992-99; (ix) Singapore baseoil vs. crude prices, 1992-99; (x) AP baseoil deficit moved to surplus; (xi) AP baseoil production; (xii) East Asia net percentage change in lube sales, 1997-1999. (xiii) Southeast Asia net percentage change in lube sales, 1997-1999; (xiv) South East Asia and Australia net percentage change in lube sales, 1997-1999 and (xv) Asia-Pacific major lube marketers

Net-baryon-, net-proton-, and net-charge kurtosis in heavy-ion collisions within a relativistic transport approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nahrgang, Marlene; Schuster, Tim; Stock, Reinhard; Mitrovski, Michael; Bleicher, Marcus

2012-01-01

We explore the potential of net-baryon, net-proton and net-charge kurtosis measurements to investigate the properties of hot and dense matter created in relativistic heavy-ion collisions. Contrary to calculations in a grand-canonical ensemble we explicitly take into account exact electric and baryon charge conservation on an event-by-event basis. This drastically limits the width of baryon fluctuations. A simple model to account for this is to assume a grand-canonical distribution with a sharp cut-off at the tails. We present baseline predictions of the energy dependence of the net-baryon, net-proton and net-charge kurtosis for central (b≤2.75 fm) Pb+Pb/Au+Au collisions from E lab =2A GeV to √(s NN )=200 GeV from the UrQMD model. While the net-charge kurtosis is compatible with values around zero, the net-baryon number decreases to large negative values with decreasing beam energy. The net-proton kurtosis becomes only slightly negative for low √(s NN ). (orig.)

Oil Reservoir Production Optimization using Optimal Control

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Völcker, Carsten; Jørgensen, John Bagterp; Stenby, Erling Halfdan

2011-01-01

Practical oil reservoir management involves solution of large-scale constrained optimal control problems. In this paper we present a numerical method for solution of large-scale constrained optimal control problems. The method is a single-shooting method that computes the gradients using the adjo...... reservoir using water ooding and smart well technology. Compared to the uncontrolled case, the optimal operation increases the Net Present Value of the oil field by 10%.......Practical oil reservoir management involves solution of large-scale constrained optimal control problems. In this paper we present a numerical method for solution of large-scale constrained optimal control problems. The method is a single-shooting method that computes the gradients using...

Biodiesel production from waste soybean oil biomass as renewable ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

USER

2010-07-05

Jul 5, 2010 ... biodegradable, produced from renewable sources and contributes a minimal amount of net green house gases .... Later, the waste cooking oil was filtered by filter paper to ... the alcoxide from absorbing water from the air.

Net Neutrality: Media Discourses and Public Perception

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christine Quail

2010-01-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes media and public discourses surrounding net neutrality, with particular attention to public utility philosophy, from a critical perspective. The article suggests that further public education about net neutrality would be beneficial. The first portion of this paper provides a survey of the existing literature surrounding net neutrality, highlighting the contentious debate between market-based and public interest perspectives. In order to contextualize the debate, an overview of public utility philosophy is provided, shedding light on how the Internet can be conceptualized as a public good. Following this discussion, an analysis of mainstream media is presented, exploring how the media represents the issue of net neutrality and whether or not the Internet is discussed through the lens of public utility. To further examine how the net neutrality debate is being addressed, and to see the potential impacts of media discourses on the general public, the results of a focus group are reported and analyzed. Finally, a discussion assesses the implications of the net neutrality debate as presented through media discourses, highlighting the future of net neutrality as an important policy issue.

Oil outlook to 2020

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lounnas, R.; Brennand, G.

2002-01-01

The latest oil outlook to the year 2020 is presented, using the OPEC World Energy Model (OWEM). In the reference case, the OPEC Reference Basket of seven crudes is assumed to remain within the declared price range of US dollars 22-28 per barrel, in nominal terms, for the rest of this decade, growing with inflation thereafter. World oil demand grows from 76 million barrels a day in 2000 to 89 mb/d by 2010, and to over 106 mb/d by 2020. Two-thirds of the increase in demand over this 20-year period comes from China and the developing countries. Non-OPEC production is expected to continue to increase throughout the entire forecast period, with the decline in North Sea output more than compensated by increases in the developing countries, Russia and the Caspian region. OPEC market share in the first decade is accordingly relatively stable, as increases in output are approximately matched by higher non-OPEC supply. In the following ten years, however, it becomes increasingly inevitable that OPEC market share will increase, as the net rise in non-OPEC output slows. The net investment requirement will need to cover both additional capacity and the maintenance of the existing production potential. For OPEC alone, the estimate is around 10 billion dollars a year during this period. Substantially higher or lower oil prices than the assumed values for the reference case are shown not only to generate lower OPEC export revenue, but also to be unsustainable. (Author)

Economics of oil regulation and the Brazilian reform: Some issues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hernandez-Perez, Adriana, E-mail: adriana.perez@fgv.b [Center for Economics and Oil Studies, IBRE/Fundacao Getulio Vargas (Brazil)

2011-01-15

This paper reviews the economic fundamentals for regulation in the oil industry, with a focus on the current regulatory proposal for the Brazilian oil industry. The observed exploration and production (E and P) contracts foresee much of the characteristics of the optimal contract, with a remuneration structure that combines upfront with future payments to mitigate uncertainty and incentivize exploratory efforts. In Brazil, despite slow market deconcentration since 1997's liberalization, the current oil regulation is in general consistent with an optimal regulatory response. From an economic standpoint, the 2009's new regulatory proposal prompted by the major oil discoveries offshore in Brazil reduces the power of incentive schemes with respect to exploratory and cost-reducing efforts while the changes in the net risk of the E and P offshore activities are not so clear. - Research Highlights: {yields} The observed exploration and production (E and P) contracts foresee much of the characteristics of an optimal contract. {yields} The current oil regulation in Brazil is in general consistent with an optimal regulatory response. {yields} The changes in the net risk of the E and P offshore activities in Brazil are not so clear. {yields} The 2009's new regulatory proposal in Brazil reduces the power of incentive schemes with respect to exploratory and cost-reducing efforts.

Life cycle GHG emissions from Malaysian oil palm bioenergy development: The impact on transportation sector's energy security

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hassan, Mohd Nor Azman, E-mail: mohdnorh@andrew.cmu.ed [Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15203 (United States); Jaramillo, Paulina [Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15203 (United States); Griffin, W. Michael [Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15203 (United States); Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15203 (United States)

2011-05-15

Malaysia's transportation sector accounts for 41% of the country's total energy use. The country is expected to become a net oil importer by the year 2011. To encourage renewable energy development and relieve the country's emerging oil dependence, in 2006 the government mandated blending 5% palm-oil biodiesel in petroleum diesel. Malaysia produced 16 million tonnes of palm oil in 2007, mainly for food use. This paper addresses maximizing bioenergy use from oil-palm to support Malaysia's energy initiative while minimizing greenhouse-gas emissions from land-use change. When converting primary and secondary forests to oil-palm plantations between 270-530 and 120-190 g CO{sub 2}-equivalent per MJ of biodiesel produced, respectively, is released. However, converting degraded lands results in the capture of between 23 and 85 g CO{sub 2}-equivalent per MJ of biodiesel produced. Using various combinations of land types, Malaysia could meet the 5% biodiesel target with a net GHG savings of about 1.03 million tonnes (4.9% of the transportation sector's diesel emissions) when accounting for the emissions savings from the diesel fuel displaced. These findings are used to recommend policies for mitigating GHG emissions impacts from the growth of palm oil use in the transportation sector. - Research highlights: {yields} We modeled greenhouse gas emissions in the production of palm-biodiesel. {yields} Five land types were included to model emissions associated with land-use change. {yields} Land-use change has the biggest impact on the emissions in making palm-biodiesel. {yields} Emissions from fertilizer use and effluent treatment are still significant. {yields} At 5% biodiesel grown on suitable lands Malaysia would obtain an emissions savings.

Net load forecasting for high renewable energy penetration grids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaur, Amanpreet; Nonnenmacher, Lukas; Coimbra, Carlos F.M.

2016-01-01

We discuss methods for net load forecasting and their significance for operation and management of power grids with high renewable energy penetration. Net load forecasting is an enabling technology for the integration of microgrid fleets with the macrogrid. Net load represents the load that is traded between the grids (microgrid and utility grid). It is important for resource allocation and electricity market participation at the point of common coupling between the interconnected grids. We compare two inherently different approaches: additive and integrated net load forecast models. The proposed methodologies are validated on a microgrid with 33% annual renewable energy (solar) penetration. A heuristics based solar forecasting technique is proposed, achieving skill of 24.20%. The integrated solar and load forecasting model outperforms the additive model by 10.69% and the uncertainty range for the additive model is larger than the integrated model by 2.2%. Thus, for grid applications an integrated forecast model is recommended. We find that the net load forecast errors and the solar forecasting errors are cointegrated with a common stochastic drift. This is useful for future planning and modeling because the solar energy time-series allows to infer important features of the net load time-series, such as expected variability and uncertainty. - Highlights: • Net load forecasting methods for grids with renewable energy generation are discussed. • Integrated solar and load forecasting outperforms the additive model by 10.69%. • Net load forecasting reduces the uncertainty between the interconnected grids.

Petri Nets

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

In a computer system, for example, typical discrete events ... This project brought out a series of influential reports on Petri net theory in the mid and late ... Technology became a leading centre for Petri net research and from then on, Petri nets ...

In vitro antimicrobial properties of plant essential oils thymus vulgaris, cymbopogon citratus and laurus nobilis against five important foodborne pathogens

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandra Farias Millezi

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Several essential oils of condiment and medicinal plants possess proven antimicrobial activity and are of important interest for the food industry. Therefore, the Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MIC of those oils should be determined for various bacteria. MIC varies according to the oil used, the major compounds, and the physiology of the bacterium under study. In the present study, the essential oils of the plants Thymus vulgaris (time, Cymbopogon citratus (lemongrass and Laurus nobilis (bay were chemically quantified, and the MIC was determined on the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19117, Salmonella enterica Enteritidis S64, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853. The essential oil of C. citratus demonstrated bacterial activity at all concentrations tested and against all of the bacteria tested. The majority of essential oil compounds were geranial and neral. The major constituent of T. vulgaris was 1.8-cineol and of L. nobilis was linalool, which presented lower antibacterial activity, followed by 1.8-cineol. The Gram-negative bacteria demonstrated higher resistance to the use of the essential oils tested in this study. E. coli was the least sensitive and was inhibited only by the oils of C. citratus and L. nobilis.

Mechanical recovery of oil in ice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solsberg, L.B.; McGrath, M.

1992-01-01

A literature review was performed on the mechanical systems used for removing oil in ice. The most promising spill cleanup techniques were identified along with recommendations for future work. Catalogued data in the review focused on skimmers, of which rope mop machines were considered as having the most versatile approach. The performance of the Foxtail VAB 8-14 skimmer was then assessed in North Slope crude oil and diesel fuel at a test site in Alaska. The skimmer operates through a remote power pack and pump, and incorporates eight vertically oriented rope mops. It weighs 900 kg and is suspended from a crane when deployed. Three independent test parameters were measured: oil type, slick thickness, and ice cover. A test strategy was devised to isolate the effects of individual parameters on skimming in order to optimize machine performance. Skimmer performance was based on the percent oil in the recovered oil/water mixture and the net oil collection rate. Skimmer performance was found to be optimal at rope mop speeds of 0.2-0.3 m/s in medium range viscosity oils. The unit tested was significantly less effective in diesel. Overall, the Foxtail skimmer was found to comprise an oil recovery concept that has excellent potential and affords versatility for many oil-in-ice applications. 4 figs., 1 tab

Loss of protection with insecticide-treated nets against pyrethroid-resistant Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes once nets become holed: an experimental hut study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irish SR

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background An important advantage of pyrethroid-treated nets over untreated nets is that once nets become worn or holed a pyrethroid treatment will normally restore protection. The capacity of pyrethroids to kill or irritate any mosquito that comes into contact with the net and prevent penetration of holes or feeding through the sides are the main reasons why treated nets continue to provide protection despite their condition deteriorating over time. Pyrethroid resistance is a growing problem among Anopheline and Culicine mosquitoes in many parts of Africa. When mosquitoes become resistant the capacity of treated nets to provide protection might be diminished, particularly when holed. An experimental hut trial against pyrethroid-resistant Culex quinquefasciatus was therefore undertaken in southern Benin using a series of intact and holed nets, both untreated and treated, to assess any loss of protection as nets deteriorate with use and time. Results There was loss of protection when untreated nets became holed; the proportion of mosquitoes blood feeding increased from 36.2% when nets were intact to between 59.7% and 68.5% when nets were holed to differing extents. The proportion of mosquitoes blood feeding when treated nets were intact was 29.4% which increased to 43.6–57.4% when nets were holed. The greater the number of holes the greater the loss of protection regardless of whether nets were untreated or treated. Mosquito mortality in huts with untreated nets was 12.9–13.6%; treatment induced mortality was less than 12%. The exiting rate of mosquitoes into the verandas was higher in huts with intact nets. Conclusion As nets deteriorate with use and become increasingly holed the capacity of pyrethroid treatments to restore protection is greatly diminished against resistant Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes.

Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves. Annual report of operations, Fiscal year 1992

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-12-31

During fiscal year 1992, the reserves generated $473 million in revenues, a $181 million decrease from the fiscal year 1991 revenues, primarily due to significant decreases in oil and natural gas prices. Total costs were $200 million, resulting in net cash flow of $273 million, compared with $454 million in fiscal year 1991. From 1976 through fiscal year 1992, the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves generated more than $15 billion in revenues and a net operating income after costs of $12.5 billion. In fiscal year 1992, production at the Naval Petroleum Reserves at maximum efficient rates yielded 26 million barrels of crude oil, 119 billion cubic feet of natural gas, and 164 million gallons of natural gas liquids. From April to November 1992, senior managers from the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves held a series of three workshops in Boulder, Colorado, in order to build a comprehensive Strategic Plan as required by Secretary of Energy Notice 25A-91. Other highlights are presented for the following: Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1--production achievements, crude oil shipments to the strategic petroleum reserve, horizontal drilling, shallow oil zone gas injection project, environment and safety, and vanpool program; Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 2--new management and operating contractor and exploration drilling; Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 3--steamflood; Naval Oil Shale Reserves--protection program; and Tiger Team environmental assessment of the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.

The Prestige oil spill response in the French coastal waters : setting up a second-line response system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kerambrun, L.; Lavenant, M.; Cariou, G.; Poisson, H.; Goasguen, H.; Peltier, M.

2005-01-01

A heavy fuel oil spill from the Prestige oil tanker in early 2003 threatened the coastline of France, particularly the sensitive sandy dunes of the Aquitaine coast. The spill posed a long-term threat to two affected tourist islands that host a rich marine life, including the Marennes-Oleron oysters and juvenile eel fisheries. An oil spill response system was established by the French Maritime Affairs Department. The two-tiered response system was constructed with dynamic and static components and was adapted for strong tidal currents and muddy waters where fuel patches from the spill might not be visible. Local fishermen with knowledge of the waters used their trawlers and eel-fishing boats that were equipped with oil recovery trawls. A local netting device was also tested. The second response line for shallow waters consisted of small boats with net bags. The storage, transfer and treatment of the oily waste were controlled and available oil waste treatment procedures were assessed at local, regional and national levels for each type of oil waste fuel. 2 refs

Oil pollution in the Baltic Sea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kostianoy, Andrey G.; Lavrova, Olga Yu.

2014-01-01

This thorough review is based on observational satellite, airborne and in-situ data, scientific literature and technical reports, as well as the substantial experience of the authors, who hail from several Baltic Sea countries. They pay special attention to national practices, HELCOM and EMSA CleanSeaNet activities in oil pollution monitoring, and show different applications of the Seatrack Web model for oil spill drift prediction and the identification of illegal polluters, as well as for environmental risk assessment. Furthermore, some of the results on satellite monitoring of the Nord Stream gas pipeline construction in the Gulf of Finland are presented. This volume addresses the needs of specialists working in different fields of marine, environmental, and remote sensing sciences. It is a useful handbook on oil pollution for international and governmental agencies, as well as for policy makers who plan and manage oil and gas projects, the construction of ports and terminals, shipping, fishery, recreation, and tourist activities in the Baltic Sea.

Imported Oil and U.S. National Security

Science.gov (United States)

2009-01-01

Facing the Hard Truths About Energy: A Comprehensive View to 2030 of Global Oil and Natural Gas, Washington, D.C., July 2007. As of February 14, 2009...example, if consumers could switch easily from commuting by car to mass transit or telecommuting when fuel costs rise, the effects on the U.S. economy...levels by 2011. Higher gas prices have apparently hit the Belarusian economy hard . The Lukashenko government has been looking for loans to cover

Estimating primary productivity of tropical oil palm in Malaysia using remote sensing technique and ancillary data

Science.gov (United States)

Kanniah, K. D.; Tan, K. P.; Cracknell, A. P.

2014-10-01

The amount of carbon sequestration by vegetation can be estimated using vegetation productivity. At present, there is a knowledge gap in oil palm net primary productivity (NPP) at a regional scale. Therefore, in this study NPP of oil palm trees in Peninsular Malaysia was estimated using remote sensing based light use efficiency (LUE) model with inputs from local meteorological data, upscaled leaf area index/fractional photosynthetically active radiation (LAI/fPAR) derived using UK-DMC 2 satellite data and a constant maximum LUE value from the literature. NPP values estimated from the model was then compared and validated with NPP estimated using allometric equations developed by Corley and Tinker (2003), Henson (2003) and Syahrinudin (2005) with diameter at breast height, age and the height of the oil palm trees collected from three estates in Peninsular Malaysia. Results of this study show that oil palm NPP derived using a light use efficiency model increases with respect to the age of oil palm trees, and it stabilises after ten years old. The mean value of oil palm NPP at 118 plots as derived using the LUE model is 968.72 g C m-2 year-1 and this is 188% - 273% higher than the NPP derived from the allometric equations. The estimated oil palm NPP of young oil palm trees is lower compared to mature oil palm trees (oil palm trees contribute to lower oil palm LAI and therefore fPAR, which is an important variable in the LUE model. In contrast, it is noted that oil palm NPP decreases with respect to the age of oil palm trees as estimated using the allomeric equations. It was found in this study that LUE models could not capture NPP variation of oil palm trees if LAI/fPAR is used. On the other hand, tree height and DBH are found to be important variables that can capture changes in oil palm NPP as a function of age.

Electricity/oil substitution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Melvin, J.G.

1980-09-01

The extent to which electricity could substitute for imported oil in Canada is assessed and it is concluded that the bulk of projected oil imports could be displaced. This substitution of electricity for oil could be largely completed within two decades, with existing technology, using Canadian resources. The substitution of electricity for imported oil would result in relatively low energy costs and would stimulate economic growth. Energy self-sufficiency through the substitution of electricity for oil is uniquely a Canadian option; it is not open to other industrial countries. The option exists because of Canada's resources of oil sands for essential liquid fuels, hydraulic and nuclear electrical potential, and natural gas as an interim source of energy. While other countries face an energy crisis due to declining supplies of oil, Canada faces opportunities. The policies of Federal and Provincial governments, as perceived by individual decision makers, will have a major influence on Canada's ability to realize opportunities. (auth)

India expanding oil/gas E and D, infrastructure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1991-01-01

This paper reports that India continues to press oil and gas exploration and development and expansion of its petroleum sector infrastructure. One of the key moves is the government's decision to stage a fourth exploration bidding round, its most ambitious to date and one expected to elicit enthusiasm from international oil companies. At the same time, state oil companies Oil and Natural Gas Commission and Oil India Ltd. plan to maintain strong domestic E and D programs. ONGC is seeking more revenue to sustain India's ambitious oil and gas upstream plans. The state company has asked the government for a 50% hike in the price of domestic crude. The government currently pays ONGC and OIL only about $8.84/bbl, a price fixed in 1981. A jump of 50% in the domestic crude price would net ONGC another $1 billion/year in revenues, ONGC Chairman S.L. Khosla the. The government and other state companies also continue efforts to expand gas utilization and markets and match refining plans with market needs

Estimating core inflation : the role of oil price shocks and imported inflation

OpenAIRE

Bjørnland, Hilde Christiane

1997-01-01

This paper calculates core inflation, by imposing long run restrictions on a structural vector autoregression (VAR) model containing the growth rate of output, inflation and oil prices. Core inflation is identified as that component in inflation that has no long run effect on output. No restrictions are placed on the response of output and inflation to the oil price shocks. The analysis is applied to Norway and the United Kingdom, both oil producing OECD countries. A model that ...

