WorldWideScience

Sample records for significant oil discovery

  1. New oil and gas discoveries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alazard-Toux, N.

    2004-01-01

    During the period 1999-2003, new oil and gas fields generated additional reserves of nearly 11 000 bcm of natural gas and 62 Gbbl of oil and condensates, volumes very much superior to those discovered in the five previous years. Two-thirds of these discoveries were located offshore, half in deep water. (author)

  2. Impact of the discovery of crude oil on inter-group relations between ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Impact of the discovery of crude oil on inter-group relations between Isoko and her immediate neighbours in the western Niger Delta of Nigeria. ... The article shows that the discovery of crude oil petroleum in the western Niger Delta marked a watershed in the history of intergroup relations in the area. Keywords: Discovery ...

  3. Panorama 2014 - New oil and gas discoveries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vially, Roland; Hureau, Geoffroy

    2013-12-01

    Spending on exploration increased significantly in 2012, and this growth should continue into 2013. Over a period of ten years, exploration budgets have increased five-fold, leading to major discoveries in regions as yet unexplored. In 2012, 25 billion barrels of oil equivalent (Gboe) were revealed. This is more than the average for the whole decade, but less than the amount for the previous year. Although knowledge of the volumes that have been discovered is still very fragmented, they should continue to fall into 2013. The main reason lies in the fact that spending on exploration is being shifted towards assessing discoveries made in previous years in the particularly prolific basins of Brazil and East Africa, while the exploration of border regions - such as the West African pre-salt formation - is still only in its early stages. (authors)

  4. Explaining the price of oil 1971–2014 : The need to use reliable data on oil discovery and to account for ‘mid-point’ peak

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bentley, Roger; Bentley, Yongmei

    2015-01-01

    This paper explains, in broad terms, the price of oil from 1971 to 2014 and focuses on the large price increases after 1973 and 2004. The explanation for these increases includes the quantity of conventional oil (i.e. oil in fields) discovered, combined with the decline in production of this oil that occurs typically once ‘mid-point’ is passed. Many past explanations of oil price have overlooked these two constraints, and hence provided insufficient explanations of oil price. Reliable data on conventional oil discovery cannot come from public-domain proved (‘1P’) oil reserves, as such data are very misleading. Instead oil industry backdated proved-plus-probable (‘2P’) data must be used. It is recognised that accessing 2P data can be expensive, or difficult. The ‘mid-point’ peak of conventional oil production results from a region's field-size distribution, its fall-off in oil discovery, and the physics of field decline. In terms of the future price of oil, estimates of the global recoverable resource of conventional oil show that the oil price will remain high on average, unless dramatic changes occur in the volume of production and cost of non-conventional oils, or if the overall demand for oil were to decline. The paper concludes with policy recommendations. - Highlights: • We show that understanding the oil price is assisted by reliable data on oil discovery. • These data need to be combined with the ‘peak at mid-point’ concept. • Results show that the world has probably entered an era of constrained oil supply. • Oil price stays high unless non-conventional supply, or demand, change significantly.

  5. An Empirical Analysis of the Price Discovery Function of Shanghai Fuel Oil Futures Market

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Wang Zhen; Liu Zhenhai; Chen Chao

    2007-01-01

    This paper analyzes the role of price discovery of Shanghai fuel oil futures market by using methods, such as unit root test, co-integration test, error correction model, Granger causality test, impulse-response function and variance decomposition. The results showed that there exists a strong relationship between the spot price of Huangpu fuel oil spot market and the futures price of Shanghai fuel oil futures market. In addition, the Shanghai fuel oil futures market exhibits a highly effective price discovery function.

  6. The Discovery of Deep Oil Plumes at the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Site (Invited)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diercks, A. R.; Asper, V. L.; Highsmith, R. C.; Woolsey, M.; Lohrenz, S. E.; McLetchie, K.; Gossett, A.; Lowe, M., III; Joung, D.; McKay, L.

    2010-12-01

    was discovered at 1200 to 1400 m depth. This layer was detected by three independent sensors, CDOM (colored dissolved organic matter) fluorometer, beam transmissometer, and dissolved oxygen sensor. All three instruments responded in unison with greater fluorescence and beam attenuation and decreased O2 concentration. These signals were first observed at a station 5 miles from the accident site. Second and third station measurements at 2.5 miles, and at 1.25 miles from the spill site, showed the same signal but with significantly greater magnitude. Following this discovery, the sampling plan for the remaining days of the cruise was changed to map the newly discovered feature. This paper will discuss our data acquired during this cruise aboard the RV Pelican and its original discovery of the deep oil plumes from the Deepwater Horizon well.

  7. Technical summaries of Scotian Shelf - significant and commercial discoveries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dickey, J.E.; Bigelow, S.F.; Edens, J.A.; Brown, D.E.; Smith, B.; Makrides, C.; Mader, R.

    1997-03-01

    An independent assessment of the recoverable hydrocarbon resource currently held under' Significant and Commercial Discovery' status offshore Nova Scotia was presented. A generalized description of the regulatory issues regarding the discovered resources within the Scotian Basin was included. Twenty discoveries have been declared significant and two have been declared commercial, pursuant to the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Acts. Salient facts about each discovery were documented. The information included the wells drilled within the structure, significant flow tests, geological and geophysical attributes, structural cross-section and areal extent, petrophysical parameters, hydrocarbons in place and anticipated hydrocarbon recoverable resource. tabs., figs

  8. Panorama 2015 - New conventional oil and gas discoveries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hureau, Geoffroy; Vially, Roland

    2014-12-01

    Exploration expenditure rose sharply in 2013, as in the previous year. The overall results for 2014 are likely to show more modest growth at around 5%. In ten years, exploration budgets have increased fivefold, which has led to some major discoveries; but since 2010, the volumes discovered have fallen every year despite the continuing increase in spending. In 2013, 17 billion barrels of oil equivalent (Gboe) were discovered. This is less than both the amount for the previous year and the ten-year average. The initial estimates for 2014 suggest a stabilization of volumes discovered at the same level as 2013. The continuing decline in offshore discoveries in Brazil and East Africa, where operators have cut back on their exploration programmes, appears to have been partly offset by the increase in border areas, such as the pre-salt reservoirs in West Africa and the Russian Arctic. (authors)

  9. Panorama 2017 - New conventional oil and gas discoveries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hureau, Geoffroy; Vially, Roland

    2017-01-01

    In 2016, spending on exploration is expected to decline by approximately 35% for the second consecutive year (total exploration-production is down 24%). However, volumes discovered through conventional exploration should only fall by 25% due to several significant discoveries, particularly in Alaska and West Africa. The largest discovery in 2016 was an unconventional Permian shale basin in the United States, which could alone contain as many hydrocarbons as all of the year's conventional discoveries combined

  10. Oil and gas developments in western Canada in 1981

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hay, P.W.; Robertson, D.C.

    1982-12-01

    In 1981 there was a marked slump in drilling activity in western Canada, resulting from the combined effects of the National Energy Program (NEP), economic recession and a worldwide oil surplus. The number of wells drilled dropped by 22% to a total of 6,904. Exploratory drilling decreased 19% to 3,074 wells, and development drilling decreased 25% to 3,830 wells. The exploratory success rate also decreased to 62% in 1981, based on 740 oil discoveries and 1,172 gas discoveries. The development success rate decreased slightly to 88%, with 1,334 oil discoveries and 2,034 gas discoveries. Average well depth increased in four of the five western areas, but total revenue from land sales plummetted to half of the previous years' record totals. Average price per hectare also dropped. In Alberta, significant exploration activity was centred in the Shekilie, Golden-Evi and West Pembina areas, while major gas discoveries were made at Whiskey and Elmworth, and oil discoveries at Tangent. No significant new discoveries were made in British Columbia or Saskatchewan, but the 1980 Manitoba oil discovery at Waskada continued to stimulate activity. Preliminary results from the Nechako Basin drilling in central British Columbia proved to be disappointing with three successive dry holes. In the Arctic Islands, two major oil discoveries were made at Skate and Cisco, off Lougheed Island and a gas discovery at MacLean. Beaufort Sea drilling was hampered by weather, but nonetheless resulted in major oil discoveries a Koakoak and at a Kopanoar follow-up well. The year 1981 will probably be viewed as a major turning point in exploration in western Canada, with interest shifting from the provinces to the frontiers, and the participants now mainly Canadian-controlled companies.

  11. Significance of abolishing British National Oil Corporation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mabro, R

    1985-04-01

    The decision to abolish British National Oil Corporation has greater significance than any commentator, so far, has cared to admit. Mr. Mabro says the Government has done much more than get rid of an institution it had previously weakened and emasculated; in effect, it had abdicated its responsibilities for the pricing of North Sea oil. He further observes that these moves may be consistent with the tenets of a simplistic free-market ideology: they betray, however, a lack of understanding of the economics of oil, and of the UK economic interest in oil.

  12. A procedure to improve the information flow in the assessment of discoveries of oil and gas resources in the Brazilian context

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rosa, Henrique; Suslick, Saul B.; Sousa, Sergio H.G. de [Universidade Estadual de Campinas, SP (Brazil). Inst. of Geosciences; Castro, Jonas Q. [ANP - Brazilian National Petroleum Agency, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2004-07-01

    This paper is focused on the elaboration of a standardization model for the existing flow of information between the Petroleum National Agency (ANP) and the concessionaire companies in the event of the discovery of any potentially commercial hydrocarbon resources inside their concession areas. The method proposed by Rosa (2003) included the analysis of a small sample of Oil and Gas Discovery Assessment Plans (PADs), elaborated by companies that operate in exploratory blocks in Brazil, under the regulatory context introduced by the Petroleum Law (Law 9478, August, 6th, 1997). The analysis of these documents made it possible to identify and target the problems originated from the lack of standardization. The results obtained facilitated the development of a model that helps the creation process of Oil and Gas Discovery Assessment Plans. It turns out that the standardization procedures suggested provide considerable advantages while speeding up several technical and regulatory steps. A software called 'ePADs' was developed to consolidate the automation of the several steps in the model for the standardization of the Oil and Gas Discovery Assessment Plans. A preliminary version has been tested with several different types of discoveries indicating a good performance by complying with all regulatory aspects and operational requirements. (author)

  13. Future directions conventional oil supply, Western Canada

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Campbell, G.R.; Hayward, J.

    1997-01-01

    The history of the Canadian oil industry was briefly sketched and the future outlook for crude oil and natural gas liquids in western Canada was forecast. The historical review encompassed some of the significant events in history of the Canadian oil industry, including the Leduc discovery in 1947, the Swan Hills discovery in 1957, the start of commercial production from the Athabasca oil sands in 1967, the discovery of the Hibernia oilfield offshore Newfoundland in 1979, and the onset of the use of horizontal production wells in western Canada in 1987. The resource base, supply costs, and the technology that is being developed to reduce costs and to improve recovery, were reviewed. Future oil prices were predicted, taking into account the costs associated with technological developments. It was suggested that the character of the industry is undergoing a change from an industry dominated by conventional supply to a mixed industry with increasing volume of heavy oil, primary bitumen, synthetic oil and frontier supply replacing 'conventional' light crude oil. Projections into the future are subject to uncertainty both on the supply as well as on the demand side. The potential impact of technology can significantly affect demand, and technological developments can yield additional supplies which exceed current expectations. 10 figs

  14. Resource-estimation models and predicted discovery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hill, G.W.

    1982-01-01

    Resources have been estimated by predictive extrapolation from past discovery experience, by analogy with better explored regions, or by inference from evidence of depletion of targets for exploration. Changes in technology and new insights into geological mechanisms have occurred sufficiently often in the long run to form part of the pattern of mature discovery experience. The criterion, that a meaningful resource estimate needs an objective measure of its precision or degree of uncertainty, excludes 'estimates' based solely on expert opinion. This is illustrated by development of error measures for several persuasive models of discovery and production of oil and gas in USA, both annually and in terms of increasing exploration effort. Appropriate generalizations of the models resolve many points of controversy. This is illustrated using two USA data sets describing discovery of oil and of U 3 O 8 ; the latter set highlights an inadequacy of available official data. Review of the oil-discovery data set provides a warrant for adjusting the time-series prediction to a higher resource figure for USA petroleum. (author)

  15. Insect-Specific Virus Discovery: Significance for the Arbovirus Community

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bethany G. Bolling

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses, especially those transmitted by mosquitoes, are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in humans and animals worldwide. Recent discoveries indicate that mosquitoes are naturally infected with a wide range of other viruses, many within taxa occupied by arboviruses that are considered insect-specific. Over the past ten years there has been a dramatic increase in the literature describing novel insect-specific virus detection in mosquitoes, which has provided new insights about viral diversity and evolution, including that of arboviruses. It has also raised questions about what effects the mosquito virome has on arbovirus transmission. Additionally, the discovery of these new viruses has generated interest in their potential use as biological control agents as well as novel vaccine platforms. The arbovirus community will benefit from the growing database of knowledge concerning these newly described viral endosymbionts, as their impacts will likely be far reaching.

  16. Economic impacts of natural resources on a regional economy: the case of the pre-salt oil discoveries in Espirito Santo, Brazil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduardo Amaral Haddad

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The Brazilian government has recently confirmed the discovery of a huge oil and natural gas field in the pre-salt layer of the country’s southeastern coast. It has been said that the oil fields can boost Brazil’s oil production and turn the country into one of the largest oil producers in the world. The fields are spatially concentrated in the coastal areas of a few Brazilian states that may directly benefit from oil production. This paper uses an interregional computable general equilibrium model to assess the impacts of pre-salt on the economy of the State of Espírito Santo, a region already characterized by an economic base that is heavily reliant on natural resources. We focus our analysis on the structural economic impacts on the local economy

  17. Emulsion oil droplet size significantly affects satiety: A pre-ingestive approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lett, Aaron M; Norton, Jennifer E; Yeomans, Martin R

    2016-01-01

    Previous research has demonstrated that the manipulation of oil droplet size within oil-in-water emulsions significantly affects sensory characteristics, hedonics and expectations of food intake, independently of energy content. Smaller oil droplets enhanced perceived creaminess, increased Liking and generated greater expectations of satiation and satiety, indicating that creaminess is a satiety-relevant sensory cue within these systems. This paper extends these findings by investigating the effect of oil droplet size (d4,3: 2 and 50 μm) on food intake and appetite. Male participants (n = 34 aged 18-37; BMI of 22.7 ± 1.6 kg/m(2); DEBQ restricted eating score of 1.8 ± 0.1.) completed two test days, where they visited the laboratory to consume a fixed-portion breakfast, returning 3 h later for a "drink", which was the emulsion preload containing either 2 or 50 μm oil droplets. This was followed 20 min later with an ad libitum pasta lunch. Participants consumed significantly less at the ad libitum lunch after the preload containing 2 μm oil droplets than after the 50 μm preload, with an average reduction of 12% (62.4 kcal). Despite the significant differences in intake, no significant differences in sensory characteristics were noted. The findings show that the impact that an emulsion has on satiety can be enhanced without producing significantly perceivable differences in sensory properties. Therefore, by introducing a processing step which results in a smaller droplets, emulsion based liquid food products can be produced that enhance satiety, allowing covert functional redesign. Future work should consider the mechanism responsible for this effect. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Oil and Gas in the Netherlands - Is there a future?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Herber, R.; de Jager, J.

    The impact of oil and, in particular, gas fields discovered in the Dutch subsurface has been very significant. However, 50 years after the discovery of the giant Groningen gas field the Netherlands has become very mature for exploration of oil and gas, and the gas volume left to be discovered in

  19. Updated Hubbert curves analyze world oil supply

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ivanhoe, L.F.

    1996-01-01

    The question is not whether, but when, world crude oil production will start to decline, ushering in the permanent oil shock era. While global information for predicting this event is not so straightforward as the data M. King Hubbert used in creating his famous Hubbert Curve that predicted the US (Lower 48 states, or US/48) 1970 oil production peak, there are strong indications that most of the world's large exploration targets have now been found. Meanwhile, the earth's population is exploding along with the oil needs of Asia's developing nations. This article reviews Hubbert's original analyses on oil discovery and production curves for the US/48 and projects his proven methodology onto global oil discoveries and production as of 1992. The world's oil discovery curve peaked in 1962, and thence declined, as a Hubbert Curve predicts. However, global production was restricted after the 1973 Arab oil embargo. Otherwise, world production would have peaked in the mid-1990s. Two graphs show alternate versions of future global oil production

  20. The Improvement of Screening the Significant Factors of Oil Blends as Bio lubricant Base Stock

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Noor Hajarul Ashikin Shamsuddin; Rozaini Abdullah; Zainab Hamzah; Siti Jamilah Hanim Mohd Yusof

    2015-01-01

    A new formulation bio lubricant base stock was developed by blending of waste cooking oil (WCO) with Jatropha curcas oil (JCO). The objective of this research is to evaluate significant factors contributing to the production of oil blends for bio lubricant application. The significant factors used in this study were oil ratio (WCO:JCO), agitation times (min) and agitation speed (rpm). The blended oil bio based lubricant was used to determine the saponification, acid, peroxide and iodine values. The experimental design used in this study was the 2 level-factorial design. In this experiment, it was found that the effect of oil ratio and interaction of oil ratio and agitation speed gave the most significant effect in oil blends as bio lubricant base stock. The highest ratio of oil blend 80 %:20 % WCO:JCO, with low agitation speed of 300 rpm and low agitation time of 30 minutes gave the optimum results. The acid, saponification, peroxide and iodine values obtained were 0.517±0.08 mg KOH/ g, 126.23±1.62 mg/ g, 7.5±2.0 m eq/ kg and 50.42±2.85 mg/ g respectively. A higher ratio of waste cooking oil blends was found to be favourable as bio lubricant base stock. (author)

  1. Geoperspective | Oil and Gas in the Netherlands – Is there a future?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Herber, R.; Jager, J. de

    2010-01-01

    The impact of oil and, in particular, gas fields discovered in the Dutch subsurface has been very significant. However, 50 years after the discovery of the giant Groningen gas field the Netherlands has become very mature for exploration of oil and gas, and the gas volume left to be discovered in

  2. From rocks to oil : researchers become the first in the world to determine the age of oil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Crawshaw, C

    2005-06-10

    This article discussed the discovery of a method to accurately determine the age of oil. The discovery was made by two geologists at the University of Alberta, and provides critical information about the formation of oil which will help to better understand oil deposits. The scientists have suggested that the giant oil sand deposits in Alberta were formed 112 million years ago and not 60 million years ago as was previously thought. They used isotopes of rhenium and osmium, elements found in trace amounts in oil, to pinpoint when oil formed in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB), which contains much of the world's oil sands. It was previously thought that the time at which oil was produced from a rock and migrated as fluid could be deduced from looking at geologic relationships. This is the first time that a direct determination using any isotopic method has be applied to determine age. The research findings are expected to change the way geologists understand the evolution of the basin. It was concluded that while the discovery answers some questions about hydrocarbons, many others remain. However, the presence of an absolute number will help geologists to re-evaluate other knowledge. 1 fig.

  3. Using concepts in literature-based discovery : Simulating Swanson's Raynaud-fish oil and migraine-magnesium discoveries

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Weeber, M; Klein, Henny; de Jong-van den Berg, LTW; Vos, R

    Literature-based discovery has resulted in new knowledge. In the biomedical context, Don R. Swanson has generated several literature-based hypotheses that have been corroborated experimentally and clinically. In this paper, we propose a two-step model of the discovery process in which hypotheses are

  4. Mismanagement of Oil and Gas Resource Revenues in Africa: Lessons for Ghana’s Budding Oil and Gas Industry

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-06-13

    discovered in Venezuela in the 1920s and the country immediately set about diversifying its production and export structure. Prior to the oil discovery... exports of coffee and cocoa and dependence on its agricultural structure (Di John 2009, 19). After the discovery of oil, the country became a...32 Venezuela as a Case Study

  5. Krill oil significantly decreases 2-arachidonoylglycerol plasma levels in obese subjects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giordano Elena

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract We have previously shown that krill oil (KO, more efficiently than fish oil, was able to downregulate the endocannabinoid system in different tissues of obese zucker rats. We therefore aimed at investigating whether an intake of 2 g/d of either KO or menhaden oil (MO, which provides 309 mg/d of EPA/DHA 2:1 and 390 mg/d of EPA/DHA 1:1 respectively, or olive oil (OO for four weeks, is able to modify plasma endocannabinoids in overweight and obese subjects. The results confirmed data in the literature describing increased levels of endocannabinoids in overweight and obese with respect to normo-weight subjects. KO, but not MO or OO, was able to significantly decrease 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG, although only in obese subjects. In addition, the decrease of 2-AG was correlated to the plasma n-6/n-3 phospholipid long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA ratio. These data show for the first time in humans that relatively low doses of LCPUFA n-3 as KO can significantly decrease plasma 2-AG levels in obese subjects in relation to decrease of plasma phospholipid n-6/n-3 LCPUFA ratio. This effect is not linked to changes of metabolic syndrome parameters but is most likely due to a decrease of 2-AG biosynthesis caused by the replacement of 2-AG ultimate precursor, arachidonic acid, with n-3 PUFAs, as previously described in obese Zucker rats.

  6. A petroleum discovery-rate forecast revisited-The problem of field growth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drew, L.J.; Schuenemeyer, J.H.

    1992-01-01

    A forecast of the future rates of discovery of crude oil and natural gas for the 123,027-km2 Miocene/Pliocene trend in the Gulf of Mexico was made in 1980. This forecast was evaluated in 1988 by comparing two sets of data: (1) the actual versus the forecasted number of fields discovered, and (2) the actual versus the forecasted volumes of crude oil and natural gas discovered with the drilling of 1,820 wildcat wells along the trend between January 1, 1977, and December 31, 1985. The forecast specified that this level of drilling would result in the discovery of 217 fields containing 1.78 billion barrels of oil equivalent; however, 238 fields containing 3.57 billion barrels of oil equivalent were actually discovered. This underestimation is attributed to biases introduced by field growth and, to a lesser degree, the artificially low, pre-1970's price of natural gas that prevented many smaller gas fields from being brought into production at the time of their discovery; most of these fields contained less than 50 billion cubic feet of producible natural gas. ?? 1992 Oxford University Press.

  7. Distribution and quantitative assessment of world crude oil reserves and resources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masters, Charles D.; Root, David H.; Dietzman, William D.

    1983-01-01

    World Demonstrated Reserves of crude oil are approximately 723 billion barrels of oil (BBO). Cumulative production is 445 BBO and annual production is 20 BBO. Demonstrated Reserves of crude-oil have declined over the past 10 years consistent with discoveries lagging production over the same period. The assessment of Undiscovered Resources shows a 90 percent probability that the amount discoverable lies between 321 and 1,417 BBO, 550 BBO being the most likely value. The most likely value for Ultimate recoverable resources is 1,718 BBO. The distribution of Ultimate Resources of crude oil will remain highly skewed toward the Middle East; no frontier areas that have potentials large enough to significantly affect present distribution are recognized. Rates of discovery have continued to decline over the past 20 years even though exploration activity has increased in recent years. Prudence dictates, therefore, that the low side of the assessment of Undiscovered Resources be responsibly considered and that alternate energy sources be a part of future planning. Extra-heavy oil and bitumen are assessed separately, with Reserves being figured as the annual productive capacity of installed facilities times 25 years. The annual production of extra-heavy oil is about 8 million barrels and of bitumen about 60 million barrels.

  8. Peak oil demand: the role of fuel efficiency and alternative fuels in a global oil production decline.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brandt, Adam R; Millard-Ball, Adam; Ganser, Matthew; Gorelick, Steven M

    2013-07-16

    Some argue that peak conventional oil production is imminent due to physical resource scarcity. We examine the alternative possibility of reduced oil use due to improved efficiency and oil substitution. Our model uses historical relationships to project future demand for (a) transport services, (b) all liquid fuels, and (c) substitution with alternative energy carriers, including electricity. Results show great increases in passenger and freight transport activity, but less reliance on oil. Demand for liquids inputs to refineries declines significantly after 2070. By 2100 transport energy demand rises >1000% in Asia, while flattening in North America (+23%) and Europe (-20%). Conventional oil demand declines after 2035, and cumulative oil production is 1900 Gbbl from 2010 to 2100 (close to the U.S. Geological Survey median estimate of remaining oil, which only includes projected discoveries through 2025). These results suggest that effort is better spent to determine and influence the trajectory of oil substitution and efficiency improvement rather than to focus on oil resource scarcity. The results also imply that policy makers should not rely on liquid fossil fuel scarcity to constrain damage from climate change. However, there is an unpredictable range of emissions impacts depending on which mix of substitutes for conventional oil gains dominance-oil sands, electricity, coal-to-liquids, or others.

  9. Oil concession agreements and the evolution of the oil industry in the UAE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rizvi, S.N.A.

    1993-01-01

    A historical and analytical development of the oil industry in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is presented in this paper. Oil concession agreements are identified and examined in three distinct groups: old agreements, new agreements and participation agreements. Oil discoveries and production in other Emirates are also described. The gradual acquisition of control over these industries by their respective governments is a key feature of the paper. (UK)

  10. The outlook for the world and Australian oil markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Donaldson, K.; Fok, G.

    1996-01-01

    Global demand for oil is projected to continue its upward trend to 2000-1, with growth in the transport sector expected to underpin future increases in oil consumption. World oil consumption is projected to be matched by global production, keeping the average annual oil price relatively stable. In many countries, the diversion of oil revenue to other projects is threatening to constrain increases in production capacity, particularly in the OPEC countries. The encouragement of foreign investment in state oil industries is a likely method of easing the constraint. Australian exploration activity is rising steadily with the prospect of stable oil prices, expanding gas markets and the incentives provided by a number of recent discoveries. While the geographical pattern of Australian production has now changed, with Western Australian production exceeding Victoria production, Australia is expected to maintain its position in the world oil market as a significant producer, importer and exporter. (author). 6 figs., 23 refs

  11. Floating oil-covered debris from Deepwater Horizon: identification and application

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carmichael, Catherine A; Lemkau, Karin L; Nelson, Robert K; Reddy, Christopher M; Arey, J Samuel; Graham, William M; Linn, Laura J

    2012-01-01

    The discovery of oiled and non-oiled honeycomb material in the Gulf of Mexico surface waters and along coastal beaches shortly after the explosion of Deepwater Horizon sparked debate about its origin and the oil covering it. We show that the unknown pieces of oiled and non-oiled honeycomb material collected in the Gulf of Mexico were pieces of the riser pipe buoyancy module of Deepwater Horizon. Biomarker ratios confirmed that the oil had originated from the Macondo oil well and had undergone significant weathering. Using the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s records of the oil spill trajectory at the sea surface, we show that the honeycomb material preceded the front edge of the uncertainty of the oil slick trajectory by several kilometers. We conclude that the observation of debris fields deriving from damaged marine materials may be incorporated into emergency response efforts and forecasting of coastal impacts during future offshore oil spills, and ground truthing predicative models. (letter)

  12. Panorama 2016 - New conventional oil and gas discoveries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hureau, Geoffroy; Vially, Roland

    2015-12-01

    Following a decline in 2014, spending on exploration is expected to drop by more than 20% in 2015, a clear shift from the consistently upward trend observed for over ten years, with the exception of a slight dip in 2009 and 2010. On the other hand, there is no expectation that the downward trend in volumes discovered will reverse itself, having fallen every year for the past five years despite a sharp rise in exploration budgets between 2010 and 2014. Notwithstanding, this overall decline in exploration performance worldwide has been accompanied by some spectacular successes, such as the two massive Pobeda discoveries in the Kara Sea in 2014, and the 2015 Zohr discovery in Egyptian offshore waters. (authors)

  13. New discoveries in Upper and Middle Magdalena

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carta Petrolera

    1998-01-01

    In six association contracts and one risk participation contract may give Colombia the possibility of finding new oil reserves. These prospects, located in the Upper and Middle Magdalena Valleys and the Eastern Plains. the completion process, evaluation, confirmation and commercialization should be in the next two years, these new discoveries also reveal interesting geological aspects; some in fractured limestone, similar to the found at Maracaibo lake in Venezuela, where vast oil fields were discovered

  14. Discovery of new lactones in sweet cream butter oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarrazin, Elise; Frerot, Eric; Bagnoud, Alain; Aeberhardt, Kasia; Rubin, Mark

    2011-06-22

    Sweet cream butter oil was analyzed to identify new volatile compounds that may contribute to its flavor, with an emphasis on lactones. The volatile part of butter oil was obtained by using short-path distillation. As some previously unknown lactones were detected in this first extract, it was fractionated further. The fatty acids were removed, and the extract was fractionated by flash chromatography. Three lactonic fractions possessing a creamy, buttery, and fatty character were investigated in depth by gas chromatography (GC) and mass spectrometry (MS) (EI and CI) and high-resolution GC-time-of-flight MS. Many lactones were identified by their mass fragmentation and by comparison with reference materials synthesized during this work. Six γ-lactones, five δ-lactones, and one ε-lactone were identified for the first time in butter oil, seven of them for the first time in a natural product. The possible contribution of these new lactones to the aroma of butter oil is briefly discussed.