Traditional nets interfere with the uptake of long-lasting insecticidal nets in the Peruvian Amazon: the relevance of net preference for achieving high coverage and use.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koen Peeters Grietens

Full Text Available While coverage of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLIN has steadily increased, a growing number of studies report gaps between net ownership and use. We conducted a mixed-methods social science study assessing the importance of net preference and use after Olyset® LLINs were distributed through a mass campaign in rural communities surrounding Iquitos, the capital city of the Amazonian region of Peru.The study was conducted in the catchment area of the Paujil and Cahuide Health Centres (San Juan district between July 2007 and November 2008. During a first qualitative phase, participant observation and in-depth interviews collected information on key determinants for net preference and use. In a second quantitative phase, a survey among recently confirmed malaria patients evaluated the acceptability and use of both LLINs and traditional nets, and a case control study assessed the association between net preference/use and housing structure (open vs. closed houses.A total of 10 communities were selected for the anthropological fieldwork and 228 households participated in the quantitative studies. In the study area, bed nets are considered part of the housing structure and are therefore required to fulfil specific architectural and social functions, such as providing privacy and shelter, which the newly distributed Olyset® LLINs ultimately did not. The LLINs' failure to meet these criteria could mainly be attributed to their large mesh size, transparency and perceived ineffectiveness to protect against mosquitoes and other insects, resulting in 63.3% of households not using any of the distributed LLINs. Notably, LLIN usage was significantly lower in houses with no interior or exterior walls (35.2% than in those with walls (73.8% (OR = 5.2, 95CI [2.2; 12.3], p<0.001.Net preference can interfere with optimal LLIN use. In order to improve the number of effective days of LLIN protection per dollar spent, appropriate quantitative and qualitative

Demand elasticity of oil in Barbados

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moore, Alvon, E-mail: armoore@centralbank.org.bb [Economist, Central Bank of Barbados, Toms Adams Financial Centre, Bridgetown (Barbados)

2011-06-15

The importation of oil is a significant component of Barbados' imports, rising from 7% of imports in 1998 to over 20% in 2009. This increase has impacted greatly on the level of foreign reserves. As a price-taker, relying entirely on imported oil for our energy needs could prove a continuous drain on the economy. With a view to formulating an appropriate energy policy for Barbados, this paper analyses the demand for oil using monthly data from 1998 to 2009. The paper estimates the elasticities of demand for oil by employing single equation cointegration approach and comparing the results with countries that rely heavily on imported oil and whose policy objective are to alter their energy structure to rely less on imported oil. The results show that the demand for oil imports is price inelastic in the long run. The consumption of oil is responsive to past consumption, prices, income, electricity consumption and the number of appliances imported in the short-run. A policy framework to reduce the use of oil for electricity consumption via alternative energy sources should be considered and the taxation of oil imports given its elasticity is a good source of revenue. - Highlights: > Demand for oil is price inelastic in the long-run (-0.552). > The relationship between oil demand and income is insignificant in the long run. > As electricity consumption increases by 1%, the demand for oil rises by 1.43%. > Need to determine if investments in alternative sources can offset demand for oil. > Investment in alternative resources may be required before gains are realised.

Petri nets - part 1: concepts and application areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sivertsen, Terje

2004-03-01

There exist a number of models, languages, methods, and tools that support the specification and analysis of system requirements. One important class comprises graphical methods based on the concept of Petri nets. Due to the wide variety of applications, these methods are relevant also in research and applications outside the digital systems safety domain. The present report constitutes the first of three parts of a unified exposition of graphical methods based on the concept of Petri nets. The report provides an introduction to basic concepts of Petri nets and an overview of a wide variety of application areas. The second part of the trilogy will present a number of techniques and tools. The third part will focus on analysis. Petri nets have been proposed for a wide variety of applications, and new areas are considered as new challenges emerge from scientific, technological, and social developments. The wide variety of application areas reflects a broad interest in Petri nets, coming from diverse directions. Empirically, as well as theoretically, there are good reasons to claim that Petri nets are applicable for many different kinds of problems. What is common to the different applications and problems addressed is the need for a formalism that allows adequate representation of important system characteristics like concurrency, asyncronicity, distribution, parallelism, and non-determinism. Several of the references in the report discuss NPP-related applications, or applications with great potentials for technology transfer from other areas to the nuclear domain. (Author)

Economics of Newfoundland and Labrador's offshore oil industry : separating fact from myth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Locke, W.

2006-01-01

This presentation provided an analysis of the Newfoundland offshore oil sector to help inform public understanding and debate. Four questions were posed to the oil sector in order to provide answers to questions the public may have concerning oil and gas operations and their socio-economic impacts in the region. It was observed that Newfoundland's daily production, reserves and activity levels are relatively small in comparison with other major oil producing regions, accounting for only 0.4 per cent of the world's daily oil production. On a per capita basis, oil production in the region is significant in comparison to other oil-producing regions, placing fourth in the world behind the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Norway. The oil and gas sector is the largest single contributor to Newfoundland's economy, providing 16 per cent of Newfoundland's gross domestic product (GDP). An estimated $16 billion will be provided to the province's treasury through the exploitation of the province's resources. Production statistics for Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose and Hebron were presented. Price forecasts and projected royalty payments were also provided. It was noted that the Newfoundland government receives more than 50 per cent of the profits of the combined fields, and higher oil prices will yield higher shares to the government. Equity holders incur more risk and receive lower net present value than royalty and tax collectors. It was suggested that increases in local benefits will lead to increased project costs, which will in turn lead to reduced royalty incomes. It was concluded that the Newfoundland offshore oil sector is vitally important to all aspects of the province's economy. An informed debate on public policy issues that impact Newfoundland's offshore oil industry is needed. refs., tabs., figs

Status of Net Metering: Assessing the Potential to Reach Program Caps

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Heeter, J.; Gelman, R.; Bird, L.

2014-09-01

Several states are addressing the issue of net metering program caps, which limit the total amount of net metered generating capacity that can be installed in a state or utility service territory. In this analysis, we examine net metering caps to gain perspective on how long net metering will be available in various jurisdictions under current policies. We also surveyed state practices and experience to understand important policy design considerations.

Millionaire underdogs: The Independent Petroleum Association of American and the politics of imported oil, 1921-1941

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Staggs, K.J.

1991-01-01

Smaller, usually non-integrated producers, or independents, demanded a protective tariff on imported petroleum, the one policy that would make the majors bear all the burdens of curtailment. In 1929 they created a national organization, the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPPA), and after 1929 spent the next 12 years lobbying Congress and the Executive for some form of protective legislation. The independents argued that protectionism was necessary in order to maintain a competitive balance in the industry, and that if the majors were allowed to buy them out, the country would face high monopolistic prices for petroleum products. This study explains why the independent oil producers wanted protectionist legislation in the 1920s and 1930s, how they influenced oil policy, and what the short-term and long-run effects of the compromise over import controls were for America. It focuses particularly on the IPAA and makes use of its publications and of archival and manuscript collections, government documents, and trade journals that illuminate its thinking and its political activities

Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt

1987-01-01

The author describes a Petri net model, called coloured Petri nets (CP-nets), by means of which it is possible to describe large systems without having to cope with unnecessary details. The author introduces CP-nets and provide a first impression of their modeling power and the suitability...

The role of reserves and production in the market capitalization of oil and gas companies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ewing, Bradley T.; Thompson, Mark A.

2016-01-01

We examine the role proved reserves and production play in the market capitalization of publicly traded oil and gas companies engaged in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons. The paper provides two important contributions to the literature. First, we extend the existing research by utilizing the method of Robust Least Squares to estimate a multivariate market capitalization model that controls for firm type. Second, we document the impacts that oil and gas reserves to production ratios have on market capitalization. This is a key finding in the context of discounted net cash flow models and the findings suggest there is an optimal tradeoff between current and future production, given current volumes of reserves, the latter of which is valued positively by the market. Moreover, this optimal tradeoff or the optimal profit-maximizing intertemporal production choice is unique to the type of hydrocarbon being considered. Additionally, our findings highlight the importance of capital structure in the heavily capital intensive oil and gas industry. The results from this research should benefit both oil and gas companies and investors. Specifically, the results provide new and robust information as to the empirical relationships between key determinants of oil and gas company market valuations. - Highlights: • We utilized Robust Least Squares to estimate a multivariate market capitalization model. • There is a differential impact that oil and gas reserves to production ratios have on market capitalization. • The optimal profit-maximizing intertemporal production choice is unique to the type of hydrocarbon being considered. • Results provide new information as to the relationships between key determinants of oil and gas company market valuations.

Net one, net two: the primary care network income statement.

Science.gov (United States)

Halley, M D; Little, A W

1999-10-01

Although hospital-owned primary care practices have been unprofitable for most hospitals, some hospitals are achieving competitive advantage and sustainable practice operations. A key to the success of some has been a net income reporting tool that separates practice operating expenses from the costs of creating and operating a network of practices to help healthcare organization managers, physicians, and staff to identify opportunities to improve the network's financial performance. This "Net One, Net Two" reporting allows operations leadership to be held accountable for Net One expenses and strategic leadership to be held accountable for Net Two expenses.

Demand elasticity of oil in Barbados

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moore, Alvon

2011-01-01

The importation of oil is a significant component of Barbados' imports, rising from 7% of imports in 1998 to over 20% in 2009. This increase has impacted greatly on the level of foreign reserves. As a price-taker, relying entirely on imported oil for our energy needs could prove a continuous drain on the economy. With a view to formulating an appropriate energy policy for Barbados, this paper analyses the demand for oil using monthly data from 1998 to 2009. The paper estimates the elasticities of demand for oil by employing single equation cointegration approach and comparing the results with countries that rely heavily on imported oil and whose policy objective are to alter their energy structure to rely less on imported oil. The results show that the demand for oil imports is price inelastic in the long run. The consumption of oil is responsive to past consumption, prices, income, electricity consumption and the number of appliances imported in the short-run. A policy framework to reduce the use of oil for electricity consumption via alternative energy sources should be considered and the taxation of oil imports given its elasticity is a good source of revenue. - Highlights: → Demand for oil is price inelastic in the long-run (-0.552). → The relationship between oil demand and income is insignificant in the long run. → As electricity consumption increases by 1%, the demand for oil rises by 1.43%. → Need to determine if investments in alternative sources can offset demand for oil. → Investment in alternative resources may be required before gains are realised.

Characterization of Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis Oils: The Importance of Solvent Selection for Analytical Method Development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ferrell, Jack R [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Ware, Anne E [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2018-02-25

Two catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP) oils (bottom/heavy fraction) were analyzed in various solvents that are used in common analytical methods (nuclear magnetic resonance - NMR, gas chromatography - GC, gel permeation chromatography - GPC, thermogravimetric analysis - TGA) for oil characterization and speciation. A more accurate analysis of the CFP oils can be obtained by identification and exploitation of solvent miscibility characteristics. Acetone and tetrahydrofuran can be used to completely solubilize CFP oils for analysis by GC and tetrahydrofuran can be used for traditional organic GPC analysis of the oils. DMSO-d6 can be used to solubilize CFP oils for analysis by 13C NMR. The fractionation of oils into solvents that did not completely solubilize the whole oils showed that miscibility can be related to the oil properties. This allows for solvent selection based on physico-chemical properties of the oils. However, based on semi-quantitative comparisons of the GC chromatograms, the organic solvent fractionation schemes did not speciate the oils based on specific analyte type. On the other hand, chlorinated solvents did fractionate the oils based on analyte size to a certain degree. Unfortunately, like raw pyrolysis oil, the matrix of the CFP oils is complicated and is not amenable to simple liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) or solvent fractionation to separate the oils based on the chemical and/or physical properties of individual components. For reliable analyses, for each analytical method used, it is critical that the bio-oil sample is both completely soluble and also not likely to react with the chosen solvent. The adoption of the standardized solvent selection protocols presented here will allow for greater reproducibility of analysis across different users and facilities.

IOGCC/DOE oil and gas environmental workshop

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

The Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) in cooperation with US Department of Energy (DOE) has developed a workshop format to allow state regulatory officials and industry representatives the opportunity to participate in frank and open discussions on issues of environmental regulatory compliance. The purpose of providing this forum is to assist both groups in identifying the key barriers to the economic recoverability of domestic oil and gas resources while adequately protecting human health and the environment. The IOGCC and DOE staff worked with key state and industry representatives to develop a list of appropriate regulatory and industry representatives to be invited to participate. These same industry and regulatory representatives also provided a prioritized list of topics to be discussed at this workshop. After the topic leader set out the issue, views of those present were solicited. In almost every case, both the industry representatives and the regulatory personnel spoke with candor in discussing the problems. Common points of discussion for each topic were: (1) conflicting state and federal regulations; (2) conflicting regulations or permit requirements established by different state agencies; (3) increasing compliance costs; and (4) regulatory constraints that will result in ''no net growth'' in California oil and gas production and more likely a net decrease. This report contains a copy of the written presentation for each topic as well as a summary of the participants discussion

A simulator for high-level Petri nets: An ePNK application

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kindler, Ekkart; Laganeckas, Mindaugas

2013-01-01

The ePNK is a platform for Petri net tools based on the PNML transfer format. One of its important features is its extensibility, which allows developers to plug in new Petri net types and new functions and applications for different kinds of Petri nets. The basic version of the ePNK provides...

Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves. Annual report of operations, Fiscal year 1993

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-01-01

During fiscal year 1993, the reserves generated $440 million in revenues, a $33 million decrease from the fiscal year 1992 revenues, primarily due to significant decreases in oil and natural gas prices. Total costs were $207 million, resulting in net cash flow of $233 million, compared with $273 million in fiscal year 1992. From 1976 through fiscal year 1993, the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves generated $15.7 billion in revenues for the US Treasury, with expenses of $2.9 billion. The net revenues of $12.8 billion represent a return on costs of 441 percent. See figures 2, 3, and 4. In fiscal year 1993, production at the Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves at maximum efficient rates yielded 25 million barrels of crude oil, 123 billion cubic feet of natural gas, and 158 million gallons of natural gas liquids. The Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves has embarked on an effort to identify additional hydrocarbon resources on the reserves for future production. In 1993, in cooperation with the US Geological Survey, the Department initiated a project to assess the oil and gas potential of the program's oil shale reserves, which remain largely unexplored. These reserves, which total a land area of more than 145,000 acres and are located in Colorado and Utah, are favorably situated in oil and gas producing regions and are likely to contain significant hydrocarbon deposits. Alternatively the producing assets may be sold or leased if that will produce the most value. This task will continue through the first quarter of fiscal year 1994

QML-AiNet: An immune network approach to learning qualitative differential equation models.

Science.gov (United States)

Pang, Wei; Coghill, George M

2015-02-01

In this paper, we explore the application of Opt-AiNet, an immune network approach for search and optimisation problems, to learning qualitative models in the form of qualitative differential equations. The Opt-AiNet algorithm is adapted to qualitative model learning problems, resulting in the proposed system QML-AiNet. The potential of QML-AiNet to address the scalability and multimodal search space issues of qualitative model learning has been investigated. More importantly, to further improve the efficiency of QML-AiNet, we also modify the mutation operator according to the features of discrete qualitative model space. Experimental results show that the performance of QML-AiNet is comparable to QML-CLONALG, a QML system using the clonal selection algorithm (CLONALG). More importantly, QML-AiNet with the modified mutation operator can significantly improve the scalability of QML and is much more efficient than QML-CLONALG.

Tax policy can change the production path: A model of optimal oil extraction in Alaska

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leighty, Wayne; Lin, C.-Y. Cynthia

2012-01-01

We model the economically optimal dynamic oil production decisions for seven production units (fields) on Alaska's North Slope. We use adjustment cost and discount rate to calibrate the model against historical production data, and use the calibrated model to simulate the impact of tax policy on production rate. We construct field-specific cost functions from average cost data and an estimated inverse production function, which incorporates engineering aspects of oil production into our economic modeling. Producers appear to have approximated dynamic optimality. Consistent with prior research, we find that changing the tax rate alone does not change the economically optimal oil production path, except for marginal fields that may cease production. Contrary to prior research, we find that the structure of tax policy can be designed to affect the economically optimal production path, but at a cost in net social benefit. - Highlights: ► We model economically optimal dynamic oil production decisions for 7 Alaska fields. ► Changing tax rate alone does not alter the economically optimal oil production path. ► But change in tax structure can affect the economically optimal oil production path. ► Tax structures that modify the optimal production path reduce net social benefit. ► Field-specific cost functions and inverse production functions are estimated

Net shape powder processing of aluminium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schaffer, G.B.

2000-01-01

The increasing interest in light weight materials coupled to the need for cost-effective processing have combined to create a significant opportunity for aluminium powder metallurgy. Net shape processing of aluminium using the classical press-and-sinter powder metallurgy technique is a unique and important metal-forming method which is cost effective in producing complex parts at, or very close to, final dimensions. This paper provides an overview of the net shape powder processing of aluminium. Current research is critically reviewed and the future potential is briefly considered

Health, Wealth and the Price of Oil.

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Robert G

2016-05-01

The correlation between health and wealth is arguably a very solidly established relationship. Yet that relationship may be reversing. Falling oil prices have raised (average) per capita incomes, worldwide. But from a long-run perspective they are a public health disaster. The latter is easy to see: low oil reduces the incentive to develop alternative energy sources and "bend the curve" of global warming. Their principal impact on incomes has been redistributional - Alberta and Russia lose, Ontario and Germany gain, etc. Zero net gain. But the price has fallen because technical progress in extracting American shale oil has forced the Saudis' hand. These efficiencies have real benefits for (average) incomes, but costs for long-run health. A compensating carbon tax is an obvious response. Copyright © 2016 Longwoods Publishing.

US oil dependency: 1973-1997

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noel, P.

1998-11-01

This piece examines the behavior of US oil imports since the first oil shock, and compares with other big importers Europe and Japan. The relative share of Persian Gulf oil in foreign supply to the US is explained in terms of ''swing supplier'', and is shown to evolve in direct relation with the imports themselves: up when they are growing; down when imports go down. This relation broke up at the beginning of the 1990: despite growing US imports, Gulf share is declining. The reason is a regionalization (meaning the pan-Americanization) of US oil imports: the share of Latin American (Mexican and Venezuelan) and Canadian oil is growing steadily at the expense of non American suppliers. Hence the papers questions the chance of a emancipation of the US from Gulf oil and its geopolitical consequences. We argue that even in the case of a complete regionalization of oil imports, US energy security would still depend on the stability in the Middle-East, because of the ''unified'' and global nature of the oil market. An emancipation of the US from the Gulf is not impossible (though certainly not certain) but an emancipation of the Gulf from the US is all but imminent. (author)

The effect of dietary and/or cosmetic argan oil on postmenopausal skin elasticity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qiraouani Boucetta K

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Kenza Qiraouani Boucetta,1 Zoubida Charrouf,2 Hassan Aguenaou,3 Abdelfattah Derouiche,4 Yahya Bensouda1 1Research Team on Formulation and Biopharmacy, Research Center for Drug, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco; 2Faculty of Sciences, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco; 3Mixed Unit of Research in Nutrition, ITU / CNESTEN, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco; 4Faculty of Sciences, Hassan II University, Casablanca, Morocco Background: During menopause, the decrease of estrogenic secretion induces the disruption of skin functioning, thus causing the decline in skin elasticity characteristic of skin aging. The purpose of this study was to evaluate in postmenopausal women the effect of daily consumption and/or application of argan oil on skin elasticity.Materials and methods: Sixty postmenopausal women consumed butter during the stabilization period and were randomly divided into two groups for the intervention period: the treatment group of 30 participants received dietary argan oil, the control group of 30 participants received olive oil, and both groups applied cosmetic argan oil in the left volar forearm during a 60-day period. Assessments of skin elasticity parameters, ie, the three R-parameters (R2 or gross-elasticity of the skin, R5 or net elasticity of the skin, and R7 or biological elasticity, and the resonance running time (RRT at both volar forearms of the two groups were performed during three visits: before starting oils consumption and application, after 30 days of oils consumption and application, and after 60 days of oils consumption and application.Results: The consumption of argan oil led to a significant increase of gross-elasticity of the skin (R2 (P<0.001, net elasticity of the skin (R5 (P<0.001, biological elasticity (R7 (P<0.001, and a significant decrease of RRT (P=0.002. The application of argan oil led to a significant increase of gross-elasticity of the skin (R2 (P<0.001, net

Happy oil companies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maincent, G.

2009-01-01

The decay of demand, the bad financial results of the first half of 2009 and the hypothetical depletion of reserves must not hide a reality: oil companies are passing through the economic crisis without much trouble. Even if profits have marked time in volume (-57% for BP, -65% for Shell..), the net margins have not significantly suffered and the available cash remains comfortable (14 billion euros for Total as an example). The perspectives offered by the new offshore sites (like Santos in Brazil) added to the fabulous promises of the Iraqi market where 'majors' can now make their come-back will be the key of success of oil companies. The overall exploration-production investments should start up again by the beginning of 2011. For the only offshore drilling domain, they should rise up by 32% during the 2009-2013 period which represents a sum of 367 billion dollars. (J.S.)

Instant Autodesk AutoCAD 2014 customization with .NET

CERN Document Server

Nelson, Tom

2013-01-01

Filled with practical, step-by-step instructions and clear explanations for the most important and useful tasks. An instruction-based guide with examples written in the C# programming language. VB.NET programmers can also take advantage of these examples by using one of the free conversion websites to convert the examples to VB.NET.Clear, step-by-step instructions and complete code examples illustrate the processes, making it easy to develop your own custom AutoCAD tools.This book is perfect if you are interested in customizing AutoCAD 2014 using the .NET API. You should have a basic familiari

Economic study of NHR application on high pour point oil field

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao Gang; Zhang Zuoyi; Ma Yuanle

1997-01-01

In order to extent the application of NHR (nuclear heating reactor) and cut down the oil production costs, the authors designed different heating disposition by NHR and boiler heating stations in high pour point oil reservoir, total 16.9 km 2 , in Daqing oil field. This work was based on the study of history matching, water flood planning and hot water circulation for the reservoir. The analyzing results show that, the convert heating cost of NHR is a third of boiler's and the net oil production of NHR is 4 times more than the latter. Considering economization and reliability, authors suggest to adopt the scheme of two NHR with one boiler heating station

Energy balance of the lavender oil production

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Osman GÖKDOĞAN

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This research was carried out to determine the energy input-output analysis of lavender oil production. Data from agricultural farms in Isparta province was used. Energy input was calculated as 1993.89 MJ and energy output was calculated as 2925.51 MJ. Wood energy, fresh stalked lavender flower energy, equipment energy, human labour energy, electricity energy, and water energy inputs were 54.22 %, 41.86 %, 3.40 %, 0.23 %, 0.18 %, and 0.10 % of energy inputs, respectively. In this production, it is noteworthy that wood was used as fuel in the lavender oil production distillation process as the highest input. In the energy outputs, an average of 3.10 kg lavender oil and 130 kg lavender water were extracted by processing 234 kg fresh stalked lavender flower. Energy use efficiency, specific energy, energy productivity, and net energy for lavender oil production were calculated as 1.47, 643.19 MJ kg-1, 0.002 kg MJ-1 and 931.62 MJ, respectively.

Oil biodegradation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rahsepar, Shokouhalsadat; Langenhoff, Alette A.M.; Smit, Martijn P.J.; Eenennaam, van Justine S.; Murk, Tinka; Rijnaarts, Huub H.M.

2017-01-01

During the Deepwater Horizon (DwH) oil spill, interactions between oil, clay particles and marine snow lead to the formation of aggregates. Interactions between these components play an important, but yet not well understood, role in biodegradation of oil in the ocean water. The aim of this study

Guifi.net: Security analysis of a heterogeneous community network

OpenAIRE

Ramos García, Patricia

2018-01-01

Guifi.net is a heterogeneous community network that brings Internet to rural areas or vulnerable groups. This opens the door to many advances, but encompasses some risks as well. The aim of this project is to assess the general security of Guifi.net from tests performed on a key network element: the router. In particular, MikroTik and Ubiquiti are the most used makes in Guifi.net and hence, the target of this project. Basic, yet important, security settings are tested. On the plus side, the ...

The instability of world oil market and its impact on economic development: Indonesia's experience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patmosukismo, S.

1991-01-01

The world oil market has been characterized by fluctuating prices which have a direct impact on the world economy. If the world oil price rises in real terms, upstream activities become more attractive to producers, and if the price declines, downstream opportunities become more attractive. The world oil market is currently determined not only by producers and consumers, but also by the futures trade. In addition, the elasticity of oil prices has increased since the 1970s through competition among producers and competition from other energy sources. The Asia Pacific countries are experiencing rapid economic growth, and are thus heavily dependent on oil, but generally have small reserves. Their reserves/production ratio is ca 20 years, with a major share coming from China and Indonesia. The current situation of tight and inadequate supply may increase the region's dependence on Middle East sources. The effects of the three recent major oil crises on the Asia Pacific countries are reviewed and the role of oil and gas in Indonesia's economic development is described. Export earnings from oil and gas represent a major share of total Indonesian export revenues, and taxes and receipts from oil companies continue to be the largest receipts in Indonesian government revenues. Slow changes in the primary fuel mix and high growth in domestic consumption may turn Indonesia into a net oil importer before the year 2000. A major effort to decrease domestic oil consumption has been implemented by using natural gas and coal in the power generation sector. On the supply side, recoverable oil and gas reserves of 50 billion bbl and 200 trillion ft 3 respectively may be present but their development depends on the investment scheme of the continuing exploration program

Profitability Analysis of Soybean Oil Processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Ming-Hsun; Rosentrater, Kurt A

2017-10-07

Soybean oil production is the basic process for soybean applications. Cash flow analysis is used to estimate the profitability of a manufacturing venture. Besides capital investments, operating costs, and revenues, the interest rate is the factor to estimate the net present value (NPV), break-even points, and payback time; which are benchmarks for profitability evaluation. The positive NPV and reasonable payback time represent a profitable process, and provide an acceptable projection for real operating. Additionally, the capacity of the process is another critical factor. The extruding-expelling process and hexane extraction are the two typical approaches used in industry. When the capacities of annual oil production are larger than 12 and 173 million kg respectively, these two processes are profitable. The solvent free approach, known as enzyme assisted aqueous extraction process (EAEP), is profitable when the capacity is larger than 17 million kg of annual oil production.

Profitability Analysis of Soybean Oil Processes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ming-Hsun Cheng

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Soybean oil production is the basic process for soybean applications. Cash flow analysis is used to estimate the profitability of a manufacturing venture. Besides capital investments, operating costs, and revenues, the interest rate is the factor to estimate the net present value (NPV, break-even points, and payback time; which are benchmarks for profitability evaluation. The positive NPV and reasonable payback time represent a profitable process, and provide an acceptable projection for real operating. Additionally, the capacity of the process is another critical factor. The extruding-expelling process and hexane extraction are the two typical approaches used in industry. When the capacities of annual oil production are larger than 12 and 173 million kg respectively, these two processes are profitable. The solvent free approach, known as enzyme assisted aqueous extraction process (EAEP, is profitable when the capacity is larger than 17 million kg of annual oil production.

The Importance of Target Market Selection for More Profitable Olive Oil Exports by Turkey: A Case Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mustafa METE

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, the quotas and taxes implemented by EU to Turkey were examined and it was observed that these policies have negative effects on Turkey’s olive oil exports. Due to the restrictive policies and low profitability in the entry to the EU market, it was determined that Turkey should be directed to the markets that have higher profitability compared with the exports to EU countries. These detections were carried out in accordance with the information obtained from International Trade Center (ITC and Market Access Database (MAD. As a result of the detections it has been found that exports to the EU countries are more profitable and the entry to the market is easier than to the US. As a result of the researches in ITC and MAD databases, actual companies in oil imports in the US market have been determined and it has shown by examining a bill of loading sample that the firms that make olive oils exports in Turkey easily enter new target markets if they know the usage of the databases

Quantification of Net Erosion and Uplift Experienced by the Barmer Basin, Rajasthan Using Sonic Log

Science.gov (United States)

Mitra, K.; Schulz, S.; Sarkar, A.

2015-12-01

Barmer Basin of Rajasthan, Western India is a hydrocarbon rich sedimentary basin currently being explored by Cairn India Limited. The hydrocarbon bearing Fatehgarh Formation is being found at different depths in different oil fields (e.g. From south to north: Guda, Vijaya & Vandana, Air field High) of the basin. The net uplift and erosion in the Barmer Basin has been quantified using compaction methodology. The sonic log, which is strongly controlled by porosity, is an appropriate indicator of compaction, and hence used for quantification of net uplift and erosion from compaction. The compaction methodology has been applied to the shale rich Dharvi Dungar Formation of Barmer Basin of Late Paleocene age. The net uplift and erosion is also being checked with the help of AFTA-VR and seismic sections. The results show relatively no uplift in the southernmost part of the basin and a Guda field well is thus taken to be the reference well with respect to which the uplifts in different parts of the basin have been calculated. The northern part of the basin i.e. Air Field High wells experienced maximum uplift (~2150m). Interestingly, a few wells further south of the reference well show evidence for uplift. The study was able to point out errors in the report produced with the help of AFTA-VR which found out less uplift in Vijaya & Vandana oil fields as opposed to sonic log data. The process of finding out uplift using sonic log has a standard deviation of 200m as compared to about 500m error in AFTA-VR method. This study has major implications for hydrocarbon exploration. Maturation of source rock will be higher for any given geothermal history if net uplift and erosion is incorporated in maturation modeling. They can also be used for porosity predictions of reservoir units in undrilled targets.

Review of FEWS NET Biophysical Monitoring Requirements

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, K. W.; Brown, Molly E.; Verdin, J.; Underwood, L. W.

2009-01-01

The Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) provides monitoring and early warning support to decision makers responsible for responding to famine and food insecurity. FEWS NET transforms satellite remote sensing data into rainfall and vegetation information that can be used by these decision makers. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has recently funded activities to enhance remote sensing inputs to FEWS NET. To elicit Earth observation requirements, a professional review questionnaire was disseminated to FEWS NET expert end-users: it focused upon operational requirements to determine additional useful remote sensing data and; subsequently, beneficial FEWS NET biophysical supplementary inputs. The review was completed by over 40 experts from around the world, enabling a robust set of professional perspectives to be gathered and analyzed rapidly. Reviewers were asked to evaluate the relative importance of environmental variables and spatio-temporal requirements for Earth science data products, in particular for rainfall and vegetation products. The results showed that spatio-temporal resolution requirements are complex and need to vary according to place, time, and hazard: that high resolution remote sensing products continue to be in demand, and that rainfall and vegetation products were valued as data that provide actionable food security information.

Characterizing commercial oil palm expansion in Latin America: land use change and trade

Science.gov (United States)

Furumo, Paul Richard; Aide, T. Mitchell

2017-02-01

Commodity crop expansion has increased with the globalization of production systems and consumer demand, linking distant socio-ecological systems. Oil palm plantations are expanding in the tropics to satisfy growing oilseed and biofuel markets, and much of this expansion has caused extensive deforestation, especially in Asia. In Latin America, palm oil output has doubled since 2001, and the majority of expansion seems to be occurring on non-forested lands. We used MODIS satellite imagery (250 m resolution) to map current oil palm plantations in Latin America and determined prior land use and land cover (LULC) using high-resolution images in Google Earth. In addition, we compiled trade data to determine where Latin American palm oil flows, in order to better understand the underlying drivers of expansion in the region. Based on a sample of 342 032 ha of oil palm plantations across Latin America, we found that 79% replaced previously intervened lands (e.g. pastures, croplands, bananas), primarily cattle pastures (56%). The remaining 21% came from areas that were classified as woody vegetation (e.g. forests), most notably in the Amazon and the Petén region in northern Guatemala. Latin America is a net exporter of palm oil but the majority of palm oil exports (70%) stayed within the region, with Mexico importing about half. Growth of the oil palm sector may be driven by global factors, but environmental and economic outcomes vary between regions (i.e. Asia and Latin America), within regions (i.e. Colombia and Peru), and within single countries (i.e. Guatemala), suggesting that local conditions are influential. The present trend of oil palm expanding onto previously cleared lands, guided by roundtable certifications programs, provides an opportunity for more sustainable development of the oil palm sector in Latin America.

Which nets are being used: factors associated with mosquito net use in Amhara, Oromia and Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Regions of Ethiopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Ngondi, Jeremiah M; Graves, Patricia M; Gebre, Teshome; Mosher, Aryc W; Shargie, Estifanos B; Emerson, Paul M; Richards, Frank O

2011-04-17

across both surveys. While net replacement remains important, the findings suggest that: more education about use and care of nets; making nets more resistant to damage; and encouraging net mending are likely to maximize the huge investment in scale up of net ownership by ensuring they are used. Without this step, the widespread benefits of LLIN cannot be realized.

Which nets are being used: factors associated with mosquito net use in Amhara, Oromia and Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Regions of Ethiopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mosher Aryc W

2011-04-01

modifiable factors affecting use of nets that were consistent across both surveys. While net replacement remains important, the findings suggest that: more education about use and care of nets; making nets more resistant to damage; and encouraging net mending are likely to maximize the huge investment in scale up of net ownership by ensuring they are used. Without this step, the widespread benefits of LLIN cannot be realized.

Determinants of China's energy imports: An empirical analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, Xingjun; Wu, Yanrui

2007-01-01

Sustained economic growth in China has triggered a surge of energy imports, especially oil imports. This paper investigates the determinants of China's energy import demand by using cointegraiton and VECM techniques. The findings suggest that, in the long run, growth of industrial production and expansion of transport sectors affect China's oil imports, while domestic energy output has a substitution effect. Thus, as the Chinese economy industrializes and the automotive sector expands, China's oil imports are likely to increase. Though China's domestic oil production has a substitution effect on imports, its growth is limited due to scarce domestic reserve and high exploration costs. It is anticipated that China will be more dependent on overseas oil supply regardless of the world oil price. (author)

The Necessity of a Graded Tariff System between Crude Oil and Oil Products

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, B.R. [SK Corporation, Seoul (Korea)

2002-06-01

Even though the graded tariff system between crude oil and oil products has been continuously insisted by oil refining companies since the export and import liberalization of 1997, and its necessity has been admitted by the government, press, and academia, the expanded implementation of the graded tariff system has not been yet realized. Some people says that the graded tariff system between crude oil and oil products is a kind of desperate plans, which oil refining companies suggests to stop the importing companies' rapid growth, so it will eventually restrict the competition of the domestic oil market due to the withering of importing companies. However, the graded tariff system between crude oil and oil products should have been enforced in 1997 as a complementary measure of the import liberalization like other industries or the advanced countries' cases. It is the basic tariff principle that the low tariff is levied on raw materials and the high tariff on final products in order to protect domestic industry. The remaining things are just to form the sympathy and to agree socially for the reorganization of tariff structure in the reasonable way. It is not desirable to make a fool mistake such as a proverb; t is too late to shut the stable door after the horse has bolted. owing to the unreasonable tariff system.

Assessment of an oil palm population from Nigerian Institute for Oil ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.), a monocotyledonous plant belonging to the Arecaceae family, is one of the most important oil crops in the world. In Nigeria, oil palm has benefited immensely from conventional breeding efforts resulting in high yields that have been achieved with this breeding material. However, oil palm ...

Economics of oil regulation and the Brazilian reform. Some issues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernandez-Perez, Adriana

2011-01-01

This paper reviews the economic fundamentals for regulation in the oil industry, with a focus on the current regulatory proposal for the Brazilian oil industry. The observed exploration and production (E and P) contracts foresee much of the characteristics of the optimal contract, with a remuneration structure that combines upfront with future payments to mitigate uncertainty and incentivize exploratory efforts. In Brazil, despite slow market deconcentration since 1997's liberalization, the current oil regulation is in general consistent with an optimal regulatory response. From an economic standpoint, the 2009's new regulatory proposal prompted by the major oil discoveries offshore in Brazil reduces the power of incentive schemes with respect to exploratory and cost-reducing efforts while the changes in the net risk of the E and P offshore activities are not so clear. (author)

Import of electric power increased by 19 %

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

2000-01-01

The import of electric power increased by 19% in 1999. Due to the decrease in the electric power export the net import of electric power increased even more. Electric power import from Sweden was 6000 GWh, import from Russia 5200 GWh and import from Norway 100 GWh. The electric power export in 1999 was only 200 GWh. The generation of nuclear power increased 5% and the consumption of wood-based fuels by 3%. The increase in nuclear power generation is based on increment of the power output capacities of the power plants. The consumption of peat decreased by 12% and the production of hydroelectric power by 15%. The decrement of the peat consumption is based on the changes in energy taxation. The production of hydroelectric power decreased to the normal level after the rainy year 1998. Oil consumption remained nearly the same as in 1998 even though the national product increased in 1999 by 3.5%. The wind power generation was doubled in 1999. The share of it is still only about 0.01% of the total energy consumption. Carbon dioxide emissions from coal and peat, decreased by 1.0 million tons, down to 56 million tons. The present emissions are now only about 2 million tons higher than during the reference year 1990. The emissions have decreased by 5 million tons since 1996 when they were at their highest

Well and Inflow Performance Relationship for Heavy Oil Reservoir under Heating Treatment

KAUST Repository

Hakiki, Farizal

2017-10-17

Well and Inflow Performance Relationship, termed TPR and IPR, respectively have been the unfailing methods to predict well performance. It is further to determine the schemes on optimising production. The main intention of the study is to explore TPR and IPR under heating treatment for heavy oil well. Klamono is a mature field which mostly has depleted wells, it produces heavy oil within 18.5 °API (>0.95 g/cc oil density), and therefore, artificial lifting method is necessary. Sucker Road Pump (SRP) and Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) are the most deployed artificial lifting method in this reservoir. To boost the heavy oil production, the application of Electric Downhole Heater (EDH) in Well KLO-X1 is being studied. Whole Klamono\\'s production is more than 100,000 blpd within 97-99% water cut. By installing EDH, oil viscosity is decreased hence oil mobility ratio will play a role to decrease water cut. EDH is installed together with the tubing joint to simplify its application in the wellbore. The study shows that EDH application can elevate fluid (mixed oil and brine) temperature. Oil viscosity confirms a reduction from 68 to 46 cP. The gross well production is up to 12.2 bopd due optimising its outflow performance and reducing 97.5 to 96.9% water cut. The field data gives an incremental of 4.9 bopd. The computational results only show an attainment of net oil production up to 8.3 bopd (2 bopd incremental). The EDH works to lessen both density and viscosity as we hypothesised for the mechanism of thermally induced oil production improvement. The evaluation study on its economics aspect exhibits good result that is 1.4 USD/bbl additional profit margin according to field data despite the challenging annual rig rent cost. Following the field data, the expected net income through analytical model revealed that this project is financially promising.

Well and Inflow Performance Relationship for Heavy Oil Reservoir under Heating Treatment

KAUST Repository

Hakiki, Farizal; Aditya, A.; Ulitha, D. T.; Shidqi, M.; Adi, W. S.; Wibowo, K. H.; Barus, M.

2017-01-01

Well and Inflow Performance Relationship, termed TPR and IPR, respectively have been the unfailing methods to predict well performance. It is further to determine the schemes on optimising production. The main intention of the study is to explore TPR and IPR under heating treatment for heavy oil well. Klamono is a mature field which mostly has depleted wells, it produces heavy oil within 18.5 °API (>0.95 g/cc oil density), and therefore, artificial lifting method is necessary. Sucker Road Pump (SRP) and Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) are the most deployed artificial lifting method in this reservoir. To boost the heavy oil production, the application of Electric Downhole Heater (EDH) in Well KLO-X1 is being studied. Whole Klamono's production is more than 100,000 blpd within 97-99% water cut. By installing EDH, oil viscosity is decreased hence oil mobility ratio will play a role to decrease water cut. EDH is installed together with the tubing joint to simplify its application in the wellbore. The study shows that EDH application can elevate fluid (mixed oil and brine) temperature. Oil viscosity confirms a reduction from 68 to 46 cP. The gross well production is up to 12.2 bopd due optimising its outflow performance and reducing 97.5 to 96.9% water cut. The field data gives an incremental of 4.9 bopd. The computational results only show an attainment of net oil production up to 8.3 bopd (2 bopd incremental). The EDH works to lessen both density and viscosity as we hypothesised for the mechanism of thermally induced oil production improvement. The evaluation study on its economics aspect exhibits good result that is 1.4 USD/bbl additional profit margin according to field data despite the challenging annual rig rent cost. Following the field data, the expected net income through analytical model revealed that this project is financially promising.

Mexican oil industry: Shifting to difficult oil

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bazan G., Gerardo; Gonzalez, Cristobal J.

2010-09-15

Mexico has stepped into an important transition of declining oil fields and new challenging oil projects. The aim of this paper is to show a new perspective of the oil resources that have been exploited throughout the Mexican territory, as well as the remaining resources yet to be exploited. We have developed a resources/production-costs chart that illustrates the historical and future development of the Mexican oil industry, showing the shift that the industry will face in the coming years; this chart was taken from a model already in use by the most prestige energy agencies in the world.

Oil supply and oil politics: Deja Vu all over again

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cleveland, Cutler J.; Kaufmann, Robert K.

2003-01-01

President Bush has identified US dependence on imported oil as an urgent energy, economic, and national security concern. The President's energy plan promotes the development of domestic resources, based on the assumption that economic incentives and the opening of frontier areas for exploration will increase domestic production. If realized, this will reduce dependence on imported oil and reduce OPEC's ability to affect aggregate oil supply and price. The evidence suggests, however, that this policy will not increase significantly US production of crude oil, will not reduce significantly OPEC's influence, and it will distort the US macroeconomy. Even if allowed, production from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will have a negligible impact on the world oil markets. Further subsidies to the oil industry will divert resources from other more productive investments. Conservation and energy efficiency merit greater emphasis in US energy policy given their ability to reduce the use of cost-effective and environmentally beneficial ways

Oil supply and oil politics: Deja Vu all over again

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cleveland, C.J.; Kaufmann, R.K.

2003-01-01

President Bush has identified US dependence on imported oil as an urgent energy, economic, and national security concern. The President's energy plan promotes the development of domestic resources, based on the assumption that economic incentives and the opening of frontier areas for exploration will increase domestic production. If realized, this will reduce dependence on imported oil and reduce OPEC's ability to affect aggregate oil supply and price. The evidence suggests, however, that this policy will not increase significantly US production of crude oil, will not reduce significantly OPEC's influence, and it will distort the US macroeconomy. Even if allowed, production from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will have a negligible impact on the world oil markets. Further subsidies to the oil industry will divert resources from other more productive investments. Conservation and energy efficiency merit greater emphasis in US energy policy given their ability to reduce the use of cost-effective and environmentally beneficial ways. (author)

Business cycles in oil economies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Al-Mutairi, N.H.