  15. Offshore oil production not significant polluter, says government report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Danenberger, E.P.

    1977-11-01

    Only 0.0028% of the oil produced in the Gulf of Mexico from 1971 through 1975 was spilled. World-wide, natural seeps introduce nearly 7 times more oil into the sea than offshore activity, while transportation, the worst offender, puts in 25 times more than offshore oil. The report includes data for spills of 50 bbl or less; about 85.5% of the total spill volume was from 5 of the 5857 incidents. In only one case was environmental damage reported, when minor amounts of oil reached 1000 ft of beach on the Chandeleur Islands after the 9/9/74 Cobia pipeline break. The report states that 50 ppm discharges cause no adverse effect, and that hydrocarbons in this concentration may even benefit microbial sea life.

  16. Crude oil He and Ar isotopic characteristics and their geochemical significance: an example from the Gangxi oil field in the Huanghua depression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Chenpeng

    2005-06-01

    Full Text Available Sampled from the Gangxi oil field in the Huanghua depression, Bohaiwan Basin, the crude oil He and Ar isotopic compositions and their geochemical significance were investigated. The result shows that i the 3He/4He values of the six oil samples free from air contamination indicate a mantle helium contribution ranging between 13.9% and 32.8% and averaging 24.1%, which means that the Gangxi oil field once had a tectonic background of the mantle-derived helium input and higher geothermal flow with an average of 75.0 mWm-2; ii deduced from the 40Ar/36Ar aging effect the Gangxi oil should be derived from the Tertiary; iii water injection is the main reason for the air contamination for the Gangxi oil noble gases and the relations between 3He/4He and 4He/20Ne as well as 40Ar/36Ar and 4He/20Ne are of an applicative potential in estimating the water injection effect and the connectivity of producing formations. The search for the crude oil He and Ar isotopes provides a new approach to inferring natural gas and oil sources, tectonic backgrounds, geothermal flow and water injection effect.

  17. Assessing the date of the global oil peak: The need to use 2P reserves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bentley, R.W.; Mannan, S.A.; Wheeler, S.J.

    2007-01-01

    Combining geological knowledge with proved plus probable ('2P') oil discovery data indicates that over 60 countries are now past their resource-limited peak of conventional oil production. The data show that the global peak of conventional oil production is close. Many analysts who rely only on proved ('1P') oil reserves data draw a very different conclusion. But proved oil reserves contain no information about the true size of discoveries, being variously under-reported, over-reported and not reported. Reliance on 1P data has led to a number of misconceptions, including the notion that past oil forecasts were incorrect, that oil reserves grow very significantly due to technology gain, and that the global supply of oil is ensured provided sufficient investment is forthcoming to 'turn resources into reserves'. These misconceptions have been widely held, including within academia, governments, some oil companies, and organisations such as the IEA. In addition to conventional oil, the world contains large quantities of non-conventional oil. Most current detailed models show that past the conventional oil peak the non-conventional oils are unlikely to come on-stream fast enough to offset conventional's decline. To determine the extent of future oil supply constraints calculations are required to determine fundamental rate limits for the production of non-conventional oils, as well as oil from gas, coal and biomass, and of oil substitution. Such assessments will need to examine technological readiness and lead-times, as well as rate constraints on investment, pollution, and net-energy return

  18. Peak Oil, threat or energy worlds' phantasm?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Favennec, Jean-Pierre

    2011-01-01

    The concept of Peak Oil is based on the work of King Hubbert, a petroleum geologist who worked for Shell in the USA in the 1960's. Based on the fact that discoveries in America reached a maximum in the 1930's, he announced that American production would reach a maximum in 1969, which did actually occur. Geologists members of the Association for the Study of Peak Oil have extrapolated this result to a worldwide scale and, since oil discoveries reached a peak in the 1960's, argued that production will peak in the very near future. It is clear that hydrocarbon reserves are finite and therefore exhaustible. But little is known regarding the level of ultimate (i.e. total existing) reserves. There are probably very large reserves of non conventional oil in addition to the reserves of conventional oil. An increasing number of specialists put maximum production at less than 100 Mb/d more for geopolitical than physical reasons. Attainable peak production will probably vary from year to year and will depend on how crude oil prices develop

  19. Artificial intelligence exploration of unstable protocells leads to predictable properties and discovery of collective behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Points, Laurie J; Taylor, James Ward; Grizou, Jonathan; Donkers, Kevin; Cronin, Leroy

    2018-01-30

    Protocell models are used to investigate how cells might have first assembled on Earth. Some, like oil-in-water droplets, can be seemingly simple models, while able to exhibit complex and unpredictable behaviors. How such simple oil-in-water systems can come together to yield complex and life-like behaviors remains a key question. Herein, we illustrate how the combination of automated experimentation and image processing, physicochemical analysis, and machine learning allows significant advances to be made in understanding the driving forces behind oil-in-water droplet behaviors. Utilizing >7,000 experiments collected using an autonomous robotic platform, we illustrate how smart automation cannot only help with exploration, optimization, and discovery of new behaviors, but can also be core to developing fundamental understanding of such systems. Using this process, we were able to relate droplet formulation to behavior via predicted physical properties, and to identify and predict more occurrences of a rare collective droplet behavior, droplet swarming. Proton NMR spectroscopic and qualitative pH methods enabled us to better understand oil dissolution, chemical change, phase transitions, and droplet and aqueous phase flows, illustrating the utility of the combination of smart-automation and traditional analytical chemistry techniques. We further extended our study for the simultaneous exploration of both the oil and aqueous phases using a robotic platform. Overall, this work shows that the combination of chemistry, robotics, and artificial intelligence enables discovery, prediction, and mechanistic understanding in ways that no one approach could achieve alone.

  20. Gas, gas, gas... discoveries and developments booming worldwide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maxwell, F.

    2000-01-01

    Deep water exploration is yielding more than billion barrel oil fields. Unocal's 3 May discovery of 2-3 Tcf of gas in its Kutei block of Indonesia marks the first major discovery of natural gas in the deep water frontier: Wildcats Gula and Gada were drilled in over 1800 m of water as part of an aggressive search for gas instigated by Unocal last year. The author makes a survey of gas exploration and development throughout the world. (author)

  1. Brazil: World Oil Report 1991

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports that Brazil's state oil company Petrobras has racked up a significant period of achievement over the last 12 months. Average daily oil production hit a new high. A small portion of deepwater giant Marlim field came onstream. Risk contracts ended, and the firm assumed all responsibility for exploration activity in Brazil. Furthermore, Santos basin proved to be the nation's most recent oil province after two discoveries. Last, but not least, Petrobras assumed a dominant position worldwide in development of new deepwater technology, as evidenced by papers presented at the 1991 Offshore Technology Conference. What is remarkable is that all this was achieved while the company was experiencing political turmoil. Last Oct. 19, Petrobras President Luis Octavio Motta Veiga resigned in a dispute with the Ministry of Economy (MOE) over refined product pricing levels. His replacement, interestingly enough, was the 36-year-old executive secretary of the MOE, Eduardo de Freitas Teixeira. His term at Petrobras lasted less than six months

  2. 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

  3. Considering extraction constraints in long-term oil price modelling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rehrl, Tobias; Friedrich, Rainer; Voss, Alfred

    2005-12-15

    Apart from divergence about the remaining global oil resources, the peak oil discussion can be reduced to a dispute about the time rate at which these resources can be supplied. On the one hand it is problematic to project oil supply trends without taking both - prices as well as supply costs - explicitly into account. On the other hand are supply cost estimates however itself heavily dependent on the underlying extraction rates and are actually only valid within a certain business-as-usual extraction rate scenario (which itself is the task to determine). In fact, even after having applied enhanced recovery technologies, the rate at which an oil field can be exploited is quite restricted. Above a certain level an additional extraction rate increase can only be costly achieved at risks of losses in the overall recoverable amounts of the oil reservoir and causes much higher marginal cost. This inflexibility in extraction can be overcome in principle by the access to new oil fields. This indicates why the discovery trend may roughly form the long-term oil production curve, at least for price-taking suppliers. The long term oil discovery trend itself can be described as a logistic process with the two opposed effects of learning and depletion. This leads to the well-known Hubbert curve. Several attempts have been made to incorporate economic variables econometrically into the Hubbert model. With this work we follow a somewhat inverse approach and integrate Hubbert curves in our Long-term Oil Price and EXtraction model LOPEX. In LOPEX we assume that non-OPEC oil production - as long as the oil can be profitably discovered and extracted - is restricted to follow self-regulative discovery trends described by Hubbert curves. Non-OPEC production in LOPEX therefore consists of those Hubbert cycles that are profitable, depending on supply cost and price. Endogenous and exogenous technical progress is extra integrated in different ways. LOPEX determines extraction and price

  4. Considering extraction constraints in long-term oil price modelling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rehrl, Tobias; Friedrich, Rainer; Voss, Alfred

    2005-01-01

    Apart from divergence about the remaining global oil resources, the peak oil discussion can be reduced to a dispute about the time rate at which these resources can be supplied. On the one hand it is problematic to project oil supply trends without taking both - prices as well as supply costs - explicitly into account. On the other hand are supply cost estimates however itself heavily dependent on the underlying extraction rates and are actually only valid within a certain business-as-usual extraction rate scenario (which itself is the task to determine). In fact, even after having applied enhanced recovery technologies, the rate at which an oil field can be exploited is quite restricted. Above a certain level an additional extraction rate increase can only be costly achieved at risks of losses in the overall recoverable amounts of the oil reservoir and causes much higher marginal cost. This inflexibility in extraction can be overcome in principle by the access to new oil fields. This indicates why the discovery trend may roughly form the long-term oil production curve, at least for price-taking suppliers. The long term oil discovery trend itself can be described as a logistic process with the two opposed effects of learning and depletion. This leads to the well-known Hubbert curve. Several attempts have been made to incorporate economic variables econometrically into the Hubbert model. With this work we follow a somewhat inverse approach and integrate Hubbert curves in our Long-term Oil Price and EXtraction model LOPEX. In LOPEX we assume that non-OPEC oil production - as long as the oil can be profitably discovered and extracted - is restricted to follow self-regulative discovery trends described by Hubbert curves. Non-OPEC production in LOPEX therefore consists of those Hubbert cycles that are profitable, depending on supply cost and price. Endogenous and exogenous technical progress is extra integrated in different ways. LOPEX determines extraction and price

  5. Factors Affecting Oil Palm Production in Ondo State of Nigeria ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The discovery of crude oil and the civil war adversely affected oil palm production in Nigeria. This has resulted in scarcity and high cost of palm products and palm oil. The study therefore investigated the factors influencing oil palm production in Ondo State, Nigeria. One hundred and fifty respondents were selected from ...

  6. Secret story of the Algerian oil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Malti, H.

    2010-01-01

    This book unravels some obscure aspects of oil exploitation in Algeria, from its historical aspects (the first discoveries, the collaboration with French oil companies during the 1960's, the nationalization in 1971) to the drift of the Algerian regime towards corruption and conflicts between the power clans with the connivance of big democracies

  7. The case for a large heavy oil stream

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reimer, P.

    2005-01-01

    EnCana Corporation markets significant proprietary and third party crude oil production in North America. This presentation presented details of EnCana's projected resources as well as estimated proved reserves in Canadian oil sands. Details of the Western Canadian heavy oil market were presented. Issues concerning Western Canadian Select (WCS) were also presented, including details of distillation and asphalt characteristics. Details of the WCS synthetic bitumen synergy were examined, as well as quality management issues. It was suggested that further optimization of WCS facilities include reduced operating complexity; less tank proliferation; delivery quality consistency; and reliability. WCS refiner advantages were also evaluated. Shipping and ramping details were discussed, along with growth potential. It was noted that WCS satisfies all the criteria for a benchmark crude. It was concluded that the case for a large Canadian heavy oil stream includes reduced operating complexity; optimized logistics; delivery quality consistency; improved stream liquidity; and enhanced price discovery. tabs., figs

  8. Computational methods for a three-dimensional model of the petroleum-discovery process

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuenemeyer, J.H.; Bawiec, W.J.; Drew, L.J.

    1980-01-01

    A discovery-process model devised by Drew, Schuenemeyer, and Root can be used to predict the amount of petroleum to be discovered in a basin from some future level of exploratory effort: the predictions are based on historical drilling and discovery data. Because marginal costs of discovery and production are a function of field size, the model can be used to make estimates of future discoveries within deposit size classes. The modeling approach is a geometric one in which the area searched is a function of the size and shape of the targets being sought. A high correlation is assumed between the surface-projection area of the fields and the volume of petroleum. To predict how much oil remains to be found, the area searched must be computed, and the basin size and discovery efficiency must be estimated. The basin is assumed to be explored randomly rather than by pattern drilling. The model may be used to compute independent estimates of future oil at different depth intervals for a play involving multiple producing horizons. We have written FORTRAN computer programs that are used with Drew, Schuenemeyer, and Root's model to merge the discovery and drilling information and perform the necessary computations to estimate undiscovered petroleum. These program may be modified easily for the estimation of remaining quantities of commodities other than petroleum. ?? 1980.

  9. Modelling long-term oil price and extraction with a Hubbert approach: The LOPEX model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rehrl, Tobias; Friedrich, Rainer

    2006-01-01

    The LOPEX (Long-term Oil Price and EXtraction) model generates long-term scenarios about future world oil supply and corresponding price paths up to the year 2100. In order to determine oil production in non-OPEC countries, the model uses Hubbert curves. Hubbert curves reflect the logistic nature of the discovery process and the associated constraint on temporal availability of oil. Extraction paths and world oil price path are both derived endogenously from OPEC's intertemporally optimal cartel behaviour. Thereby OPEC is faced with both the price-dependent production of the non-OPEC competitive fringe and the price-dependent world oil demand. World oil demand is modelled with a constant price elasticity function and refers to a scenario from ACROPOLIS-POLES. LOPEX results indicate a significant higher oil price from around 2020 onwards compared to the reference scenario, and a stagnating market share of maximal 50% to be optimal for OPEC

  10. Oil reserves are a dynamic quantity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aeberli, O. E.

    2006-01-01

    In this exclusive interview with Rolf Hartl, head of the Oil Association of Switzerland, questions on developments in the consumption area and on future perspectives for the oil business are dealt with. The extent of oil reserves is looked at and the opinions of various experts on the subject are discussed. The 'energy-hunger' of China and third-world countries is discussed and the question is asked as to whether the maximum of oil-extraction has already been reached. Price developments and their possible effect on consumption are discussed, as are the effects of political conflicts on price developments. Finally, perspectives for the development of new oil discoveries are looked at

  11. "Eureka, Eureka!" Discoveries in Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agarwal, Pankaj

    2011-01-01

    Accidental discoveries have been of significant value in the progress of science. Although accidental discoveries are more common in pharmacology and chemistry, other branches of science have also benefited from such discoveries. While most discoveries are the result of persistent research, famous accidental discoveries provide a fascinating…

  12. Future oil production in Brazil-Estimates based on a Hubbert model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Szklo, Alexandre; Machado, Giovani; Schaeffer, Roberto

    2007-01-01

    This paper forecasts oil production in Brazil, according to the Hubbert model and different probabilities for adding reserves. It analyzes why the Hubbert model might be more appropriate to the Brazilian oil industry than that of Hotelling, as it implicitly emphasizes the impacts of information and depletion on the derivative over time of the accumulated discoveries. Brazil's oil production curves indicate production peaks with a time lag of more than 15 years, depending on the certainty (degree of information) associated with the reserves. Reserves with 75% certainty peak at 3.27 Mbpd in 2020, while reserves with 50% certainty peak at 3.28 Mbpd in 2028, and with 30% certainty peak at 3.88 Mbpd in 2036. These findings show that Brazil oil industry is in a stage where the positive impacts of information on expanding reserves (mainly through discoveries) may outstrip the negative impacts of depletion. The still limited number of wells drilled by accumulated discoveries also explain this assertion. Being a characteristic of frontier areas such as Brazil, this indicates the need for ongoing exploratory efforts

  13. TAG Oil hunting elephants in New Zealand

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    2005-01-01

    Calgary-based TAG Oil is an exploration company that manages 4.1 million acres of major producing oil and gas fields in New Zealand. The enormous Maui field, with 4 tcf of natural gas in place, has dominated the gas market in New Zealand by meeting nearly 90 per cent of the country's energy demand at costs much lower than world prices. However, the maturing field is in decline and will cease production by 2008. New gas field discoveries will only meet 60 per cent of the country's energy requirements for 5 additional years. Unless new large reserves of gas are discovered, the supply and demand situation will get worse. Lead time to place new production on-stream requires 5 to 10 years, which creates a large supply gap over the next decade. Public resistance to coal-fired power plants, new hydroelectric dams and nuclear power has left the country with no viable alternative to natural gas. TAG Oil has taken this unique opportunity to create value when gas demand is at its maximum and energy alternatives are at a minimum. This paper presented 8 reasons why New Zealand is a good place for petroleum investment. Most exploration has occurred in the Taranaki Basin, where only 130 exploration wells have been drilled. The rest of the sedimentary basins are essentially unexplored, although many exhibit oil seeps and have hydrocarbon potential. In 1998, an onshore gas discovery was made on the East Coast Basin. Sub-commercial discoveries have also been made in the offshore Canterbury and Great South basins. TAG Oil is focusing on shallow oil and gas pools in the Miocene reservoirs at Taranaki, as well as on deeper gas prospects in Tariki and Kapuni Sands. One of the challenges was a shortage of drilling rigs, so TAG is having a rig built in Calgary and shipped south. 2 figs

  14. 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.

  15. Can reserve additions in mature crude oil provinces attenuate peak oil?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Okullo, S.J.; Reynes, F.G.D.

    2011-01-01

    Following the peak in US crude oil production 30 years ago, more and more non-OPEC producers have seen their production decline as a result of resource depletion. OPEC, on the other hand has extracted a comparatively smaller proportion of its reserve base. Given that new non-OPEC discoveries are

  16. Exploratory assessment of the economic gains of a pre-salt oil field in Brazil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Araujo Rodrigues, Larissa; Luís Sauer, Ildo

    2015-01-01

    In recent years, Brazil has made public several oil discoveries located in deep waters, below the salt layer. Discoveries are steadily enhancing national reserves and have brought the country into a new role in the global oil industry. This paper aims at investigating the economic gains that could be expected from a Brazilian oil field in the pre-salt region. Analyses were conducted based on the Libra field, the largest oil discovery in Brazil until now, with approximately 10 billion barrels. The results were calculated for different scenarios of oil prices, companies' arrangements and regulatory regimes. The findings suggest that economic gains could be higher for the Brazilian Government if the oil production were conducted under a service contract scheme. However, considering the current production-sharing regime in force for pre-salt areas, economic gains could be higher if a bidding process was conducted, ensuring for the Brazilian Government a higher participation in the oil to be produced. Additionally, the results demonstrate that under the current rules applied for the production-sharing regime, the government quota of oil has decreased over time, putting at risk economic results. - Highlights: • The paper investigates the economic gains of a pre-salt oil field in Brazil. • Government earnings could be higher under a service contract scheme. • The first production-sharing regime bid did not encourage competition. • Under the production-sharing rules government quota of oil decreases over time.

  17. The environmental handling in the Oil Wells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carta Petrolera

    1998-01-01

    The oil industry bears environmental impacts related to the resources, soil, air, water, fauna and the socioeconomic aspects of the environment; for this reason the search of the petroleum goes beyond what is believed, it embraces other spheres because, after discovery, it is necessary to extract it, to transport it and to treat it to put it to the service of the humanity's development and in all this long and complex process, is the environmental responsibility, a serious concern as the same discovery of the hydrocarbons. In the beginnings of the oil industry in Colombia this activity was approached without the biggest forecasts as for contamination it refers; however, the environmental laws of the world and the constant concern to preserve the environment, it took to our country to the creation of severe legislations in the matter. In Colombia today in day an environmental legislation exists in all the related with the handling of waters, air and soils inside the oil activity

  18. Biological, medicinal and toxicological significance of Eucalyptus leaf essential oil: a review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dhakad, Ashok K; Pandey, Vijay V; Beg, Sobia; Rawat, Janhvi M; Singh, Avtar

    2018-02-01

    The genus Eucalyptus L'Heritier comprises about 900 species, of which more than 300 species contain volatile essential oil in their leaves. About 20 species, within these, have a high content of 1,8-cineole (more than 70%), commercially used for the production of essential oils in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. However, Eucalyptus is extensively planted for pulp, plywood and solid wood production, but its leaf aromatic oil has astounding widespread biological activities, including antimicrobial, antiseptic, antioxidant, chemotherapeutic, respiratory and gastrointestinal disorder treatment, wound healing, and insecticidal/insect repellent, herbicidal, acaricidal, nematicidal, and perfumes, soap making and grease remover. In the present review, we have made an attempt to congregate the biological ingredients of leaf essential oil, leaf oil as a natural medicine, and pharmacological and toxicological values of the leaf oil of different Eucalyptus species worldwide. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

  19. Significant reductions in oil quality and lipid content of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) under climate change

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Namazkar, Shahla; Egsgaard, Helge; Frenck, Georg

    2015-01-01

    Despite of the potential importance to food and bioenergy purposes, effects from climate change on plant oil quality have hardly been characterized.On a global basis Brassica napus L., rapeseed or oilseed rape, is the second largest source of vegetable oil after soybean and the predominant oil crop...... in Europe. We found significant changes in oil quality and quantity of four cultivars of oilseed rape grown in five future climate scenarios with elevated [CO2], [O-3] temperature and combinations hereof (similar to RCP8.5,(1)). Populations of the cultivars were grown under ambient and climate change...... conditions in a climate-phytotron. The treatments were ambient (360 ppm CO2, 19/12 degrees C (day/night), 20/20 ppb O-3 (day/night)), all factors elevated (650 ppm CO2, 24/17 degrees C, 60/20 ppb O-3), as well as two- and single-factor treatments with the elevated factors.The overall trend was that oil...

  20. Cyclic Investigation of Geophysical Studies in the Exploration and Discovery of Natural Resources in Our Country

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonulalan, A. U.

    2007-01-01

    Although the methods of exploration geophysics were first utilized after the discovery of an oil field in 1921, they have also applied in the old centuries. Likewise, the half of the total production in the United States of America is covered by new oil fields discovered by utilizing geophysical methods. The industry's energy necessity increases the interest to oil. The investments in the field of geophysics by the companies which makes large amount of money in order to discover new oil fields, widespread use of computers, the developments of space technology and world-wide nuclear competition even though its great danger for human beings have great share in the development of geophysics. Our country has 18 different types mines which has more than 10 billion $ potential. Geophysical engineers have great Kowledge and labor in the discovery of 1,795 trillion wealth from borax to building stone, and 60 billion $ oil and gas. On the other hand, as 1,5 billion investment in the field of geophysics is only 0.08 % of total investments, the increase of investments will add more contribution

  1. Oil and gas, the hot spots of the planet

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Delage, St.

    2009-01-01

    Despite the economic crisis, more than 400 billion dollars have been in,vested in 2009 in oil and gas exploration and production. Oil companies and their suppliers from the para-petroleum industry are still working hard to exploit new discoveries. This paper makes a worldwide overview of the most promising oil and gas fields in particular in Brazil, Australia, Ghana and qatar (investments, partners, production, reserves). (J.S.)

  2. Hard oiler : the story of early Canadian's quest for oil at home and abroad

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    May, G.

    1998-05-01

    The story of how the petroleum industry in Canada took root is described. The book retells the discovery and the quest for oil in the Sarnia area in 1858 when James Miller Williams and Charles Nelson Tripp struck oil at what was to be the world's first modern commercial petroleum operation. This set in motion a chain of events which resulted in the establishment of an industry on which life today is so heavily dependent. The circumstances that led to the discovery of petroleum in the midst of southwestern Ontario's last wilderness are described with special emphasis on the men and the women who were responsible for it. The book chronicles the role they played and the equipment they devised that led to a frenzy of land speculation, as well as to the training of a class of men who later introduced their expertise and equipment to new oil fields around the world to open up oil fields from Sumatra to the Ukraine, from the United States to Venezuela, and in the Middle East. In the latter part of the nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries no major oil field anywhere in the world was without its drillers from Lambton county in southwestern Ontario - the Hard Oilers. The story begins with the early discoveries in the 1840s, carries on with the golden age of Ontario oil, describes the part played by the Lambton county oilmen in opening up oilfields in distant parts of the world, and ends with an assessment of the latest discovery of the Hibernia fields offshore Newfoundland. refs., figs

  3. Plucking the Golden Goose: Higher Royalty Rates on the Oil Sands Generate Significant Increases in Government Revenue

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kenneth J. McKenzie

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available The Alberta government’s 2009 New Royalty Framework elicited resistance on the part of the energy industry, leading to subsequent reductions in the royalties imposed on natural gas and conventional oil. However, the oil sands sector, subject to different terms, quickly accepted the new arrangement with little complaint, recognizing it as win-win situation for industry and the government. Under the framework, Alberta recoups much more money in royalties — about $1 billion over the two year period of 2009 and 2010 — without impinging significantly on investment in the oil sands. This brief paper demonstrates that by spreading the financial risks and benefits to everyone involved, the new framework proves it’s possible to generate increased revenue without frightening off future investment. The same model could conceivably be applied to the conventional oil and natural gas sectors.

  4. Coconut, date and oil palm genomics

    Science.gov (United States)

    A review of genomics research is presented for the three most economically important palm crops, coconut (Cocos nucifera), date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) and oil palm (Elaeis guineensis), encompassing molecular markers studies of genetic diversity, genetic mapping, quantitative trait loci discovery...

  5. Interest grows in African oil and gas opportunities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knott, D.

    1997-01-01

    As African countries continue a slow drift towards democratic government and market economics, the continent is increasingly attractive to international oil and gas companies. Though Africa remains politically diverse, and its volatile politics remains a major barrier to petroleum companies, a number of recent developments reflect its growing significance for the industry. Among recent projects and events reflecting changes in Africa: oil and gas exporter Algeria has invited foreign oil companies to help develop major gas discoveries, with a view to boosting exports to Europe; oil and gas producer Egypt invited foreign companies to explore in the Nile Delta region, and the result appears to be a flowering world scale gas play; west African offshore exploration has entered deep water and new areas, and a number of major projects are expected in years to come; Nigeria's reputation as a difficult place to operate has been justified by recent political and civil events, but a long-planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant is being built there; South Africa, which has returned to the international scene after years of trade isolation because of apartheid, is emerging as a potential driver for energy industry schemes throughout the continent. Activities are discussed

  6. Eri silkworm: a source of edible oil with a high content of α-linolenic acid and of significant nutritional value.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Longvah, Thingnganing; Manghtya, Korra; Qadri, Syed S Y H

    2012-07-01

    The study was undertaken to provide value addition to spent eri silkworm as an alternative source of edible oil for the food and feed industry by carrying out a short-term nutritional and toxicological evaluation of eri silkworm pupae oil using Wistar NIN rats. Growth performance of rats fed either sunflower oil (Control) or eri silkworm pupae oil (Experimental) was comparable. Histopathological examination of the various tissues showed no signs of toxicity even after feeding the eri silkworm oil for 18 weeks. Serum cholesterol and triglyceride was significantly reduced (P oil. The study showed that eri silkworm pupae oil is safe and nutritionally equivalent to commonly used vegetable oils. Eri silkworm pupae can be harvested to provide a cost effective alternative edible oil that can be used to nutritional advantage in the food and feed industry. Therefore eri silkworm and its host plants offer an excellent example of multiple product crops and of sustainable agricultural practice with excellent opportunity for economic and nutritional benefits. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

  7. Oil and mucilage cells in Annona (Annonaceae) and their systematic significance

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bakker, M.E.; Gerritsen, A.F.

    1992-01-01

    The morphology and distribution patterns of oil and/or mucilage cells, i.e. idioblasts, in the leaf of 37 Annona species are described. Idioblasts are always present in the spongy parenchyma in all species and in most cases also in the palisade parenchyma. Usually both oil cells and mucilage cells

  8. Viet Nam, once isolated, poised for significant role in oil and gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports that Viet Nam is on its way up in the petroleum world. After years of international isolation, the country is poised for a flurry of exploration by international oil companies in the early 1990s. Viet Nam has joined the Soviet Union as the only members of the now dissolved, formerly Moscow dominated, 10 nation Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) that are self-sufficient in oil production. Moreover, Viet Nam has far outstripped neighboring China, which was not a CMEA member, in offshore oil flow even though China has a much larger Outer Continental Shelf. Prospects are that Viet Nam will continue to lead China in offshore oil production until 1995 at least

  9. Technological advancements revitalize conventional oil sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thomson, L.

    2000-01-01

    Maturing reserves in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin is resulting in a gradual shift of focus from huge new discoveries and wildcat gushers to developing new technologies for exploration and enhanced recovery techniques of production, keeping costs down and reducing environmental impacts, as a means of keeping conventional oil plays a viable force in the oil and gas industry. The value in refocusing efforts towards technology development is given added weight by a recent announcement by the Petroleum Communication Foundation, which stated that in addition to the oil sands and offshore oil and gas developments, one of the country's largest undeveloped oil resource is the 70 per cent of discovered crude oil in western Canadian pools that cannot be recovered by current conventional production techniques. Therefore, development of new technologies to exploit these currently unrecoverable resources is a matter of high priority. To remain competitive, the new techniques must also lower the cost of recovering oil from these sources, given that the cost of oil production in Canada is already higher than that in most other competing countries

  10. Oil and gas field database

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Young In; Han, Jung Kuy [Korea Institute of Geology Mining and Materials, Taejon (Korea)

    1998-12-01

    As agreed by the Second Meeting of the Expert Group of Minerals and Energy Exploration and Development in Seoul, Korea, 'The Construction of Database on the Oil and Gas Fields in the APEC Region' is now under way as a GEMEED database project for 1998. This project is supported by Korean government funds and the cooperation of GEMEED colleagues and experts. During this year, we have constructed the home page menu (topics) and added the data items on the oil and gas field. These items include name of field, discovery year, depth, the number of wells, average production (b/d), cumulative production, and API gravity. The web site shows the total number of oil and gas fields in the APEC region is 47,201. The number of oil and gas fields by member economics are shown in the table. World oil and gas statistics including reserve, production consumption, and trade information were added to the database for the users convenience. (author). 13 refs., tabs., figs.

  11. Oil and gas field database

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Young In; Han, Jung Kuy [Korea Institute of Geology Mining and Materials, Taejon (Korea)

    1998-12-01

    As agreed by the Second Meeting of the Expert Group of Minerals and Energy Exploration and Development in Seoul, Korea, 'The Construction of Database on the Oil and Gas Fields in the APEC Region' is now under way as a GEMEED database project for 1998. This project is supported by Korean government funds and the cooperation of GEMEED colleagues and experts. During this year, we have constructed the home page menu (topics) and added the data items on the oil and gas field. These items include name of field, discovery year, depth, the number of wells, average production (b/d), cumulative production, and API gravity. The web site shows the total number of oil and gas fields in the APEC region is 47,201. The number of oil and gas fields by member economics are shown in the table. World oil and gas statistics including reserve, production consumption, and trade information were added to the database for the users convenience. (author). 13 refs., tabs., figs.

  12. The impact of Oil Prices on the International Economic Arena: The Economic Factors and International Players

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MA. Arben Salihu

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Throughout history the new technologies and discoveries revolutionized the way we live. The discovery, the oil, has been critical for society, becoming the world’s most profitable and essential industry transforming itself from domestic to international business. The aim of this paper, above all is to analyze the role of oil and its price volatility in world economy. The ongoing changes and transformations in world oil industry tend to have a great effect not only on the oilimporting countries but also on oil-exporting nations. The demand or supply-triggered oil price volatility differ in its effects to world economic activity. Although it may have different effect for the oil importing nations in comparison to oil exporting nations, still inflationary pressure may be a common feature. A number of points relevant to the study are put forward highlighting pros and cons of issues discussed. The paper also elaborates the environmental concerns, deriving from the increase of oil consumption and the necessity (globally to increase efforts in finding a decent,(environmentally friendly replacement for oil.

  13. What kind of oil company do we need? Maturity and industrial structure on the Norwegian Shelf

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Noreng, Oeystein

    1998-01-01

    After many years with relatively high oil prices and moderately good oil discoveries, there is today an investment pressure on the Shelf. Many current development projects concern smaller discoveries made a long time ago. Thus the present rapid development depletes a capital of discoveries made at an early phase when the Norwegian Shelf was less mature. On this background, this presentation suggests that perhaps Norway, as a mature oil province, may not need the same kind of oil companies that dominated the petroleum activities during the development to maturity. It is experienced internationally that the various phases in the development of an oil province require different competence and thus different companies. Less oil has been found the last years than what has been produced. The command is now to find more oil. The question is how and by what company. Advantages and disadvantages are discussed for four categories of companies: (1) state companies, (2) large multinational, (3) independent, and (4) small newcomers. A section on maturing and the interest of the state as the property owner discusses the processes from large-scale operation to diversity, and maturing and the need for selective competence and low costs. Finally the paper discusses the negotiation policy of the state, political instruments and the company structure and reviews some experience from U.S.A. and UK. 1 table

  14. An overview of the upstream oil and gas industry in Australia in 1997

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Allen, D.C.K.

    1997-01-01

    The Australian oil and gas exploration and production industry entered 1997 with high expectations and the promise of significant further discoveries and potential developments. This optimism is based on the results from a busy 1996 in which more exploration wells were drilled than any year since 1991. Offshore seismic acquisition, which is an indication of the future health of the industry, also increased almost four times; onshore, slightly less seismic than the previous year was recorded. Major projects and future prospects are highlighted. It is estimated that for many of these projects to eventuate it will be necessary for world wide gas demand to increase significantly and for oil and gas prices to improve and for the markets and economies in India and China (potential large markets) to mature

  15. Antidepressant-like effects of Perilla frutescens seed oil during a forced swimming test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Hsiu-Chuan; Ko, Hsiang-Kai; Huang, Brian E T-G; Chu, Yan-Hwa; Huang, Shih-Yi

    2014-05-01

    Unipolar depressive disorder may become one of the major leading causes of disease burden by 2030 according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Thus, the discovery of antidepressive foods is attractive and could have considerable impacts worldwide. We investigated the antidepressant-like effects of Perilla frutescens seed oil on adult male rats subjected to a forced swimming test (FST). Forty Sprague-Dawley rats were housed and fed various diets, including soybean oil-rich, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)-rich, and P. frutescens seed oil-rich diets for 6 weeks. After the dietary intervention, animals were tested using an FST and were sacrificed after the test. We analyzed the fatty acid profiles of red blood cells (RBCs) and the brain prefrontal cortex (PFC). Levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), serotonin, and dopamine in the PFC were also determined. After the FST, the imipramine, EPA-rich, and P. frutescens seed oil-rich groups showed significant shorter immobility time and longer struggling time than the control group (p < 0.05). Levels of BDNF in the P. frutescens seed oil-rich group and levels of serotonin in the EPA-rich group were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than those of the control group. Moreover, the BDNF concentration in the PFC was significantly positively correlated with the struggling time. However, there were no significant differences in dopamine levels between the intervention groups and the control group. In conclusion, a P. frutescens seed oil-rich diet exhibited antidepressant-like properties through modulation of fatty acid profiles and BDNF expression in the brain during an FST.

  16. The oil boom in Equatorial Guinea

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Frynas, J.G.

    2004-01-01

    In less than a decade, Equatorial Guinea has transformed itself from an African backwater into one of the world's fastest growing economies and a sought-after political partner in the Gulf of Guinea. The sole reason for this transformation has been the discovery of oil and gas. This article outlines the rise of Equatorial Guinea as one of Africa's leading oil-producing countries and investigates the political, economic and social effects of becoming a petro-state. The article is based on the author's field research in Equatorial Guinea in the autumn of 2003 and interviews with senior oil company staff, government officials and staff of international organizations as well as secondary sources. This research demonstrates how reliance on oil and gas exports can lead to profound changes in a country's political economy. (author)

  17. Enhanced oil recovery from Sandstones and Carbonates with “Smart Water”

    OpenAIRE

    Torrijos, Ivan Dario Pinerez

    2017-01-01

    PhD thesis in Petroleum engineering According to the International Energy Agency crude oil is expected to contribute approximately with 26% of the world’s energy supply by 2040. In a per year basis, new oil discoveries have dropped to a 60-year low in 2015, and capital expenditure is in the longest period of retrenchment in 40 years. Therefore, oil in place from already discovered reservoirs has become an important target for oil companies. “Smart Water” injection is a relatively new E...

  18. The future of oil supply.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Richard G; Sorrell, Steven R

    2014-01-13

    Abundant supplies of oil form the foundation of modern industrial economies, but the capacity to maintain and grow global supply is attracting increasing concern. Some commentators forecast a peak in the near future and a subsequent terminal decline in global oil production, while others highlight the recent growth in 'tight oil' production and the scope for developing unconventional resources. There are disagreements over the size, cost and recoverability of different resources, the technical and economic potential of different technologies, the contribution of different factors to market trends and the economic implications of reduced supply. Few debates are more important, more contentious, more wide-ranging or more confused. This paper summarizes the main concepts, terms, issues and evidence that are necessary to understand the 'peak oil' debate. These include: the origin, nature and classification of oil resources; the trends in oil production and discoveries; the typical production profiles of oil fields, basins and producing regions; the mechanisms underlying those profiles; the extent of depletion of conventional oil; the risk of an approaching peak in global production; and the potential of various mitigation options. The aim is to introduce the subject to non-specialist readers and provide a basis for the subsequent papers in this Theme Issue.

  19. The first boom: Industrious ancestors traced by trail-blazing impact assessment done for oil mega projects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chandler, G.

    2003-08-01

    Impact studies done for the mammoth oil projects in the Alberta oil sand deposits have enabled archaeologists to intensively study the archaeological record of the Athabasca lowlands, that until about thirty years ago was an almost complete void. The first major discoveries were done in 1973: the Beaver River Quarry Site on the south bank of the Beaver River, found during an impact assessment study undertaken for Syncrude, yielded hundreds of thousands of artifacts, showing how sandstone was manufactured into tools and projectile points some 10,000 years ago. This discovery was followed by scores of new Historical Resources Impact Assessments (HRIAs) as part of the petroleum industry's expansion of oil sands country. These studies reveal that humans could have been living in the areas as far back as 10,000 years ago, as evidenced by a complex of ancient campsites and stone tool workshops discovered along the shore of the Athabasca River. Other sites and the archaeological significance of artifacts found near Nezu Lake, in the Cree Burn Lake area, and in the Fort Hills area north of Fort McKay are also described. The density of sites and artifacts from the oil sands leases suggest that the sites have been most intensely occupied during the period between 9,600 and 6,000 years ago.

  20. The end of cheap oil: Current status and prospects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsoskounoglou, Miltos; Ayerides, George; Tritopoulou, Efi

    2008-01-01

    This paper, analyses the factors impacting the price of crude oil in order to examine the likely evolution of the oil market and attempts to answer the question, whether cheap oil is already a thing of the past. Based on data made publicly available mostly by the major oil companies, it examines the effects of demand and supply, the evolution of world oil reserves, the trends in new discoveries of new oilfields, the evolution of world Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and the depletion of oil resources. The analysis concludes that the world peak in conventional oil production-the point beyond which oil production will irreversibly start declining-is approaching and will be reached, even according to the most optimistic scenarios, before 2040 and quite possibly much sooner. If the appropriate solutions for substituting crude oil and for conserving the use of energy are not implemented in time, then the current upward trend in oil prices is bound to continue

  1. Nigeria's oil production and the need for increased producing capacity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okoroji, C. E. I.

    1998-01-01

    After 40 years of commercial oil production, Nigeria's crude oil production is moving through difficult times. This transition period has been made more difficult because of recurring international economic recession, lack-luster crude prices, and slow oil demand growth and Government funding problems etc. Crude oil remains the most important export revenue earner in Nigeria, and more efforts are required to encourage higher output levels to support more foreign exchange generation. Nigeria's crude oil production at present stands at 2.2 million barrels per day (mbpd). This study, covers the period 1998-2005, during which oil production is forecast to grow to about 2.85 mbpd while potential for new discoveries could raise production to more than 3.0 mbpd. These projected rates could depend to a large extent on the rate and size of new discoveries. However, Nigeria's crude oil potential is being constrained by both lack of infrastructure and inadequate investment. The massive investment needed to raise the country's productive capacity will require foreign capital, yet the current fiscal environment leaves much to be desired. The purpose of this paper is to present a review of Nigeria's past, present and future oil production. To meet the projected production capacity very early in the next millennium, current estimates put the overall potential investment needed for an accelerated capacity-expansion drive in order to ensure that there is adequate cushion of crude potential at $19.7 billion during the next seven years. Furthermore, not more than $12.0 billion of this requirement can be generated from Nigeria's government cash flow

  2. Will Venezuelan extra-heavy oil be a significant source of petroleum in the next decades?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sena, Marcelo Fonseca Monteiro de; Rosa, Luiz Pinguelli; Szklo, Alexandre

    2013-01-01

    Unconventional oil resources are needed to complement petroleum supply in the next decades. However, given the restrictions that pertain to the production of these resources, this article evaluates the availability of Venezuelan unconventional oil for helping meet the future worldwide petroleum demand. Venezuela has the world's second-largest oil reserves, but the majority of it is unconventional extra-heavy oil from the Orinoco Oil Belt. The perspective of Venezuelan production, the ways in which PDVSA, the state oil company, will raise funds for planned investments and the future oil price predictions are used to assess Venezuela's ability to serve as a source of unconventional oil in the coming years. Findings indicate that Venezuelan crude oil will be increasingly able to provide part of the marginal petroleum supply at a level predicted in global scenarios but short of that predicted by the country's government. Operational difficulties and the effort to raise financial resources for the oil production in the Belt require urgency in overcoming difficulties. As conventional production in Venezuela will stabilise in the coming years and the country is dependent on oil production, Venezuela will rely on extra-heavy oil extraction to ensure increased oil production and the stabilisation of internal accounts. - Highlights: • We analyse the future unconventional oil production capacity of Venezuela. • The study is based on operational capacity, investments capacity and future prices. • The study indicates a production shorter than that predicted by the Venezuelan government. • Venezuela can provide part of the marginal petroleum supply in the coming years

  3. Interest grows in African oil and gas opportunities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knott, D.

    1997-05-12

    As African countries continue a slow drift towards democratic government and market economics, the continent is increasingly attractive to international oil and gas companies. Though Africa remains politically diverse, and its volatile politics remains a major barrier to petroleum companies, a number of recent developments reflect its growing significance for the industry. Among recent projects and events reflecting changes in Africa: oil and gas exporter Algeria has invited foreign oil companies to help develop major gas discoveries, with a view to boosting exports to Europe; oil and gas producer Egypt invited foreign companies to explore in the Nile Delta region, and the result appears to be a flowering world scale gas play; west African offshore exploration has entered deep water and new areas, and a number of major projects are expected in years to come; Nigeria`s reputation as a difficult place to operate has been justified by recent political and civil events, but a long-planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant is being built there; South Africa, which has returned to the international scene after years of trade isolation because of apartheid, is emerging as a potential driver for energy industry schemes throughout the continent. Activities are discussed.

  4. Identification and characterization of transcript polymorphisms in soybean lines varying in oil composition and content.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goettel, Wolfgang; Xia, Eric; Upchurch, Robert; Wang, Ming-Li; Chen, Pengyin; An, Yong-Qiang Charles

    2014-04-23

    Variation in seed oil composition and content among soybean varieties is largely attributed to differences in transcript sequences and/or transcript accumulation of oil production related genes in seeds. Discovery and analysis of sequence and expression variations in these genes will accelerate soybean oil quality improvement. In an effort to identify these variations, we sequenced the transcriptomes of soybean seeds from nine lines varying in oil composition and/or total oil content. Our results showed that 69,338 distinct transcripts from 32,885 annotated genes were expressed in seeds. A total of 8,037 transcript expression polymorphisms and 50,485 transcript sequence polymorphisms (48,792 SNPs and 1,693 small Indels) were identified among the lines. Effects of the transcript polymorphisms on their encoded protein sequences and functions were predicted. The studies also provided independent evidence that the lack of FAD2-1A gene activity and a non-synonymous SNP in the coding sequence of FAB2C caused elevated oleic acid and stearic acid levels in soybean lines M23 and FAM94-41, respectively. As a proof-of-concept, we developed an integrated RNA-seq and bioinformatics approach to identify and functionally annotate transcript polymorphisms, and demonstrated its high effectiveness for discovery of genetic and transcript variations that result in altered oil quality traits. The collection of transcript polymorphisms coupled with their predicted functional effects will be a valuable asset for further discovery of genes, gene variants, and functional markers to improve soybean oil quality.

  5. Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Cretaceous Nanushuk and Torok Formations, Alaska North Slope, and summary of resource potential of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, 2017

    Science.gov (United States)

    Houseknecht, David W.; Lease, Richard O.; Schenk, Christopher J.; Mercier, Tracey J.; Rouse, William A.; Jarboe, Palma B.; Whidden, Katherine J.; Garrity, Christopher P.; Lewis, Kristen A.; Heller, Samuel; Craddock, William H.; Klett, Timothy R.; Le, Phuong A.; Smith, Rebecca; Tennyson, Marilyn E.; Gaswirth, Stephanie B.; Woodall, Cheryl A.; Brownfield, Michael E.; Leathers-Miller, Heidi M.; Finn, Thomas M.

    2017-12-22

    The U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean undiscovered, technically recoverable resources of 8.7 billion barrels of oil and 25 trillion cubic feet of natural gas (associated and nonassociated) in conventional accumulations in the Cretaceous Nanushuk and Torok Formations in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, adjacent State and Native lands, and State waters. The estimated undiscovered oil resources in the Nanushuk and Torok Formations are significantly higher than previous estimates, owing primarily to recent, larger than anticipated oil discoveries.

  6. A general improved methodology to forecasting future oil production: Application to the UK and Norway

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fiévet, L.; Forró, Z.; Cauwels, P.; Sornette, D.

    2015-01-01

    We present a new Monte-Carlo methodology to forecast the crude oil production of Norway and the U.K. based on a two-step process, (i) the nonlinear extrapolation of the current/past performances of individual oil fields and (ii) a stochastic model of the frequency of future oil field discoveries. Compared with the standard methodology that tends to underestimate remaining oil reserves, our method gives a better description of future oil production, as validated by our back-tests starting in 2008. Specifically, we predict remaining reserves extractable until 2030 to be 5.7 ± 0.3 billion barrels for Norway and 3.0 ± 0.3 billion barrels for the UK, which are respectively 45% and 66% above the predictions using an extrapolation of aggregate production. - Highlights: • Two step methodology to forecast a countries oil production. • Nonlinear extrapolation of the performance of individual fields. • Stochastic model of the frequency of future discoveries. • Backtest starting in 2008 of the methodology. • Improvement upon standard extrapolation of aggregate production

  7. The richness of discovery : Amoco's first fifty years in Canada (1948-1998)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McKenzie-Brown, P.

    1998-01-01

    A review of Amoco's first fifty years of operations in Canada, including investments, discoveries, and policies was presented. While no claim is made for this attractively produced slim volume to be a definitive history, it does manage to shed light on some of the great achievements and outstanding deeds of the people behind the company. The book provides a glimpse into how Amoco contributed to the growth of the Canadian petroleum industry in diverse areas including the manufacturing sector, the petroleum service sector, oil field technology, oil field infrastructure and petrochemical development. The company enjoyed spectacular success during the 1950s and 1960s. As evidence of that success, in 1997 Amoco Canada was the largest Canadian producer and exporter of natural gas and NGLs, the largest cold producer of heavy oil, the second largest in situ producer of heavy oil, and one of the 10 largest producers of conventional oil. refs., tabs., figs

  8. Enhanced oil recovery: an update review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alvarado, V.; Manrique, E.

    2010-01-01

    With the decline in oil discoveries during the last decades it is believed that Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technologies will play a key role to meet the energy demand in years to come. This paper presents a comprehensive review of EOR status and opportunities to increase final recovery factors in reservoirs ranging from extra heavy oil to gas condensate. Specifically, the paper discusses EOR status and opportunities organized by reservoir lithology (sandstone and carbonates formations and turbiditic reservoirs to a lesser extent) and offshore and onshore fields. Risk and rewards of EOR methods including growing trends in recent years such as CO 2 injection, high pressure air injection (HPAI) and chemical flooding are addressed including a brief overview of CO 2 -EOR project economics. (authors)

  9. ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY USING LOCAL ALKALINE

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    the discovery of new oil producing fields and the ever increasing ... followed by water flooding is between 35 to 50% of the ... involved and lack of scale up and is considered among ... carbonate alkaline chemical reacts with certain types of ... reservoirs because of the profusion of calcium and the ... damage the formation.

  10. 21 CFR 201.303 - Labeling of drug preparations containing significant proportions of wintergreen oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... proportions of wintergreen oil. (a) Because methyl salicylate (wintergreen oil) manifests no toxicity in the... poisoning. (c) This statement of interpretation in no way exempts methyl salicylate (wintergreen oil) or its... provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act any drug containing more than 5 percent methyl...

  11. International oil and gas exploration and development: 1991

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1993-12-01

    This report starts where the previous quarterly publication ended. This first publication of a new annual series contains most of the same data as the quarterly report, plus some new material, through 1991. It also presents historical data covering a longer period of time than the previous quarterly report. Country-level data on oil reserves, oil production, active drilling rigs, seismic crews, wells drilled, oil reserve additions, and oil reserve-to-production rations (R/P ratios) are listed for about 85 countries, where available, from 1970 through 1991. World and regional summaries are given in both tabular and graphical form. The most popular table in the previous quarterly report, a listing of new discoveries, continues in this annual report as Appendix A.

  12. The oil market towards 2030 - can OPEC combine high oil price with high market share

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aune, Finn Roar; Glomsroed, Solveig; Lindholt, Lars; Rosendahl, Knut Einar

    2005-01-01

    In this paper we examine within a partial equilibrium model for the oil market whether OPEC can combine high oil prices with a high market share. The oil market model explicitly accounts for reserves, development and production in 4 field categories across 13 regions. Oil companies may invest in new field development or alternatively on improved oil recovery in the decline phase of fields in production. Non-OPEC production is profit-driven, whereas OPEC meets the residual call for OPEC oil at a pre-specified oil price, while maintaining a surplus capacity. The model is run over a range of exogenous oil prices from 15 to 60 $ per barrel. Sustained high oil prices stimulate Non-OPEC production, but its remaining reserves gradually diminish despite new discoveries. Oil demand is only slightly affected by higher prices. Thus, OPEC is able to keep and eventually increase its current market share beyond 2010 even with oil prices around $30 per barrel. In fact, the model simulations indicate that an oil price around $40 is profitable for OPEC, even in the long term. Sensitivity analyses show that the most profitable price level for OPEC is generally above $35 per barrel. Even with several factors working jointly in OPEC's disfavour, the oil price seems to stick to the 30 $ level. Thus, for OPEC there is a trade-off between high prices and high market share in the short to medium term, but not in the long term. For OECD countries, on the other hand, there is a clear trade-off between low oil prices and low import dependence. (Author)

  13. Analgesic Potential of Essential Oils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Ferreira Sarmento-Neto

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Pain is an unpleasant sensation associated with a wide range of injuries and diseases, and affects approximately 20% of adults in the world. The discovery of new and more effective drugs that can relieve pain is an important research goal in both the pharmaceutical industry and academia. This review describes studies involving antinociceptive activity of essential oils from 31 plant species. Botanical aspects of aromatic plants, mechanisms of action in pain models and chemical composition profiles of the essential oils are discussed. The data obtained in these studies demonstrate the analgesic potential of this group of natural products for therapeutic purposes.

  14. CO2 Enhanced Oil Recovery from the Residual Zone - A Sustainable Vision for North Sea Oil Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stewart, Jamie; Haszeldine, Stuart; Wilkinson, Mark; Johnson, Gareth

    2014-05-01

    This paper presents a 'new vision for North Sea oil production' where previously unattainable residual oil can be produced with the injection of CO2 that has been captured at power stations or other large industrial emitters. Not only could this process produce incremental oil from a maturing basin, reducing imports, it also has the capability to store large volumes of CO2 which can offset the emissions of additional carbon produced. Around the world oil production from mature basins is in decline and production from UK oil fields peaked in 1998. Other basins around the world have a similar story. Although in the UK a number of tax regimes, such as 'brown field allowances' and 'new field allowances' have been put in place to re-encourage investment, it is recognised that the majority of large discoveries have already been made. However, as a nation our demand for oil remains high and in the last decade imports of crude oil have been steadily increasing. The UK is dependent on crude oil for transport and feedstock for chemical and plastics production. Combined with the necessity to provide energy security, there is a demand to re-assess the potential for CO2 Enhanced Oil Recovery (CO2-EOR) in the UK offshore. Residual oil zones (ROZ) exist where one of a number of natural conditions beyond normal capillary forces have caused the geometry of a field's oil column to be altered after filling [1]. When this re-structuring happens the primary interest to the hydrocarbon industry has in the past been in where the mobile oil has migrated to. However it is now considered that significant oil resource may exist in the residual zone play where the main oil column has been displaced. Saturations within this play are predominantly close to residual saturation (Sr) and would be similar to that of a water-flooded field [2]. Evidence from a number of hydrocarbon fairways shows that, under certain circumstances, these residual zones in US fields are comparable in thickness to the

  15. The status of world oil depletion at the end of 1995

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Campbell, C.J.

    1996-01-01

    An assessment is made of the reserves of conventional and non-conventional oil in the world as of the end of 1995. This takes into account the impacts of new discovery and advances in technology to make plausible estimates. Care is taken to clearly define conventional and non-conventional oil and whether or not natural gas liquids are included. (Author)

  16. Future of oil and gas development in the western Amazon

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Finer, Matt; Babbitt, Bruce; Novoa, Sidney; Ferrarese, Francesco; Pappalardo, Salvatore Eugenio; Marchi, Massimo De; Saucedo, Maria; Kumar, Anjali

    2015-01-01

    The western Amazon is one of the world’s last high-biodiversity wilderness areas, characterized by extraordinary species richness and large tracts of roadless humid tropical forest. It is also home to an active hydrocarbon (oil and gas) sector, characterized by operations in extremely remote areas that require new access routes. Here, we present the first integrated analysis of the hydrocarbon sector and its associated road-building in the western Amazon. Specifically, we document the (a) current panorama, including location and development status of all oil and gas discoveries, of the sector, and (b) current and future scenario of access (i.e. access road versus roadless access) to discoveries. We present an updated 2014 western Amazon hydrocarbon map illustrating that oil and gas blocks now cover 733 414 km 2 , an area much larger than the US state of Texas, and have been expanding since the last assessment in 2008. In terms of access, we documented 11 examples of the access road model and six examples of roadless access across the region. Finally, we documented 35 confirmed and/or suspected untapped hydrocarbon discoveries across the western Amazon. In the Discussion, we argue that if these reserves must be developed, use of the offshore inland model—a method that strategically avoids the construction of access roads—is crucial to minimizing ecological impacts in one of the most globally important conservation regions. (letter)

  17. Yemen: a new oil frontier or a flashpoint?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Salameh, M.G.

    1994-01-01

    Recent oil discoveries in the newly merged country of Yemen (previously North and South Yemen) should have brought economic security to a country struggling to introduce multi-party democracy. International oil companies such as BP, Elf and Total, while keen to invest in this exciting new prospect for petroleum production, are, however, wary due to border disputes, possibly leading to military conflict between Yemen and Saudi Arabia. The oil finds have been in the disputed Hadramaut region and desert areas of the Southern Arabian basin where borders have never been defined. Early settlement of this dispute could benefit both countries economically and in terms of industrial development. (UK)

  18. Vertcal integration: origins of oil industry integration

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rainbow, R.

    2001-01-01

    This article examines the structure of the US oil industry in relation to the history of the industry, capital market assumptions, and advice on the enhancement of 'shareholder value'. The driving forces behind the attempts to establish cartels and vertical integration are considered, and the emergence of US companies resulting from the break-up of the Standard Oil Trust cartel, the influence of costs and logistics on the structure of the industry outside the USA , and the structure of the natural gas industry are discussed along with the discovery of large Middle East oil reserves, the enormous growth in demand for oil products in Europe and Japan, and the formation of the OPEC cartel. Details are given of the breaking down of vertical integration in the big oil companies, the theory of conglomerates, the success of big companies, the importance of scale to balance exploration risks, and the need to adjust in time to shifts in the business environment

  19. Reserve Growth in Oil Fields of West Siberian Basin, Russia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verma, Mahendra K.; Ulmishek, Gregory F.