1991-01-01

This study examines the impact of oil price shocks on output fluctuations of several oil-exporting economies. In most studies of business cycles, the role of oil price is ignored; the few studies that use oil price as one of the variables in the system focus on modeling oil-importing economies. The vector autoregression (VAR) technique is used to consider the cases of Norway, Nigeria, and Mexico. Both atheoretical and 'structural' VARs are estimated to determine the importance of oil price impulses on output variations. The study reports two types of results: variance decomposition and impulse response functions, with particular emphasis on the issues of stationarity and co-integration among the series. The empirical results suggest that shocks to oil price are important in explaining output variations. In most cases, shocks to oil price are shown to explain more than 20% of the forecast variance of output over a 40-quarter horizon

Net Neutrality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Savin, Andrej

2017-01-01

Repealing “net neutrality” in the US will have no bearing on Internet freedom or security there or anywhere else.......Repealing “net neutrality” in the US will have no bearing on Internet freedom or security there or anywhere else....

Annotating Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindstrøm, Bo; Wells, Lisa Marie

2002-01-01

Coloured Petri nets (CP-nets) can be used for several fundamentally different purposes like functional analysis, performance analysis, and visualisation. To be able to use the corresponding tool extensions and libraries it is sometimes necessary to include extra auxiliary information in the CP......-net. An example of such auxiliary information is a counter which is associated with a token to be able to do performance analysis. Modifying colour sets and arc inscriptions in a CP-net to support a specific use may lead to creation of several slightly different CP-nets – only to support the different uses...... of the same basic CP-net. One solution to this problem is that the auxiliary information is not integrated into colour sets and arc inscriptions of a CP-net, but is kept separately. This makes it easy to disable this auxiliary information if a CP-net is to be used for another purpose. This paper proposes...

Activation of PAD4 in NET formation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amanda eRohrbach

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Peptidyl arginine deiminases, or PADs, convert arginine residues to the non-ribosomally encoded amino acid citrulline in a variety of protein substrates. PAD4 is expressed in granulocytes and is essential for the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs via PAD4-mediated histone citrullination. Citrullination of histones is thought to promote NET formation by inducing chromatin decondensation and facilitating the expulsion of chromosomal DNA that is coated with antimicrobial molecules. Numerous stimuli have been reported to lead to PAD4 activation and NET formation. However, how this signaling process proceeds and how PAD4 becomes activated in cells is largely unknown. Herein, we describe the various stimuli and signaling pathways that have been implicated in PAD4 activation and NET formation, including the role of reactive oxygen species generation. To provide a foundation for the above discussion, we first describe PAD4 structure and function, and how these studies led to the development of PAD-specific inhibitors. A comprehensive survey of the receptors and signaling pathways that regulate PAD4 activation will be important for our understanding of innate immunity, and the identification of signaling intermediates in PAD4 activation may also lead to the generation of pharmaceuticals to target NET-related pathogenesis.

Long-term transport of oil from T/B DBL-152 : lessons learned for oils heavier than seawater

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beegle-Krause, C.J.; Barker, C.H.; Watabayashi, G.; Lehr, W.

2006-01-01

In November 2005, during Hurricane Rita, the tank barge DBL-152 struck a drilling rig that sank, spilling an estimated 3 million gallons of high density, low viscosity oil. A large portion of the oil sank to the sea floor, forming large discrete mats along with smaller globules in other areas, which suggested that long-period wave energy events redistributed the sunken oil. This paper presented details of a study conducted to examine the long-term transport mechanisms of the Louisiana Shelf relating to the spill, as well as potential shoreline and environmental impacts on coastal beaches and nature sanctuaries. An examination of local existing sediments was conducted along with an analysis of wave data and current metre data. Previous spills of relatively heavy oils were compared to the spill, including: Barge Bouchard 155; IXTOC 1 exploratory well; Morris Berman Barge; T/B MCN-5; T/V Alvenus; T/V Berge Banker; and T/V Mobiloil; T/V Sansinena. An examination of the case studies suggested that the oil was expected to remain stationary on the bottom of the sea floor until bottom wave energy generated by storms causes the oil to break up and mix the oil into the water column. It was observed that net transport on the Louisiana-Texas shelf is down-coast and offshore. The oil will remain for a significant period once it is deep enough on the shelf to be infrequently disturbed by storm-induced waves. It was noted that shoreline contacts above background are not anticipated. 12 refs., 6 figs

Economic effects of peak oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lutz, Christian; Lehr, Ulrike; Wiebe, Kirsten S.

2012-01-01

Assuming that global oil production peaked, this paper uses scenario analysis to show the economic effects of a possible supply shortage and corresponding rise in oil prices in the next decade on different sectors in Germany and other major economies such as the US, Japan, China, the OPEC or Russia. Due to the price-inelasticity of oil demand the supply shortage leads to a sharp increase in oil prices in the second scenario, with high effects on GDP comparable to the magnitude of the global financial crises in 2008/09. Oil exporting countries benefit from high oil prices, whereas oil importing countries are negatively affected. Generally, the effects in the third scenario are significantly smaller than in the second, showing that energy efficiency measures and the switch to renewable energy sources decreases the countries' dependence on oil imports and hence reduces their vulnerability to oil price shocks on the world market. - Highlights: ► National and sectoral economic effects of peak oil until 2020 are modelled. ► The price elasticity of oil demand is low resulting in high price fluctuations. ► Oil shortage strongly affects transport and indirectly all other sectors. ► Global macroeconomic effects are comparable to the 2008/2009 crisis. ► Country effects depend on oil imports and productivity, and economic structures.

C# 4, ASP.NET 4, and WPF, with Visual Studio 2010 jump start

CERN Document Server

Nagel, Christian; Stephens, Rod; Hanselman, Scott; Glynn, Jay; Rader, Devin; Watson, Karli; Skinner, Morgan

2010-01-01

This Wrox Blox is a value-packed resource to help experienced .NETdevelopers learn the new .NET release. It is excerpted from theWrox books: Professional C# 4 and .NET 4, Professional ASP.NET4, and WPF Programmer's Reference by Christian Nagel,Bill Evjen, Scott Hanselman, and Rod Stephens, and includes morethan 100 print book pages drawn from these three key titles. It isan excellent resource to help .NET developers get up to speed faston .NET 4, C# 4.0, ASP.NET 4, and WPF, providing all theinformation needed to program with the important new features,including: C# Dynamic Types and Par

Dynamics of world oil crops market

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Knežević Marija

2012-01-01

Full Text Available According to the harvested area, oil crops are the second most important crops after cereals. Soybean is the most important oil crop in terms of production and trade of oilseeds and meals, and second most important in terms of production and trade of vegetable oils after palm oil. Dynamics of prices of derived oil crop products in the international market is conditioned by the relationship between supply and demand in the overall market of oil crops. The substitution of animal fats with vegetable oils in human nutrition, the expansion of biodiesel industry and intensification of livestock production have led to increased demand for oil crops. The objective of this paper was to identify trends in production, consumption and trade of soybeans, rapeseed and sunflower and their derived products.

NetSig

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Horn, Heiko; Lawrence, Michael S; Chouinard, Candace R

2018-01-01

Methods that integrate molecular network information and tumor genome data could complement gene-based statistical tests to identify likely new cancer genes; but such approaches are challenging to validate at scale, and their predictive value remains unclear. We developed a robust statistic (Net......Sig) that integrates protein interaction networks with data from 4,742 tumor exomes. NetSig can accurately classify known driver genes in 60% of tested tumor types and predicts 62 new driver candidates. Using a quantitative experimental framework to determine in vivo tumorigenic potential in mice, we found that Net......Sig candidates induce tumors at rates that are comparable to those of known oncogenes and are ten-fold higher than those of random genes. By reanalyzing nine tumor-inducing NetSig candidates in 242 patients with oncogene-negative lung adenocarcinomas, we find that two (AKT2 and TFDP2) are significantly amplified...

The Strategic Importance of the Global Oil Market

Science.gov (United States)

2015-06-01

cho- sen as PACOM Professional of the Year and U.S. Fed- eral Employee of the Year in 2006 and 2007. General David Petraeus awarded him the Joint...recovery may not be im- minent, signs are mounting that the tide is turning. The most tangible price effect is on the supply side. In this sense , a low oil...different.” Nothing short of a wholesale culture change in our global financial institutions is required, one that recognizes that the urgency of the

Preliminary study of reasonableness of important parameters used in deriving OILs for PWR accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yongsheng, L.; Shongqi, S.

2004-01-01

Institute of nuclear energy technology, Tsinghua university, Beijing , China ,100084 Body of Abstract: This paper introduced the definition of operational intervention level (OIL) and the derived process of default OILs recommended by IAEA firstly. Then the paper focused on the reasonableness of two parameters, R1 and R2, which is assumed in derived process of default OIL1 and OIL2 in a reactor accident. The values of R1 and R2 were calculated by the calculating program of InterRas. The source item for computing includes the accidents PWR described in Wash-1400 and France severe accident source items, and furthermore the meteorological conditions for computing are classified to three classes, which are D stability class, A stability class, and F stability class with the mixing heights of 400 meters and 4 hour exposure to the plume. The wind speed is 3m/s, 2m/s and 1m/s correspond to the stability classes. The results show that the average values of R1 and R2 in the same accident series and different meteorological conditions derived by the calculating program of InterRas are close to the presumptive values. The results also indicated the rationalization of the default OIL1 and OIL2. On the other hand, the calculating results of different accidents have considerable disparity with the presumptive values in different distances and meteorological conditions, but the mutative trends are very well-regulated on distance and meteorological conditions. So the OILs recommended by IAEA are applicable to some specified conditions. At last the paper introduced the method of revising the default OILs in terms of measurement results. (Author)

Learning Visual Basic NET

CERN Document Server

Liberty, Jesse

2009-01-01

Learning Visual Basic .NET is a complete introduction to VB.NET and object-oriented programming. By using hundreds of examples, this book demonstrates how to develop various kinds of applications--including those that work with databases--and web services. Learning Visual Basic .NET will help you build a solid foundation in .NET.

Chemometric techniques in oil classification from oil spill fingerprinting.

Science.gov (United States)

Ismail, Azimah; Toriman, Mohd Ekhwan; Juahir, Hafizan; Kassim, Azlina Md; Zain, Sharifuddin Md; Ahmad, Wan Kamaruzaman Wan; Wong, Kok Fah; Retnam, Ananthy; Zali, Munirah Abdul; Mokhtar, Mazlin; Yusri, Mohd Ayub

2016-10-15

Extended use of GC-FID and GC-MS in oil spill fingerprinting and matching is significantly important for oil classification from the oil spill sources collected from various areas of Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah (East Malaysia). Oil spill fingerprinting from GC-FID and GC-MS coupled with chemometric techniques (discriminant analysis and principal component analysis) is used as a diagnostic tool to classify the types of oil polluting the water. Clustering and discrimination of oil spill compounds in the water from the actual site of oil spill events are divided into four groups viz. diesel, Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO), Mixture Oil containing Light Fuel Oil (MOLFO) and Waste Oil (WO) according to the similarity of their intrinsic chemical properties. Principal component analysis (PCA) demonstrates that diesel, HFO, MOLFO and WO are types of oil or oil products from complex oil mixtures with a total variance of 85.34% and are identified with various anthropogenic activities related to either intentional releasing of oil or accidental discharge of oil into the environment. Our results show that the use of chemometric techniques is significant in providing independent validation for classifying the types of spilled oil in the investigation of oil spill pollution in Malaysia. This, in consequence would result in cost and time saving in identification of the oil spill sources. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Economics of oil regulation and the Brazilian reform. Some issues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hernandez-Perez, Adriana [Center for Economics and Oil Studies, IBRE/Fundacao Getulio Vargas (Brazil)

2011-01-15

This paper reviews the economic fundamentals for regulation in the oil industry, with a focus on the current regulatory proposal for the Brazilian oil industry. The observed exploration and production (E and P) contracts foresee much of the characteristics of the optimal contract, with a remuneration structure that combines upfront with future payments to mitigate uncertainty and incentivize exploratory efforts. In Brazil, despite slow market deconcentration since 1997's liberalization, the current oil regulation is in general consistent with an optimal regulatory response. From an economic standpoint, the 2009's new regulatory proposal prompted by the major oil discoveries offshore in Brazil reduces the power of incentive schemes with respect to exploratory and cost-reducing efforts while the changes in the net risk of the E and P offshore activities are not so clear. (author)

Quality of Vegetable Oil Prior to Fortification Is an Important Criteria to Achieve a Health Impact

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nuri Andarwulan

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Unbranded palm cooking oil has been fortified for several years and can be found in the market with different oxidation levels. This study aimed to investigate the stability and shelf life of unbranded, bulk, vitamin A-fortified palm oils with the most commonly observed oxidation levels in Indonesia. Three types of cooking oils were tested: (i cooking oil with a peroxide value (PV below 2 mEq O2/kg (PO1; (ii cooking oil with a PV around 4 mEq O2/kg (PO2; and (iii cooking oil with a PV around 9 mEq O2/kg (PO3. The oil shelf life was determined by using accelerated shelf life testing (ASLT, where the product was stored at 60, 75 and 90 °C, and then PV, free fatty acid and vitamin A concentration in the oil samples were measured. The results showed that PO1 had a shelf life of between 2–3 months, while PO2’s shelf life was a few weeks and PO3’s only a few days. Even given those varying shelf lives, the vitamin A loss in the oils was still acceptable, at around 10%. However, the short shelf life of highly oxidized cooking oil, such as PO3, might negatively impact health, due to the potential increase of free radicals of the lipid peroxidation in the oil. Based on the results, the Indonesian government should prohibit the sale of highly-oxidized cooking oil. In addition, government authorities should promote and endorse the fortification of only cooking oil with low peroxide levels to ensure that fortification is not associated with any health issues associated with high oxidation levels of the cooking oil.

Wave-induced mixing and transport of buoyant particles: application to the Statfjord A oil spill

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Drivdal

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This study focuses on how wave–current and wave–turbulence interactions modify the transport of buoyant particles in the ocean. Here the particles can represent oil droplets, plastic particles, or plankton such as fish eggs and larvae. Using the General Ocean Turbulence Model (GOTM, modified to take surface wave effects into account, we investigate how the increased mixing by wave breaking and Stokes shear production, as well as the stronger veering by the Coriolis–Stokes force, affects the drift of the particles. The energy and momentum fluxes, as well as the Stokes drift, depend on the directional wave spectrum obtained from a wave model. As a first test, the depth and velocity scales from the model are compared with analytical solutions based on a constant eddy viscosity (i.e., classical Ekman theory. Secondly, the model is applied to a case in which we investigate the oil drift after an oil spill off the west coast of Norway in 2007. During this accident the average net drift of oil was observed to be both slower and more deflected away from the wind direction than predicted by oil-drift models. In this case, using wind and wave forcing from the ERA Interim archive it is shown that the wave effects are important for the resultant drift and have the potential to improve drift forecasting.

Assessing the engineering performance of affordable net-zero energy housing

Science.gov (United States)

Wallpe, Jordan P.

The purpose of this research was to evaluate affordable technologies that are capable of providing attractive, cost-effective energy savings to the housing industry. The research did so by investigating the 2011 Solar Decathlon competition, with additional insight from the Purdue INhome. Insight from the Purdue INhome verified the importance of using a three step design process to design a net-zero energy building. In addition, energy consumption values of the INhome were used to compare and contrast different systems used in other houses. Evaluation of unbiased competition contests gave a better understanding of how a house can realistically reach net-zero. Upon comparison, off-the-shelf engineering systems such as super-efficient HVAC units, heat pump hot water heaters, and properly designed photovoltaic arrays can affordably enable a house to become net-zero. These important and applicable technologies realized from the Solar Decathlon will reduce the 22 percent of all energy consumed through the residential sector in the United States. In conclusion, affordable net-zero energy buildings can be built today with commitment from design professionals, manufacturers, and home owners.

Sensitivity of the deep-sea amphipod Eurythenes gryllus to chemically dispersed oil.

Science.gov (United States)

Olsen, Gro Harlaug; Coquillé, Nathalie; Le Floch, Stephane; Geraudie, Perrine; Dussauze, Matthieu; Lemaire, Philippe; Camus, Lionel

2016-04-01

In the context of an oil spill accident and the following oil spill response, much attention is given to the use of dispersants. Dispersants are used to disperse an oil slick from the sea surface into the water column generating a cloud of dispersed oil droplets. The main consequence is an increasing of the sea water-oil interface which induces an increase of the oil biodegradation. Hence, the use of dispersants can be effective in preventing oiling of sensitive coastal environments. Also, in case of an oil blowout from the seabed, subsea injection of dispersants may offer some benefits compared to containment and recovery of the oil or in situ burning operation at the sea surface. However, biological effects of dispersed oil are poorly understood for deep-sea species. Most effects studies on dispersed oil and also other oil-related compounds have been focusing on more shallow water species. This is the first approach to assess the sensitivity of a macro-benthic deep-sea organism to dispersed oil. This paper describes a toxicity test which was performed on the macro-benthic deep-sea amphipod (Eurythenes gryllus) to determine the concentration causing lethality to 50% of test individuals (LC50) after an exposure to dispersed Brut Arabian Light (BAL) oil. The LC50 (24 h) was 101 and 24 mg L(-1) after 72 h and 12 mg L(-1) at 96 h. Based on EPA scale of toxicity categories to aquatic organisms, an LC50 (96 h) of 12 mg L(-1) indicates that the dispersed oil was slightly to moderately toxic to E. gryllus. As an attempt to compare our results to others, a literature study was performed. Due to limited amount of data available for dispersed oil and amphipods, information on other crustacean species and other oil-related compounds was also collected. Only one study on dispersed oil and amphipods was found, the LC50 value in this study was similar to the LC50 value of E. gryllus in our study. Since toxicity data are important input to risk assessment and net environmental

Is it better to import palm oil from Thailand to produce biodiesel in Ireland than to produce biodiesel from indigenous Irish rape seed?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thamsiriroj, T.; Murphy, J.D.

2009-01-01

The proposed EU Directive on the promotion of Renewable Energy stipulates that only biofuels that achieve greenhouse emissions savings of 35% will be eligible for inclusion with respect to meeting the 2020 target of 10% for the share of biofuels. This paper examines biodiesel for use in Ireland, produced from two different sources: indigenous rape seed and palm oil imported from Thailand. The palm oil system generates more biodiesel per hectare than the rape seed system, and has less parasitic demand. Greenhouse-gas reductions of 29% and 55%, respectively were calculated for the rape seed and palm oil systems. (author)

Sustainable management in crop monocultures: the impact of retaining forest on oil palm yield.

Science.gov (United States)

Edwards, Felicity A; Edwards, David P; Sloan, Sean; Hamer, Keith C

2014-01-01

Tropical agriculture is expanding rapidly at the expense of forest, driving a global extinction crisis. How to create agricultural landscapes that minimise the clearance of forest and maximise sustainability is thus a key issue. One possibility is protecting natural forest within or adjacent to crop monocultures to harness important ecosystem services provided by biodiversity spill-over that may facilitate production. Yet this contrasts with the conflicting potential that the retention of forest exports dis-services, such as agricultural pests. We focus on oil palm and obtained yields from 499 plantation parcels spanning a total of ≈23,000 ha of oil palm plantation in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. We investigate the relationship between the extent and proximity of both contiguous and fragmented dipterocarp forest cover and oil palm yield, controlling for variation in oil palm age and for environmental heterogeneity by incorporating proximity to non-native forestry plantations, other oil palm plantations, and large rivers, elevation and soil type in our models. The extent of forest cover and proximity to dipterocarp forest were not significant predictors of oil palm yield. Similarly, proximity to large rivers and other oil palm plantations, as well as soil type had no significant effect. Instead, lower elevation and closer proximity to forestry plantations had significant positive impacts on oil palm yield. These findings suggest that if dipterocarp forests are exporting ecosystem service benefits or ecosystem dis-services, that the net effect on yield is neutral. There is thus no evidence to support arguments that forest should be retained within or adjacent to oil palm monocultures for the provision of ecosystem services that benefit yield. We urge for more nuanced assessments of the impacts of forest and biodiversity on yields in crop monocultures to better understand their role in sustainable agriculture.

The functioning of the oil market during an oil crisis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hughes, G.; Siner, M.; Tijdhof, B.

2003-01-01

The title study regarding the functioning of the oil market during an oil crisis is carried out with particular reference to the strategic behaviour of oil companies. Section 2 identifies major oil supply disruptions since 1951 and describes some important changes in the market that have occurred in recent decades; Section 3 reviews the economic literature of the functioning of oil markets during disruptions and models of oil supply disruptions; Section 4 examines the response of oil markets to recent supply disruptions; Section 5 examines the incentives and scope for strategic behaviour; Section 6 considers the implications of our analysis for the design of policy responses to oil supply disruptions; Appendix A describes the background to the four recent oil supply disruptions; Appendix B discusses the relationship between spot and futures prices for a storable commodity; and Appendix C is the bibliography

PLUNGING OIL PRICES IMPACT MALAYSIA’S AND INDONESIA’S ECONOMY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chung Tin Fah

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Oil has a profound impact on the world economy. This study examines the impact of changes (falling in oil prices on the two oil producing ASEAN countries – Malaysia and Indonesia using quarterly data from 2005:Q1 to 2014:Q4. A cointegration analysis using an autoregressive distributed lag equation (ARDL is conducted between oil and the Malaysian and Indonesian economy. Next, single equations are estimated on the impact of oil price changes on macroeconomic variables, followed by a VAR formulation to trace the impact of oil price using impulse response function and variance decomposition. The single equation estimates indicate that real oil prices have a significant positive impact on Malaysia/Indonesia GDP, while it is insignificant on inflation rate and real exchange rate. Using an unrestricted VAR model, real oil price growth shocks have positive and negative response on the growth of Malaysia GDP, Indonesia GDP and US GDP. However, the negative response is found more significant for the growth of Indonesia GDP, while the growth of US GDP has a larger influence on Malaysia GDP as compared to Indonesia GDP. Changes in real oil price are less impactful on Malaysia government expenditure and Malaysian Ringgit, compared to inflation rate and net exports.