    2006-01-01

    Although reserve (or field) growth has proven to be an important factor contributing to new reserves in mature petroleum basins, it is still a poorly understood phenomenon. Limited studies show that the magnitude of reserve growth is controlled by several major factors, including (1) the reserve booking and reporting requirements in each country, (2) improvements in reservoir characterization and simulation, (3) application of enhanced oil recovery techniques, and (4) the discovery of new and extensions of known pools in discovered fields. Various combinations of these factors can affect the estimates of proven reserves in particular fields and may dictate repeated estimations of reserves during a field's life. This study explores the reserve growth in the 42 largest oil fields in the West Siberian Basin, which contain about 55 percent of the basin's total oil reserves. The West Siberian Basin occupies a vast swampy plain between the Ural Mountains and the Yenisey River, and extends offshore into the Kara Sea; it is the richest petroleum province in Russia. About 600 oil and gas fields with original reserves of 144 billion barrels of oil (BBO) and more than 1,200 trillion cubic feet of gas (TCFG) have been discovered. The principal oil reserves and most of the oil fields are in the southern half of the basin, whereas the northern half contains mainly gas reserves. Sedimentary strata in the basin consist of Upper Triassic through Tertiary clastic rocks. Most oil is produced from Neocomian (Lower Cretaceous) marine to deltaic sandstone reservoirs, although substantial oil reserves are also in the marine Upper Jurassic and continental to paralic Lower to Middle Jurassic sequences. The majority of oil fields are in structural traps, which are gentle, platform-type anticlines with closures ranging from several tens of meters to as much as 150 meters (490 feet). Fields producing from stratigraphic traps are generally smaller except for the giant Talin field which

  20. European gas oil markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Long, D.

    1991-04-01

    The developments over the past five years of the bulk markets for gas oil in Europe are examined using advanced econometric techniques to study the related issues of pricing efficiency and hedge efficiency. The study attempts to preserve the fluctuations of the actual data as these provide insights into the process of price discovery. The markets studied include the spot, forward and futures markets and looks for evidence of differentiated markets. (UK)

  1. The impact of the UK 1993 budget proposals on oil and gas in the UKCS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kemp, A.G.; Rose, David; Hoevring, Mary; Reading, David

    1993-01-01

    The key features of the 1993 United Kingdom budget proposals for the reform of petroleum taxation as they relate to the upstream oil and gas industry are summarized. These fairly radical proposals will have far reaching effects. They are examined in terms of their impact on the following activities: ongoing production from existing producing fields; incremental investments in mature oil fields; development of existing discoveries; exploration, appraisal and development of new discoveries; development of new fields involving third-party tariffing; incremental investments and new contracts in mature gas fields; investment climate and confidence. (35 figures). (UK)

  2. Design of three-phase gravity separators for heavy oils; Projeto de separadores trifasicos para oleos pesados

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Silva, Rosivania P.; Bannwart, Antonio C. [Universidade Estadual de Campinas, SP (Brazil); Carvalho, Carlos H.M. de [PETROBRAS, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Centro de Pesquisas (CENPES)

    2004-07-01

    The primary processing of crude oil consists in the separation of oil, gas, water (and solids suspensions, if present), the conditioning of the hydrocarbons for transportation to the refinery, and the water treatment for re-use. With the discovery of significant fields of heavy oil in Brazil, whose densities are close to the density of water and viscosities are about hundreds to thousand times higher than the viscosity of water, the production and primary processing of this fluid with usual technology is not attractive and often unfeasible. It is well known that the demand from the majority of the refineries is that the quantity of water dispersion in the oil (BSW) is below 1%, so this work investigates the behavior of the water dispersion in heavy oil, causing an increase in viscosity and density. Therefore, this work intends to define strategies to efficiently separate these liquids, emphasizing the physical aspects of separation. Mathematica software was used for the equation modeling, which governs the horizontal separation vases dimensioning, allowing the observation of the influence of many variables on the separator dimensions. (author)

  3. Mobil positioning itself to become Canada's premier oil and gas company

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thomas, A.

    1994-01-01

    To achieve its goal of becoming Canada's premier oil and gas company by the year 2000, Mobil Oil Canada is empowering its employees and applying appropriate technology to unlock resources and create value. Mobil produces 4.1 million m 3 of oil and natural gas liquids, 5.6 million m 3 /y of natural gas and 438,000 tonnes/y of sulfur. It also operates over 3,000 wells in western Canada and eleven gas processing plants, manages 1,700 km of pipeline, and has 33% interest in the Hibernia project on the Grand Banks. Oil lifting costs have decreased over the past three years from $3.40/bbl to $2.80/bbl and development costs are under $2/bbl. Innovative technology used to achieve high production and low costs include the use of three dimensional seismic surveys and horizontal drilling. Other techniques used at particular sites include installation of downhole injection regulators to control problems of segregation and metering between different water injection zones at the Carson Creek field, use of artificial lifts in gas wells, and a dual gas lift at the Rainbow Lake oil field. At the Lone Pine gas plant, the first Superclaus-99 sulfur recovery process was installed, reducing sulfur emissions by 60% and increasing recovery efficiency from 95% to 98%. Mobil has operated in Canada since 1940 and has made significant discoveries, including Canada's largest producing oil field, the Pembina. In 1971, Mobil discovered gas of commercial significance off the east coast and helped discover the Hibernia and Venture fields. The Hibernia project is scheduled to come on stream in 1997 and Mobil expects the economics of the project to be favorable, with a $12-13/bbl oil price needed to break even. 7 figs

  4. Application of Satellite SAR for Discovery and Quantification of Natural Marine Oil Seeps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amos, J.; Lai, R.; Zimmer, B.; Leiva, A.; MacDonald, I.

    2006-12-01

    Natural marine oil seeps discharge gassy drops from the seafloor. Oil drops and gas bubbles reach the surface from water depths as great as 3000m. The oil spreads rapidly, forming an invisible layer that drifts down-wind and down-current in long, linear streaks called slicks. Oil slicks are visible in SAR data because the surfactant dampens capillary waves and reduces backscatter. Application of SAR as an exploration tool in energy prospecting is well-established. We have applied this technique for discovering the chemosynthetic communities that colonize the seafloor in the vicinity of deep-water seeps on the continental margin of the Gulf of Mexico. The management goal for this effort is to prevent harmful impact to these communities resulting from exploration or production activities. The scientific goals are to delineate the zoogeography of the chemosynthetic fauna, which is widespread on continental margins, and to establish study sites where their life history can be investigated. In the course of an ongoing, multidisciplinary study in the spring and summer of 2006, we explored 20 possible sites where SAR and geophysical data indicated seeps might occur. SAR was only partly diagnostic: all sites with SAR-detected slicks were found to have biologic communities, but communities were also found at geophysical anomalies that did not produce slicks. We acquired over 60 RADARSAT SAR images from the northern Gulf of Mexico in cooperation with the Alaska Satellite Facility. The ship RV ATLANTIS was at sea during the acquisition and collected synoptic weather and oceanographic data. To automate interpretation of large image dataset we have employed texture recognition with use of a library of textons applied iteratively to the images. This treatment shows promise in distinguishing floating oil from false targets generated by rain fronts and other phenomena. One goal of the analysis is to delineate bounding boxes to quantify the ocean area covered by the thin oil layer

  5. 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.

  6. Heavy crude oil and synthetic crude market outlook

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Crandall, G.R.

    1997-01-01

    This presentation included an outline of the international heavy crude supply and demand versus Canadian heavy crude supply and disposition, and pricing outlook for synthetic crudes. Differences among crude oils such as light sweet, light sour, heavy and bitumen were described and illustrated with respect to their gravity, API, percentage of sulphur, metals and nitrogen. Internationally, heavy and sour crude supplies are forecast to increase significantly over the next four years. Discoveries of light sour crude in offshore Gulf of Mexico will provide a major new source of sour crude to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries. Venezuela's supplies of heavy and sour crude are also expected to increase over the next few years. Mexico and Canada have plans to increase their heavy crude production. All of the crudes will be aimed at the U.S. Gulf Coast and Midwest markets. Pentanes and condensates are also expected to increase based on the growing Canadian natural gas production. Diluent demand will also grow to match Canadian heavy crude/bitumen production. U.S. midwest refiners are proposing expansions to allow them to process more Canadian heavy crude oil. At present, only a few refineries are equipped to process significant amounts of synthetic crude. It was suggested that to absorb available heavy and synthetic production, increased penetration into both Canadian and U.S. markets will be required. Some refineries may have to be modified to process heavy and synthetic oil supplies. Heavy oil and synthetic producers may need to develop relationships with refiners such as joint ventures and term supply agreements to secure markets. 2 tabs., 12 figs

  7. Asset Policies during an Oil Windfall: Some Simple Analytics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gunning, J.W.; Collier, P.

    2005-01-01

    Many developing countries are currently experiencing oil windfalls, whether due to discoveries or to price effects. Such windfalls pose a series of policy dilemmas. The literature has focused on one of these: the choice between using windfall savings for public capital formation and investment in

  8. Defining Creativity with Discovery

    OpenAIRE

    Wilson, Nicholas Charles; Martin, Lee

    2017-01-01

    The standard definition of creativity has enabled significant empirical and theoretical advances, yet contains philosophical conundrums concerning the nature of novelty and the role of recognition and values. In this work we offer an act of conceptual valeting that addresses these issues and in doing so, argue that creativity definitions can be extended through the use of discovery. Drawing on dispositional realist philosophy we outline why adding the discovery and bringing into being of new ...

  9. Significance of cytochrome P450 system responses and levels of bile fluorescent aromatic compounds in marine wildlife following oil spills

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, R.F.; Anderson, J.W.

    2005-01-01

    The relationships among cytochrome P450 induction in marine wildlife species, levels of fluorescent aromatic compounds (FAC) in their bile, the chemical composition of the inducing compounds, the significance of the exposure pathway, and any resulting injury, as a consequence of exposure to crude oil following a spill, are reviewed. Fish collected after oil spills often show increases in cytochrome P450 system activity, cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) and bile fluorescent aromatic compounds (FAC), that are correlated with exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in the oil. There is also some evidence for increases in bile FAC and induction of cytochrome P450 in marine birds and mammals after oil spills. However, when observed, increases in these exposure indicators are transitory and generally decrease to background levels within one year after the exposure. Laboratory studies have shown induction of cytochrome P450 systems occurs after exposure of fish to crude oil in water, sediment or food. Most of the PAH found in crude oil (dominantly 2- and 3-ring PAH) are not strong inducers of cytochrome P450. Exposure to the 4-ring chrysenes or the photooxidized products of the PAH may account for the cytochrome P450 responses in fish collected from oil-spill sites. The contribution of non-spill background PAH, particularly combustion-derived (pyrogenic) PAH, to bile FAC and cytochrome P450 system responses can be confounding and needs to be considered when evaluating oil spill effects. The ubiquity of pyrogenic PAH makes it important to fully characterize all sources of PAH, including PAH from natural resources, e.g. retene, in oil spill studies. In addition, such parameters as species, sex, age, ambient temperature and season need to be taken into account. While increases in fish bile FAC and cytochrome P450 system responses, can together, be sensitive general indicators of PAH exposure after an oil spill, there is little unequivocal evidence to suggest a linkage to

  10. Prospects for non-OPEC oil supply

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Dell, S.

    1994-01-01

    An International Energy Agency forecast is provided of non-OPEC oil production over a 15-year horizon. Reference-case forecasts are derived from Hubbert-type resource models, official industry announcements about such matters as oil discoveries and development projects, and an oil industry consensus. Separate regional profiles are provided for North America, Europe, the former Soviet Union, and the rest of non-OPEC countries (South America, Asia, non-OPEC Middle East). Under a flat-price scenario ($18/bbl), total non-OPEC oil supply rises slightly from 41.4 million bbl/d (MBD) in 1995 to 41.9 MBD in 2010. Under a scenario in which prices rise to $28/bbl, oil supply rises to 47.5 MBD in 2010. The latter results depend on specific assumptions concerning economic growth, energy prices, the geological potential of some areas which are not yet well understood, technological advances, and the nature of political developments. Uncertainties regarding these assumptions are discussed, with reference to reserves, price responsiveness, world oil industry investment, technology, and costs. A major uncertainty is the issue of investment in the OPEC countries, since the rising-price scenario assumes that OPEC invests only reluctantly. If major OPEC producers choose to open their upstream sectors to international oil companies, the situation will change completely. Otherwise, oil markets are expected to continue to behave in the manner of the past 20 years, with highest-cost oil being developed first while cheaper oil remains in the ground. 8 refs., 10 figs., 3 tabs

  11. Panorama 2013 - The search for new oil and gas reserves

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hureau, Geoffroy; Vially, Roland

    2012-11-01

    Driven by investment in exploration that has been rising since 2004, there have been a number of spectacularly successful oil and gas discoveries over the last few years, such as the pre-salt formations found off the coast of Brazil, as well as the new gas provinces in East Africa and the Mediterranean. This trend looks set to continue in the mid-term. 2012 has been a very successful year in terms of exploration, with nearly 200 discoveries already announced by the end of October. (authors)

  12. The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Ecogenomics of the Deep-Sea Plume

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hazen, T. C.

    2012-12-01

    The explosion on April 20, 2010 at the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana, resulted in oil and gas rising to the surface and the oil coming ashore in many parts of the Gulf, it also resulted in the dispersment of an immense oil plume 4,000 feet below the surface of the water. Despite spanning more than 600 feet in the water column and extending more than 10 miles from the wellhead, the dispersed oil plume was gone within weeks after the wellhead was capped - degraded and diluted to undetectable levels. Furthermore, this degradation took place without significant oxygen depletion. Ecogenomics enabled discovery of new and unclassified species of oil-eating bacteria that apparently lives in the deep Gulf where oil seeps are common. Using 16s microarrays, functional gene arrays, clone libraries, lipid analysis and a variety of hydrocarbon and micronutrient analyses we were able to characterize the oil degraders. Metagenomic sequence data was obtained for the deep-water samples using the Illumina platform. In addition, single cells were sorted and sequenced for the some of the most dominant bacteria that were represented in the oil plume; namely uncultivated representatives of Colwellia and Oceanospirillum. In addition, we performed laboratory microcosm experiments using uncontaminated water collected from The Gulf at the depth of the oil plume to which we added oil and COREXIT. These samples were characterized by 454 pyrotag. The results provide information about the key players and processes involved in degradation of oil, with and without COREXIT, in different impacted environments in The Gulf of Mexico. We are also extending these studies to explore dozens of deep sediment samples that were also collected after the oil spill around the wellhead. This data suggests that a great potential for intrinsic bioremediation of oil plumes exists in the deep-sea and other environs in the Gulf of Mexico.

  13. Labor, nationalism, and imperialism in eastern Arabia: Britain, the Shaikhs, and the Gulf oil workers in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, 1932-1956

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Saleh, H.M.A.

    1991-01-01

    This study examines the lack of a noticeable indigenous labor movement in the contemporary Gulf Arab countries of Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar; it focuses on the emergence, after the discovery of oil, of an industrial Gulf labor force, and on the evolution of the British policy towards oil and Gulf oil workers. The period examined begins with the discovery of oil in Bahrain in 1932 (the first such discovery on the Arab side of the Gulf), and ends with the Suez Crisis of 1956. The latter is a watershed event in Gulf history. It is argued that the Suez Crisis was in large part responsible for the long-term defeat of the indigenous labor movement in the Gulf. Attention is given to the parts played by the British Government of India, the Foreign Office, the local Shaikhs, the Gulf nationalists, and by the workers themselves. Policies towards workers passed through two different periods. In the first, 1932-1945, the Government of India had no direct interest in the Gulf labor situation; in the second, 1946-1956, the Foreign Office took increased interest in the welfare of local oil workers, primarily because of the importance of oil to reconstruction of the British economy after the war. However, the Suez Crisis in 1956 convinced the British to withdraw their support for the workers

  14. Cyclic Investigation of Geophysical Studies in the Exploration and Discovery of Natural Resources in Our Country; Uelkemizdeki Dogal Kaynaklarin Aranmasi ve Bulunmasinda Jeofizik Calismalarin Doenemsel Incelenmesi

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gonulalan, A U [TPAO, Research Department, Ankara (Turkey)

    2007-07-01

    Although the methods of exploration geophysics were first utilized after the discovery of an oil field in 1921, they have also applied in the old centuries. Likewise, the half of the total production in the United States of America is covered by new oil fields discovered by utilizing geophysical methods. The industry's energy necessity increases the interest to oil. The investments in the field of geophysics by the companies which makes large amount of money in order to discover new oil fields, widespread use of computers, the developments of space technology and world-wide nuclear competition even though its great danger for human beings have great share in the development of geophysics. Our country has 18 different types mines which has more than 10 billion $ potential. Geophysical engineers have great Kowledge and labor in the discovery of 1,795 trillion wealth from borax to building stone, and 60 billion $ oil and gas. On the other hand, as 1,5 billion investment in the field of geophysics is only 0.08 % of total investments, the increase of investments will add more contribution.

  15. The significance of different diacylgycerol synthesis pathways on plant oil composition and bioengineering

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip David Bates

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The unique properties of vegetable oils from different plants utilized for food, industrial feedstocks, and fuel is dependent on the fatty acid (FA composition of triacylglycerol (TAG. Plants can use two main pathways to produce diacylglycerol (DAG, the immediate precursor molecule to TAG synthesis: 1 De novo DAG synthesis, and 2 conversion of the membrane lipid phosphatidylcholine (PC to DAG. The FA esterified to PC are also the substrate for FA modification (e.g. desaturation, hydroxylation, etc., such that the FA composition of PC-derived DAG can be substantially different than that of de novo DAG. Since DAG provides two of the three FA in TAG, the relative flux of TAG synthesis from de novo DAG or PC-derived DAG can greatly affect the final oil FA composition. Here we review how the fluxes through these two alternate pathways of DAG/TAG synthesis are determined and present evidence that suggests which pathway is utilized in different plants. Additionally, we present examples of how the endogenous DAG synthesis pathway in a transgenic host plant can produce bottlenecks for engineering of plant oil FA composition, and discuss alternative strategies to overcome these bottlenecks to produce crop plants with designer vegetable oil compositions.

  16. Cognitive methodology for forecasting oil and gas industry using pattern-based neural information technologies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gafurov, O.; Gafurov, D.; Syryamkin, V.

    2018-05-01

    The paper analyses a field of computer science formed at the intersection of such areas of natural science as artificial intelligence, mathematical statistics, and database theory, which is referred to as "Data Mining" (discovery of knowledge in data). The theory of neural networks is applied along with classical methods of mathematical analysis and numerical simulation. The paper describes the technique protected by the patent of the Russian Federation for the invention “A Method for Determining Location of Production Wells during the Development of Hydrocarbon Fields” [1–3] and implemented using the geoinformation system NeuroInformGeo. There are no analogues in domestic and international practice. The paper gives an example of comparing the forecast of the oil reservoir quality made by the geophysicist interpreter using standard methods and the forecast of the oil reservoir quality made using this technology. The technical result achieved shows the increase of efficiency, effectiveness, and ecological compatibility of development of mineral deposits and discovery of a new oil deposit.

  17. The Brazilian 2010 oil regulatory framework and its crowding-out investment effects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Florêncio, Pedro

    2016-01-01

    Investment is an essential variable in the oil sector. It is even more important in the vast Brazilian pre-salt domains, where the technological requirements are high and sophisticated. The Brazilian National Oil Company, Petrobras, is facing severe financial limitations to undertake these disbursements. Other oil companies will therefore have to be significantly engaged in the endeavour, which reinforces further the importance of attracting investments in Brazil. Yet this article shows that the governance architecture established in the 2010 Brazilian oil framework will deter investments in several ways, giving rise to agency problems among entities and moral hazard situations because of contractual legal liabilities. There are some credible indications that the government of President Lula overestimated the attractiveness of the Brazilian pre-salt oil discoveries and their capacity to draw investments when proposing the 2010 changes. Little attention was given to the careful examination of how the framework would affect investors, under the assumption that the favourable geological conditions would be sufficiently attractive in themselves. Even though the 2010 reforms have brought some minor advancements and there have been some signs that the government has been recently attempting to mitigate some of the problems examined in this article, that is not enough. - Highlights: • The Brazilian regulatory oil framework deters investments in the country. • The governance setting between entities is one of its worse aspects. • It causes agency problems and moral hazard situations. • Brazil has to urgently tackle these investment hindrances.

  18. The Atlantic Basin: A New Africa-Americas Oil and Gas Geopolitical Arena

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Auge, Benjamin

    2014-01-01

    The Atlantic Ocean (North and Latin America, Africa and Europe) is bordered by states experiencing a significant change in their relationships regarding hydrocarbons. The rapid development of shale oil and gas in USA allows the country more and more independence from African states in the gulf of Guinea. Some of these producing countries like Nigeria are worried that the special political and security ties with America will turn into a mere trade relationship. Africa's excess oil and gas capacity, no longer sold to USA, is bought by Latin America and Europe (alongside countries such as India). Oil and gas transactions are creating new networks and fresh ties between countries from these zones that previously had to do with each other. From a geological perspective, the Atlantic Ocean is bordered by coastal countries with multiple similarities, and which we will refer to as the Atlantic basin. Millions of years back, they formed one single continent. Oil companies, bearing this geological similarity in mind and profiting from better technology, apply for oil blocks on one side of the Atlantic basin whenever a discovery is made on the opposite side. New relationships are thus flourishing between Latin-American and African states. New players, competing to control new zones, gives rise to a fresh geopolitical situation that we are going to examine in this article

  19. Revealing Significant Relations between Chemical/Biological Features and Activity: Associative Classification Mining for Drug Discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Pulan

    2012-01-01

    Classification, clustering and association mining are major tasks of data mining and have been widely used for knowledge discovery. Associative classification mining, the combination of both association rule mining and classification, has emerged as an indispensable way to support decision making and scientific research. In particular, it offers a…

  20. Egret-Hibernia(!), a significant petroleum system, northern Grand Banks area, offshore eastern Canada

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magoon, L.B.; Hudson, T.L.; Peters, K.E.

    2005-01-01

    Egret-Hibernia(!) is a well-explored petroleum system (3.25 billion barrels oil equivalent [BOE]) located in the Jeanne d'Arc Basin on the Labrador - Newfoundland shelf. Rifting and sediment fill began in the Late Triassic. Egret source rock was deposited in the Late Jurassic at about 153 Ma. After this time, alternating reservoir rock and seal rock were deposited with some syndepositional faulting. By the end of the Early Cretaceous, faults and folds had formed numerous structural traps. For the next 100 m.y., overburden rock thermally matured the source rock when it reached almost 4 km (2.5 mi) burial depth. For 2 km (1.25 mi) below this depth, oil and gas were expelled, until the source was depleted. The expelled petroleum migrated updip to nearby faulted, anticlinal traps, where much of it migrated across faults and upsection to the Hibernia Formation (44% recoverable oil) and Avalon Formation (28%). Accumulation size decreased, and gas content increased from west to east, independent of trap size. These changes correspond to a decrease in source rock richness and quality from west to east. Almost all (96%) of the discovered petroleum resides in the Lower Cretaceous or older reservoir rock units. All accumulations found to date are normally pressured in structural traps. Fifty-two exploration wells found eighteen discoveries. Their size ranges from 1.2 to 0.01 billion BOE. Most discoveries were made between 1979 and 1991. The discovery cycle began with larger accumulations and progressed to smaller accumulations. The estimated sizes of the larger accumulations have grown since 1990. Estimated mean value for undiscovered hydrocarbons is 3.8 billion BOE, thereby raising the ultimate size of Egret-Hibernia(!) to 6.19 billion BOE. Copyright ?? 2005. The American Association of Petroleum Geologists. All rights reserved.

  1. Saudi Arabia's oil policy after 1. oil crisis explained with the help of a cartel model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Linderoth, H.

    1992-01-01

    Saudi Arabian oil policy is analyzed by using a cartel model where Saudi Arabia's oil production is a function of oil price and oil production in other OPEC countries. Elasticities for oil production and oil price are estimated covering oil crises and 3 intercrises periods. During all intercrises periods, production elasticity is not significantly different from 1 which, to a considerable extent, shows that the oil production in Saudi Arabia followed that of the other OPEC countries. During oil crisis periods, production elasticities were either significantly negative or not significantly different from zero. In most cases, the price elasticity was not significantly different from zero. (au)

  2. 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)

  3. Oil and gas field development: an NOC perspective

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kronman, George [Halliburton Energy Services (United States). Landmark Division

    2004-07-01

    Every day, oil companies around the world face real-life field development and management problems like the ones described above. Making timely and well-informed field development decisions are among the most important decisions the management of any oil company can make. The field development phase of the oil and gas life cycle extends from the discovery of a hydrocarbon deposit through initial production. It also includes revitalization of mature and marginal fields. Field development projects require the greatest level of cross-disciplinary integration and the largest investment decisions in the entire oil field life cycle. The ultimate economic success or failure of most fields is set by the quality of decisions made during field development. Oil companies take many different approaches to field development based on unique business drivers, their asset portfolio mix and risk tolerance, access to data and experienced manpower, adoption of technology, availability of capital, ownership, management style and so on. This paper focuses on understanding and addressing the particular field development challenges facing NOCs today. (author)

  4. International oil and gas exploration and development activities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1990-10-29

    This report is part of an ongoing series of quarterly publications that monitors discoveries of oil and natural gas in foreign countries and provides an analysis of the reserve additions that result. The report is prepared by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) of the US Department of Energy (DOE) under the Foreign Energy Supply Assessment Program (FESAP). It presents a summary of discoveries and reserve additions that result from recent international exploration and development activities. It is intended for use by petroleum industry analysts, various government agencies, and political leaders in the development, implementation, and evaluation of energy plans, policy, and legislation. 25 refs., 8 figs., 4 tabs.

  5. Alberta's conventional oil supply: How much? How long?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heath, M.

    1992-01-01

    To assess the future conventional crude oil supply potential in Alberta, a modelling system was designed with the capacity to determine the fraction of existing and potential reserves which could prove technically, economically and/or commercially viable over time. The reference case analysis described assumed constant real oil prices and fiscal burdens, capital and operating costs. Reserve additions from new pool discoveries were summed with reserves from existing pools to arrive at an estimate of the potential supply of established reserves in each play area. The established reserves from all plays were then totalled to provide the provincial conventional oil resource potential. Alberta's recoverable conventional crude oil reserves were shown to be declining at about 2 percent per year. However, even with declining recoverable reserves and relatively low prices, the results of the study indicated that the conventional oil industry remained a major revenue generator for the province and would continue to be so over the next 15 to 20 years. Improved operating efficiencies, cost reductions, reasonable prices and cooperation between industry and government were shown to be necessary to assure the continued viability of Alberta's conventional oil industry. figs., tabs., 11 refs

  6. Prospects for world oil supply

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Esser, R.W.

    1991-01-01

    Surprises lie ahead for world oil supplies, which are expected to increase rapidly throughout the 1990s before leveling off by the end of the century. The extent of this increase could be the major surprise of the decade. Large increases in the capacity in Gulf countries accompanied by smaller increases in the non-Middle East OPEC countries will be augmented by a gradual increase in non-OPEC capacity into the late 1990s. By 2000, declining capacity in the latter two areas will offset continued capacity increases in the Gulf countries. Overall capacity in the non-OPEC countries (excluding China, Eastern Europe, and the Soviet Union), is expected to increase by 1.1 million BOPD from the low point in the early 1990s to a mid 1990s peak. The increase will be led by a large increase in capacity from the United Kingdom and smaller contributions from the non-Middle East OPEC countries and Mexico. In the forecast, emphasis has been placed on a detailed evaluation of recent significant discoveries made in non-OPEC countries and non-Middle East OPEC countries since 1983, which when taken together, are expected to add 8 million BOPD new capacity as soon as 1995. These discoveries have taken place in both existing and evolving exploration hotspots that are expected to receive increasing industry emphasis in the 1990s

  7. Dalhart's only Permian field gets best oil well

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Land, R.

    1992-01-01

    This paper reports that activity is picking up in Proctor Ranch oil field in the northwestern Texas panhandle, the only Permian producing field in the lightly drilled Dalhart basin. During the last 2 1/2 months, the field has a new operator and a new producing well, the best of five drilled since discovery in 1990. Corlena Oil Co., Amarillo, acquired the field from McKinney Oil Co. in May and tested its first well in early July. The 1-64 Proctor, 18 miles west of Channing, pumped at rates as high as 178 bd of oil and 6 b/d of water from Permian Wolfcamp dolomite perforations at 4,016-29 ft. Corlena plans to drill another well south of the field soon. The lease requires that the next well be spudded by early November. The field appears to be combination structural-stratigraphic trap in which the dolomite pinches out against the Bravo Domes-Oldham nose to the west

  8. East Africa, an oil geopolitics at high risk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Auge, Benjamin

    2012-11-01

    As the Sub-Saharan African oil production has been concentrated in the Guinea Gulf countries since the 1950's, as this region remains the main African oil producer (Maghreb excluded), and as new discoveries has been made in Uganda in 2006 and exploration has been extended to neighbouring countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique), this report first questions the situation of the exploration of the Albert Lake by proposing an overview of intervening actors, by commenting the political use of the debate about oil, by commenting the situation on the Congolese side of the lake, and by commenting how the lake is shared between Uganda and the Republic of Congo. In the next part, the author discusses the use and future of the Ugandan oil by outlining the role of the Essar company in the regional refining, and by evoking projects of regional pipelines. The last part addresses the status of exploration in other East African countries (Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Mozambique)

  9. Brazil: good news for oil is bad news for alcohol

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knight, Patrick

    1999-01-01

    The impact of the doubling of oil prices and the devaluation of the Brazilian currency on the alcohol fuel programme is examined in this article, and the recent discovery by the Brazilian oil company, Petrobras, of a major new offshore oil field, the government's efforts to boost the consumption of alcohol fuel with subsidies and cheap loans, and the lower costs of running alcohol powered cars are discussed. Details of a major restructuring of the alcohol industry, the production of alcohol between 1994-1999, the boom in sugar exports, the glut of sugar cane, the falling confidence of motorists in alcohol powered cars, and the general move away from subsidies spearheaded by the World Trade Organisation are considered. (UK)

  10. Records of wells drilled for oil and gas in New Mexico

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dixon, G.H.; Baltz, D.H.; Stipp, T.F.; Bieberman, R.A.

    1954-01-01

    Data concerning nearly 3,000 of the more than 13,000 wells drilled in New Mexico, before September 1, 1953, including unsuccessful wildcat and field extension wells and most of the discovery wells, have been compiled and are published in this circular. Although the search for oil and gas has extended to all parts of the State, most of the wells and all the oil and natural gas fields are located in the northwest and southeast quadrants of the State.

  11. Reserve growth of the world's giant oil fields

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klett, T.R.; Schmoker, J.W.

    2005-01-01

    Analysis of estimated total recoverable oil volume (field size) of 186 well-known giant oil fields of the world (>0.5 billion bbl of oil, discovered prior to 1981), exclusive of the United States and Canada, demonstrates general increases in field sizes through time. Field sizes were analyzed as a group and within subgroups of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC countries. From 1981 through 1996, the estimated volume of oil in the 186 fields for which adequate data were available increased from 617 billion to 777 billion bbl of oil (26%). Processes other than new field discoveries added an estimated 160 billion bbl of oil to known reserves in this subset of the world's oil fields. Although methods for estimating field sizes vary among countries, estimated sizes of the giant oil fields of the world increased, probably for many of the same reasons that estimated sizes of oil fields in the United States increased over the same time period. Estimated volumes in OPEC fields increased from a total of 550 billion to 668 billion bbl of oil and volumes in non-OPEC fields increased from 67 billion to 109 billion bbl of oil. In terms of percent change, non-OPEC field sizes increased more than OPEC field sizes (63% versus 22%). The changes in estimated total recoverable oil volumes that occurred within three 5-year increments between 1981 and 1996 were all positive. Between 1981 and 1986, the increase in estimated total recoverable oil volume within the 186 giant oil fields was 11 billion bbl of oil; between 1986 and 1991, the increase was 120 billion bbl of oil; and between 1991 and 1996, the increase was 29 billion bbl of oil. Fields in both OPEC and non-OPEC countries followed trends of substantial reserve growth.

  12. Volatility Discovery

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dias, Gustavo Fruet; Scherrer, Cristina; Papailias, Fotis

    The price discovery literature investigates how homogenous securities traded on different markets incorporate information into prices. We take this literature one step further and investigate how these markets contribute to stochastic volatility (volatility discovery). We formally show...... that the realized measures from homogenous securities share a fractional stochastic trend, which is a combination of the price and volatility discovery measures. Furthermore, we show that volatility discovery is associated with the way that market participants process information arrival (market sensitivity......). Finally, we compute volatility discovery for 30 actively traded stocks in the U.S. and report that Nyse and Arca dominate Nasdaq....

  13. 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)

  14. Geopolitical connections problems of oil and gas industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Andreatta, F.

    1998-01-01

    The connections between diplomatic alignments and economic policy and the strategic nature of energy resources affect the foreign policies of major powers. The discovery of vast oil and gas deposits in Central Asia and the Transcaucasus represents an important alternative source other than the Middle East. However, it also presents serious geopolitical problems given the persistence of multiple regional conflicts [it

  15. North Sea oil, the UK economy and macroeconomic adjustment -an overview, theoretical and simulation analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harvie, Charles

    1992-01-01

    The discovery and production of oil from the UK sector of the North Sea has had, and will continue to have for some time yet, an important impact upon developments in that economy. This paper is concerned with identifying the major characteristics of this oil production, and the macroeconomic developments which have arisen in the UK during its period of production. A theoretical framework, incorporating these characteristics, is developed, to identify the contribution of oil production and price changes to these as well as future developments. (author)

  16. The effect of oil pulling with pure coconut oil on Streptococcus mutans: A randomized controlled trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Varsha Komath Pavithran

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Oil pulling as described in ancient Ayurveda involves the use of edible vegetable oils as oral antibacterial agents. It is a practice of swishing oil in the mouth for oral and systemic health benefits. Pure coconut oil has antimicrobial properties and is commonly available in all Indian households. Aim: This study aims to assess the effect of oil pulling therapy with pure coconut oil on Streptococcus mutans count and to compare its efficacy against sesame oil and saline. Materials and Methods: A randomized controlled concurrent parallel- triple blinded clinical trial was conducted. Thirty participants in age range of 20–23 years were randomly allocated into Group A (coconut oil, Group B (sesame oil, and Group C (saline, with 10 in each group. The participants were instructed to swish and pull 10 ml of oil on empty stomach, early morning for 10–15 min. Unstimulated saliva collected before and after oil pulling procedure was analyzed for colony forming units (CFU per ml saliva of S. mutans. The data were analyzed using paired t-test, ANOVA, and post hoc analysis using Tukey's honest significant difference. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results: A statistically significant reduction in S. mutans CFU count after oil pulling with pure coconut oil (P = 0.001 was found. There was no statistically significant difference between sesame oil and coconut oil (P = 0.97 and between sesame oil and saline (P = 0.061. When efficacy of coconut oil against saline was evaluated, a statistical significant difference (P = 0.039 was found. Conclusion: Oil pulling is an effective method for oral hygiene maintenance as it significantly reduces S. mutans count in the saliva.

  17. Oil in the FFTF secondary loop cover gas piping. Final unusual occurrence report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuechle, J.D.

    1981-01-01

    The final unusual occurrence report describes the discovery of oil in the FFTF secondary sodium system cover gas piping. A thorough evaluation has been performed and corrective actions have been implemented to prevent a recurrence of this event

  18. Assessment of volatile compound profiles and the deduced sensory significance of virgin olive oils from the progeny of Picual×Arbequina cultivars.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez, Ana G; de la Rosa, Raúl; Pascual, Mar; Sánchez-Ortiz, Araceli; Romero-Segura, Carmen; León, Lorenzo; Sanz, Carlos

    2016-01-08

    Volatile compounds are responsible for most of the sensory qualities of virgin olive oil and they are synthesized when enzymes and substrates come together as olive fruit is crushed during the industrial process to obtain the oil. Here we have studied the variability among the major volatile compounds in virgin olive oil prepared from the progeny of a cross of Picual and Arbequina olive cultivars (Olea europaea L.). The volatile compounds were isolated by SPME, and analyzed by HRGC-MS and HRGC-FID. Most of the volatile compounds found in the progeny's oil are produced by the enzymes in the so-called lipoxygenase pathway, and they may be clustered into different groups according to their chain length and polyunsaturated fatty acid origin (linoleic and linolenic acids). In addition, a group of compounds derived from amino acid metabolism and two terpenes also contributed significantly to the volatile fraction, some of which had significant odor values in most of the genotypes evaluated. The volatile compound content of the progeny was very varied, widely transgressing the progenitor levels, suggesting that in breeding programs it might be more effective to consider a larger number of individuals within the same cross than using different crosses with fewer individuals. Multivariate analysis allowed genotypes with particularly interesting volatile compositions to be identified and their flavor quality deduced. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. effect of thermoxidised groundnut oil on aminotransferase activity of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    PROF. BARTH EKWEME

    age of globalization. Makurdi, Nigeria. 82. Osim, E. E., Owu, D. U., Isong, E. U and Umoh, I. B.,. 1994. Influence of chronic consumption of thermoxidised palm oil diet on basal metabolic rate, body weight and morphology of tissues in rats. Discovery and Innovation (6): 389- 396. Owu, D. U., Osim, E. E and Ebong, P. E., 1998.

  20. Compositional modification of crude oil during oil recovery

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhu, Yangming; Weng, Huanxin [Department of Earth Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027 (China); Chen, Zulin; Chen, Qi [Petroleum Geochemistry Research Center, Jianghan Petroleum University, Jingzhou, Hubei (China)

    2003-05-01

    Ten crude oils from two recovery stages spanning 5-10-year interval of five productive wells in the Tarim Basin, northwest China were analyzed for their compositional modification during production process. Significant compositional changes in polar and nonpolar fractions between the previous oil samples and the latter ones were noted at both bulk and molecular level. The latter oil samples appear to contain more aromatic fraction and less asphaltenes and resin, and their gas chromatography (GC) data for whole oil show reduced alkanes with low molecular weight and enhanced high homologue relative to the previous oil samples. Compared with the oils collected from the previous recovery stage, the concentration of basic type of nitrogen-containing compounds and organic acids in oils from the latter recovery stage have a reducing trend, suggesting the occurrence of interaction between crude oil and reservoir rock.

  1. Report on the oil and gas sector in Ecuador

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1990-01-01

    After a brief introduction on the economic and political situation in Ecuador, the state of the country's oil and gas sector is reviewed. Before 1967, all oil came from wells along the Pacific coast, but with discoveries in the Amazon Basin, the opening of the trans-Ecuador pipeline, and creation of the state oil company CEPE (renamed Petroecuador in 1990) by the early 1970s, a boom in the industry occurred. Current proven reserves stand at 1.2-1.5 billion bbl of oil and 140 billion ft 3 of natural gas. Current production is generally around 300,000 bbl/d, mostly from the Petroecuador-Texaco consortium block in the Amazon Basin. Petroecuador now operates the main oil export pipeline and has subsidiaries responsible for exploration and production, refining, and the marketing of petroleum and its derivatives. In recent years Petroecuador has imported about $60 million worth of goods annually, offering a market opportunity for foreign companies supplying goods and services to the oil and gas industry. Market opportunities of interest to Canadian companies are outlined, local procedures for doing business are presented, and lists of Canadian and Ecuadorian contacts are provided. 3 figs., 5 tabs

  2. Aldehydic acids in frying oils: formation, toxicological significance and analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kamal-Eldin, Afaf

    1996-10-01

    Full Text Available Aldehydic acids are generated in oxidized lipids as a result of decomposition of hydroperoxides by (β-scission reactions. Aldehydes are known to interact with proteins and DNA and to impair enzymatic functions. Aldehydic esters from oxidized lipids were reabsorbed to a significant extent in rats. This paper reviews the mechanism of formation of esterified aldehydic acids in frying oils and their physiological/toxicological effects. The paper also gives an overview of relevant basic analytical techniques that needs to be improved to establish reliable quantitative method (s.

    Ácidos aldehídicos son producidos en lípidos oxidados como resultado de la descomposición de hidroperóxidos por reacciones de (β-escición. Es conocido que los aldehídos interaccionan con las proteínas y el ADN y debilitan las funciones enzimáticas. Los esteres aldehídicos de lípidos oxidados fueron reabsorbidos en una cantidad significativa en ratas. Este artículo revisa los mecanismos de formación de ácidos aldehídicos esterificados en aceites de fritura y sus efectos fisiológicos/toxicológicos. El artículo también ofrece una visión de conjunto de las técnicas analíticas básicas que necesitan ser mejoradas para establecer métodos cuantitativos fiables.

  3. Oil spill contamination probability in the southeastern Levantine basin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldman, Ron; Biton, Eli; Brokovich, Eran; Kark, Salit; Levin, Noam

    2015-02-15

    Recent gas discoveries in the eastern Mediterranean Sea led to multiple operations with substantial economic interest, and with them there is a risk of oil spills and their potential environmental impacts. To examine the potential spatial distribution of this threat, we created seasonal maps of the probability of oil spill pollution reaching an area in the Israeli coastal and exclusive economic zones, given knowledge of its initial sources. We performed simulations of virtual oil spills using realistic atmospheric and oceanic conditions. The resulting maps show dominance of the alongshore northerly current, which causes the high probability areas to be stretched parallel to the coast, increasing contamination probability downstream of source points. The seasonal westerly wind forcing determines how wide the high probability areas are, and may also restrict these to a small coastal region near source points. Seasonal variability in probability distribution, oil state, and pollution time is also discussed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Correlation of structural lineaments with oil discoveries in Potwar sub-basin, Pakistan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Iqbal, M.; Ali, S.M.

    2001-01-01

    The Potwar sub-basin is located in the foothills of western Himalayas. It is developed as a result of continent collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates. This sub-basin is one of the major oil and gas producing-region of the country. Clastics of Cambrian, Permian, Jurassic, Paleocene, and carbonates of Permian, Paleocene, and Eocene are producing reservoir. Fractured and eocene carbonate reservoirs (Sakesar and Chorgali) are the main producing horizons in the region. Shale of infra-Cambrian-Cambrian and Paleocene are the main source rocks in the area. Interpretation of satellite data for lineament analysis coupled with stress models indicate that 63% of oil and gas fields fall along and 37% within 2-5 km radius of extensional lineaments and their corresponding open fractured zones developed due to various stress regimes. It is therefore suggested that exploration for hydrocarbon may be targeted in the strike extension of the mentioned lineaments in areas where optimum conditions for hydrocarbon generation exist. (author)

  5. RESEARCH OIL RECOVERY MECHANISMS IN HEAVY OIL RESERVOIRS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Anthony R. Kovscek; William E. Brigham

    1999-06-01

    The United States continues to rely heavily on petroleum fossil fuels as a primary energy source, while domestic reserves dwindle. However, so-called heavy oil (10 to 20{sup o}API) remains an underutilized resource of tremendous potential. Heavy oils are much more viscous than conventional oils. As a result, they are difficult to produce with conventional recovery methods such as pressure depletion and water injection. Thermal recovery is especially important for this class of reservoirs because adding heat, usually via steam injection, generally reduces oil viscosity dramatically. This improves displacement efficiency. The research described here was directed toward improved understanding of thermal and heavy-oil production mechanisms and is categorized into: (1) flow and rock properties; (2) in-situ combustion; (3) additives to improve mobility control; (4) reservoir definition; and (5) support services. The scope of activities extended over a three-year period. Significant work was accomplished in the area of flow properties of steam, water, and oil in consolidated and unconsolidated porous media, transport in fractured porous media, foam generation and flow in homogeneous and heterogeneous porous media, the effects of displacement pattern geometry and mobility ratio on oil recovery, and analytical representation of water influx. Significant results are described.

  6. Mineral oil hydrocarbons in food - a review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grob, Koni

    2018-06-12

    Work on mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOH) contaminating food is reviewed up to about 2010, when the subject received broad publicity. It covers the period of the main discoveries and elimination or reduction of the dominant sources: release agents used in industrial bakeries, spraying of rice, additions to animal feed, contamination of edible oils from various sources and migration from paperboard packaging. In most cases highly refined ("white") oils were involved, but also technical oils, e.g. from the environment, and more or less crude oil fractions from jute and sisal bags. There were numerous unexpected sources, and there might still be more of those. The exposure of the consumers to MOH must have been markedly reduced in the meantime. Environmental influx may have become dominant, particularly when taking into account that these MOH go through several degradation processes which might enrich the species resisting metabolic elimination. Major gaps are in the systematic investigation of sources and the largely unavoidable levels from environmental contamination, but also in the toxicological evaluation of the various types of hydrocarbons. A regulation is overdue that avoids the present discrepancy between the low tolerance to MOH perceived as contaminants and the very high legal limits for some applications - the MOH are largely the same.

  7. Oil in Syria between Terrorism and Dictatorship

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hussein Almohamad

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available The sale of oil and gas is one of the most important components of the Syrian economy. Unfortunately, since the discovery of these resources, the Syrian people have not benefited from the revenues earned. This study deals with the development of oil and gas production and the geographical distribution of fields, as well as production control, deterioration of production, refining and selling mechanisms, and the resulting health and environmental impacts following Islamic State’s (IS control of the majority of oilfields in Syria. Since summer 2015, IS controls 80% of the fields with a production of 65,000 barrels per day (b/d; the Assad regime controls 8% of fields with 10,000 b/d; and Kurdish forces dominate the remaining 12% with 25,000 b/d. IS depends on oil as a major source of financing for its military and civilian activities, and has also managed to set up an extensive network of middlemen in neighbouring territories and countries, with the aim of trading crude oil for cash and other resources. IS produces and exports within its areas of control and sells part of the oil to the Assad regime, and another portion to the liberated areas, as well as to Iraq and Turkey.

  8. Effects of fish oil type, lipid antioxidants and presence of rapeseed oil on oxidative flavour stability of fish oil enriched milk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruni Let, Mette; Jacobsen, Charlotte; Meyer, Anne S.

    2004-01-01

    As a part of our ongoing experiments on optimization of the oxidative stability of fish oils in genuine food systems, this study investigated the oxidative deterioration of fish oil enriched milk emulsions during cold storage. The experimental data showed that addition of rapeseed oil to fish oil...... (1:1) prior to emulsification into milk significantly protected the emulsions against oxidative deterioration. Addition of propyl gallate and a citric acid ester to the fish oil prior to emulsification also protected the fish oil enriched milk during storage. Emulsions containing a rapeseed:fish oil...... mixture were oxidatively stable during 11 d at 2 øC. Thus, no additional inhibitory effect of the added antioxidants was observed. The peroxide value and concentrations of five selected volatiles derived from n- 3 PUFA degradation in rapeseed:fish oil mixture emulsions were not significantly different...

  9. Iranian-Oil-Free Zone and international oil prices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Farzanegan, Mohammad Reza; Raeisian Parvari, Mozhgan

    2014-01-01

    One of the main elements of economic sanctions against Iran due to its nuclear and military programs is crude oil exportation restrictions in addition to investment in Iranian energy related projects. Senders of such sanction are interested in understanding the impacts of such embargos on international oil prices. We apply unrestricted vector autoregressive (VAR) model, using impulse response functions (IRF) and variance decomposition analysis (VDA) tools with annual data from 1965 to 2012 to analyze the dynamic response of international oil prices to Iranian oil export sanction. Controlling for the supply of non-Iranian oil, the world GDP per capita, and post-Islamic revolution exogenous dummy variables, we show that international oil prices respond negatively and statistically significant to increasing shock in absolute negative changes of the Iranian oil exports – our proxy of Iran oil sanctions – following the first 2 years after shock. The main reason is the positive response of the non-Iranian oil supply to negative shocks in Iranian oil exports, filling the missing supply of Iranian oil in international markets. - Highlights: • We analyze the interconnections between Iranian oil supply and global oil prices. • We use VAR modeling and annual data from 1965 to 2012 for the case of Iran. • There are no inflationary effects of Iranian oil sanction on world oil prices. • Non-Iranian oil supply offsets the missing Iranian oil in the market

  10. Book Review: Dispute Resolution and e-Discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Milton Luoma

    2012-09-01

    Full Text Available Garrie, D.B., & Griver, Y.M., Eds. (2012. Dispute Resolution and e-Discovery. Thomson Reuters Westlaw, 570 pages, ISBN-13: 9780314604484, US$149.00.Reviewed by Milton Luoma, JD, (Milt.Luoma@metrostate.eduAs is apparent from its title, this book tackles two very current and difficult legal issues – electronic discovery and dispute resolution. The authors tie the two legal concepts together in an effort to provide litigants and practitioners a less expensive and less time consuming alternative than is typically the case with traditional litigation and court proceedings. By including electronic discovery in the discussions, the authors recognize the importance and significance of electronic discovery in mediation and arbitration as it is in traditional litigation.(see PDF for full review

  11. Discovery radiomics via evolutionary deep radiomic sequencer discovery for pathologically proven lung cancer detection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafiee, Mohammad Javad; Chung, Audrey G; Khalvati, Farzad; Haider, Masoom A; Wong, Alexander

    2017-10-01

    While lung cancer is the second most diagnosed form of cancer in men and women, a sufficiently early diagnosis can be pivotal in patient survival rates. Imaging-based, or radiomics-driven, detection methods have been developed to aid diagnosticians, but largely rely on hand-crafted features that may not fully encapsulate the differences between cancerous and healthy tissue. Recently, the concept of discovery radiomics was introduced, where custom abstract features are discovered from readily available imaging data. We propose an evolutionary deep radiomic sequencer discovery approach based on evolutionary deep intelligence. Motivated by patient privacy concerns and the idea of operational artificial intelligence, the evolutionary deep radiomic sequencer discovery approach organically evolves increasingly more efficient deep radiomic sequencers that produce significantly more compact yet similarly descriptive radiomic sequences over multiple generations. As a result, this framework improves operational efficiency and enables diagnosis to be run locally at the radiologist's computer while maintaining detection accuracy. We evaluated the evolved deep radiomic sequencer (EDRS) discovered via the proposed evolutionary deep radiomic sequencer discovery framework against state-of-the-art radiomics-driven and discovery radiomics methods using clinical lung CT data with pathologically proven diagnostic data from the LIDC-IDRI dataset. The EDRS shows improved sensitivity (93.42%), specificity (82.39%), and diagnostic accuracy (88.78%) relative to previous radiomics approaches.

  12. A critical review of IEA's oil demand forecast for China

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nel, Willem P.; Cooper, Christopher J.

    2008-01-01

    China has a rapidly growing economy with a rapidly increasing demand for oil. The International Energy Agency (IEA) investigated possible future oil demand scenarios for China in the 2006 World Energy Outlook. The debate on whether oil supplies will be constrained in the near future, because of limited new discoveries, raises the concern that the oil industry may not be able to produce sufficient oil to meet this demand. This paper examines the historical relationship between economic growth and oil consumption in a number of countries. Logistic curve characteristics are observed in the relationship between per capita economic activity and oil consumption. This research has determined that the minimum statistical (lower-bound) annual oil consumption for developed countries is 11 barrels per capita. Despite the increase reported in total energy efficiency, no developed country has been able to reduce oil consumption below this lower limit. Indeed, the IEA projections to 2030 for the OECD countries show no reduction in oil demand on a per capita basis. If this lower limit is applied to China, it is clear that the IEA projections for China are under-estimating the growth in demand for oil. This research has determined that this under-estimation could be as high as 10 million barrels per day by 2025. If proponents of Peak Oil such as Laherrere, Campbell and Deffeyes are correct about the predicted peak in oil production before 2020 then the implications of this reassessment of China's oil demand will have profound implications for mankind

  13. Discovery of a Giant Chameleon-Like Lizard (Anolis) on Hispaniola and Its Significance to Understanding Replicated Adaptive Radiations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahler, D Luke; Lambert, Shea M; Geneva, Anthony J; Ng, Julienne; Hedges, S Blair; Losos, Jonathan B; Glor, Richard E

    2016-09-01

    We report a new chameleon-like Anolis species from Hispaniola that is ecomorphologically similar to congeners found only on Cuba. Lizards from both clades possess short limbs and a short tail and utilize relatively narrow perches, leading us to recognize a novel example of ecomorphological matching among islands in the well-known Greater Antillean anole radiation. This discovery supports the hypothesis that the assembly of island faunas can be substantially deterministic and highlights the continued potential for basic discovery to reveal new insights in well-studied groups. Restricted to a threatened band of midelevation transitional forest near the border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, this new species appears to be highly endangered.

  14. Brine crude oil interactions at the oil-water interface

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chakravarty, Krishna Hara; Fosbøl, Philip Loldrup; Thomsen, Kaj

    2015-01-01

    The impact of brine salinity and its ionic composition on oil displacement efficiency has been investigated extensively in recent years due to the potential of enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Wettability alterations through relative interactions at the mineral surface have been the basis of proposed...... in enhancing oil emulsion formation by increasing interactions between polar acids and brine solutions. The results propose the potential use of HPO42- ions in reservoirs having inactive mineral surfaces. The relative oil affinity of different ions including K+, Na+, Mg2+, and Ca2+ (cations), and Cl-, SO42...... and thus reduces the interfacial viscoelasticity of the trapped oil. These results show significant correlation between oil emulsion formation and increased oil recovery. Copyright 2015; Society of Petroleum Engineers...

  15. Quantification of rice bran oil in oil blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mishra, R.; Sharma, H. K.; Sengar, G.

    2012-11-01

    Blends consisting of physically refined rice bran oil (PRBO): sunflower oil (SnF) and PRBO: safflower oil (SAF) in different proportions were analyzed for various physicochemical parameters. The quantification of pure rice bran oil in the blended oils was carried out using different methods including gas chromatographic, HPLC, ultrasonic velocity and methods based on physico-chemical parameters. The physicochemical parameters such as ultrasonic velocity, relative association and acoustic impedance at 2 MHz, iodine value, palmitic acid content and oryzanol content reflected significant changes with increased proportions of PRBO in the blended oils. These parameters were selected as dependent parameters and % PRBO proportion was selected as independent parameters. The study revealed that regression equations based on the oryzanol content, palmitic acid composition, ultrasonic velocity, relative association, acoustic impedance, and iodine value can be used for the quantification of rice bran oil in blended oils. The rice bran oil can easily be quantified in the blended oils based on the oryzanol content by HPLC even at a 1% level. The palmitic acid content in blended oils can also be used as an indicator to quantify rice bran oil at or above the 20% level in blended oils whereas the method based on ultrasonic velocity, acoustic impedance and relative association showed initial promise in the quantification of rice bran oil. (Author) 23 refs.

  16. A new approach to the rationale discovery of polymeric biomaterials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kohn, Joachim; Welsh, William J.; Knight, Doyle

    2007-01-01

    This paper attempts to illustrate both the need for new approaches to biomaterials discovery as well as the significant promise inherent in the use of combinatorial and computational design strategies. The key observation of this Leading Opinion Paper is that the biomaterials community has been slow to embrace advanced biomaterials discovery tools such as combinatorial methods, high throughput experimentation, and computational modeling in spite of the significant promise shown by these discovery tools in materials science, medicinal chemistry and the pharmaceutical industry. It seems that the complexity of living cells and their interactions with biomaterials has been a conceptual as well as a practical barrier to the use of advanced discovery tools in biomaterials science. However, with the continued increase in computer power, the goal of predicting the biological response of cells in contact with biomaterials surfaces is within reach. Once combinatorial synthesis, high throughput experimentation, and computational modeling are integrated into the biomaterials discovery process, a significant acceleration is possible in the pace of development of improved medical implants, tissue regeneration scaffolds, and gene/drug delivery systems. PMID:17644176

  17. 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

  18. 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)

  19. Oil exploration in Central Arabian Arch using Landsat images

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sabins, F.F. (Remote Sensing Engerprises, Inc., Fullerton, CA (United States))

    1996-01-01

    Beginning in 1988, the Chevron Remote Sensing Research Group and Aramco digitally processed and interpreted seven Landsat thematic mapper images of the Central Arabian Arch for two purposes: 1. Map geology at 1:250,000 scale; 2. Identify anomalies that may be surface expression of structural traps. The well-exposed outcrops are predominantly marine strata of Mesozoic age with regional dips to east and southeast at less than 2[degrees]. This structural setting lacks the patterns of arcuate and offset beds that characterize folds and faults in more strongly deformed terrains. Therefore we developed a model to predict the image expression of structures in this homoclinal terrain. We based the model on oil fields in the Arabian Gulf region that are drape anticlines overlying high-angle faults that offset basement rocks and Palecizoic strata. The anticlines grade upward into structural terraces caused by flattening of the regional dip. Erosion of the terraces produces subtle topographic and stratigraphic anomalies that are recognizable on the images. The model was used to interpret a number of image anomalies. We field-checked the anomalies and eliminated a few. Aramco then acquired seismic data for several of the more promising anomalies that confirmed the presence of subsurface structure. Drilling resulted in discovery of Raghib and Dilam fields that produce from the Unayzah Sandstone (Permian). Initial production in the discovery and development wells ranges from 3000 to 4300 BOPD with gravity of 44 to 46[degrees] API. The source of this high-quality oil is the Qusaiba Shale (Silurian). The new discoveries are approximately 100 km from the nearest fields. Less than two years elapsed from beginning of digital image processing to completion of the discovery wells.