Biologically Important Eremophilane Sesquiterpenes from Alaska Cedar Heartwood Essential Oil and Their Semi-Synthetic Derivatives

OpenAIRE

Khasawneh, Mohammad A.; Xiong, Yeping; Peralta-Cruz, Javier; Karchesy, Joe J.

2011-01-01

The essential oil of Alaska cedar heartwood is known to contain compounds which contribute to the remarkable durability of this species. While previous research has identified several compounds, a complete description of this oil has not been undertaken. In this research a profile of the oil is given in which the major components are identified by GC, isolation and spectroscopic techniques. The major components of the steam distilled essential oil were identified as nootkatin, nootkatone, val...

Pro-Nets versus No-Nets: Differences in Urban Older Adults' Predilections for Internet Use

Science.gov (United States)

Cresci, M. Kay; Yarandi, Hossein N.; Morrell, Roger W.

2010-01-01

Enthusiasm for information technology (IT) is growing among older adults. Many older adults enjoy IT and the Internet (Pro-Nets), but others have no desire to use it (No-Nets). This study found that Pro-Nets and No-Nets were different on a number of variables that might predict IT use. No-Nets were older, had less education and income, were…

PathNet: a tool for pathway analysis using topological information

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dutta Bhaskar

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Identification of canonical pathways through enrichment of differentially expressed genes in a given pathway is a widely used method for interpreting gene lists generated from high-throughput experimental studies. However, most algorithms treat pathways as sets of genes, disregarding any inter- and intra-pathway connectivity information, and do not provide insights beyond identifying lists of pathways. Results We developed an algorithm (PathNet that utilizes the connectivity information in canonical pathway descriptions to help identify study-relevant pathways and characterize non-obvious dependencies and connections among pathways using gene expression data. PathNet considers both the differential expression of genes and their pathway neighbors to strengthen the evidence that a pathway is implicated in the biological conditions characterizing the experiment. As an adjunct to this analysis, PathNet uses the connectivity of the differentially expressed genes among all pathways to score pathway contextual associations and statistically identify biological relations among pathways. In this study, we used PathNet to identify biologically relevant results in two Alzheimer’s disease microarray datasets, and compared its performance with existing methods. Importantly, PathNet identified de-regulation of the ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis pathway as an important component in Alzheimer’s disease progression, despite the absence of this pathway in the standard enrichment analyses. Conclusions PathNet is a novel method for identifying enrichment and association between canonical pathways in the context of gene expression data. It takes into account topological information present in pathways to reveal biological information. PathNet is available as an R workspace image from http://www.bhsai.org/downloads/pathnet/.

Calendula oil processing : seed classification, oil extraction, refining process development and oil quality aspects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssens, R.J.J.

2000-01-01

The difference in Calendula oil quality from fractions obtained after seed classification is enormous. The oil quality varies from excellent to very poor, according to important aspects such as in the hulls and dust fraction, high free fatty acid values (13% vs. 0.6%) are found. This can be

Fault Diagnosis System of Wind Turbine Generator Based on Petri Net

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Han

Petri net is an important tool for discrete event dynamic systems modeling and analysis. And it has great ability to handle concurrent phenomena and non-deterministic phenomena. Currently Petri nets used in wind turbine fault diagnosis have not participated in the actual system. This article will combine the existing fuzzy Petri net algorithms; build wind turbine control system simulation based on Siemens S7-1200 PLC, while making matlab gui interface for migration of the system to different platforms.

Value change in oil and gas production: V. Incorporation of uncertainties and determination of relative importance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lerche, I.; Noeth, S.

2002-01-01

The influence of two fundamentally different types of uncertainty on the value of oil field production are investigated here. First considered is the uncertainty caused by the fact that the expected value estimate is not one of the possible outcomes. To correctly allow for the risk attendant upon using the expected value as a measure of worth, even with statistically sharp parameters, one needs to incorporate the uncertainty of the expected value. Using a simple example we show how such incorporation allows for a clear determination of the relative risk of projects that may have the same expected value but very different risks. We also show how each project can be risked on its own using the expected value and variance. This uncertainty type is due to the possible pathways for different outcomes even when parameters categorizing the system are taken to be known. Second considered is the risk due to the fact that parameters in oil field estimates are just estimates and, as such, have their own intrinsic errors that influence the possible outcomes and make them less certain. This sort of risk depends upon the uncertainty of each parameter, and also the type of distribution the parameters are taken to be drawn from. In addition, not all uncertainties in parameters values are of equal importance in influencing an outcome probability. We show how can determine the relative importance for the parameters and so determine where to place effort to resolve the dominant contributions to risk if it is possible to do so. Considerations of whether to acquire new information, and also whether to undertake further studies under such an uncertain environment, are used as vehicles to address these concerns of risk due to uncertainty. In general, an oil field development project has to contend with all the above types of risk and uncertainty. It is therefore of importance to have quantitative measures of risk so that one can compare and contrast the various effects, and so that

Rationalization of imports, refineries and distribution of petroleum in Africa

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mayorga-Alba, E.

1993-01-01

Petroleum products currently provide 69% of commercial energy requirements in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), or 21% of total primary energy consumption, including fuelwoods used for household energy needs - a proportion that will increase with the process of modernization in these economies and with the growing difficulties they are experiencing in financing projects for alternative commercial energy sources. In macro-economic terms, securing reliable and cheap petroleum product supplies is of vital importance for maintaining a sustainable level of economic growth. Petroleum products are an important tax base, contributing to nearly 40% of the fiscal revenues in Sub-Saharan countries. With the exceptions of Nigeria, Congo, Cameroon, Angola and Gabon, SSA countries are net importers of oil, devoting on average a third of their hard currency earnings to these imports. There is no other region in the world than SSA - with the lowest GDP per capita - that dependence on oil imports has become such a dominant factor in the macroeconomic calculus. The vulnerability of these economies, most of which depend heavily on donor financing for a large portion of their foreign exchange, can be directly assessed by understanding their increasing difficulty in assuring petroleum supplies. The use of petroleum products in SSA remains largely confined to the transport sector and to the existing light industry. Gasoline, jetfuel and diesel represent more than 2/3rds of the total petroleum consumption. The supply of households, which account for the largest portion of primary energy needs, is still based on fuelwoods and is growing beyond sustainable levels, posing an increasing threat to the environment. To respond to the deforestation problem and to facilitate the transition to more environmentally sound supply systems, African countries need to assess their capacity and means to increase their use of LPGs and other modern household fuels. 6 tabs

CO{sub 2} flooding performance prediction for Alberta oil pools

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shaw, J.C. [Adams Pearson Associates Inc., Calgary, AB (Canada); Bachu, S. [Alberta Energy and Utilities Board, Calgary, AB (Canada)

2002-06-01

An advanced technical screening program was used to successfully screen and rank a very large number of Alberta oil pools for enhanced oil recovery using carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) flooding. This paper is a continuation paper describing the results of using the Microsoft Excel program with VBA to estimate production forecasts for several candidate pools in Alberta. A total of 6 ranking parameters were used, including API gravity of oil, residual oil saturation, ratio between reservoir pressure and minimum miscibility pressure, reservoir temperature, net pay thickness and porosity. The screening program provides a technical ranking of approximately 8,000 Alberta pools. After compilation of the Alberta oil pools, it was determined that most of the deep carbonate oil pools are excellent candidates for CO{sub 2} miscible flooding. Other Devonian carbonate pools are also ranked as having high potential for the process. An environmental benefit of CO{sub 2} miscible flooding process is that carbon sequestration has the potential to reduce anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions from reaching the atmosphere. Ongoing studies are currently addressing CO{sub 2} capture and transportation, making EOR technology viable for maintaining light oil production in western Canada. 11 refs., 2 tabs., 2 figs.

The increasing importance of the oil issue in the Middle East by the 1970's. Oil and development: the trap of oil income in the Middle East

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chatelus, Michel

2015-10-01

In a first article, after having recalled some aspects of the context of the Middle East during the second half of the 1960's and the first half of the 1970's, notably in terms of GDP and population in the different countries, the author comments how these countries tried to take possession of what they considered as their own oil, how some of them tried to reorganise oil production (notably Iraq and Syria) when others tried to act differently in collaboration with western companies or through specific bodies (OPEC). The author outlines that evolutions which occurred during this period (1960's-1970's) resulted in an unprecedented, brutal and uneven enrichment (particularly at the beginning of the 1970's) of oil producing states. He comments how oil was then used as a weapon against some western countries (first oil crisis), and that Arab countries also had different policies in terms of development, finance or reserve management. In the second article which addresses the fact that high oil incomes could become a trap, the author comments the consequences of the existence of high oil incomes. He discusses the policies adopted by Arab countries except Iraq: creation of a welfare economy, development of activities related to hydrocarbon availability, a minimum redistribution to other countries of the region, lucrative and safe investments, and requirements in terms of peacekeeping. Then, the author briefly comments the situation of countries of the regions. He distinguishes those which are not oil producers but are involved in wealth circulation and can take some profit out of it (Lebanon, Jordan), those which are excluded (Syria and Yemen), and the specific case of Iraq. He finally evokes the perspectives and contradictions of the growth scheme

Effect of process parameters on hydrothermal liquefaction of oil palm biomass for bio-oil production and its life cycle assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chan, Yi Herng; Yusup, Suzana; Quitain, Armando T.; Tan, Raymond R.; Sasaki, Mitsuru; Lam, Hon Loong; Uemura, Yoshimitsu

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Water is used as a clean solvent to liquefy palm biomass to bio-oil. • The optimum liquefaction condition of oil palm biomass is 390 °C and 25 MPa. • Optimum reaction time for liquefaction of empty fruit bunch and palm mesocarp fiber is 120 min. • Optimum reaction time for liquefaction of palm kernel shell is 240 min. • From the life cycle assessment, a net 2.29 kg CO 2 equivalent is generated per kg of bio-oil produced. - Abstract: This paper presents the studies on the effect of three process parameters; temperature, pressure and reaction time on the subcritical and supercritical hydrothermal liquefaction of oil palm empty fruit bunch, palm mesocarp fiber and palm kernel shell. The effect of temperature (330–390 °C), pressure (25–35 MPa) and reaction time (30–240 min) on bio-oil yields were investigated using a Inconel batch reactor. The optimum liquefaction condition for empty fruit bunch, palm mesocarp fiber and palm kernel shell was at supercritical condition of water; 390 °C and 25 MPa. For the effect of reaction time, bio-oil from empty fruit bunch and palm mesocarp fiber attained maximum yields at 120 min, whereas bio-oil yield from palm kernel shell continued to increase at reaction time of 240 min. Lastly, a life cycle assessment based on a conceptual biomass hydrothermal liquefaction process for bio-oil production was constructed and presented

Controls on the variability of net infiltration to desert sandstone

Science.gov (United States)

Heilweil, Victor M.; McKinney, Tim S.; Zhdanov, Michael S.; Watt, Dennis E.

2007-01-01

As populations grow in arid climates and desert bedrock aquifers are increasingly targeted for future development, understanding and quantifying the spatial variability of net infiltration becomes critically important for accurately inventorying water resources and mapping contamination vulnerability. This paper presents a conceptual model of net infiltration to desert sandstone and then develops an empirical equation for its spatial quantification at the watershed scale using linear least squares inversion methods for evaluating controlling parameters (independent variables) based on estimated net infiltration rates (dependent variables). Net infiltration rates used for this regression analysis were calculated from environmental tracers in boreholes and more than 3000 linear meters of vadose zone excavations in an upland basin in southwestern Utah underlain by Navajo sandstone. Soil coarseness, distance to upgradient outcrop, and topographic slope were shown to be the primary physical parameters controlling the spatial variability of net infiltration. Although the method should be transferable to other desert sandstone settings for determining the relative spatial distribution of net infiltration, further study is needed to evaluate the effects of other potential parameters such as slope aspect, outcrop parameters, and climate on absolute net infiltration rates.

Global Trends and Development Prospects for Oil and the Oil Products Market

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Dorozhkina

2006-03-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the important issue of the development of the global market of oil and oil products. It offers an overview of how this market was formed and its current status, classification, location and potential of countries in the oil and oil processing business. It analyzes the Ukrainian oil products market. The article discusses the shortcomings and strategic areas for the development of Ukraine’s oil transport system. It presents an optimum method for creating integration groups in order to develop the oil processing business in Ukraine for the future. The article considers the main trends and outlines development prospects for the global oil and oil products market.

Preliminary fiscal evaluation of Alberta oil sands terms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Meurs, P.

2007-01-01

The cost of oil sands projects varies significantly. While costs have escalated considerably over the past few years, oil prices have gone significantly higher. This report provided an economic evaluation of the current fiscal terms applicable to Alberta oil sands. The analysis was done to evaluate the profitability of oil sand projects to investors under current conditions based on the generic royalty regime based on bitumen values. The objective of the royalty review was to determine whether Albertans received a fair share from their oil and gas resources. It discussed the wide variety of oil sands projects in Alberta using five case studies as examples. Cases involving steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) operations were assessed for both the Athabasca Mine and Cold Lake. The report provided a discussion of the economic assumptions including economic cases as well as production, costs and price data. It then provided the preliminary results of the economic-fiscal evaluation from the investor perspective including profitability indicators; international comparisons; internal rate of return; and net present value. The government perspective was also discussed with reference to attractiveness indicators; royalties as a percentage of bitumen values; and non-discounted and discounted government take. A royalty and tax feature analysis was also provided. Several issues for possible further review were also presented. tabs

A Generalised Approach to Petri Nets and Algebraic Specifications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sivertsen, Terje

1998-02-01

The present report represents a continuation of the work on Petri nets and algebraic specifications. The reported research has focused on generalising the approach introduced in HWR-454, with the aim of facilitating the translation of a wider class of Petri nets into algebraic specification. This includes autonomous Petri nets with increased descriptive power, as well as non-autonomous Petri nets allowing the modelling of systems (1) involving extensive data processing; (2) with transitions synchronized on external events; (3) whose evolutions are time dependent. The generalised approach has the important property of being modular in the sense that the translated specifications can be gradually extended to include data processing, synchronization, and timing. The report also discusses the relative merits of state-based and transition-based specifications, and includes a non-trivial case study involving automated proofs of a large number of interrelated theorems. The examples in the report illustrate the use of the new HRP Prover. Of particular importance in this context is the automatic transformation between state-based and transitionbased specifications. It is expected that the approach introduced in HWR-454 and generalised in the present report will prove useful in future work on combination of wide variety of specification techniques

Oil in France: main results in 2008

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

This article comments the evolution of oil product prices in France in 2008 and of the global oil product consumption in 2008. This consumption and its evolutions are also analysed with respect to the different consuming sectors: non-energetic uses (petrochemical industry and lubricants), industry, housing and office buildings, agriculture, transports, and electricity thermal production. Crude oil imports and their origins are the commented, as well as refined product imports and exports. The evolution of price of imported crude oil, the national oil production, the refining activity in France, and the amount of crude and refined oil stocks are also briefly commented

Using the candidate gene approach for detecting genes underlying seed oil concentration and yield in soybean.

Science.gov (United States)

Eskandari, Mehrzad; Cober, Elroy R; Rajcan, Istvan

2013-07-01

Increasing the oil concentration in soybean seeds has been given more attention in recent years because of demand for both edible oil and biodiesel production. Oil concentration in soybean is a complex quantitative trait regulated by many genes as well as environmental conditions. To identify genes governing seed oil concentration in soybean, 16 putative candidate genes of three important gene families (GPAT: acyl-CoA:sn-glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase, DGAT: acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase, and PDAT: phospholipid:diacylglycerol acyltransferase) involved in triacylglycerol (TAG) biosynthesis pathways were selected and their sequences retrieved from the soybean database ( http://www.phytozome.net/soybean ). Three sequence mutations were discovered in either coding or noncoding regions of three DGAT soybean isoforms when comparing the parents of a 203 recombinant inbreed line (RIL) population; OAC Wallace and OAC Glencoe. The RIL population was used to study the effects of these mutations on seed oil concentration and other important agronomic and seed composition traits, including seed yield and protein concentration across three field locations in Ontario, Canada, in 2009 and 2010. An insertion/deletion (indel) mutation in the GmDGAT2B gene in OAC Wallace was significantly associated with reduced seed oil concentration across three environments and reduced seed yield at Woodstock in 2010. A mutation in the 3' untranslated (3'UTR) region of GmDGAT2C was associated with seed yield at Woodstock in 2009. A mutation in the intronic region of GmDGAR1B was associated with seed yield and protein concentration at Ottawa in 2010. The genes identified in this study had minor effects on either seed yield or oil concentration, which was in agreement with the quantitative nature of the traits. However, the novel gene-specific markers designed in the present study can be used in soybean breeding for marker-assisted selection aimed at increasing seed yield and oil

ROOT.NET: Using ROOT from .NET languages like C# and F#

Science.gov (United States)

Watts, G.

2012-12-01

ROOT.NET provides an interface between Microsoft's Common Language Runtime (CLR) and .NET technology and the ubiquitous particle physics analysis tool, ROOT. ROOT.NET automatically generates a series of efficient wrappers around the ROOT API. Unlike pyROOT, these wrappers are statically typed and so are highly efficient as compared to the Python wrappers. The connection to .NET means that one gains access to the full series of languages developed for the CLR including functional languages like F# (based on OCaml). Many features that make ROOT objects work well in the .NET world are added (properties, IEnumerable interface, LINQ compatibility, etc.). Dynamic languages based on the CLR can be used as well, of course (Python, for example). Additionally it is now possible to access ROOT objects that are unknown to the translation tool. This poster will describe the techniques used to effect this translation, along with performance comparisons, and examples. All described source code is posted on the open source site CodePlex.

ROOT.NET: Using ROOT from .NET languages like C and F

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watts, G

2012-01-01

ROOT.NET provides an interface between Microsoft's Common Language Runtime (CLR) and .NET technology and the ubiquitous particle physics analysis tool, ROOT. ROOT.NET automatically generates a series of efficient wrappers around the ROOT API. Unlike pyROOT, these wrappers are statically typed and so are highly efficient as compared to the Python wrappers. The connection to .NET means that one gains access to the full series of languages developed for the CLR including functional languages like F (based on OCaml). Many features that make ROOT objects work well in the .NET world are added (properties, IEnumerable interface, LINQ compatibility, etc.). Dynamic languages based on the CLR can be used as well, of course (Python, for example). Additionally it is now possible to access ROOT objects that are unknown to the translation tool. This poster will describe the techniques used to effect this translation, along with performance comparisons, and examples. All described source code is posted on the open source site CodePlex.

Novel concepts for the containment of oil in flowing water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, H.M.; Nicholson, P.; Goodman, R.H.; Berry, B.A.; Hughes, B.R.

1993-01-01

Both a laboratory study of the hydrodynamic properties of variously shaped objects and a meso-scale flume study of several containment concepts have been undertaken to determine whether these can be used to contain oil in fast flowing water. The laboratory study showed that stable vortices are difficult to generate and that spilled oil is not easily trapped by them. Only two of the structures studied showed some promise of trapping oil in fast moving water: a partially submerged barrier with fins placed at an angle across the flume and a horizontal hydrofoil placed across the channel near the surface. Several filter materials were tested in an outdoor flowing channel with both floating and neutrally buoyant oil. Although some of these materials trapped and held heavy oil, they were not a significant improvement over nylon fishing nets which had been tested previously. The filter materials would not hold a medium gravity oil. A hydrofoil device which generated a horizontal eddy successfully trapped and held surface oil at water speeds up to 0.35 m/s. Neutrally buoyant oil was often caught by the eddy but was never held for more than 1-2 minutes. 9 refs., 5 figs., 3 tabs

Systematic Investigation of the Role of Surfactant Composition and Choice of oil

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schmidt, Signe Tandrup; Neustrup, Malene Aaby; Harloff-Helleberg, Stine

2017-01-01

humoral and CMI responses. METHODS: The influence of emulsion composition was analyzed using a systematic approach. Three factors were varied: i) saturation of the oil phase, ii) type and saturation of the applied surfactant mixture, and iii) surfactant mixture net charge. RESULTS: The emulsions were...... colloidally stable with a droplet diameter of 150-250 nm, and the zeta-potential correlated closely with the net charge of the surfactant mixture. Only cationic emulsions containing the unsaturated surfactant mixture induced concomitant humoral and CMI responses upon immunization of mice with a Ct antigen...