  20. Oil exploration in Central Arabian Arch using Landsat images

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sabins, F.F. [Remote Sensing Engerprises, Inc., Fullerton, CA (United States)

    1996-12-31

    Beginning in 1988, the Chevron Remote Sensing Research Group and Aramco digitally processed and interpreted seven Landsat thematic mapper images of the Central Arabian Arch for two purposes: 1. Map geology at 1:250,000 scale; 2. Identify anomalies that may be surface expression of structural traps. The well-exposed outcrops are predominantly marine strata of Mesozoic age with regional dips to east and southeast at less than 2{degrees}. This structural setting lacks the patterns of arcuate and offset beds that characterize folds and faults in more strongly deformed terrains. Therefore we developed a model to predict the image expression of structures in this homoclinal terrain. We based the model on oil fields in the Arabian Gulf region that are drape anticlines overlying high-angle faults that offset basement rocks and Palecizoic strata. The anticlines grade upward into structural terraces caused by flattening of the regional dip. Erosion of the terraces produces subtle topographic and stratigraphic anomalies that are recognizable on the images. The model was used to interpret a number of image anomalies. We field-checked the anomalies and eliminated a few. Aramco then acquired seismic data for several of the more promising anomalies that confirmed the presence of subsurface structure. Drilling resulted in discovery of Raghib and Dilam fields that produce from the Unayzah Sandstone (Permian). Initial production in the discovery and development wells ranges from 3000 to 4300 BOPD with gravity of 44 to 46{degrees} API. The source of this high-quality oil is the Qusaiba Shale (Silurian). The new discoveries are approximately 100 km from the nearest fields. Less than two years elapsed from beginning of digital image processing to completion of the discovery wells.

  1. Management of Podrot, Oil Content, and Pod Weight of Benniseed ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... yield at the highest plant population of 250,000 plants/ha in the 1st and 2nd seasons. However, yield were highest at combination of 60kg/ha and 250,000 plants/ha in all the seasons investigated. Keywords: Management , Podrot, Oil content, Pod Weight, Benniseed, Ultisols Discovery and Innovation Vol. 19 (3) 2007: pp.

  2. Reserve growth in oil pools of Alberta : model and forecast

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Verma, M.; Cook, T. [United States Geological Survey, Denver, CO (United States). Central Region

    2010-09-15

    This paper presented a reserve growth study that was conducted on oil pools in Alberta, Canada. Historical oil reserve data were evaluated to assess the potential for future reserve growth in both pools and fields, and reserve growth models and functions were developed to better forecast hydrocarbon volumes. The study also considered the sensitivity of reserve growth to such factors as pool size, porosity, and oil gravity. From 1960 to 2005, the reported known recoverable oil in Alberta, excluding the Athabasca oil sands and including only pools with adequate data, increased from 4.2 to 13.9 billion barrels of oil (BBO). New discoveries contributed 3.7 BBO and reserve growth added 6 BBO. Most reserve growth occurred in pools with more than 125,000 barrels of oil. Light-oil pools account for most of the total known oil volume and consequently showed the lowest growth. Pools with greater than 30 percent porosity grew more than pools with lower porosity reservoirs. Oil field growth was found to be almost twice that of pool growth, possibly because the analysis evaluated fields with two or more pools discovered in different years. The growth in oil volumes in Alberta pools is projected to be about 454 million barrels of oil in the period from 2006 to 2010. Over a 25-year period, the cumulative reserve growth in Alberta oil pools was substantially lower than other major petroleum-producing regions, but the growth at the field level compares well. 8 refs., 2 tabs., 9 figs.

  3. Vegetable oil spills : oil properties and behaviour

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fingas, M.; Fieldhouse, B.; Jokuty, P.

    2001-01-01

    In 1997, the United States Environmental Protection Agency conducted a thorough review of the issue regarding vegetable oil spills. Recent attention has refocused on this issue as a result of an incident where 20 tons of canola oil was spilled in the Vancouver Harbour in 2000. In the past, vegetable oils were suggested to be a useful test material because they were thought to be innocuous. It was even suggested they be used to remove petroleum oil residues from beaches. However, recent studies have shown that spills of vegetable oils can have major environmental consequences, equivalent to those of petroleum oil spills. The spills have devastating effects on birds and intertidal organisms. This paper presented a summary of historical vegetable spills from around the world. In this study, specific behaviour tests were examined for several oils including canola, soy bean, olive, castor and corn oils. Evaporation, water-in-oil emulsification and chemical dispersion were measured and were found to be nearly zero, suggesting that vegetable oil spills are not very soluble in water. The aquatic toxicity of vegetable oil is low, but their fate is quite different from petroleum. Vegetable oils do not evaporate to a significant degree, they do not form water-in-oil emulsions, nor do they disperse in water. The physical properties of vegetable oils were also measured, including density and viscosity. This paper presented the aquatic toxicity of several vegetable oils along with other environmental data including the degradation rates noted in the literature. Most environmental damage reported in the literature is by contact with birds feathers resulting in hypothermia and secondly by smothering of intertidal organisms. The effect of vegetable oil on fish has not been well studied, but it is expected that there will be little destructive effect except where smothering can occur. 35 refs., 3 tabs

  4. Vegetable oil spills : oil properties and behaviour

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fingas, M.; Fieldhouse, B.; Jokuty, P. [Environment Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Emergencies Science Div

    2001-07-01

    In 1997, the United States Environmental Protection Agency conducted a thorough review of the issue regarding vegetable oil spills. Recent attention has refocused on this issue as a result of an incident where 20 tons of canola oil was spilled in the Vancouver Harbour in 2000. In the past, vegetable oils were suggested to be a useful test material because they were thought to be innocuous. It was even suggested they be used to remove petroleum oil residues from beaches. However, recent studies have shown that spills of vegetable oils can have major environmental consequences, equivalent to those of petroleum oil spills. The spills have devastating effects on birds and intertidal organisms. This paper presented a summary of historical vegetable spills from around the world. In this study, specific behaviour tests were examined for several oils including canola, soy bean, olive, castor and corn oils. Evaporation, water-in-oil emulsification and chemical dispersion were measured and were found to be nearly zero, suggesting that vegetable oil spills are not very soluble in water. The aquatic toxicity of vegetable oil is low, but their fate is quite different from petroleum. Vegetable oils do not evaporate to a significant degree, they do not form water-in-oil emulsions, nor do they disperse in water. The physical properties of vegetable oils were also measured, including density and viscosity. This paper presented the aquatic toxicity of several vegetable oils along with other environmental data including the degradation rates noted in the literature. Most environmental damage reported in the literature is by contact with birds feathers resulting in hypothermia and secondly by smothering of intertidal organisms. The effect of vegetable oil on fish has not been well studied, but it is expected that there will be little destructive effect except where smothering can occur. 35 refs., 3 tabs.

  5. Absorption difference between diacylglycerol oil and butter blend containing diacylglycerol oil

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kristensen, Janni Brogaard; Jørgensen, Henry; Mu, Huiling

    2012-01-01

    butter blend (BDAG), triacylglycerol (TAG) butter blend (BTAG), DAG oil (ODAG) or TAG oil (OTAG) were prepared, and each was fed to a group of 8 male Wistar rats. The design of the experiment was a combined balance and feeding experiment. The rats fed the BTAG and ODAG‐diets had a significantly higher......This study aims at investigating whether the intake of butter blends containing diacylglycerol (DAG) oil may result in reduced fat accumulation, in similarity to DAG oil, and the potential metabolic differences between butter blends and DAG oil. Four experimental diets containing either 10 wt% DAG...... protein content than rats fed the BDAG and OTAG‐diets, and the fat content was significantly lower in rats fed the ODAG‐diet as compared to rats fed the OTAG and BDAG‐diets. A significantly higher content of ash was observed in rats fed the two TAG diets. The ratio of abdominal fat weight/body weight...

  6. Illusionary Transparency? Oil Revenues, Information Disclosure, and Transparency

    OpenAIRE

    Ofori, Jerome Jeffison; Lujala, Päivi

    2015-01-01

    xperience shows that discovery of valuable natural resources can become a curse rather than a blessing, and transparency has been identified as key to better resource governance because it can limit opportunities for corruption and mismanagement. This article shows that information disclosure, in which many governments and donor institutions engage, does not automatically translate into transparency. Ghana has embedded transparency as one of its key principles in oil management. However, fiel...

  7. Current oil and gas production from North American Upper Cretaceous chalks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scholle, Peter A.

    1977-01-01

    Production of oil and natural gas from North American chalks has increased significantly during the past five years, spurred by the prolific production from North Sea chalks, as well as by higher prices and improved production technology. Chalk reservoirs have been discovered in the Gulf Coast in the Austin Group, Saratoga and Annona Chalks, Ozan Formation, Selma Group, Monroe gas rock (an informal unit of Navarro age), and other Upper Cretaceous units. In the Western Interior, production has been obtained from the Cretaceous Niobrara and Greenhorn Formations. Significant, though subcommercial, discoveries of natural gas and gas condensate also have been made in the Upper Cretaceous Wyandot Formation on the Scotian Shelf of eastern Canada. All North American chalk units share a similar depositional and diagenetic history. The chalks consist primarily of whole and fragmented coccoliths with subordinate planktonic and benthonic Foraminifera, inoceramid prisms, oysters, and other skeletal grains. Most have between 10 and 35 percent HCl-insoluble residue, predominantly clay. Deposition was principally below wave base in tens to hundreds of meters of water. The diagenetic history of a chalk is critical in determining its reservoir potential. All chalk has a stable composition (low-Mg calcite) and very high primary porosity. With subsequent burial, mechanical and chemical (solution-transfer) compaction can reduce or completely eliminate pore space. The degree of loss of primary porosity in chalk sections is normally a direct function of the maximum depth to which it has been buried. Pore-water chemistry, pore-fluid pressures, and tectonic stresses also influence rates of cementation. Oil or gas reservoirs of North American chalk fall into three main groups: 1. Areas with thin overburden and significant primary porosity retention (for example, Niobrara Formation of Kansas and eastern Colorado). 2. Areas with thicker overburden but considerable fracturing. Here primary

  8. Comparative Effect of Dietary Soybean Oil, Fish Oil, and Coconut Oil on Performance, Egg Quality and Some Blood Parameters in Laying Hens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, X F; Liu, S; Tong, J M

    2018-04-14

    Two hundred and sixteen 28-wk-old Hy-line laying hens were randomly distributed to three dietary treatments and fed 1of 3 diets containing 8% soybean oil, fish oil, or coconut oil from 28 to 47 wk of age to investigate comparative effect of dietary soybean oil, fish oil, and coconut oil on the performance, egg quality and blood malondialdehyde (MDA), aspartate transaminase (AST) and uric acid (UA). Hens fed fish oil showed poor performance compared with soybean oil or coconut oil, and especially egg weight throughout the trial was significantly and consistently decreased (P oil. Unexpectedly, shell reflectivity throughout the majority of the trial was consistently and significantly higher (P oil than that when fed soybean oil or coconut oil. Dietary treatments affected (P oil treatment was higher (P oil group. Albumen height, Haugh unit and yolk color were influenced by dietary treatments only at 1 or 2 time points. However, average albumen height and Haugh unit in fish oil treatment were higher (P soybean oil or coconut oil treatments and average yolk color in coconut oil treatment was higher (P soybean oil group. Serum MDA, AST and UA concentrations were increased (P oil during the majority of the first 2 mo of the trial. These data suggested that the inclusion of fish oil into feed may reduce the performance of laying hens, especially the egg weight, decrease the intensity of egg brown color and increase blood MDA, AST and UA levels compared with soybean oil or coconut oil. As a result, hens fed fish oil may lay smaller, longer and lighter-brown eggs whereas those fed coconut oil produce blunter and darker-brown eggs relative to soybean oil.

  9. Experimental study on kinetics oil oil-suspended particulate matter aggregation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sun, J.; Environment Canada, Ottawa, ON; Khelifa, A.; Wang, Z.; Brown, C.; Fieldhouse, B.; Yang, C.; Zheng, X.; Wong, S.; So, L.C.

    2009-01-01

    Past studies of oil spills have shown that oil suspended particulate matter aggregates (OSAs) play a role in enhancing the natural cleansing of oiled shorelines. OSAs result from aggregation between suspended oil droplets and suspended particulate matter (SPM) in aquatic environments. During this process, oil dispersion into the water column is significantly increased since the surface of the oil droplet is surrounded by sediment particles. In addition, the accelerated biodegradation of the oil can be attributed to the greater oil-water contact area. This study focused on the kinetic aspects of OSA formation, with particular reference to the time scale of this process and its significance to oil dispersion following oil spills in water. A laboratory study was conducted to measure the time scale of OSA formation and its variations with mixing conditions. A reciprocating shaker and various oil/sediment mixtures were used to prepare the OSAs. Standard reference material 1941b was used as the natural sediment mixed with Arabian medium crude and artificial seawater under various mixing energies. The sediment-to-oil ratio remained constant for all experiments. Gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) analysis was used to measure the total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) trapped in negatively buoyant OSAs. Results showed that the TPH in OSAs increased exponentially with shaking time and reached an equilibrium value within 3 hours. The equilibrium decreased from 3 hours to 1.3 hours when the shaking rate increased from 2.0 to 2.3 Hz. It was concluded that high mixing energy enhances OSA formation and shortens the time for OSA formation. 42 refs., 6 tabs., 5 figs

  10. Experimental study on kinetics oil oil-suspended particulate matter aggregation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sun, J. [Ocean Univ. of China, Qingdoa (China). Environmental Science and Engineering Inst.; Environment Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Emergencies Science and Technology Section, Emergencies, Operational Analytical Laboratories and Research Support Division; Khelifa, A.; Wang, Z.; Brown, C.; Fieldhouse, B.; Yang, C. [Environment Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada). Emergencies Science and Technology Section, Emergencies, Operational Analytical Laboratories and Research Support Division; Zheng, X. [Ocean Univ. of China, Qingdoa (China). Environmental Science and Engineering Inst.; Wong, S. [Ottawa Univ., ON (Canada). Dept. of Chemistry; So, L.C. [Waterloo Univ., ON (Canada). Faculty of Engineering

    2009-07-01

    Past studies of oil spills have shown that oil suspended particulate matter aggregates (OSAs) play a role in enhancing the natural cleansing of oiled shorelines. OSAs result from aggregation between suspended oil droplets and suspended particulate matter (SPM) in aquatic environments. During this process, oil dispersion into the water column is significantly increased since the surface of the oil droplet is surrounded by sediment particles. In addition, the accelerated biodegradation of the oil can be attributed to the greater oil-water contact area. This study focused on the kinetic aspects of OSA formation, with particular reference to the time scale of this process and its significance to oil dispersion following oil spills in water. A laboratory study was conducted to measure the time scale of OSA formation and its variations with mixing conditions. A reciprocating shaker and various oil/sediment mixtures were used to prepare the OSAs. Standard reference material 1941b was used as the natural sediment mixed with Arabian medium crude and artificial seawater under various mixing energies. The sediment-to-oil ratio remained constant for all experiments. Gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) analysis was used to measure the total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) trapped in negatively buoyant OSAs. Results showed that the TPH in OSAs increased exponentially with shaking time and reached an equilibrium value within 3 hours. The equilibrium decreased from 3 hours to 1.3 hours when the shaking rate increased from 2.0 to 2.3 Hz. It was concluded that high mixing energy enhances OSA formation and shortens the time for OSA formation. 42 refs., 6 tabs., 5 figs.

  11. Oil flow in deep waters: comparative study between light oils and heavy oils

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Andreolli, Ivanilto [PETROBRAS S.A., Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2009-12-19

    Ultra deeper waters fields are being exploited due to technological development. Under this scenario, the flow design is accomplished through pipelines subjected to low temperature and high pressure. Moreover, these flow lines are usually long causing a fast fluid cooling, which may affect flow assurance in some cases. Problems during topsides production plant's restart might occur if the oil is viscous and even in steady state a significant different behavior can be noticed, if compared to a less viscous oil. A comparison between light and heavy oil through a case study with the objective to show some heavy oil flow particularities is the purpose of this paper. Permanent and transient analyses for a specific geometry are presented. The results showed that thermal and proper viscosity modeling are required for heavy oil flow, differently from that of light oil flow, due to the exponential viscosity dependence to temperature and because the predominant laminar regime. In addition, on heavier and heavier oil flow systems, it is essential to consider exportation system's restart. (author)

  12. Ecodynamics of oil-degrading bacteria and significance of marine mixed populations in the degradation of petroleum compounds

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Venkateswaran, Kasthuri; Tanaka, Hiroki; Komukai, Shyoko

    1993-01-01

    Ecological studies, screening of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria, and studies of the potentials of various single and mixed bacterial populations in the utilization of petroleum compounds were carried out to understand the microbial hydrocarbon degradation process in marine ecosystems. Populations of hydrocarbon utilizers were larger in coastal regions than in pelagic environments. Ecological observations indicated that oil-degrading bacteria were ubiquitously distributed in both temperate and tropical environments, irrespective of oil-polluted and unpolluted ecosystem. Bacteria were grown with n-tet-radecane, pristane, propylbenzene, phenanthrene, and crude oil as the sole carbon source; and substrate specificities of the purified strains were characterized. Based on the assimilation characteristics of the isolated strains, an artificial mixed-culture system was constructed. Biodegradation of crude oil by the natural mixed population was found to be higher than by the artificial mixed population. However, when some of the substrate-specific degraders were artificially mixed with natural microflora, the degradation of hard-to-degrade aromatic hydrocarbon fractions of crude oil was enhanced

  13. Detection of argan oil adulterated with vegetable oils: New markers

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ourrach, I.; Rada, M.; Perez-Camino, M. C.; Benaissa, M.; Guinda, A

    2012-07-01

    This work aims to contribute to controlling the authenticity of pure argan oil, a valuable Moroccan product. Fatty acids, hydrocarbon fraction, 3,5-stigmastadiene, the alkyl esters of fatty acids, chlorophyllic pigments and physical properties such as viscosity, density and refractive index were studied in order to detect the adulteration of argan oil with edible vegetable oils. The results found in this study show that 3,5-stigmastadiene, kaurene and pheophytin-a can be used as possible new markers for argan oil blends of up to 5% with refined, sunflower and virgin olive oils. Due to the similarity of the fatty acid compositions of the edible oils studied and argan oil, fatty acids can be employed as markers for the detection of argan oil adulteration at levels higher than 10%. Among the physical properties studied, the refractive index shows significant differences for sunflower oil and its blend at 10% with argan oil. (Author) 35 refs.

  14. The New Oil Sector and the Dutch Disease: the Case of Ghana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dennis Nchor

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper investigates the impact of the new oil sector on the economic performance of major traditional sectors of the Ghanaian economy. The discovery of resource booming sectors in most countries often comes with several opportunities as well as challenges. Ghana discovered oil in 2007 and started subsequent commercial production and export in 2010. The results from the study show that, there is no clear case of declining performance of sectors in terms of output, growth and export earnings as a result of the oil production. The study could also not establish a sustained appreciation in the real effective exchange rate since commercial oil production commenced which is an indicator of the presence of the Dutch Disease phenomenon. The real effective exchange rate was also found to be highly influenced by oil production, oil prices, total exports and remittances. The study applied an autoregressive distributed lag model due to differences in the level of integration of variables. The data was obtained from the Bank of Ghana, the Ministry of Finance in Ghana and the Energy Information Administration.

  15. Vitamin D, cod-liver oil, sunlight, and rickets: a historical perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajakumar, Kumaravel

    2003-08-01

    Rickets, a disease of vitamin D deficiency, is rarely confronted by the practicing pediatrician in the United States today. At the turn of the 20th century, rickets was rampant among the poor children living in the industrialized and polluted northern cities of the United States. With the discovery of vitamin D and the delineation of the anti-rachitic properties of cod-liver oil by the 1930s, it became possible to not only treat but also eradicate rickets in the United States. Rickets was a common disease in 17th century England. Frances Glisson's treatise on rickets published in 1650, a glorious contribution to English medicine, described the clinical and anatomic features of rickets in great detail. The exact etiology of rickets had been elusive until the 1920s. During the Glissonian era, rickets was a mysterious disease. By the late 19th and early 20th century, faulty diet or faulty environment (poor hygiene, lack of fresh air and sunshine) or lack of exercise was implicated in its etiology. Animal experiments, appreciation of folklore advocating the benefits of cod-liver oil, and the geographical association of rickets to lack of sunshine were all relevant factors in the advancement of knowledge in the conquest of this malady. In this article, the history of rickets pertaining to the discovery of vitamin D, cod-liver oil, and sunlight is reviewed.

  16. Intrastate conflict in oil producing states: A threat to global oil supply?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Toft, Peter

    2011-01-01

    In this paper I investigate how often and how much outbreaks of intrastate conflict in oil producing states translates into oil supply shortfalls. The Libyan conflict that broke out in February 2011 highlighted the fear that intrastate conflict in oil producing states may imply shortfalls and ensuing volatile global oil prices. I argue, however, that it is far from certain that shortfalls following conflict outbreak will occur, since both sides in a conflict face incentives simultaneously to protect and maintain oil installations and to strike and destroy these. Based on a quantitative analysis of 39 intrastate wars in oil producing countries (1965-2007) I conclude that outbreak of conflict does not translate into production decline with any certainty. In fact, likelihoods are less than 50% for reductions to occur. In many cases growing production actually followed conflict outbreak. I conclude by investigating four characteristics of intrastate conflict that may explain when oil production is at risk during conflict: (1) proximity of oil producing fields to key battle zones, (2) duration of conflict, (3) separatism and the location of oil in separatist territory, and (4) the relative size of oil production. While the first three factors did not prove important, oil producer size could be significant. But further research is needed to establish this with greater certainty. - Highlights: → Oil shortfall during intrastate conflict is not a given. → Statistical analysis of 39 intrastate conflicts in oil producing countries since 1965. → Examination of four characteristics of intrastate conflict in oil producing countries. → Marginal significance related to large producers and production shortfall.

  17. Intrastate conflict in oil producing states: A threat to global oil supply?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Toft, Peter, E-mail: peter.toft@ec.europa.eu [Institute for Energy, Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Westerduinweg 3, 1755 ZG Petten (Netherlands)

    2011-11-15

    In this paper I investigate how often and how much outbreaks of intrastate conflict in oil producing states translates into oil supply shortfalls. The Libyan conflict that broke out in February 2011 highlighted the fear that intrastate conflict in oil producing states may imply shortfalls and ensuing volatile global oil prices. I argue, however, that it is far from certain that shortfalls following conflict outbreak will occur, since both sides in a conflict face incentives simultaneously to protect and maintain oil installations and to strike and destroy these. Based on a quantitative analysis of 39 intrastate wars in oil producing countries (1965-2007) I conclude that outbreak of conflict does not translate into production decline with any certainty. In fact, likelihoods are less than 50% for reductions to occur. In many cases growing production actually followed conflict outbreak. I conclude by investigating four characteristics of intrastate conflict that may explain when oil production is at risk during conflict: (1) proximity of oil producing fields to key battle zones, (2) duration of conflict, (3) separatism and the location of oil in separatist territory, and (4) the relative size of oil production. While the first three factors did not prove important, oil producer size could be significant. But further research is needed to establish this with greater certainty. - Highlights: > Oil shortfall during intrastate conflict is not a given. > Statistical analysis of 39 intrastate conflicts in oil producing countries since 1965. > Examination of four characteristics of intrastate conflict in oil producing countries. > Marginal significance related to large producers and production shortfall.

  18. Significance of Cooking Oil to Bioaccessibility of Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs) and Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) in Raw and Cooked Fish: Implications for Human Health Risk.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mi, Xiu-Bo; Su, Yang; Bao, Lian-Jun; Tao, Shu; Zeng, Eddy Y

    2017-04-26

    The present study examined the bioacessibility of DDTs and PBDEs in cooked fish (yellow grouper; Epinephelus awoara) with and without heating using the colon extended physiologically based extraction test. The bioaccessibility of DDTs and PBDEs increased from 60 and 26% in raw fish to 83 and 63%, respectively, after the addition of oil to raw fish. However, they decreased from 83 to 66% and from 63 to 40%, respectively, when oil-added fish were cooked. Human health risk assessment based on bioaccessible concentrations of DDTs and PBDEs in fish showed that the maximum allowable daily fish consumption rates decreased from 25, 59, and 86 g day -1 to 22, 53, and 77 g day -1 for children, youths, and adults, respectively, after fish were cooked with oil. These findings indicated that the significance of cooking oil to the bioaccessibility of DDTs and PBDEs in food should be considered in assessments of human health risk.

  19. Topology Discovery Using Cisco Discovery Protocol

    OpenAIRE

    Rodriguez, Sergio R.

    2009-01-01

    In this paper we address the problem of discovering network topology in proprietary networks. Namely, we investigate topology discovery in Cisco-based networks. Cisco devices run Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP) which holds information about these devices. We first compare properties of topologies that can be obtained from networks deploying CDP versus Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) and Management Information Base (MIB) Forwarding Database (FDB). Then we describe a method of discovering topology ...

  20. Oil price sinks drilling : exploration activity drops during third quarter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harrington, P.

    1998-01-01

    The decline in oil and gas exploration activity in Western Canada is discussed. In the third quarter of 1998, a total of 397 exploratory tests were reported compared to 768 during the same period in 1997. Low world oil prices are blamed as the cause of this decline. The declining exploration activity in 1998 was led by Alberta, with 289 new pool wildcat (NPW) announcements along with 25 new field wildcat (NFW) locations. Saskatchewan was in second place with 67 exploratory announcements, but compared to 329 in 1997, this represents an 80 per cent drop. British Columbia had a total of 15 exploratory wells resulting in three oil discoveries and 11 gas completions. Geological features, well characteristics and early production figures from several of the new wells in the Killam fields in southwest Saskatchewan were received special attention. 1 tab., 3 figs

  1. Oil palm genome sequence reveals divergence of interfertile species in old and new worlds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Rajinder; Ong-Abdullah, Meilina; Low, Eng-Ti Leslie; Manaf, Mohamad Arif Abdul; Rosli, Rozana; Nookiah, Rajanaidu; Ooi, Leslie Cheng-Li; Ooi, Siew–Eng; Chan, Kuang-Lim; Halim, Mohd Amin; Azizi, Norazah; Nagappan, Jayanthi; Bacher, Blaire; Lakey, Nathan; Smith, Steven W; He, Dong; Hogan, Michael; Budiman, Muhammad A; Lee, Ernest K; DeSalle, Rob; Kudrna, David; Goicoechea, Jose Louis; Wing, Rod; Wilson, Richard K; Fulton, Robert S; Ordway, Jared M; Martienssen, Robert A; Sambanthamurthi, Ravigadevi

    2013-01-01

    Oil palm is the most productive oil-bearing crop. Planted on only 5% of the total vegetable oil acreage, palm oil accounts for 33% of vegetable oil, and 45% of edible oil worldwide, but increased cultivation competes with dwindling rainforest reserves. We report the 1.8 gigabase (Gb) genome sequence of the African oil palm Elaeis guineensis, the predominant source of worldwide oil production. 1.535 Gb of assembled sequence and transcriptome data from 30 tissue types were used to predict at least 34,802 genes, including oil biosynthesis genes and homologues of WRINKLED1 (WRI1), and other transcriptional regulators1, which are highly expressed in the kernel. We also report the draft sequence of the S. American oil palm Elaeis oleifera, which has the same number of chromosomes (2n=32) and produces fertile interspecific hybrids with E. guineensis2, but appears to have diverged in the new world. Segmental duplications of chromosome arms define the palaeotetraploid origin of palm trees. The oil palm sequence enables the discovery of genes for important traits as well as somaclonal epigenetic alterations which restrict the use of clones in commercial plantings3, and thus helps achieve sustainability for biofuels and edible oils, reducing the rainforest footprint of this tropical plantation crop. PMID:23883927

  2. Oil crises

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Linderoth, H.

    1992-01-01

    The author's aim was to give very precise information on the many causes and effects of the oil crises that have occurred since 1900, and at the same time offer the reader the possibility to build up a basic knowledge of the oil industry and market, as he feels that the public is often subjected to misleading information. Political and economical aspects are elaborated. First-hand sources such as statistics and investigations have been used as far as possible to give information on the oil market. An oil crisis is defined by the author as a significant change in the price of oil compared to prices of other goods. Changes can be in the form of either rising or falling prices. A special chapter concentrates on Denmark in relation to the oil crises. (AB) (165 refs.)

  3. Piercing the sovereign ceiling: Issues in oil and gas project financing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coleman, T.S.

    1998-01-01

    In the oil and gas sector, corporations and governments face huge capital spending requirements in order to transform large resource discoveries into producing, cash-generating assets. A significant portion of this funding is expected to be done on a project finance basis, where bank lenders or bond investors take a secured position in financing a discrete project, with the expectation of being paid back by the cash flows from that project after completion. This trend is increasing demand for crediting rating services to provide credit ratings for these project financings. A key challenge is to analyze and rate credit-worthy projects in countries that have relatively low foreign currency sovereign ceilings due to economic, political, and financial risks. In most cases, the credit ratings for projects financed in currencies outside the host country are capped at the country''s foreign currency ceiling. However, in a few instances, mainly in the oil and gas sector, Moody''s has pierced the foreign currency ceiling or rated certain projects above the sovereign ratings of the countries where they are domiciled. The purpose of this article is to briefly explain some of the qualitative factors and considerations that have allowed Moody''s to pierce the ceiling in the oil and gas sector, with a focus on two recent and noteworthy projects: Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas in Qatar and Petrozuata in Venezuela

  4. Timing and Institutions: Determinants of the Ownership Structure in the Oil and Gas Industry in Canada and Norway

    Science.gov (United States)

    Didier, Thomas

    In response to 1973 oil shock, both the Canadian and Norwegian states expanded public corporate ownership in the oil and gas industry. This thesis questions why the public share of total corporate ownership in the oil industry was greater in Norway than in Canada, and why Petro-Canada was privatized completely while Statoil was not. Two hypotheses are tested from a historical institutionalist perspective. First, the timing of oil development determined whether the private sector would establish itself as the dominant player in the oil and gas industry (in Canada) or not (in Norway) before the 1973 oil shock triggered government interest in public corporate ownership. Second, overlapping jurisdiction over oil resources (in Canada) undermined the effectiveness of mechanisms of reproduction of public corporate ownership. In Norway, the later discovery of oil thus gave the state a stronger bargaining position relative to the oil industry, and in a unitary state the uncontroversial redistributional activities of Statoil attracted more vested interests.

  5. WHEN IMPORTERS TURN TO EXPORTING OIL AND GAS — THE SHALE GAS HYPE AND CERTAIN GEOPOLITICAL CHANGES LIE AHEAD IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karin Kneissl

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The Middle East, the world’s only major source of low-cost oil, will remain at the core of the long-term prospects of the world oil market. The IEA went too far referring to the “shale hydrocarbon revolution born in the USA”. For the time being, the global energy landscape has not been turned upside down. It is China’s soaring energy consumption rather than the US’ rising production that will fundamentally shift the world energy order. Some analysts claim that the Sino-Russian relationship will truly shift global energy boundaries: pipelines are turning east. Global oil prices may fall if and when significant volumes of additional Iranian oil return to the market. A new petroleum frontier in the Eastern Mediterranean complicates the manifold conflicts, but opens up new chances for cooperation. There are huge opportunities created by the discovery of gas in the Eastern Mediterranean — not least for countries that are short of both money and energy. Developing these opportunities will require cooperation, and could be both a lucrative and politically rewarding confidence-building measure. 

  6. World crude oil prices and the North Sea after the Gulf conflict

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kemp, A.

    1992-01-01

    A large computerised financial model has been developed to simulate future activity in the United Kingdom continental shelf. Primary inputs into the model include all the publicly available information on currently producing fields relating to their historic and expected production rates, investment costs, operating costs and abandonment costs. From a variety of sources information has also been gathered on all new discoveries which have not yet been developed or even fully appraised in some cases. Estimates were made of the time periods at which such fields would be ready for development work and production to commence. For these future fields estimates were made of the likely investment costs, operating costs and abandonment costs. In making such calculations only limited technological progress was assumed. The bank of future fields is also conservative as it does not include any new discoveries from further exploration successes. Key inputs into the financial model are future oil and gas price scenarios. In this study, three price scenarios have been chosen for investigation - a base case, a high price case and a low price case. From the analysis, the possible consequences of a very modest real growth in oil and gas prices on the development of the very large numbers of discovered, but as yet undeveloped, oil and gas fields in the United Kingdom continental shelf are presented. (author)

  7. 14 CFR 406.143 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 406.143 Section 406.143... Transportation Adjudications § 406.143 Discovery. (a) Initiation of discovery. Any party may initiate discovery... after a complaint has been filed. (b) Methods of discovery. The following methods of discovery are...

  8. The discovery and development of uranium in Australia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Glasson, K.R.

    1988-01-01

    The history of the discovery of Australia's uranium deposits is reviewed. The exploration can be conveniently divided into three periods - pre-1944, when the only significant discoveries were made by prospectors in South Australia at Radium Hill and Mount Painter; 1944-1960 and post-1967. The second period saw uranium discoveries in the Northern Territory and Queensland, most of which were made by prospectors using hand-held geiger counters and rewarded by the Australian Government. Since 1967 new deposits have been found in the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia by companies using maps, airborne radiometric surveys and sophisticated equipment. The step from the discovery of Mary Kathleen by prospectors to finding Roxby Downs by a combination of geophysical methods, geological concepts and deep drilling was a very big one

  9. History and performance of the Steelman Oil Field, Saskatchewan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nikolaychuk, J; Francis, R E

    1965-01-01

    This paper summarizes the development and performance of the Steelman oil field in southeastern Saskatchewan. Steelman was the first field in southeastern Saskatchewan in which pressure maintenance by waterflooding was attempted. Production is obtained, at a depth of 4,700 ft, mainly from the dolomitized limestone Midale beds reservoir. Some production is also obtained from the underlying Frobisher beds, but the productive development of this zone is quite sporadic. The discovery of the field in 1954 was followed by the drilling of approximately 800 wells on 80-acre spacing. An early decline in reservoir pressure and increasing gas-oil ratios in this solution gas drive reservoir caused the working-interest owners to unitize most of the field and institute a program of pressure maintenance by waterflooding. The bulk of the field is unitized as 6 separate units, with pressure maintenance being conducted by three operators. To the end of 1964, the cumulative oil production from the six-unit area was approximately 77,000,000 bpd.

  10. Environmental significance of atmospheric emission resulting from in situ burning of oiled salt marsh

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Devai, I.; DeLaune, R.D.; Henry, C.B. Jr.; Roberts, P.O.; Lindau, C.W.

    1998-01-01

    The environmental significance of atmospheric emissions resulting from in-situ burning used as remediation technique for removal of petroleum hydrocarbons entering Louisiana coastal salt marshes was quantified. Research conducted documented atmospheric pollutants produced and emitted to the atmosphere as the result of burning of oil contaminated wetlands. Samples collected from the smoke plume contained a variety of gaseous sulfur and carbon compounds. Carbonyl sulfide and carbon disulfide were the main volatile sulfur compounds. In contrast, concentrations of sulfur dioxide were almost negligible. Concentrations of methane and carbon dioxide in the smoke plume increased compared to ambient levels. Air samples collected for aromatic hydrocarbons in the smoke plume were dominated by pyrogenic or combustion derived aromatic hydrocarbons. The particulate fraction was dominated by phenanthrene and the C-1 and C-2 alkylated phenanthrene homologues. The vapor fraction was dominated by naphthalene and the C-1 to C-3 naphthalene homologues. (author)

  11. Some properties of castor oil affecting its performance as a capacitor impregnant and their significance to future impregnant research

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boicourt, G.P.

    1975-01-01

    For a considerable time castor oil and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) have been the principal impregnants used in energy-storage capacitors. Castor oil has proven to be better than PCB for pulsed applications. PCB's have come under attack as an environmental hazard, while castor oil is a vegetable product and its supply and quality are subject to fluctuation. These two facts make the development of new impregnants desirable. The properties of PCB as a capacitor impregnant are well known. This paper first compares a number of properties of castor oil and PCB's. A comparison is made between the lives of castor oil capacitors and comparable PCB energy-storage capacitors. Some of the physical and chemical properties of castor oil which make it a good pulse capacitor impregnant are examined. These properties can be used as a guide for future research on new pulse capacitor impregnants

  12. Higgs Discovery

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sannino, Francesco

    2013-01-01

    has been challenged by the discovery of a not-so-heavy Higgs-like state. I will therefore review the recent discovery \\cite{Foadi:2012bb} that the standard model top-induced radiative corrections naturally reduce the intrinsic non-perturbative mass of the composite Higgs state towards the desired...... via first principle lattice simulations with encouraging results. The new findings show that the recent naive claims made about new strong dynamics at the electroweak scale being disfavoured by the discovery of a not-so-heavy composite Higgs are unwarranted. I will then introduce the more speculative......I discuss the impact of the discovery of a Higgs-like state on composite dynamics starting by critically examining the reasons in favour of either an elementary or composite nature of this state. Accepting the standard model interpretation I re-address the standard model vacuum stability within...

  13. Marsh canopy structure changes and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramsey, Elijah W.; Rangoonwala, Amina; Jones, Cathleen E.

    2016-01-01

    Marsh canopy structure was mapped yearly from 2009 to 2012 in the Barataria Bay, Louisiana coastal region that was impacted by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill. Based on the previously demonstrated capability of NASA's UAVSAR polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) image data to map Spartina alterniflora marsh canopy structure, structure maps combining the leaf area index (LAI) and leaf angle distribution (LAD, orientation) were constructed for yearly intervals that were directly relatable to the 2010 LAI-LAD classification. The yearly LAI-LAD and LAI difference maps were used to investigate causes for the previously revealed dramatic change in marsh structure from prespill (2009) to postspill (2010, spill cessation), and the occurrence of structure features that exhibited abnormal spatial and temporal patterns. Water level and salinity records showed that freshwater releases used to keep the oil offshore did not cause the rapid growth from 2009 to 2010 in marsh surrounding the inner Bay. Photointerpretation of optical image data determined that interior marsh patches exhibiting rapid change were caused by burns and burn recovery, and that the pattern of 2010 to 2011 LAI decreases in backshore marsh and extending along some tidal channels into the interior marsh were not associated with burns. Instead, the majority of 2010 to 2011 shoreline features aligned with vectors displaying the severity of 2010 shoreline oiling from the DWH spill. Although the association is not conclusive of a causal oil impact, the coexistent pattern is a significant discovery. PolSAR marsh structure mapping provided a unique perspective of marsh biophysical status that enhanced detection of change and monitoring of trends important to management effectiveness.

  14. The effect of the 2010 Gulf oil spill on public attitudes toward offshore oil drilling and wind development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lilley, Jonathan; Firestone, Jeremy

    2013-01-01

    In April 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil well exploded, releasing over four million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This paper presents data from two national mail surveys undertaken in 2008 and 2010 that compare public attitudes to both offshore oil drilling and offshore wind development pre- and post-spill. The results show that while there was a drop in support for expanded drilling (from 66% in 2008 to 59% in 2010) the change was not significant. There was, however, a significant decrease in support for offshore drilling among coastal residents. There was a slight, non-significant increase in support for offshore wind development which remained significantly higher than support for offshore oil (80% in 2008 and 82% in 2010). Despite there being no significant change in overall support levels, there was a shift in the strength of feeling regarding offshore oil, with 80% of Americans either less supportive or more opposed to expanded drilling in 2010 than they were in 2008. -- Highlights: •We assess whether the Gulf oil spill affected attitudes to offshore energy. •Overall support for offshore wind (82%) was greater than for offshore oil (59%). •Support for expanded offshore oil drilling decreased but not significantly. •Support for offshore wind development increased slightly, again not significantly. •Although overall support levels did not change, the strength of feeling did

  15. Toxicities of Selected Essential Oils, Silicone Oils, and Paraffin Oil against the Common Bed Bug (Hemiptera: Cimicidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zha, Chen; Wang, Changlu; Li, Andrew

    2018-02-09

    The common bed bug [Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)] and tropical bed bug [Cimex hemipterus F. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae)] resurged in the United States and many other countries over the past decades. The need for safe and effective bed bug control products propelled the development of numerous 'green insecticides', mostly with essential oils listed as active ingredients. Various inorganic and organic oils also were used for bed bug management. However, there are no published studies on their toxicities against bed bugs. In this study, we screened 18 essential oils, three silicone oils, and paraffin oil (C5-20 paraffins) for their toxicities against bed bugs. All the oils exhibited insecticidal activity in topical assays. Their toxicities varied significantly; all of the evaluated essential oils were less effective than silicone oils and paraffin oil. The LD50 values of the most effective essential oil (blood orange), paraffin oil, and the most effective silicone oil (dodecamethylpentasiloxane) are 0.184 ± 0.018, 0.069 ± 0.012, and 0.036 ± 0.005 mg per bug, respectively. Direct spray of 1% water solution of 3-[hydroxy (polyethyleneoxy) propyl] heptamethyltrisiloxane, the only silicone oil that mixes well with water, resulted in 92% bed bug mortality after 1 d. Results of this study indicate silicone oils and paraffin oil have the potential to be used as safer alternative bed bug control materials. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  16. Physicochemical Evaluation of Seeds and Oil of Nontraditional Oil Seeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam Ismail Ahmed

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available The present work was conducted in the Laboratory of Biochemistry and Food science department, Faculty of Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, University of Kordofan, in order to evaluate some nontraditional oil seeds these are i.e. Marula (Sclerocarya birrea, Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L. seeds and Christ’s thorn (Zizyphus spina-christi seeds. The seeds of the roselle and Christ’s thorn fruits were procured from Elobeid local market, North Kordofan State, while marula fruits were obtained from Elnuhod, West Kordofan State. The proximate composition of the seeds, cake and christ’s thorn pulp was done. Some chemical and physical properties were performed for the extracted oil. The results revealed that proximate composition of the seeds and cake differ statistically among the studied materials. Significant differences were observed among the oil extracted from these species; moreover, these oils differ significantly in color and viscosity only.

  17. The discovery of the periodic table as a case of simultaneous discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scerri, Eric

    2015-03-13

    The article examines the question of priority and simultaneous discovery in the context of the discovery of the periodic system. It is argued that rather than being anomalous, simultaneous discovery is the rule. Moreover, I argue that the discovery of the periodic system by at least six authors in over a period of 7 years represents one of the best examples of a multiple discovery. This notion is supported by a new view of the evolutionary development of science through a mechanism that is dubbed Sci-Gaia by analogy with Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  18. Oil exploitation and the environmental Kuznets curve

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Esmaeili, Abdoulkarim; Abdollahzadeh, Negar

    2009-01-01

    This study refers to a panel estimation of an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for oil to determine the factors most affecting oil exploitation in 38 oil-producing countries during 1990-2000. Control variables such as oil reserves, oil price, population, political rights, and the Gini index were used to determine its contribution to the main EKC model. The empirical results fully support the existence of an EKC for oil exploitation. Furthermore, the result indicates that the proved oil reserves has a significant and positive role in oil production, but oil price and population do not significantly affect crude oil production. Also, increased freedoms and a better income distribution will reduce the rate of oil exploitation. Thus, policies aiming at enhancing democratic society and better income distribution would be more compatible with sustainability. (author)

  19. Oil exploitation and the environmental Kuznets curve

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Esmaeili, Abdoulkarim; Abdollahzadeh, Negar [Department of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Fars (Iran)

    2009-01-15

    This study refers to a panel estimation of an environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for oil to determine the factors most affecting oil exploitation in 38 oil-producing countries during 1990-2000. Control variables such as oil reserves, oil price, population, political rights, and the Gini index were used to determine its contribution to the main EKC model. The empirical results fully support the existence of an EKC for oil exploitation. Furthermore, the result indicates that the proved oil reserves has a significant and positive role in oil production, but oil price and population do not significantly affect crude oil production. Also, increased freedoms and a better income distribution will reduce the rate of oil exploitation. Thus, policies aiming at enhancing democratic society and better income distribution would be more compatible with sustainability. (author)

  20. Effect of safflower oil, flaxseed oil, monensin, and vitamin E on concentration of conjugated linoleic acid in bovine milk fat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bell, J A; Griinari, J M; Kennelly, J J

    2006-02-01

    Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) refers to a mixture of conjugated octadecadienoic acids of predominantly ruminant origin. The main isomer in bovine milk fat is the cis-9, trans-11 CLA. Interest in CLA increased after the discovery of its health-promoting properties, including potent anticarcinogenic activity. Two experiments were conducted to evaluate dietary strategies aimed at increasing the concentration of CLA in bovine milk fat. Both experiments were organized as a randomized complete block design with a repeated measures treatment structure. In Experiment 1, 28 Holstein cows received either a control diet or one of 3 treatments for a period of 2 wk. The control diet consisted of 60% forage (barley silage, alfalfa silage, and alfalfa hay) and 40% concentrate on a dry matter (DM) basis, fed as a total mixed ration (TMR). The concentrate was partially replaced in the treatment groups with 24 ppm of monensin (MON), 6% of DM safflower oil (SAFF), or 6% of DM safflower oil plus 24 ppm of monensin (SAFF/M). Average cis-9, trans-11 CLA levels in milk fat after 2 wk of feeding were 0.45, 0.52, 3.36, and 5.15% of total fatty acids for control, MON, SAFF, and SAFF/M, respectively. In Experiment 2, 62 Holstein cows received either a control diet or one of 5 treatment diets for a period of 9 wk. The control diet consisted of 60% forage (barley silage, alfalfa silage, and alfalfa hay) and 40% concentrate on a DM basis, fed as a TMR. The concentrate was partially replaced in the treatment groups with 6% of DM safflower oil (SAFF), 6% of DM safflower oil plus 150 IU of vitamin E/kg of DM (SAFF/E), 6% of DM safflower oil plus 24 ppm of monensin (SAFF/M), 6% of DM safflower oil plus 24 ppm of monensin plus 150 IU of vitamin E/kg of DM (SAFF/ME), or 6% of DM flaxseed oil plus 150 IU of vitamin E/kg of DM (FLAX/E). Average cis-9, trans-11 CLA levels during the treatment period were 0.68, 4.12, 3.48, 4.55, 4.75, and 2.80% of total fatty acids for control, SAFF, SAFF/E, SAFF

  1. Beyond Discovery

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Korsgaard, Steffen; Sassmannshausen, Sean Patrick

    2017-01-01

    In this chapter we explore four alternatives to the dominant discovery view of entrepreneurship; the development view, the construction view, the evolutionary view, and the Neo-Austrian view. We outline the main critique points of the discovery presented in these four alternatives, as well...

  2. Genomics-Based Discovery of Plant Genes for Synthetic Biology of Terpenoid Fragrances: A Case Study in Sandalwood oil Biosynthesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Celedon, J M; Bohlmann, J

    2016-01-01

    Terpenoid fragrances are powerful mediators of ecological interactions in nature and have a long history of traditional and modern industrial applications. Plants produce a great diversity of fragrant terpenoid metabolites, which make them a superb source of biosynthetic genes and enzymes. Advances in fragrance gene discovery have enabled new approaches in synthetic biology of high-value speciality molecules toward applications in the fragrance and flavor, food and beverage, cosmetics, and other industries. Rapid developments in transcriptome and genome sequencing of nonmodel plant species have accelerated the discovery of fragrance biosynthetic pathways. In parallel, advances in metabolic engineering of microbial and plant systems have established platforms for synthetic biology applications of some of the thousands of plant genes that underlie fragrance diversity. While many fragrance molecules (eg, simple monoterpenes) are abundant in readily renewable plant materials, some highly valuable fragrant terpenoids (eg, santalols, ambroxides) are rare in nature and interesting targets for synthetic biology. As a representative example for genomics/transcriptomics enabled gene and enzyme discovery, we describe a strategy used successfully for elucidation of a complete fragrance biosynthetic pathway in sandalwood (Santalum album) and its reconstruction in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). We address questions related to the discovery of specific genes within large gene families and recovery of rare gene transcripts that are selectively expressed in recalcitrant tissues. To substantiate the validity of the approaches, we describe the combination of methods used in the gene and enzyme discovery of a cytochrome P450 in the fragrant heartwood of tropical sandalwood, responsible for the fragrance defining, final step in the biosynthesis of (Z)-santalols. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Characterization of Oxidative Stability of Fish Oil- and Plant Oil-Enriched Skimmed Milk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Saga, Linda C.; Kristinova, Vera; Kirkhus, Bente

    2013-01-01

    oat oil and camelina oil to protect fish oil in bulk and as fish oil-enriched skimmed milk emulsions was evaluated. Results of oxidative stability of bulk oils and blends assessed by the Schaal oven weight gain test and by the rancimat method showed significant increase in oxidative stability when oat...... oil was added to fish oil in only 5 and 10 %, whereas no protective effect of camelina oil was observed when evaluated by these methods. Moreover, fish oil blended with oat oil conferred the lowest PV and lower amounts of volatile compounds during the storage period of 14 days at 4 °C. Surprisingly......, skimmed milk supplemented with fish-oat oil blend gave the highest scores for off-flavors in the sensory evaluation, demonstrating that several methods, including sensory analysis, should be combined to illustrate the complete picture of lipid oxidation in emulsions....

  4. 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.

  5. The quantitative significance of Syntrophaceae and syntrophic partnerships in methanogenic degradation of crude oil alkanes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gray, N D; Sherry, A; Grant, R J; Rowan, A K; Hubert, C R J; Callbeck, C M; Aitken, C M; Jones, D M; Adams, J J; Larter, S R; Head, I M

    2011-11-01

    Libraries of 16S rRNA genes cloned from methanogenic oil degrading microcosms amended with North Sea crude oil and inoculated with estuarine sediment indicated that bacteria from the genera Smithella (Deltaproteobacteria, Syntrophaceace) and Marinobacter sp. (Gammaproteobacteria) were enriched during degradation. Growth yields and doubling times (36 days for both Smithella and Marinobacter) were determined using qPCR and quantitative data on alkanes, which were the predominant hydrocarbons degraded. The growth yield of the Smithella sp. [0.020 g(cell-C)/g(alkane-C)], assuming it utilized all alkanes removed was consistent with yields of bacteria that degrade hydrocarbons and other organic compounds in methanogenic consortia. Over 450 days of incubation predominance and exponential growth of Smithella was coincident with alkane removal and exponential accumulation of methane. This growth is consistent with Smithella's occurrence in near surface anoxic hydrocarbon degrading systems and their complete oxidation of crude oil alkanes to acetate and/or hydrogen in syntrophic partnership with methanogens in such systems. The calculated growth yield of the Marinobacter sp., assuming it grew on alkanes, was [0.0005 g(cell-C)/g(alkane-C)] suggesting that it played a minor role in alkane degradation. The dominant methanogens were hydrogenotrophs (Methanocalculus spp. from the Methanomicrobiales). Enrichment of hydrogen-oxidizing methanogens relative to acetoclastic methanogens was consistent with syntrophic acetate oxidation measured in methanogenic crude oil degrading enrichment cultures. qPCR of the Methanomicrobiales indicated growth characteristics consistent with measured rates of methane production and growth in partnership with Smithella. © 2011 Society for Applied Microbiology and Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  6. Concentrations of viable oil-degrading microorganisms are increased in feces from Calanus finmarchicus feeding in petroleum oil dispersions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Størdal, Ingvild Fladvad; Olsen, Anders Johny; Jenssen, Bjørn Munro; Netzer, Roman; Hansen, Bjørn Henrik; Altin, Dag; Brakstad, Odd Gunnar

    2015-09-15

    Zooplankton are suggested to be biotic contributors to the transport and weathering of oil in marine environments due to their ingestion of oil. In the present experiment, feeding activity and microbial communities in feces from Calanus finmarchicus feeding in oil dispersions were characterized. Feeding activity was significantly reduced in oil dispersions. The microbial communities in clean and oil-containing copepod feces were dominated by Rhodobacteraceae family bacteria (Lesingera, Phaeobacter, Rugeria, and Sulfitobacter), which were suggested to be indigenous to copepod feces. The results also indicated that these bacteria were metabolizing oil compounds, as a significant increase in the concentrations of viable oil degrading microorganisms was observed in oil-containing feces. This study shows that bacteria in feces from copepods feeding in dilute oil dispersions have capacity for degradation of oil. Zooplankton may therefore contribute to weathering of oil by excreting feces with microbial communities already adapted to degradation of oil. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. 30 CFR 44.24 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 44.24 Section 44.24 Mineral... Discovery. Parties shall be governed in their conduct of discovery by appropriate provisions of the Federal... discovery. Alternative periods of time for discovery may be prescribed by the presiding administrative law...

  8. 19 CFR 356.20 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 356.20 Section 356.20 Customs Duties... § 356.20 Discovery. (a) Voluntary discovery. All parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery... sanctions proceeding. (b) Limitations on discovery. The administrative law judge shall place such limits...

  9. Chemical Discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Herbert C.

    1974-01-01

    The role of discovery in the advance of the science of chemistry and the factors that are currently operating to handicap that function are considered. Examples are drawn from the author's work with boranes. The thesis that exploratory research and discovery should be encouraged is stressed. (DT)

  10. 24 CFR 180.500 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 180.500 Section 180.500... OPPORTUNITY CONSOLIDATED HUD HEARING PROCEDURES FOR CIVIL RIGHTS MATTERS Discovery § 180.500 Discovery. (a) In general. This subpart governs discovery in aid of administrative proceedings under this part. Discovery in...

  11. 22 CFR 224.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 224.21 Section 224.21 Foreign....21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of... parties, discovery is available only as ordered by the ALJ. The ALJ shall regulate the timing of discovery...

  12. A New Long Term Assessment of Energy Return on Investment (EROI for U.S. Oil and Gas Discovery and Production

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cutler J. Cleveland

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Oil and gas are the main sources of energy in the United States. Part of their appeal is the high Energy Return on Energy Investment (EROI when procuring them. We assessed data from the United States Bureau of the Census of Mineral Industries, the Energy Information Administration (EIA, the Oil and Gas Journal for the years 1919–2007 and from oil analyst Jean Laherrere to derive EROI for both finding and producing oil and gas. We found two general patterns in the relation of energy gains compared to energy costs: a gradual secular decrease in EROI and an inverse relation to drilling effort. EROI for finding oil and gas decreased exponentially from 1200:1 in 1919 to 5:1 in 2007. The EROI for production of the oil and gas industry was about 20:1 from 1919 to 1972, declined to about 8:1 in 1982 when peak drilling occurred, recovered to about 17:1 from 1986–2002 and declined sharply to about 11:1 in the mid to late 2000s. The slowly declining secular trend has been partly masked by changing effort: the lower the intensity of drilling, the higher the EROI compared to the secular trend. Fuel consumption within the oil and gas industry grew continuously from 1919 through the early 1980s, declined in the mid-1990s, and has increased recently, not surprisingly linked to the increased cost of finding and extracting oil.

  13. 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

  14. Predictors of timing of pregnancy discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCarthy, Molly; Upadhyay, Ushma; Biggs, M Antonia; Anthony, Renaisa; Holl, Jennifer; Roberts, Sarah Cm

    2018-04-01

    Earlier pregnancy discovery is important in the context of prenatal and abortion care. We evaluated characteristics associated with later pregnancy discovery among women seeking abortion care. Data come from a survey of women seeking abortion care at four family planning facilities in Utah. The participants completed a survey during the state-mandated abortion information visit they are required to complete prior to having an abortion. The outcome in this study was pregnancy discovery before versus after 6 weeks since respondents' last menstrual period (LMP). We used logistic regression to estimate the relationship between sociodemographic and health-related independent variables of interest and pregnancy discovery before versus after 6 weeks. Among the 458 women in the sample, 28% discovered their pregnancy later than 6 weeks since LMP. Most (n=366, 80%) knew the exact date of their LMP and a significant minority estimated it (n=92, 20%). Those who estimated the date of their LMP had higher odds of later pregnancy discovery than those who knew the exact date (adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=1.81[1.07-3.07]). Those who used illicit drugs weekly, daily, or almost daily had higher odds of later pregnancy discovery (aOR=6.33[2.44, 16.40]). Women who did not track their menstrual periods and those who frequently used drugs had higher odds of discovering their pregnancies later. Women who estimated the date of their LMP and who frequently used drugs may benefit from strategies to help them recognize their pregnancies earlier and link them to care when they discover their pregnancies later. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. A New Long Term Assessment of Energy Return on Investment (EROI) for U.S. Oil and Gas Discovery and Production

    OpenAIRE

    Guilford, Megan C.; Hall, Charles A.S.; O’Connor, Peter; Cleveland, Cutler J.