A Study on the efficient alleviation of domestic oil price at international oil crisis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Young Ku [Korea Energy Economics Institute, Euiwang (Korea)

1999-01-01

For alleviating domestic oil price when the international oil crisis happens, the government has been reacted directly such as using stored oil or alleviation fund. Although the release of stored oil works for short-term depending on the type of crisis, concerning that most of oil crisis had been resulted in temporary supply reduction rather than long-term supply suspension, utilizing the domestic alleviation fund is regarded more economical than storing oil. However, it has been suggested to compare efficiencies of alleviation fund and a futures market regarding the perspectives that using alleviation fund is more inefficient than utilizing a futures market. Moreover, the direct management by government is less efficient than indirect management. As an efficient way to alleviate domestic oil price at international oil crisis, this study presents an effective utilization of trading in futures of crude oil. There is a high probability of occurrence of this kind of oil crisis by judging from the world political situation and the trend of oil market. In such a case, the government as a crude oil importer should minimize the stored oil and utilize a futures market effectively. The subject of alleviating oil price by trading in futures is an oil supplier, such as oil refining companies or oil importers not the government as a prerequisite. Furthermore, the government should approve to include appropriate cost for preparing oil price alleviation in the oil price and it is required that such a government policy should be consistent. (author). 41 refs., 3 figs., 15 Tabs.

Effective communications system for a national oil spill contingency plan in Nigeria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adeyemi-Wilson, O.A.

1991-01-01

This paper describes what constitute an Effective Communications System for a National Oil Spill Contingency Plan. It discusses the system available in Nigeria for the oil exploration and producing companies, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the only oil spill response cooperative, the Clean Nigeria Associates (CNA). The Emergency Communications System which the companies had in place for some time, but is no longer functioning because of bureaucratic problems, is mentioned. The paper also mentioned the need to integrate the various separate systems already in use to provide effective communication for proper oil spill response. It recognizes the need for support from the Ministry of Communications and the two government agencies, NITEL and NET which provide telephone services in Nigeria. A proposed Effective Communications System for Nigeria is described

World resources of oil products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonnaterre, Raymond

2014-01-01

In a first part, the author outlines that the issue of density of an oil product raises the question of the validity of a counting approach based on volumes. As oil industries produce always less heavy products and always more light products, this means that always less oil is needed to produce a gallon or a litre of fuel out of a refinery. The author comments the evolution of crude oil extraction. In a second part, he outlines that hydrocarbon productions become always more complex with respect to their origin. Thus, during gas extraction, humid gases are recovered which contain an important part of hydrocarbons similar to light oil. These aspects and the development of shale gas exploitation will make the USA the first oil producer in the world whereas they still have to import heavy oil to feed their refineries. He discusses the level of reserves and production costs with respect to the product type or its extraction location. He discusses the evolution of the estimates of world ultimately recoverable resources (synthesis processes excluded). He comments the level of condensate extraction ratio of the main shale gas fields in the USA and outlines the cost of natural gas imports for France. He outlines the importance of GTL (gas to liquid) processes, the increasing importance of bio-fuels (notably isobutanol biosynthesis and terpene biosynthesis). In the third part, the author states that the barrel price should keep on increasing and, in the fourth part, proposes a list of issues which will impact the future of the oil market

Mitsubishi Oil to become a major oil player?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ash, N.

1994-01-01

Mitsubishi Oil became a wholly-owned Japanese company in 1984. Before that, since 1981, it had been a joint venture between Mitsubishi and Getty oil. Recently the company has discovered a major new oilfield off the coast of Vietnam. In addition it has a strategic stake in the Canadian Athabasca Far Sands, major investments in Angola and operations in Papua New Guinea and Gabon. It aims to cover 30 % of the crude oil imports to its four existing, and fifth projected, refineries from owned sources by the end of the century. Mitsubishi has a network of 4500 service stations in Japan and has become one of the largest lubricating oil producers. The company's main overseas sales are of jet fuel, lubricating and tanker oils, sulphur and some petrochemicals. (UK)

INMARSAT-C SafetyNET

Science.gov (United States)

Tsunamis 406 EPIRB's National Weather Service Marine Forecasts INMARSAT-C SafetyNET Marine Forecast Offices greater danger near shore or any shallow waters? NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PRODUCTS VIA INMARSAT-C SafetyNET Inmarsat-C SafetyNET is an internationally adopted, automated satellite system for promulgating

TreeNetViz: revealing patterns of networks over tree structures.

Science.gov (United States)

Gou, Liang; Zhang, Xiaolong Luke

2011-12-01

Network data often contain important attributes from various dimensions such as social affiliations and areas of expertise in a social network. If such attributes exhibit a tree structure, visualizing a compound graph consisting of tree and network structures becomes complicated. How to visually reveal patterns of a network over a tree has not been fully studied. In this paper, we propose a compound graph model, TreeNet, to support visualization and analysis of a network at multiple levels of aggregation over a tree. We also present a visualization design, TreeNetViz, to offer the multiscale and cross-scale exploration and interaction of a TreeNet graph. TreeNetViz uses a Radial, Space-Filling (RSF) visualization to represent the tree structure, a circle layout with novel optimization to show aggregated networks derived from TreeNet, and an edge bundling technique to reduce visual complexity. Our circular layout algorithm reduces both total edge-crossings and edge length and also considers hierarchical structure constraints and edge weight in a TreeNet graph. These experiments illustrate that the algorithm can reduce visual cluttering in TreeNet graphs. Our case study also shows that TreeNetViz has the potential to support the analysis of a compound graph by revealing multiscale and cross-scale network patterns. © 2011 IEEE

China's energy security and its challenges towards 2035

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Odgaard, Ole; Delman, Jørgen

2014-01-01

Within the last twenty years, China has become dependent on import of coal, oil and natural gas. Especially oil is now an economic and a security concern by the Chinese regime and key international stakeholders. Until 2035, China will account for one fourth of the global net growth in global gas...... of oil is secured so far. Even if China attempts to address its insufficient supply of oil by increased investments in overseas oil fields, there is still a large gap. Furthermore, the oil import will largely come from politically unstable countries and regions, and the bulk of the supplies must...... consumption and more than half of the net growth in oil consumption. The future demand cannot be covered by China׳s own conventional and unconventional sources. Pipelines from neighboring countries can cover more than half of the needed import of natural gas by 2030, but only 10 percent of the import demand...

Catalytic treatment of hydrocarbon oils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1940-02-23

A process is described for increasing the octane number of a hydrocarbon oil. The substance is subjected under pressure to a temperature between 800 and 1100/sup 0/C. Catalysts include metal compounds of Groups IV, V, Vi, or VIII (Group VI is perferred). Experiments are performed under a hydrogen atmosphere. Reaction time, temperature, pressure, and partial pressure of the hydrogen are adjusted so that there will be no net hydrogen consumption. The reaction gases (including the products) are recycled in whole or in part to supply the hydrogen gas required.

Quantum net dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finkelstein, D.

1989-01-01

The quantum net unifies the basic principles of quantum theory and relativity in a quantum spacetime having no ultraviolet infinities, supporting the Dirac equation, and having the usual vacuum as a quantum condensation. A correspondence principle connects nets to Schwinger sources and further unifies the vertical structure of the theory, so that the functions of the many hierarchic levels of quantum field theory (predicate algebra, set theory, topology,hor-ellipsis, quantum dynamics) are served by one in quantum net dynamics

OIL AS POLITICAL WEAPON

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mariana, BUICAN

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Oil (called by some black gold has not always been as coveted and used, but only in the last hundred years has established itself as a highly sought after as an indispensable proper functioning of modern economic activity that an important factor in international politics. International oil regime has changed in the last decades. In 1960, oil regime was a private oligopol which had links with governments main consuming countries. By then the price of a barrel of oil was two U.S. dollars and seven major transnational oil companies decided the amount of oil that will be produced. Meanwhile the world region with the largest oil exports were more strongly expressed nationalism and decolonization. Result, it was so in the late 60s in the region occur independent states. They have created an organization aim of this resource to their advantage - OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Thus since 1973 there have been changes in the international regime governing oil field, namely producing countries were fixed production rate and price. After this time the oil weapon has become increasingly important in the management of international relations. Oil influenced the great powers to Middle East conflicts that occurred in the last century, but their attitude about the emergence of new sources of oil outside OPEC. In the late 90's, Russia has become a major supplier of oil to the West.

M&E-NetPay: A Micropayment System for Mobile and Electronic Commerce

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaodi Huang

2016-08-01

Full Text Available As an increasing number of people purchase goods and services online, micropayment systems are becoming particularly important for mobile and electronic commerce. We have designed and developed such a system called M&E-NetPay (Mobile and Electronic NetPay. With open interoperability and mobility, M&E-NetPay uses web services to connect brokers and vendors, providing secure, flexible and reliable credit services over the Internet. In particular, M&E-NetPay makes use of a secure, inexpensive and debit-based off-line protocol that allows vendors to interact only with customers, after validating coins. The design of the architecture and protocol of M&E-NetPay are presented, together with the implementation of its prototype in ringtone and wallpaper sites. To validate our system, we have conducted its evaluations on performance, usability and heuristics. Furthermore, we compare our system to the CORBA-based (Common Object Request Broker Architecture off-line micro-payment systems. The results have demonstrated that M&E-NetPay outperforms the .NET-based M&E-NetPay system in terms of performance and user satisfaction.

Discards of Danish set nets fisheries in the Kattegat

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Savina, Esther; Krag, Ludvig Ahm; Frandsen, Rikke

to the food web. These ecological interactions can be of importance for the surrounding ecosystem, especially regarding small-scale fisheries which take place in relatively shallow waters. Previous studies on gill- or trammel nets discards mostly focus either on commercially valuable fish, or on incidentally...... caught rare or protected species. Data collected by observers aboard commercial fishing vessels gives a first insight into the discards of non-commercial fish and invertebrates in the Danish small-scale set nets fisheries...

Efficiency Assessment of Economic International Cooperation in Development of Arctic Offshore Oil and Gas Resources

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Polina V. Beresneva

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The research is focused on efficiency assessment of economic cooperation in development of Arctic offshore oil and gas resources. The author developed an economic model based on cost-benefit analysis (CBA. CBA is used in some countries (EU, USA, Australia as an analytic tool to make public policy decisions. CBA is based on the method of discounting cash flows associated with costs and benefits of public policy. It is assumed that all public goals are equally important inter alia, hence public bodies should opt for those initiatives that maximize public benefits for every dollar spent from the state budget. There are five stages of economic modeling: 1 the definition of public benefits and costs associated with the public initiative; 2 monetary valuation of costs and benefits; 3 the definition of discounting period and discounting rate; 4 the calculation of net present value of cash flows; 5 the comparison of initiatives' net present values. The model is built with a number of hypotheses assumed. It allows making evaluation of investments into the technology to decrease the cost of Arctic offshore oil and gas development. Moreover, the model has two scenarios describing a public policy to support technology development with international economic cooperation and without it. Under given hypotheses both scenarios return positive net present value of policies which proves that governmental initiative to support Arctic technology development is economically justified. Also the model sows that the scenario with international cooperation is more efficient from economic point of view. It is explained by two factors: the higher speed of technology transfer (due W international cooperation and the opportunity to use financial leverage (attracting the funds from foreign partners. The model allows closing the existing scientific gap between the theory of CBA method and its practical use in public decision making.

Technical and economic feasibility study of flue gas injection in an Iranian oil field

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Ali Ahmadi

2015-09-01

The main aim of this research is to investigate various gas injection methods (N2, CO2, produced reservoir gas, and flue gas in one of the northern Persian gulf oil fields by a numerical simulation method. Moreover, for each scenario of gas injection technical and economical considerations are took into account. Finally, an economic analysis is implemented to compare the net present value (NPV of the different gas injection scenarios in the aforementioned oil field.

Production of polyol oils from soybean oil by Pseudomonas aeruginosa E03-12.

Science.gov (United States)

Soy-polyols are important starting materials for the manufacture of polymers such as polyurethane. We have been trying to develop a bioprocess for the production of polyol oils directly from soybean oil. We reported earlier the polyol products produced from soybean oil by Acinetobacter haemolyticus ...

Value of Canadian oil sands... to the United States

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pugliaresi, Lucian

2011-01-01

Since the beginning of the recession in late 2007, the American economy has been subject to great change, affecting the way energy is produced and consumed. The structure of oil imports and exports has changed significantly and U.S. imports are now primarily from Canada. The current study shows how and why the U.S. has become dependent on imports of oil from the Canadian oil sands. Oil from Canadian oil sands is transported to different Petroleum Administration for Defense Districts (PADD) via the Keystone pipeline. As imports from Canada increased, the U.S. refinery sector was restructured. Small refineries were closed while larger refineries were expanded and investment was made to increase their processing capacity. The increased import and processing of oil from the Canadian oil sands led to an advantageous decrease in oil prices. If the Keystone XL project were to be approved, the pipeline would increase the area with access to the means of transporting oil, allowing the increasing demand for oil to be met and, potentially, stabilizing world oil prices.

The Impact of Foreign Investment Restrictions on the Stock Returns of Oil Sands Companies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eugene Beaulieu

2014-06-01

Full Text Available In December 2012, prompted by the proposed purchase of Nexen by the Chinese SOE CNOOC, the federal government announced revised guidelines for investments by state-owned enterprises (SOEs in the oil sands. Declaring the sale marked “the end of a trend and not the beginning of a trend,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper explained how the government would approach such decisions in the future, including placing the onus on foreign investors to demonstrate how deals would be of net benefit to Canada, as well as granting the industry minister the discretion to accept or deny proposed deals. Accounting for five per cent of Canadian GDP, $28 billion in government revenue and three per cent of all jobs nationwide, the oil sands are an integral component of Canada’s economy. The sector has long relied on foreign capital to finance projects, meaning that any move to deter outside investment could have profound consequences for the development of this critical economic asset. In this paper, the authors examine the impact of this policy change by measuring the stock returns of firms operating in the oil sands. Employing an event study analysis, they find empirical evidence that the government’s policy change has resulted in the material destruction of shareholder wealth, particularly in the case of the smaller oil companies. What is more, given the composition of the global oil industry has changed to one where SOEs dominate both reserves and production, is this a policy Canada can afford in the long term? “When we say that Canada is open for business, we do not mean that Canada is for sale to foreign governments.” - Prime Minister Stephen Harper, December 7, 2012 “…going forward, the [industry] minister will find the acquisition of control of a Canadian oil-sands business by a state-owned enterprise to be of net benefit, only in an exceptional circumstance.” - Prime Minister Stephen Harper, December 7, 2012 “A year after the new Investment

Planning of nets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carberry, M

1996-01-01

The paper is about the planning of nets in areas of low density like it is the case of the rural areas. The author includes economic and technological aspects, planning of nets, demands and management among others

Synergies for Improving Oil Palm Production and Forest Conservation in Floodplain Landscapes

Science.gov (United States)

Abram, Nicola K.; Xofis, Panteleimon; Tzanopoulos, Joseph; MacMillan, Douglas C.; Ancrenaz, Marc; Chung, Robin; Peter, Lucy; Ong, Robert; Lackman, Isabelle; Goossens, Benoit; Ambu, Laurentius; Knight, Andrew T.

2014-01-01

Lowland tropical forests are increasingly threatened with conversion to oil palm as global demand and high profit drives crop expansion throughout the world’s tropical regions. Yet, landscapes are not homogeneous and regional constraints dictate land suitability for this crop. We conducted a regional study to investigate spatial and economic components of forest conversion to oil palm within a tropical floodplain in the Lower Kinabatangan, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. The Kinabatangan ecosystem harbours significant biodiversity with globally threatened species but has suffered forest loss and fragmentation. We mapped the oil palm and forested landscapes (using object-based-image analysis, classification and regression tree analysis and on-screen digitising of high-resolution imagery) and undertook economic modelling. Within the study region (520,269 ha), 250,617 ha is cultivated with oil palm with 77% having high Net-Present-Value (NPV) estimates ($413/ha− yr–$637/ha− yr); but 20.5% is under-producing. In fact 6.3% (15,810 ha) of oil palm is commercially redundant (with negative NPV of $-299/ha− yr-$-65/ha− yr) due to palm mortality from flood inundation. These areas would have been important riparian or flooded forest types. Moreover, 30,173 ha of unprotected forest remain and despite its value for connectivity and biodiversity 64% is allocated for future oil palm. However, we estimate that at minimum 54% of these forests are unsuitable for this crop due to inundation events. If conversion to oil palm occurs, we predict a further 16,207 ha will become commercially redundant. This means that over 32,000 ha of forest within the floodplain would have been converted for little or no financial gain yet with significant cost to the ecosystem. Our findings have globally relevant implications for similar floodplain landscapes undergoing forest transformation to agriculture such as oil palm. Understanding landscape level constraints to this crop, and transferring

Programming NET Web Services

CERN Document Server

Ferrara, Alex

2007-01-01

Web services are poised to become a key technology for a wide range of Internet-enabled applications, spanning everything from straight B2B systems to mobile devices and proprietary in-house software. While there are several tools and platforms that can be used for building web services, developers are finding a powerful tool in Microsoft's .NET Framework and Visual Studio .NET. Designed from scratch to support the development of web services, the .NET Framework simplifies the process--programmers find that tasks that took an hour using the SOAP Toolkit take just minutes. Programming .NET

Translating Health Services Research into Practice in the Safety Net.

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, Susan L; Fischer, Ilana; Havranek, Edward P

2016-02-01

To summarize research relating to health services research translation in the safety net through analysis of the literature and case study of a safety net system. Literature review and key informant interviews at an integrated safety net hospital. This paper describes the results of a comprehensive literature review of translational science literature as applied to health care paired with qualitative analysis of five key informant interviews conducted with senior-level management at Denver Health and Hospital Authority. Results from the literature suggest that implementing innovation may be more difficult in the safety net due to multiple factors, including financial and organizational constraints. Results from key informant interviews confirmed the reality of financial barriers to innovation implementation but also implied that factors, including institutional respect for data, organizational attitudes, and leadership support, could compensate for disadvantages. Translating research into practice is of critical importance to safety net providers, which are under increased pressure to improve patient care and satisfaction. Results suggest that translational research done in the safety net can better illuminate the special challenges of this setting; more such research is needed. © Health Research and Educational Trust.

Planning for maturity: Royalty changes for Alberta's conventional oil and gas production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ekelund, M.W.

1993-01-01

An overview is presented of the royalty regime in the Alberta petroleum industry. Current oil and natural gas policy reviews, royalty regime response to fluctuating prices and expectations, maturing of the oil basin, and the economic state of the industry are discussed. With low or negative returns, there is little incentive to invest in the industry. A reduction of royalty on existing pools would provide cash flow for new activity and would raise current return on equity and capital. The province of Alberta has reduced royalties on oil and gas discovered after 1973, with an expected value of reduction of $85 million of gross royalties for each. The net cost to the Crown will be $85 million for oil and ca 25% less for gas due to a drop in processing costs. The royalty collection system will also be simplified. These changes are expected to result in increased levels of oil well drilling and reactivation. 6 figs., 2 tabs

Case study: Preliminary assessment of integrated palm biomass biorefinery for bioethanol production utilizing non-food sugars from oil palm frond petiole

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdullah, Sharifah Soplah Syed; Shirai, Yoshihito; Ali, Ahmad Amiruddin Mohd; Mustapha, Mahfuzah; Hassan, Mohd Ali

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Fermentable sugars production from oil palm frond by integrated technology concept. • Bioethanol production from oil palm frond sugars in a biorefinery. • Palm oil mills have sufficient excess energy and steam to support biorefinery. • The net energy ratio of bioethanol from oil palm frond petiole is 7.48. - Abstract: In this case study, a preliminary assessment on the bioethanol production from oil palm frond (OPF) petiole sugars within an integrated palm biomass biorefinery was carried out. Based on the case study of 4 neighbouring palm oil mills, approximately 55,600 t/y of fermentable sugars could be obtained from OPF petiole. The integrated biorefinery will be located at one of the 4 mills. The mill has potential excess energy comprising 3.64 GW h/y of electricity and 177,000 t/y of steam which are sufficient to run the biorefinery. With 33.9 million litres/y of bioethanol production, the specific production cost of bioethanol is estimated at $ 0.52/l bioethanol, compared to $ 0.31–0.34/l bioethanol produced from sugarcane and $ 0.49–0.60/l bioethanol from other lignocellulosics. The net energy ratio of 7.48 for bioethanol production from OPF provides a promising alternative for OPF utilization as a non-food sugar feedstock.

A healthy reduction in oil consumption and carbon emissions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higgins, P.A.T.; Higgins, Millicent

2005-01-01

Reliance on oil as an energy source for private transportation produces increasingly unfavorable social, political and environmental conditions including climate change, dependence on foreign oil, and the need for difficult choices between oil production and protection of biological systems. At the same time, the population is increasingly sedentary due largely to our reliance on the automobile for transportation. Adoption and maintenance of healthy weights and healthier lifestyles by substituting walking or biking for short trips currently taken by car could simultaneously improve health and reduce oil consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. We calculate the reduction in oil consumption and carbon dioxide emissions possible in the United States if (1) obese and overweight conditions were eliminated from the adult population through the use of walking or biking for transportation, and (2) individuals between the ages of 10 and 64 adopted previously recommended levels of daily exercise by walking or biking instead of driving. Substantial co-benefits accompany widespread adoption of physical activity. Assuming substitution of cycling for driving, the reduction in gasoline demand is equivalent to 34.9% of current domestic oil consumption. This constitutes considerably more oil than is recoverable from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The concomitant reduction in US carbon dioxide emissions would constitute approximately 10.9% relative to 1990 net US emissions and would be a substantial step toward satisfying the Kyoto Protocol

A healthy reduction in oil consumption and carbon emissions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Higgins, P.A.T. [Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Dept. of Biological Sciences; Higgins, M. [Michigan Univ., Ann Arbor, MI (United States). School of Public Health

2005-01-01

Reliance on oil as an energy source for private transportation produces increasingly unfavorable social, political and environmental conditions including climate change, dependence on foreign oil, and the need for difficult choices between oil production and protection of biological systems. At the same time, the population is increasingly sedentary due largely to our reliance on the automobile for transportation. Adoption and maintenance of healthy weights and healthier lifestyles by substituting walking or biking for short trips currently taken by car could simultaneously improve health and reduce oil consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. We calculate the reduction in oil consumption and carbon dioxide emissions possible in the United States if (1) obese and overweight conditions were eliminated from the adult population through the use of walking or biking for transportation, and (2) individuals between the ages of 10 and 64 adopted previously recommended levels of daily exercise by walking or biking instead of driving. Substantial co-benefits accompany widespread adoption of physical activity. Assuming substitution of cycling for driving, the reduction in gasoline demand is equivalent to 34.9% of current domestic oil consumption. This constitutes considerably more oil than is recoverable from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The concomitant reduction in US carbon dioxide emissions would constitute approximately 10.9% relative to 1990 net US emissions and would be a substantial step toward satisfying the Kyoto Protocol. (author)

Net-infiltration map of the Navajo Sandstone outcrop area in western Washington County, Utah

Science.gov (United States)

Heilweil, Victor M.; McKinney, Tim S.

2007-01-01

As populations grow in the arid southwestern United States and desert bedrock aquifers are increasingly targeted for future development, understanding and quantifying the spatial variability of net infiltration and recharge becomes critically important for inventorying groundwater resources and mapping contamination vulnerability. A Geographic Information System (GIS)-based model utilizing readily available soils, topographic, precipitation, and outcrop data has been developed for predicting net infiltration to exposed and soil-covered areas of the Navajo Sandstone outcrop of southwestern Utah. The Navajo Sandstone is an important regional bedrock aquifer. The GIS model determines the net-infiltration percentage of precipitation by using an empirical equation. This relation is derived from least squares linear regression between three surficial parameters (soil coarseness, topographic slope, and downgradient distance from outcrop) and the percentage of estimated net infiltration based on environmental tracer data from excavations and boreholes at Sand Hollow Reservoir in the southeastern part of the study area.Processed GIS raster layers are applied as parameters in the empirical equation for determining net infiltration for soil-covered areas as a percentage of precipitation. This net-infiltration percentage is multiplied by average annual Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM) precipitation data to obtain an infiltration rate for each model cell. Additionally, net infiltration on exposed outcrop areas is set to 10 percent of precipitation on the basis of borehole net-infiltration estimates. Soils and outcrop net-infiltration rates are merged to form a final map.Areas of low, medium, and high potential for ground-water recharge have been identified, and estimates of net infiltration range from 0.1 to 66 millimeters per year (mm/yr). Estimated net-infiltration rates of less than 10 mm/yr are considered low, rates of 10 to 50 mm/yr are

Global market trade policy analysis for petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bagheri, F.

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This article is based on surveying the custom tariffs imposed on the world export market of Petroleum Oils and Oils Obtained from Bituminous Minerals, Crude. We obtained the data according to the most updated available data provided online by UNCTAD and World Bank. The results indicate that none of the 142 countries in the world market of this product have imposed non-tariff trade barriers on the import of Petroleum Oils and Oils Obtained from Bituminous Minerals, Crude. The developed countries and the countries with transition economies are the main world import partners. European Union, United States, China, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, South Africa, Australia, Turkey, Brazil, Sweden and Belarus are the examples and have imposed low custom tariffs on Petroleum Oils and Oils Obtained from Bituminous Minerals, Crude.

NucNet's growing impact on the media

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carle, Remy [Electricite de France (France)

1995-07-01

In the four years since the birth of NucNet there has been a gradual but radical change In the original concept of the network. In the beginning, the focus of attention was to make nuclear communicators better-informed and more efficient. What had been desperately needed for some time was an Information exchange system which would enable those communicators to do a better Job whether working proactlvely or reactively. The idea was primarily for positive nuclear news from Europe to be disseminated to people on the network so that they could pass it on to media contacts in their respective countries, as part of their regular dialogue with journalists. However, once NucNet was up-and-running a strong body of opinion emerged, arguing in favour of NucNet's most urgent, important or off-beat news - the 'A' category releases - to be sent direct to national and international news agencies. Quite rightly, it was felt that, in this way, the nuclear community could clearly demonstrate Its transparency and Its desire to Inform the public openly. At the same time, it was clear that sending to just a few national news agencies in Europe would not be enough. It was clear that NucNet would have to expand into a truly worldwide network and that, to reflect this, the main International news agencies would have to be put online as well. NucNet's growing impact on the media is a result of teamwork, and this teamwork takes different forms. It is: between the network's information suppliers and Central Office, among the Central Office staff themselves, between Central Office and the agencies, and between network members and their news media contacts. Through this continuing teamwork process, NucNet will achieve its goal of providing the media and the public with a balanced picture of nuclear energy.

NucNet's growing impact on the media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carle, Remy

1995-01-01

In the four years since the birth of NucNet there has been a gradual but radical change In the original concept of the network. In the beginning, the focus of attention was to make nuclear communicators better-informed and more efficient. What had been desperately needed for some time was an Information exchange system which would enable those communicators to do a better Job whether working proactlvely or reactively. The idea was primarily for positive nuclear news from Europe to be disseminated to people on the network so that they could pass it on to media contacts in their respective countries, as part of their regular dialogue with journalists. However, once NucNet was up-and-running a strong body of opinion emerged, arguing in favour of NucNet's most urgent, important or off-beat news - the 'A' category releases - to be sent direct to national and international news agencies. Quite rightly, it was felt that, in this way, the nuclear community could clearly demonstrate Its transparency and Its desire to Inform the public openly. At the same time, it was clear that sending to just a few national news agencies in Europe would not be enough. It was clear that NucNet would have to expand into a truly worldwide network and that, to reflect this, the main International news agencies would have to be put online as well. NucNet's growing impact on the media is a result of teamwork, and this teamwork takes different forms. It is: between the network's information suppliers and Central Office, among the Central Office staff themselves, between Central Office and the agencies, and between network members and their news media contacts. Through this continuing teamwork process, NucNet will achieve its goal of providing the media and the public with a balanced picture of nuclear energy

[Imperial Oil's Cold Lake oil sands operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dingle, H. B.

1999-01-01

Imperial Oil Limited's Cold Lake oil sands resources, production and operations in Alberta are discussed. Cold Lake is the company's largest single asset and its largest source of crude oil production. In 1998, Cold Lake accounted for just under half of Imperial's total liquid production, averaging more than 135,000 barrels of bitumen a day. Despite the very difficult operating conditions experienced by the oil sands industry in 1998, Imperial Oil's Cold Lake operations generated a positive cash flow and earnings. Just as important, the near and long-term potential of Cold Lake property continues to be strong, even with the tough market conditions today and the foreseeable future. Proved reserves at the end of 1997 were 1.3 billions barrels, equal to about 24 years of current production, but even more important is Imperial's resource base in the Athabasca region, which represents 150 years of production at current rates. Although production forecasts for the near future are are revised downward because of production shut-in due to low prices, the company is confident of its long-term prospects mainly because of existing infrastructure, superior reservoir quality, 30 years worth of operating improvements and established bitumen-blend markets. Details of the company's future Cold Lake development plans are discussed. The need to continue technology development, which has been at the core of the industry's growth in the past and will continue to be the key to the future, are emphasized

Screening and ranking Alberta oil pools for CO{sub 2} flooding and sequestration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shaw, J.C. [Adams Pearson Associates Inc., Calgary, AB (Canada); Bachu, S. [Alberta Energy and Utilities Board, Calgary, AB (Canada)

2001-06-01

This paper presented the results of a technical screening program using Excel VBA to successfully screen and rank a very large number of oil pools for enhanced oil recovery using carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) flooding. A total of 6 ranking parameters were used, including API gravity of oil, residual oil saturation, ratio between reservoir pressure and minimum miscibility pressure, reservoir temperature, net pay thickness and porosity. The screening program provided a technical ranking of approximately 8,800 Alberta pools in less than 2 minutes. After compilation of the Alberta oil pools, it was determined that most of the deep carbonate oil pools are excellent candidates for CO{sub 2} miscible flooding. Other Devonian carbonate pools were also ranked as having high potential for the process. An environmental benefit of CO{sub 2} miscible flooding process is that carbon sequestration has the potential to reduce anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions from reaching the atmosphere. Ongoing studies are currently addressing CO{sub 2} capture and transportation, making EOR technology viable for maintaining light oil production in western Canada. 11 refs., 7 tabs., 1 fig.

Energy Return on Investment (EROI of Oil Shale

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter A. O’Connor

2011-11-01

Full Text Available The two methods of processing synthetic crude from organic marlstone in demonstration or small-scale commercial status in the U.S. are in situ extraction and surface retorting. The considerable uncertainty surrounding the technological characterization, resource characterization, and choice of the system boundary for oil shale operations indicate that oil shale is only a minor net energy producer if one includes internal energy (energy in the shale that is used during the process as an energy cost. The energy return on investment (EROI for either of these methods is roughly 1.5:1 for the final fuel product. The inclusions or omission of internal energy is a critical question. If only external energy (energy diverted from the economy to produce the fuel is considered, EROI appears to be much higher. In comparison, fuels produced from conventional petroleum show overall EROI of approximately 4.5:1. “At the wellhead” EROI is approximately 2:1 for shale oil (again, considering internal energy and 20:1 for petroleum. The low EROI for oil shale leads to a significant release of greenhouse gases. The large quantities of energy needed to process oil shale, combined with the thermochemistry of the retorting process, produce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. Oil shale unambiguously emits more greenhouse gases than conventional liquid fuels from crude oil feedstocks by a factor of 1.2 to 1.75. Much of the discussion regarding the EROI for oil shale should be regarded as preliminary or speculative due to the very small number of operating facilities that can be assessed.

Oil and the political economy of energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matutinovic, Igor

2009-01-01

The key issues concerning oil exploitation are still open for discussion: there is no agreement about where we presently stand in the world oil extraction curve, what is its exact shape, and how far can oil price grow before it changes irreversibly the world economy and consumer behavior. The paper proposes an alternative scenario to the Hubbert's bell-shaped model of oil exploitation, based on more realistic assumptions regarding political agendas in oil-exporting countries and consumer behavior dynamics in oil-importing countries. Under this scenario, the joint impact of markets and public policy in oil importing countries together with 'resource pragmatism' policy in oil-exporting countries allows for a less steep oil supply curve with a much fatter tail compared to the Hubbert's model.

Game Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Westergaard, Michael

2006-01-01

This paper introduces the notion of game coloured Petri nets. This allows the modeler to explicitly model what parts of the model comprise the modeled system and what parts are the environment of the modeled system. We give the formal definition of game coloured Petri nets, a means of reachability...... analysis of this net class, and an application of game coloured Petri nets to automatically generate easy-to-understand visualizations of the model by exploiting the knowledge that some parts of the model are not interesting from a visualization perspective (i.e. they are part of the environment...

A Multi-scale Approach for CO2 Accounting and Risk Analysis in CO2 Enhanced Oil Recovery Sites

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Z.; Viswanathan, H. S.; Middleton, R. S.; Pan, F.; Ampomah, W.; Yang, C.; Jia, W.; Lee, S. Y.; McPherson, B. J. O. L.; Grigg, R.; White, M. D.

2015-12-01

Using carbon dioxide in enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) is a promising technology for emissions management because CO2-EOR can dramatically reduce carbon sequestration costs in the absence of greenhouse gas emissions policies that include incentives for carbon capture and storage. This study develops a multi-scale approach to perform CO2 accounting and risk analysis for understanding CO2 storage potential within an EOR environment at the Farnsworth Unit of the Anadarko Basin in northern Texas. A set of geostatistical-based Monte Carlo simulations of CO2-oil-water flow and transport in the Marrow formation are conducted for global sensitivity and statistical analysis of the major risk metrics: CO2 injection rate, CO2 first breakthrough time, CO2 production rate, cumulative net CO2 storage, cumulative oil and CH4 production, and water injection and production rates. A global sensitivity analysis indicates that reservoir permeability, porosity, and thickness are the major intrinsic reservoir parameters that control net CO2 injection/storage and oil/CH4 recovery rates. The well spacing (the distance between the injection and production wells) and the sequence of alternating CO2 and water injection are the major operational parameters for designing an effective five-spot CO2-EOR pattern. The response surface analysis shows that net CO2 injection rate increases with the increasing reservoir thickness, permeability, and porosity. The oil/CH4 production rates are positively correlated to reservoir permeability, porosity and thickness, but negatively correlated to the initial water saturation. The mean and confidence intervals are estimated for quantifying the uncertainty ranges of the risk metrics. The results from this study provide useful insights for understanding the CO2 storage potential and the corresponding risks of commercial-scale CO2-EOR fields.

Disaggregating reserve-to-production ratios: An algorithm for United States oil and gas reserve development

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Charles William

Reserve-to-production ratios for oil and gas development are utilized by oil and gas producing states to monitor oil and gas reserve and production dynamics. These ratios are used to determine production levels for the manipulation of oil and gas prices while maintaining adequate reserves for future development. These aggregate reserve-to-production ratios do not provide information concerning development cost and the best time necessary to develop newly discovered reserves. Oil and gas reserves are a semi-finished inventory because development of the reserves must take place in order to implement production. These reserves are considered semi-finished in that they are not counted unless it is economically profitable to produce them. The development of these reserves is encouraged by profit maximization economic variables which must consider the legal, political, and geological aspects of a project. This development is comprised of a myriad of incremental operational decisions, each of which influences profit maximization. The primary purpose of this study was to provide a model for characterizing a single product multi-period inventory/production optimization problem from an unconstrained quantity of raw material which was produced and stored as inventory reserve. This optimization was determined by evaluating dynamic changes in new additions to reserves and the subsequent depletion of these reserves with the maximization of production. A secondary purpose was to determine an equation for exponential depletion of proved reserves which presented a more comprehensive representation of reserve-to-production ratio values than an inadequate and frequently used aggregate historical method. The final purpose of this study was to determine the most accurate delay time for a proved reserve to achieve maximum production. This calculated time provided a measure of the discounted cost and calculation of net present value for developing new reserves. This study concluded that

Terms of trade, countertrade and recycling under oil price shocks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tolonen, Y. (Turku School of Economics (Finland))

1989-01-01

In this paper we first analyse the consequences of oil pricedisturbances in a model of two oil importing and one oil producingcountries. Attention is given both to the terms of trade between theoil importers and to the recycling of the oil revenues of the oilproducer to imports from these oil importing countries. Secondly,extending the model by another oil producer we discuss a situationwhere a part of the oil trade takes place on a countertrade basis. Thequestion is whether such countertrade deals are advantageous or notwhen oil price shocks occur. Various factors are presented upon whichthe outcome depends. 12 refs., 2 tabs., 1 app.

Coloured Petri Nets

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kurt

1991-01-01

This paper describes how Coloured Petri Nets (CP-nets) have been developed — from being a promising theoretical model to being a full-fledged language for the design, specification, simulation, validation and implementation of large software systems (and other systems in which human beings and...

Net zero water

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Lindeque, M

2013-01-01

Full Text Available the national grid. The unfortunate situation with water is that there is no replacement technology for water. Water can be supplied from many different sources. A net zero energy development will move closer to a net zero water development by reducing...

A good night's sleep and the habit of net use: perceptions of risk and reasons for bed net use in Bukoba and Zanzibar.

Science.gov (United States)

Koenker, Hannah M; Loll, Dana; Rweyemamu, Datius; Ali, Abdullah S

2013-06-13

Intensive malaria control interventions in the United Republic of Tanzania have contributed to reductions in malaria prevalence. Given that malaria control remains reliant upon continued use of long-lasting insecticidal bed nets (LLINs) even when the threat of malaria has been reduced, this qualitative study sought to understand how changes in perceived risk influence LLIN usage, and to explore in more detail the benefits of net use that are unrelated to malaria. Eleven focus group discussions were conducted in Bukoba Rural district and in Zanzibar Urban West district in late 2011. Participants were males aged 18 and over, females between the ages of 18 and 49, and females at least 50 years old. The perceived risk of malaria had decreased among the respondents, and malaria control interventions were credited for the decline. Participants cited reductions in both the severity of malaria and in their perceived susceptibility to malaria. However, malaria was still considered a significant threat. Participants' conceptualization of risk appeared to be an important consideration for net use. At the same time, comfort and aspects of comfort (getting a good night's sleep, avoiding biting pests) appeared to play a large role in personal decisions to use nets consistently or not. Barriers to comfort (feeling uncomfortable or trapped; perceived difficulty breathing, or itching/rashes) were frequently cited as reasons not to use a net consistently. While it was apparent that participants acknowledged the malaria-prevention benefits of net use, the exploration of the risk and comfort determinants of net use provides a richer understanding of net use behaviours, particularly in a setting where transmission has fallen and yet consistent net use is still crucial to maintaining those gains. Future behaviour change communication campaigns should capitalize on the non-malaria benefits of net use that provide a long-term rationale for consistent use even when the immediate threat of

Happy oil companies; Heureux petroliers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maincent, G

2009-08-27

The decay of demand, the bad financial results of the first half of 2009 and the hypothetical depletion of reserves must not hide a reality: oil companies are passing through the economic crisis without much trouble. Even if profits have marked time in volume (-57% for BP, -65% for Shell..), the net margins have not significantly suffered and the available cash remains comfortable (14 billion euros for Total as an example). The perspectives offered by the new offshore sites (like Santos in Brazil) added to the fabulous promises of the Iraqi market where 'majors' can now make their come-back will be the key of success of oil companies. The overall exploration-production investments should start up again by the beginning of 2011. For the only offshore drilling domain, they should rise up by 32% during the 2009-2013 period which represents a sum of 367 billion dollars. (J.S.)

Net Operating Working Capital, Capital Budgeting, and Cash Budgets: A Teaching Example

Science.gov (United States)

Tuner, James A.

2016-01-01

Many introductory finance texts present information on the capital budgeting process, including estimation of project cash flows. Typically, estimation of project cash flows begins with a calculation of net income. Getting from net income to cash flows requires accounting for non-cash items such as depreciation. Also important is the effect of…

Net survival after exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and dioxins: the Yusho study.

Science.gov (United States)

Onozuka, Daisuke; Hirata, Teruaki; Furue, Masutaka

2014-12-01

Net survival is an important measure of the overall outcome of disease management. This net survival is the most appropriate for international comparisons of disease impact between countries or time periods with different patterns of all-cause mortality because it is not influenced by other causes of death. However, little information is available on net survival among Yusho patients, who were accidentally exposed to PCBs and other dioxin-related compounds. We estimated the net survival of 1664 Yusho patients (860 males, 804 females) as Yusho cohort subjects using the unbiased Pohar-Perme method. Among males, 1-, 5-, 10-, and 15-year net survival were 99.5% (95% confidence interval (CI): 97.9, 99.9), 99.1% (CI: 95.0, 99.9), 97.4% (CI: 86.5, 99.5), and 97.4% (CI: 84.2, 99.6), respectively. Among females, net survival remained almost constant. 1-, 5-, 10-, and 15-year net survival were generally higher in females than in males. This study provides the first unbiased estimations of net survival among Yusho patients. We confirmed that older male Yusho patients have experienced a significant decrease in net survival. Our results suggest that the excess hazard of PCBs and dioxins must be taken into account when evaluating unbiased estimates of net survival. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards new information resources for public health--from WordNet to MedicalWordNet.

Science.gov (United States)

Fellbaum, Christiane; Hahn, Udo; Smith, Barry

2006-06-01

In the last two decades, WordNet has evolved as the most comprehensive computational lexicon of general English. In this article, we discuss its potential for supporting the creation of an entirely new kind of information resource for public health, viz. MedicalWordNet. This resource is not to be conceived merely as a lexical extension of the original WordNet to medical terminology; indeed, there is already a considerable degree of overlap between WordNet and the vocabulary of medicine. Instead, we propose a new type of repository, consisting of three large collections of (1) medically relevant word forms, structured along the lines of the existing Princeton WordNet; (2) medically validated propositions, referred to here as medical facts, which will constitute what we shall call MedicalFactNet; and (3) propositions reflecting laypersons' medical beliefs, which will constitute what we shall call the MedicalBeliefNet. We introduce a methodology for setting up the MedicalWordNet. We then turn to the discussion of research challenges that have to be met to build this new type of information resource. We build a database of sentences relevant to the medical domain. The sentences are generated from WordNet via its relations as well as from medical statements broken down into elementary propositions. Two subcorpora of sentences are distinguished, MedicalBeliefNet and MedicalFactNet. The former is rated for assent by laypersons; the latter for correctness by medical experts. The sentence corpora will be valuable for a variety of applications in information retrieval as well as in research in linguistics and psychology with respect to the study of expert and non-expert beliefs and their linguistic expressions. Our work has to meet several considerable challenges. These include accounting for the distinction between medical experts and laypersons, the social issues of expert-layperson communication in different media, the linguistic aspects of encoding medical knowledge, and

How important are national companies for oil and gas sector performance? Lessons from the Bolivia and Brazil case studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paz Antolín, María José; Ramírez Cendrero, Juan Manuel

2013-01-01

Control of natural resources, especially oil and gas, has been a major issue in the consideration of underdevelopment. In the present commodity boom, some Latin American economies are reforming their resource exploitation regimes, especially those issues linked with foreign capital share. The purpose of this report is to analyze these changes in the Bolivian and Brazilian oil and gas sectors in order to answer such questions as: Which property system combining public and private capital is the most suitable? Which regulating framework can guarantee a sustainable increase in output and investment? Our analyses lead to the conclusion that the regulatory framework can establish a particular ownership structure that is considered favorable for improving the performance of oil and gas sector, but the internal dynamics and the historical trajectories of enterprises will also be determining factors that interact with the given regulatory framework, generating mixed results. - highlights: • We analyze the influence of the regulatory framework in the growth of production. • We analyze the influence of the regulatory framework in investment dynamics. • We compare the regulatory frameworks for Brazil and Bolivia. • We compare the importance of public and private companies in hydrocarbons in Brazil and Bolivia

Unconventional imports

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, N.D.

2001-01-01

This article focuses on bitumens and bitumen products from Canadian oil sands and explores how they will affect the Canadian oil industry and the US refining industry. The falling production of crude, the growing demand for it, and the stagnating refining capacity in the US are reported, and Canadian and Mexican exports to the US, the definition of bitumens and bitumen quality, and the position of Canada as world leader in bitumen resources are considered. Bitumen production techniques, sales of bitumens and synthetic crude, the production outlook, and the quality and refining of bitumen and synthetic crude are examined. Plots illustrating North American crude refining capacity, production and demand for 1980-2000; US crude imports from Canada and Mexico (1981-2000), world proven oil reserves (2001), world bitumen resources, and Canadian oil production (1998-2000) are provided. Details of the composition of crudes and bitumens, and recent synthetic crude production are tabulated

Multiflavor string-net models

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Chien-Hung

2017-05-01

We generalize the string-net construction to multiple flavors of strings, each of which is labeled by the elements of an Abelian group Gi. The same flavor of strings can branch, while different flavors of strings can cross one another and thus they form intersecting string nets. We systematically construct the exactly soluble lattice Hamiltonians and the ground-state wave functions for the intersecting string-net condensed phases. We analyze the braiding statistics of the low-energy quasiparticle excitations and find that our model can realize all the topological phases as the string-net model with group G =∏iGi . In this respect, our construction provides various ways of building lattice models which realize topological order G , corresponding to different partitions of G and thus different flavors of string nets. In fact, our construction concretely demonstrates the Künneth formula by constructing various lattice models with the same topological order. As an example, we construct the G =Z2×Z2×Z2 string-net model which realizes a non-Abelian topological phase by properly intersecting three copies of toric codes.

Response to heavy, non-floating oil spilled in a Great Lakes river environment: a multiple-lines-of-evidence approach for submerged oil assessment and recovery

Science.gov (United States)

Dollhopf, Ralph H.; Fitzpatrick, Faith A.; Kimble, Jeffrey W.; Capone, Daniel M.; Graan, Thomas P.; Zelt, Ronald B.; Johnson, Rex

2014-01-01

The Enbridge Line 6B pipeline release of diluted bitumen into the Kalamazoo River downstream of Marshall, MI in July 2010 is one of the largest freshwater oil spills in North American history. The unprecedented scale of impact and massive quantity of oil released required the development and implementation of new approaches for detection and recovery. At the onset of cleanup, conventional recovery techniques were employed for the initially floating oil and were successful. However, volatilization of the lighter diluent, along with mixing of the oil with sediment during flooded, turbulent river conditions caused the oil to sink and collect in natural deposition areas in the river. For more than three years after the spill, recovery of submerged oil has remained the predominant operational focus of the response. The recovery complexities for submerged oil mixed with sediment in depositional areas and long-term oil sheening along approximately 38 miles of the Kalamazoo River led to the development of a multiple-lines-of-evidence approach comprising six major components: geomorphic mapping, field assessments of submerged oil (poling), systematic tracking and mapping of oil sheen, hydrodynamic and sediment transport modeling, forensic oil chemistry, and net environmental benefit analysis. The Federal On-Scene Coordinator (FOSC) considered this information in determining the appropriate course of action for each impacted segment of the river. New sources of heavy crude oils like diluted bitumen and increasing transportation of those oils require changes in the way emergency personnel respond to oil spills in the Great Lakes and other freshwater ecosystems. Strategies to recover heavy oils must consider that the oils may suspend or sink in the water column, mix with fine-grained sediment, and accumulate in depositional areas. Early understanding of the potential fate and behavior of diluted bitumen spills when combined with timely, strong conventional recovery methods can

New round for oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Delamarche, Myrtille

2018-01-01

After three years of crisis, oil companies are now strongly reinvesting, while oil prices are stabilizing at a reasonable long-term level, notably due to a rising demand from developing countries. Examples of new investments made by majors such as Total, Shell or Exxon but also by national companies and junior companies, are given. Oil price evolution as well as cost reductions (thanks notably to the digitalisation of the sector, leading to a decrease in exploration costs) are analyzed. The importance of the US oil production, and particularly shale oil production, is pinpointed

Oil and the political economy of energy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Matutinovic, Igor [GfK-Center for Market Research, Zagreb (Croatia)

2009-11-15

The key issues concerning oil exploitation are still open for discussion: there is no agreement about where we presently stand in the world oil extraction curve, what is its exact shape, and how far can oil price grow before it changes irreversibly the world economy and consumer behavior. The paper proposes an alternative scenario to the Hubbert's bell-shaped model of oil exploitation, based on more realistic assumptions regarding political agendas in oil-exporting countries and consumer behavior dynamics in oil-importing countries. Under this scenario, the joint impact of markets and public policy in oil importing countries together with 'resource pragmatism' policy in oil-exporting countries allows for a less steep oil supply curve with a much fatter tail compared to the Hubbert's model. (author)

The Asia-Pacific oil market : prospects for Canadian oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fesharaki, F.

2004-01-01

The Asia-Pacific region is among the fastest growing oil markets for which analysts predict healthy growth rates due to high energy demands from developing countries such as China. Increased oil demand will mean new refining capacity needs and increased supplies of crude oil. The indigenous crude supply in the Asia-Pacific region is limited and unable to meet the region's needs. Imports are therefore expected to rise continuously. Although the Middle East will continue to be the dominant player in meeting these growing oil needs, Canada has an opportunity to diversify the supply source and play a significant role in meeting the energy needs of the Asia-Pacific region. tabs., figs

Optimization of Jatropha curcas pure vegetable oil production parameters for cooking energy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

X. Aboubakar

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The extraction of vegetable oil from Jatropha from the Tanzanian variety with a fat content of 33.84 ± 2.58% and a moisture content of 5.4 ± 1.97%, was made using two methods: the traditional and the mechanical extraction method. The traditional consists in extracting the oil from the paste using boiling water as a solvent. While the mechanical consists of directly pressing the seeds of Jatropha using a ram press called Bielenberg press, to extract the oil contained in the seeds dried or heated before. The net yield of oil extraction by the traditional method was 22.02 ± 2.1%, with a oil cake percentage of 67.02 ± 3.3% and the ratio water/paste in mass adopted was 0.36. Mechanical extraction has an average raw yield of 26.15 ± 2.74%, with a recovery rate of 74.71%. After decanting for 10 days and filtration, the net yield was 15.39 ± 2.82% with a decantation and filtration rate of 58.67 ± 7.24%. The oil produced by traditional method has a water and volatile content of 1.01 ± 0.05% and a density of 0.884. The one produced by mechanical extraction has 0.19 ± 0.09% and a density of 0.891. The result of combustion test using two burners and one stove showed that the combustion rates were: 0.177 ± 0.034 g/min for the burner using one flame and 1.06 ± 0.04 g/min for the six flame burner and finally 3.07 ± 0, 4 g/min for the ten-flame stove. This ten-flame stove allowed 3 L of water to be boiled at 100 °C for 32 min, although during combustion it was observed a release of black fumes which indicates incomplete combustion with Jatropha in this Stove. The cost of the liter of Jatropha oil obtained is higher compared to fossil fuels such as petroleum (500 FCFA per liter and gas oil (624F CFA per liter. It would be possible to use vegetable oil from Jatropha as a cooking fuel. Keywords: Vegetable oil, Jatropha, Traditional extraction, Mechanical extraction, Bielenberg press

Net Neutrality in Canada and what it means for libraries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alex Guindon

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Net Neutrality, the idea that the Internet should be provided to all without discrimination based on content or applications, has been an important policy issue in the last few years. A lack of net neutrality could negatively impact libraries, intellectual freedom, cultural diversity, and the right to privacy. This paper looks at the issues that underline the net neutrality debate and describes how they are shaped by the different actors that are concerned with the future of the Internet. Technological issues, such as traffic shaping by Internet Service Providers, and legal issues in the context of Canada’s Telecommunications Act, are also addressed. Finally, the paper reviews the recent CRTC policy on Internet Traffic Management Practices.

Limitations of shallow nets approximation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Shao-Bo

2017-10-01

In this paper, we aim at analyzing the approximation abilities of shallow networks in reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces (RKHSs). We prove that there is a probability measure such that the achievable lower bound for approximating by shallow nets can be realized for all functions in balls of reproducing kernel Hilbert space with high probability, which is different with the classical minimax approximation error estimates. This result together with the existing approximation results for deep nets shows the limitations for shallow nets and provides a theoretical explanation on why deep nets perform better than shallow nets. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

China's energy security and its challenges towards 2035

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Odgaard, Ole; Delman, Jørgen

2014-01-01

Within the last twenty years, China has become dependent on import of coal, oil and natural gas. Especially oil is now an economic and a security concern by the Chinese regime and key international stakeholders. Until 2035, China will account for one fourth of the global net growth in global gas consumption and more than half of the net growth in oil consumption. The future demand cannot be covered by China's own conventional and unconventional sources. Pipelines from neighboring countries can cover more than half of the needed import of natural gas by 2030, but only 10 percent of the import demand of oil is secured so far. Even if China attempts to address its insufficient supply of oil by increased investments in overseas oil fields, there is still a large gap. Furthermore, the oil import will largely come from politically unstable countries and regions, and the bulk of the supplies must be shipped through the potentially insecure Hormuz and Malacca Straits. The ongoing territorial disputes with neighboring countries regarding areas with gas and oil reserves in contested waters bear evidence to regional conflict potentials, and China appears to engage more actively in energy diplomacy and regional cooperation. - Highlights: • China will account for a substantial share of the future global net growth in gas and especially oil consumption. • China's future energy demand cannot be covered by own conventional or unconventional sources. Pipelines can contribute substantially to the required import of natural gas, but the demand for imported oil is not covered. • China increases its investments in overseas oil fields, but there is still a large gap between demand and future supply. • Territorial disputes to its neighboring waters may turn into military conflict, unless China increases its energy diplomacy

How do general practitioners use 'safety netting' in acutely ill children?

Science.gov (United States)

Bertheloot, Karen; Deraeve, Pieterjan; Vermandere, Mieke; Aertgeerts, Bert; Lemiengre, Marieke; De Sutter, An; Buntinx, Frank; Verbakel, Jan Y

2016-01-01

'Safety netting' advice allows general practitioners (GPs) to cope with diagnostic uncertainty in primary care. It informs patients on 'red flag' features and when and how to seek further help. There is, however, insufficient evidence to support useful choices regarding 'safety netting' procedures. To explore how GPs apply 'safety netting' in acutely ill children in Flanders. We designed a qualitative study consisting of semi-structured interviews with 37 GPs across Flanders. Two researchers performed qualitative analysis based on grounded theory components. Although unfamiliar with the term, GPs perform 'safety netting' in every acutely ill child, guided by their intuition without the use of specific guidelines. They communicate 'red flag' features, expected time course of illness and how and when to re-consult and try to tailor their advice to the context, patient and specific illness. Overall, GPs perceive 'safety netting' as an important element of the consultation, acknowledging personal and parental limitations, such as parents' interpretation of their advice. GPs do not feel a need for any form of support in the near future. GPs apply 'safety netting' intuitively and tailor the content. Further research should focus on the impact of 'safety netting' on morbidity and how the advice is conveyed to parents.

The effect of netting solidity ratio and inclined angle on the hydrodynamic characteristics of knotless polyethylene netting

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Hao; Hu, Fuxiang; Xu, Liuxiong; Dong, Shuchuang; Zhou, Cheng; Wang, Xuefang

2017-10-01

Knotless polyethylene (PE) netting has been widely used in aquaculture cages and fishing gears, especially in Japan. In this study, the hydrodynamic coefficient of six knotless PE netting panels with different solidity ratios were assessed in a flume tank under various attack angles of netting from 0° (parallel to flow) to 90° (perpendicular to flow) and current speeds from 40 cm s-1 to 130 cm s-1. It was found that the drag coefficient was related to Reynolds number, solidity ratio and attack angle of netting. The solidity ratio was positively related with drag coefficient for netting panel perpendicular to flow, whereas when setting the netting panel parallel to the flow the opposite result was obtained. For netting panels placed at an angle to the flow, the lift coefficient reached the maximum at an attack angle of 50° and then decreased as the attack angle further increased. The solidity ratio had a dual influence on drag coefficient of inclined netting panels. Compared to result in the literature, the normal drag coefficient of knotless PE netting measured in this study is larger than that of nylon netting or Dyneema netting.

Use of bed nets and factors that influence bed net use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority in southern China.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Jian-wei; Liao, Yuan-mei; Liu, Hui; Nie, Ren-hua; Havumaki, Joshua

2014-01-01

Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) are an integral part of vector control recommendations for malaria elimination in China. This study investigated the extent to which bed nets were used and which factors influence bed net use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority in China-Myanmar-Laos border areas. This study combined a quantitative household questionnaire survey and qualitative semi-structured in-depth interviews (SDI). Questionnaires were administered to 352 heads of households. SDIs were given to 20 key informants. The bed net to person ratio was 1∶2.1 (i.e., nearly one net for every two people), however only 169 (48.0%) households owned at least one net and 623 (47.2%) residents slept under bed nets the prior night. The percentages of residents who regularly slept under nets (RSUN) and slept under nets the prior night (SUNPN) were similar (48.0% vs. 47.2%, P>0.05), however the percentage correct use of nets (CUN) was significantly lower (34.5%, Pcash income per person (ACIP) was an independent factor that influenced bed net use (PHigh bed net availability does not necessarily mean higher coverage or bed net use. Household income, house type and knowledge of the ability of bed nets to prevent malaria are all independent factors that influence bed net use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority.

The impact of crude oil price volatility on agricultural employment in the United States

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uri, N.D.

1996-01-01

This study addresses the question of whether fluctuations in the price of crude oil have affected agricultural employment in the United States. After reviewing previous assessments of the issue, the existence of an empirical relationship between agricultural employment and crude oil price volatility is established using cointegration tests. Subsequently, the nature of the relationship is estimated with the results suggesting that at least three full years are required before the measurable impacts of a percentage change in the real price of crude oil on the change in agricultural employment are exhausted. Finally, the structural stability of the functional relationship between the change in agricultural employment and the volatility of the price of crude oil, the percentage changes in expected net farm income, realized technological innovation, and the wage rate is examined. (author)

Fusion through the NET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spears, B.

1987-01-01

The paper concerns the next generation of fusion machines which are intended to demonstrate the technical viability of fusion. In Europe, the device that will follow on from JET is known as NET - the Next European Torus. If the design programme for NET proceeds, Europe could start to build the machine in 1994. The present JET programme hopes to achieve breakeven in the early 1990's. NET hopes to reach ignition in the next century, and so lay the foundation for a demonstration reactor. A description is given of the technical specifications of the components of NET, including: the first wall, the divertors to protect the wall, the array of magnets that provide the fields containing the plasma, the superconducting magnets, and the shield of the machine. NET's research programme is briefly outlined, including the testing programme to optimise conditions in the machine to achieve ignition, and its safety work. (U.K.)

NetView technical research

Science.gov (United States)

1993-01-01

This is the Final Technical Report for the NetView Technical Research task. This report is prepared in accordance with Contract Data Requirements List (CDRL) item A002. NetView assistance was provided and details are presented under the following headings: NetView Management Systems (NMS) project tasks; WBAFB IBM 3090; WPAFB AMDAHL; WPAFB IBM 3084; Hill AFB; McClellan AFB AMDAHL; McClellan AFB IBM 3090; and Warner-Robins AFB.

Efficacy of PermaNet® 3.0 and PermaNet® 2.0 nets against laboratory-reared and wild Anopheles gambiae sensu lato populations in northern Tanzania.

Science.gov (United States)

Kweka, Eliningaya J; Lyaruu, Lucile J; Mahande, Aneth M

2017-01-18

Mosquitoes have developed resistance against pyrethroids, the only class of insecticides approved for use on long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs). The present study sought to evaluate the efficacy of the pyrethroid synergist PermaNet® 3.0 LLIN versus the pyrethroid-only PermaNet® 2.0 LLIN, in an East African hut design in Lower Moshi, northern Tanzania. In this setting, resistance to pyrethroid insecticides has been identified in Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes. Standard World Health Organization bioefficacy evaluations were conducted in both laboratory and experimental huts. Experimental hut evaluations were conducted in an area where there was presence of a population of highly pyrethroid-resistant An. arabiensis mosquitoes. All nets used were subjected to cone bioassays and then to experimental hut trials. Mosquito mortality, blood-feeding inhibition and personal protection rate were compared between untreated nets, unwashed LLINs and LLINs that were washed 20 times. Both washed and unwashed PermaNet® 2.0 and PermaNet® 3.0 LLINs had knockdown and mortality rates of 100% against a susceptible strain of An. gambiae sensu stricto. The adjusted mortality rate of the wild mosquito population after use of the unwashed PermaNet® 3.0 and PermaNet® 2.0 nets was found to be higher than after use of the washed PermaNet® 2.0 and PermaNet® 3.0 nets. Given the increasing incidence of pyrethroid resistance in An. gambiae mosquitoes in Tanzania, we recommend that consideration is given to its distribution in areas with pyrethroid-resistant malaria vectors within the framework of a national insecticide-resistance management plan.

China's oil market and refining sector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, N.D.; Fridley, D.G.

2000-01-01

The article assesses the future for China's oil industry as the country makes the transition from a command economy to an international market. China has one of the world's biggest oil industries and recent years have seen much growth in exploration and development, refining capacity and trade. China is more and more dependent on oil imports and is now a major international player; it has attracted much outside investment. Diagrams show (i) how coal dominates other sources of energy in China; (ii) crude production 1977-1998; (iii) how Middle East crudes now dominate Chinese crude imports; (iv) the growth of petroleum demand in China; (v) the Chinese demand for petroleum products; (vi) the growth in transport fuels; (vii) Chinese product imports: import ban targeted diesel; (viii) crude imports favoured over product imports and (ix) refinery capacity and throughput. The changes are expected to result in further integration into international markets, increased transparency and a healthier oil business

PODATKOVNE STORITVE ADO.NET IN ADO.NET ENTITY FRAMEWORK

OpenAIRE

Volavc, Franc

2012-01-01

V diplomskem delu smo predstavili Microsoftovi ogrodji ADO.NET in ADO.NET Entity Framework. Preučili in analizirali smo metode za dostop do podatkovnih virov, ki jih ponujata ogrodji, ter nato te ugotovitve preslikati v odločitveno drevo, katero bo programerjem in razvijalcem informacijskih sistemov pomagalo pri odločanju glede pristopa za dostop do podatkovnih virov. Ker bomo v diplomskem delu predstavili Microsoftovi ogrodji, bomo posledično omejeni zgolj na Microsoftovo tehnologijo, se pra...

Drag of Clean and Fouled Net Panels--Measurements and Parameterization of Fouling.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lars Christian Gansel

Full Text Available Biofouling is a serious problem in marine aquaculture and it has a number of negative impacts including increased forces on aquaculture structures and reduced water exchange across nets. This in turn affects the behavior of fish cages in waves and currents and has an impact on the water volume and quality inside net pens. Even though these negative effects are acknowledged by the research community and governmental institutions, there is limited knowledge about fouling related effects on the flow past nets, and more detailed investigations distinguishing between different fouling types have been called for. This study evaluates the effect of hydroids, an important fouling organism in Norwegian aquaculture, on the forces acting on net panels. Drag forces on clean and fouled nets were measured in a flume tank, and net solidity including effect of fouling were determined using image analysis. The relationship between net solidity and drag was assessed, and it was found that a solidity increase due to hydroids caused less additional drag than a similar increase caused by change in clean net parameters. For solidities tested in this study, the difference in drag force increase could be as high as 43% between fouled and clean nets with same solidity. The relationship between solidity and drag force is well described by exponential functions for clean as well as for fouled nets. A method is proposed to parameterize the effect of fouling in terms of an increase in net solidity. This allows existing numerical methods developed for clean nets to be used to model the effects of biofouling on nets. Measurements with other types of fouling can be added to build a database on effects of the accumulation of different fouling organisms on aquaculture nets.