    2011-01-01

    Oil and gas are the main sources of energy in the United States. Part of their appeal is the high Energy Return on Energy Investment (EROI) when procuring them. We assessed data from the United States Bureau of the Census of Mineral Industries, the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the Oil and Gas Journal for the years 1919–2007 and from oil analyst Jean Laherrere to derive EROI for both finding and producing oil and gas. We found two general patterns in the relation of energy gains co...

  16. Oil analysis in machine diagnostics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vaehaeoja, P.

    2006-07-01

    This study concentrates on developing and tuning various oil analysis methods to meet the requirements of modern industry and environmental analytics. Oil analysis methods form a vital part of techniques used to monitor the condition of machines and may help to improve the overall equipment effectiveness value of a factory in a significant manner. Worm gears are used in various production machines, and their breakdowns may cause significant production losses. Wearing of these gears is relatively difficult to monitor with vibration analysis. Analysis of two indicator metals, copper and iron, may reveal wearing phenomena of worm gears effectively, and savings can be significant. Effective wear metal analysis requires good tools. ICP-OES with kerosene dilution is widely used in wear metal analysis, but purchasing and using of ICP-OES is expensive. A cheaper FAAS technique with similar pre-treatment of oil samples was tested and it proved to be useful especially in analyzing small amounts of samples. The accuracy of FAAS was sufficient for quantitative work in machine diagnostics and waste oil characterization. Solid debris analyses are useful in oil contamination control as well as in detection of wearing mechanisms. Membrane filtration, optical microscopy, SEM and automatic particle counting were applied in analysis of rolling and gear oils. Particle counting is an effective way to detect oil contamination, but in the studied cases even larger particles than those detected in normal ISO classes would be informative. However, membrane filtration and optical microscopy may reveal the wearing machine element exactly. Additives provide oils with desired properties thus they should be monitored intensively. A FTIR method for quantitative analysis of fatty alcohols and fatty acid esters in machinery oils was developed during this work. It has already been used successfully in quantitative and qualitative analysis of machinery oil samples. Various kinds of oils may be

  17. 19 CFR 207.109 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 207.109 Section 207.109 Customs Duties... and Committee Proceedings § 207.109 Discovery. (a) Discovery methods. All parties may obtain discovery under such terms and limitations as the administrative law judge may order. Discovery may be by one or...

  18. 15 CFR 25.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 25.21 Section 25.21... Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for..., discovery is available only as ordered by the ALJ. The ALJ shall regulate the timing of discovery. (d...

  19. On reliable discovery of molecular signatures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Björkegren Johan

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Molecular signatures are sets of genes, proteins, genetic variants or other variables that can be used as markers for a particular phenotype. Reliable signature discovery methods could yield valuable insight into cell biology and mechanisms of human disease. However, it is currently not clear how to control error rates such as the false discovery rate (FDR in signature discovery. Moreover, signatures for cancer gene expression have been shown to be unstable, that is, difficult to replicate in independent studies, casting doubts on their reliability. Results We demonstrate that with modern prediction methods, signatures that yield accurate predictions may still have a high FDR. Further, we show that even signatures with low FDR may fail to replicate in independent studies due to limited statistical power. Thus, neither stability nor predictive accuracy are relevant when FDR control is the primary goal. We therefore develop a general statistical hypothesis testing framework that for the first time provides FDR control for signature discovery. Our method is demonstrated to be correct in simulation studies. When applied to five cancer data sets, the method was able to discover molecular signatures with 5% FDR in three cases, while two data sets yielded no significant findings. Conclusion Our approach enables reliable discovery of molecular signatures from genome-wide data with current sample sizes. The statistical framework developed herein is potentially applicable to a wide range of prediction problems in bioinformatics.

  20. 39 CFR 963.14 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 39 Postal Service 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 963.14 Section 963.14 Postal Service... PANDERING ADVERTISEMENTS STATUTE, 39 U.S.C. 3008 § 963.14 Discovery. Discovery is to be conducted on a... such discovery as he or she deems reasonable and necessary. Discovery may include one or more of the...

  1. A Bootstrap Approach to Computing Uncertainty in Inferred Oil and Gas Reserve Estimates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Attanasi, Emil D.; Coburn, Timothy C.

    2004-01-01

    This study develops confidence intervals for estimates of inferred oil and gas reserves based on bootstrap procedures. Inferred reserves are expected additions to proved reserves in previously discovered conventional oil and gas fields. Estimates of inferred reserves accounted for 65% of the total oil and 34% of the total gas assessed in the U.S. Geological Survey's 1995 National Assessment of oil and gas in US onshore and State offshore areas. When the same computational methods used in the 1995 Assessment are applied to more recent data, the 80-year (from 1997 through 2076) inferred reserve estimates for pre-1997 discoveries located in the lower 48 onshore and state offshore areas amounted to a total of 39.7 billion barrels of oil (BBO) and 293 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of gas. The 90% confidence interval about the oil estimate derived from the bootstrap approach is 22.4 BBO to 69.5 BBO. The comparable 90% confidence interval for the inferred gas reserve estimate is 217 TCF to 413 TCF. The 90% confidence interval describes the uncertainty that should be attached to the estimates. It also provides a basis for developing scenarios to explore the implications for energy policy analysis

  2. Effect of a 6-month intervention with cooking oils containing a high concentration of monounsaturated fatty acids (olive and canola oils) compared with control oil in male Asian Indians with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nigam, Priyanka; Bhatt, Suryaprakash; Misra, Anoop; Chadha, Davinder S; Vaidya, Meera; Dasgupta, Jharna; Pasha, Qadar M A

    2014-04-01

    We investigated the effects of dietary intervention with canola or olive oil in comparison with commonly used refined oil in Asian Indians with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This was a 6-month intervention study including 93 males with NAFLD, matched for age and body mass index (BMI). Subjects were randomized into three groups to receive olive oil (n=30), canola oil (n=33), and commonly used soyabean/safflower oil (control; n=30) as cooking medium (not exceeding 20 g/day) along with counseling for therapeutic lifestyle changes. The BMI, fasting blood glucose (FBG) and insulin levels, lipids, homeostasis model of assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), HOMA denoting β-cell function (HOMA-βCF), and disposition index (DI) were measured at pre- and post-intervention. Data were analyzed with one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's Honestly Significant Difference multiple comparison test procedures. Olive oil intervention led to a significant decrease in weight and BMI (ANOVA, P=0.01) compared with the control oil group. In a comparison of olive and canola oil, a significant decrease in fasting insulin level, HOMA-IR, HOMA-βCF, and DI (Poil group. Pre- and post-intervention analysis revealed a significant increase in high-density lipoprotein level (P=0.004) in the olive oil group and a significant decrease in FBG (P=0.03) and triglyceride (P=0.02) levels in the canola oil group. The pre- and post-intervention difference in liver span was significant only in the olive (1.14 ± 2 cm; Poil groups. In the olive and canola oil groups, post-intervention grading of fatty liver was reduced significantly (grade I, from 73.3% to 23.3% and from 60.5% to 20%, respectively [Poil group no significant change was observed. Results suggest significant improvements in grading of fatty liver, liver span, measures of insulin resistance, and lipids with use of canola and olive oil compared with control oils in Asian Indians with NAFLD.

  3. Coconut oil has less satiating properties than medium chain triglyceride oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kinsella, R; Maher, T; Clegg, M E

    2017-10-01

    It is well established that the consumption of medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) can increase satiety and reduce food intake. Many media articles promote the use of coconut oil for weight loss advocating similar health benefits to that of MCT. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of MCT oil compared to coconut oil and control oil on food intake and satiety. Following an overnight fast, participants consumed a test breakfast smoothie containing 205kcal of either (i) MCT oil (ii) coconut oil or (iii) vegetable oil (control) on three separate test days. Participants recorded appetite ratings on visual analogue scales and were presented with an ad libitum lunch meal of preselected sandwiches 180min after consumption of the breakfast. The results showed a significant difference in energy and macronutrient intakes at the ad libitum meal between the three oils with the MCT oil reducing food intake compared to the coconut and control oil. Differences in food intake throughout the day were found for energy and fat, with the control having increased food intake compared to the MCT and coconut. The MCT also increased fullness over the three hours after breakfast compared to the control and coconut oils. The coconut oil was also reported as being less palatable than the MCT oil. The results of this study confirm the differences that exist between MCT and coconut oil such that coconut oil cannot be promoted as having similar effects to MCT oil on food intake and satiety. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Advances in Chance Discovery : Extended Selection from International Workshops

    CERN Document Server

    Abe, Akinori

    2013-01-01

    Since year 2000, scientists on artificial and natural intelligences started to study chance discovery - methods for discovering events/situations that significantly affect decision making. Partially because the editors Ohsawa and Abe are teaching at schools of Engineering and of Literature with sharing the interest in chance discovery, this book reflects interdisciplinary aspects of progress: First, as an interdisciplinary melting pot of cognitive science, computational intelligence, data mining/visualization, collective intelligence, … etc, chance discovery came to reach new application domains e.g. health care, aircraft control, energy plant, management of technologies, product designs, innovations, marketing, finance etc. Second, basic technologies and sciences including sensor technologies, medical sciences, communication technologies etc. joined this field and interacted with cognitive/computational scientists in workshops on chance discovery, to obtain breakthroughs by stimulating each other. Third, �...

  5. Dietary gamma oryzanol plays a significant role in the anti-inflammatory activity of rice bran oil by decreasing pro-inflammatory mediators secreted by peritoneal macrophages of rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rao, Y Poorna Chandra; Sugasini, D; Lokesh, B R

    2016-10-28

    Ricebran oil (RBO) is promoted as heart friendly oil because of its ability to maintain serum lipids at desirable levels. Inflammation also plays an important role on cardiovascular health. The role of minor constituents present in unsaponifiable fraction (UF) of RBO on inflammatory markers is not well understood. To evaluate this, we have taken RBO with UF (RBO-N), RBO stripped of UF (RBO-MCR) and RBO-MCR supplemented with UF from RBO (UFRBO) or Gamma-Oryzanol (γ-ORY) were added in AIN-93 diets which was then fed to Wistar rats for a period of 60 days. Groundnut oil with UF (GNO-N), UF removed GNO (GNO-MCR) and GNO-MCR supplemented with UF from RBO or γ-ORY was also used for comparison. The peritoneal macrophages from the rats were activated and pro-inflammatory mediators such as Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), eicosanoids, cytokines, hydrolytic enzymes of lysosomal origin were monitored. The results indicated that UF of RBO and γ-ORY supplemented in the dietary oils play a significant role in reducing the secretion of pro-inflammatory mediators by macrophages. Hence γ-ORY in RBO significantly contributed to the anti-inflammatory properties of RBO. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Future Oil and Gas Resources of the World: A Coming Supply Crisis?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahlbrandt, T. S.

    2002-05-01

    Is the world running out of oil? Where will future oil and gas supplies come from? To help answer these questions, the U.S. Geological Survey completed in 2000 a new assessment of the undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources and potential additions to reserves from field growth. One hundred and twenty-eight provinces were assessed in a 100 man-year effort from 1995-2000. The assessed provinces included 76 priority provinces containing 95 percent of the world's discovered oil and gas and an additional 52 "boutique" provinces, many of which may be highly prospective. Total Petroleum Systems (TPS) were identified and described for each of these provinces along with associated Assessment Units (AU) that are the basic units for assessing undiscovered petroleum. The assessment process coupled geologic analysis with a probabilistic methodology to estimate remaining potential. Within the 128 assessed provinces, were 159 TPS and 274 AU. For these provinces, the endowment of recoverable oil, which includes cumulative production, remaining reserves, reserve growth, and undiscovered resources is estimated at about 3 trillion barrels of oil (TBO). The natural gas endowment is estimated at 2.6 trillion barrels of oil equivalent (TBOE). Oil reserves are currently 1.1 TBO; world consumption is about .028 TBO per year. Natural gas reserves are about .8 TBOE; world consumption is about .014 TBOE. Thus, without any additional discoveries of oil, gas or natural gas liquids, we have about 2 TBOE of proved petroleum reserves. Of the oil and gas endowment of about 5.6 TBOE, we estimate that the world has consumed about 1 TBOE, or 18 percent leaving about 82 percent of endowment to be utilized or found. Half of the world's undiscovered potential is offshore. Arctic basins with about 25 percent of undiscovered petroleum resources make up the next great frontier. An additional 279 provinces contain some oil and gas and, if considered, would increase the oil and gas endowment

  7. Usability of Discovery Portals

    OpenAIRE

    Bulens, J.D.; Vullings, L.A.E.; Houtkamp, J.M.; Vanmeulebrouk, B.

    2013-01-01

    As INSPIRE progresses to be implemented in the EU, many new discovery portals are built to facilitate finding spatial data. Currently the structure of the discovery portals is determined by the way spatial data experts like to work. However, we argue that the main target group for discovery portals are not spatial data experts but professionals with limited spatial knowledge, and a focus outside the spatial domain. An exploratory usability experiment was carried out in which three discovery p...

  8. The determinants of oil prices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Angelier, J-P.

    1991-01-01

    In recent years, swings in oil prices have been of unprecendented severity and frequency. Three factors work together to determine the price of oil: in the short term, the balance between supply and demand; in the medium term, the structure of the oil industry; and in the long term, the marginal production cost consistent with world oil demand. An oil price forecast is presented based on these considerations, and it is predicted that in the year 2000, oil prices will not be significantly different from those of today. 28 refs

  9. Gas revenue increasingly significant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Megill, R.E.

    1991-01-01

    This paper briefly describes the wellhead prices of natural gas compared to crude oil over the past 70 years. Although natural gas prices have never reached price parity with crude oil, the relative value of a gas BTU has been increasing. It is one of the reasons that the total amount of money coming from natural gas wells is becoming more significant. From 1920 to 1955 the revenue at the wellhead for natural gas was only about 10% of the money received by producers. Most of the money needed for exploration, development, and production came from crude oil. At present, however, over 40% of the money from the upstream portion of the petroleum industry is from natural gas. As a result, in a few short years natural gas may become 50% of the money revenues generated from wellhead production facilities

  10. The Factors Influencing on Consumption of Palm Cooking Oil in Indonesia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ermy Teti

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available Cooking oil is one of the most sensitive basic needs in Indonesia. The aims of the researchare to analyze factors influencing consumption of cooking oil, the cooking oil price, and theCrude Palm Oil price in Indonesia. Using simultaneous equation model, the study show thatpalm cooking oil consumption is significantly affected by domestic palm cooking oil priceand number of population. Whilst palm cooking oil price is significantly influenced by thecooking palm oil production and the domestic Crude Palm Oil price. Finally, the domesticCrude Palm Oil is significantly affected by international Crude Palm Oil price.Keywords: consumption, cooking oil price, crude palm oil price and cooking oil

  11. SUBTASK 1.7 EVALUATION OF KEY FACTORS AFFECTING SUCCESSFUL OIL PRODUCTION IN THE BAKKEN FORMATION, NORTH DAKOTA PHASE II

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Darren D. Schmidt; Steven A. Smith; James A. Sorensen; Damion J. Knudsen; John A. Harju; Edward N. Steadman

    2011-10-31

    Production from the Bakken and Three Forks Formations continues to trend upward as forecasts predict significant production of oil from unconventional resources nationwide. As the U.S. Geological Survey reevaluates the 3.65 billion bbl technically recoverable estimate of 2008, technological advancements continue to unlock greater unconventional oil resources, and new discoveries continue within North Dakota. It is expected that the play will continue to expand to the southwest, newly develop in the northeastern and northwestern corners of the basin in North Dakota, and fully develop in between. Although not all wells are economical, the economic success rate has been near 75% with more than 90% of wells finding oil. Currently, only about 15% of the play has been drilled, and recovery rates are less than 5%, providing a significant future of wells to be drilled and untouched hydrocarbons to be pursued through improved stimulation practices or enhanced oil recovery. This study provides the technical characterizations that are necessary to improve knowledge, provide characterization, validate generalizations, and provide insight relative to hydrocarbon recovery in the Bakken and Three Forks Formations. Oil-saturated rock charged from the Bakken shales and prospective Three Forks can be produced given appropriate stimulation treatments. Highly concentrated fracture stimulations with ceramic- and sand-based proppants appear to be providing the best success for areas outside the Parshall and Sanish Fields. Targeting of specific lithologies can influence production from both natural and induced fracture conductivity. Porosity and permeability are low, but various lithofacies units within the formation are highly saturated and, when targeted with appropriate technology, release highly economical quantities of hydrocarbons.

  12. The new challenges for oil-based sovereign wealth funds

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aoun, Marie-Claire; Boulanger, Quentin

    2015-02-01

    Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are often presented as an effective instrument for managing hydrocarbon rents, reducing the impact of the volatility of oil or gas revenues on the economy, separating expenditure from income, and promoting a more transparent management of the rent. The asset allocation strategy has become more complex with the rapid rise in oil prices between 2007 and 2014, and the substantial financial reserves accumulated in hydrocarbon-producing countries, switching from an approach of wealth management to an approach of investment and financial optimisation. Hence, these funds have become major players on the international financial and industrial scene. Moreover, with the discovery of new hydrocarbon resources in recent years, particularly in Africa, the strategies of new funds appear to be moving towards a new goal of local economic development. But the unforeseen collapse of crude oil prices in recent months poses a new risk for some SWFs based on hydrocarbon revenues, which has to come to the aid of their economies and focus on their main principle of macro-economic stabilisation. (author)

  13. 19 CFR 354.10 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 354.10 Section 354.10 Customs Duties... ANTIDUMPING OR COUNTERVAILING DUTY ADMINISTRATIVE PROTECTIVE ORDER § 354.10 Discovery. (a) Voluntary discovery. All parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery procedures regarding any matter, not...

  14. 36 CFR 1150.63 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 1150.63 Section... PRACTICE AND PROCEDURES FOR COMPLIANCE HEARINGS Prehearing Conferences and Discovery § 1150.63 Discovery. (a) Parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery procedures. For good cause shown under...

  15. 37 CFR 11.52 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 37 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 11.52 Section 11... Disciplinary Proceedings; Jurisdiction, Sanctions, Investigations, and Proceedings § 11.52 Discovery. Discovery... establishes that discovery is reasonable and relevant, the hearing officer, under such conditions as he or she...

  16. The discovery of radioactivity and its aftermath : this article celebrates the 100th anniversary of the discovery of radioactivity by Becquerel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Newbold, B.T.

    1996-01-01

    The year 1996 marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of natural radioactivity by the French physicist Antoine Henri Becquerel while studying the behaviour of a fluorescent uranium salt on exposure to sunlight. The great importance of this development has been underlined by Bagnall who stated that 'The scientific scene at the dawn of the 20th century was dominated by the excitement generated from Becquerel's discovery ... ' [1]. However, the discovery of radioactivity did not attract much attention initially when compared with that accorded to the more penetrating X rays found by the German physicist Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen in 1895. Roentgen received the 1901 Nobel Prize for physics for his outstanding discovery. Fortunately, the significance of Becquerel's contribution was quickly realized and in 1903 he was also awarded the Nobel Prize for physics, which he shared with Pierre Curie and Marie Skoldowska Curie, who were honoured for their research on the radiation phenomenon reported by Becquerel. 9 refs., 1 tab

  17. The discovery of radioactivity and its aftermath : this article celebrates the 100th anniversary of the discovery of radioactivity by Becquerel

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Newbold, B T [Moncton Univ., NB (Canada). Dept. of Chemistry and Biochemistry

    1996-09-01

    The year 1996 marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of natural radioactivity by the French physicist Antoine Henri Becquerel while studying the behaviour of a fluorescent uranium salt on exposure to sunlight. The great importance of this development has been underlined by Bagnall who stated that `The scientific scene at the dawn of the 20th century was dominated by the excitement generated from Becquerel`s discovery ... ` [1]. However, the discovery of radioactivity did not attract much attention initially when compared with that accorded to the more penetrating X rays found by the German physicist Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen in 1895. Roentgen received the 1901 Nobel Prize for physics for his outstanding discovery. Fortunately, the significance of Becquerel`s contribution was quickly realized and in 1903 he was also awarded the Nobel Prize for physics, which he shared with Pierre Curie and Marie Skoldowska Curie, who were honoured for their research on the radiation phenomenon reported by Becquerel. 9 refs., 1 tab.

  18. Adjustments to the oil politics, new contractual vision

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon

    1998-01-01

    A model of adjusted association contract for discoveries of gassy hydrocarbons, with terms and more generous conditions for the investors, that it opens the possibility to offer in public auction the inactive areas, applied to the fields and not to the general contract, they are the key points for the new trade in oil politics, in a same way it decided that the small fields and of production in Ecopetrol areas, will be able to be awarded by means of the auction system. These new guarantees that make attractive the business to the oil companies so that they invest in Colombia, they have foreseen to obtain between 3.000 and 5.000 million barrels of petroleum of new reserves in the period 1998 - 2010, of a potential of 37 thousand million barrels in the whole country. In general terms, the new politics implies that there will be an only association contract for adhesion, but special terms will be applied when the discovery is of gassy hydrocarbon, that is to say, of natural gas. For the two cases, so much of gassy hydrocarbons as liquids, the refund of the direct costs of exploration will be made with the production, but the novelty it resides in that will have place in real terms in united states dollars, that is to say, applying a correction factor or financial index to the mount of made investments, to consider the value of the money in the time

  19. Usability of Discovery Portals

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bulens, J.D.; Vullings, L.A.E.; Houtkamp, J.M.; Vanmeulebrouk, B.

    2013-01-01

    As INSPIRE progresses to be implemented in the EU, many new discovery portals are built to facilitate finding spatial data. Currently the structure of the discovery portals is determined by the way spatial data experts like to work. However, we argue that the main target group for discovery portals

  20. 14 CFR 16.213 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 16.213 Section 16.213... PRACTICE FOR FEDERALLY-ASSISTED AIRPORT ENFORCEMENT PROCEEDINGS Hearings § 16.213 Discovery. (a) Discovery... discovery permitted by this section if a party shows that— (1) The information requested is cumulative or...

  1. 28 CFR 76.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 76.21 Section 76.21 Judicial... POSSESSION OF CERTAIN CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES § 76.21 Discovery. (a) Scope. Discovery under this part covers... as a general guide for discovery practices in proceedings before the Judge. However, unless otherwise...

  2. Knowledge-Based Topic Model for Unsupervised Object Discovery and Localization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niu, Zhenxing; Hua, Gang; Wang, Le; Gao, Xinbo

    Unsupervised object discovery and localization is to discover some dominant object classes and localize all of object instances from a given image collection without any supervision. Previous work has attempted to tackle this problem with vanilla topic models, such as latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA). However, in those methods no prior knowledge for the given image collection is exploited to facilitate object discovery. On the other hand, the topic models used in those methods suffer from the topic coherence issue-some inferred topics do not have clear meaning, which limits the final performance of object discovery. In this paper, prior knowledge in terms of the so-called must-links are exploited from Web images on the Internet. Furthermore, a novel knowledge-based topic model, called LDA with mixture of Dirichlet trees, is proposed to incorporate the must-links into topic modeling for object discovery. In particular, to better deal with the polysemy phenomenon of visual words, the must-link is re-defined as that one must-link only constrains one or some topic(s) instead of all topics, which leads to significantly improved topic coherence. Moreover, the must-links are built and grouped with respect to specific object classes, thus the must-links in our approach are semantic-specific , which allows to more efficiently exploit discriminative prior knowledge from Web images. Extensive experiments validated the efficiency of our proposed approach on several data sets. It is shown that our method significantly improves topic coherence and outperforms the unsupervised methods for object discovery and localization. In addition, compared with discriminative methods, the naturally existing object classes in the given image collection can be subtly discovered, which makes our approach well suited for realistic applications of unsupervised object discovery.Unsupervised object discovery and localization is to discover some dominant object classes and localize all of object

  3. Transesterification of jojoba oil, sunflower oil, neem oil, rocket seed oil and linseed oil by tin catalysts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shah, Mazloom; Tariq, Muhammad; Ali, Saqib; Guo, Qing-Xiang; Fu, Yao

    2014-01-01

    The methanolysis of jojoba oil has been studied in the presence of tin powder, dibutyltin diacetate (C 4 H 9 ) 2 Sn(OOCCH 3 ) 2 , dioctyltin diacetate (C 8 H 17 ) 2 Sn(OOCCH 3 ) 2 , dibutyltin oxide (C 4 H 9 ) 2 SnO, dioctyltin oxide (C 8 H 17 ) 2 SnO, diphenyltin oxide (C 6 H 5 ) 2 SnO, dibutyltin chloride dihydroxide (C 4 H 9 ) 2 Sn(OH) 2 Cl, butyltinhydroxide hydrate (C 4 H 9 )Sn(=O)OH.xH 2 O, Ni nanoparticles and Pd nanoparticles act as catalysts. Among these, 1 weight % of dibutyltin diacetate shows the maximum conversion. Then, methanolysis of sunflower oil, neem oil, rocket seed oil and linseed oil into methyl esters studied in the presence of 1% dibutyltin diacetate as a catalyst and was compared their percentage conversions. The experimental yield for the conversion of jojoba oil, sunflower oil, neem oil, rocket seed oil and linseed oil into biodiesel was found to be 71%, 51%, 50.78%, 40.90% and 39.66%, respectively. The experimental yield of the conversion of jojoba oil into methyl esters was found to be increased up to 96% by increasing reaction time, without emulsion formation. The synthesis of jojoba seed oil biodiesel (JSOB), soybean oil biodiesel (SOB), neem oil biodiesel (NOB), rocket seed oil biodiesel (RSOB) and linseed oil biodiesel (LSOB) was confirmed by NMR ( 1 H and 13 C) and FT-IR analyses of biodiesel. - Highlights: • Transesterification of jojoba oil into biodiesel by tin and nano catalysts. • 1 weight % dibutyltin diacetate showed highest yield at 60 °C. • Catalytic conversion comparison of five oils using dibutyltin diacetate • The experimental yield of the conversion of jojoba oil increased with time. • FT-IR and NMR ( 1 H and 13 C) characterization

  4. Oil Volatility Risk and Expected Stock Returns

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christoffersen, Peter; Pan, Xuhui (Nick)

    After the financialization of commodity futures markets in 2004-05 oil volatility has become a strong predictor of returns and volatility of the overall stock market. Furthermore, stocks' exposure to oil volatility risk now drives the cross-section of expected returns. The difference in average...... return between the quintile of stocks with low exposure and high exposure to oil volatility is significant at 0.66% per month, and oil volatility risk carries a significant risk premium of -0.60% per month. In the post-financialization period, oil volatility risk is strongly related with various measures...

  5. Chemical Composition and Bioactivity of Essential Oil from Blepharocalyx salicifolius

    Science.gov (United States)

    Furtado, Fabiana Barcelos; Borges, Bruna Cristina; Teixeira, Thaise Lara; de Almeida Junior, Luiz Domingues; Alves, Fernanda Cristina Bérgamo; da Silva, Claudio Vieira

    2018-01-01

    Natural products represent a source of biologically active molecules that have an important role in drug discovery. The aromatic plant Blepharocalyx salicifolius has a diverse chemical constitution but the biological activities of its essential oils have not been thoroughly investigated. The aims of this paper were to evaluate in vitro cytotoxic, antifungal and antibacterial activities of an essential oil from leaves of B. salicifolius and to identify its main chemical constituents. The essential oil was extracted by steam distillation, chemical composition was determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and biological activities were performed by a microdilution broth method. The yield of essential oil was 0.86% (w/w), and the main constituents identified were bicyclogermacrene (17.50%), globulol (14.13%), viridiflorol (8.83%), γ-eudesmol (7.89%) and α-eudesmol (6.88%). The essential oil was cytotoxic against the MDA-MB-231 (46.60 μg·mL−1) breast cancer cell line, being more selective for this cell type compared to the normal breast cell line MCF-10A (314.44 μg·mL−1). Flow cytometry and cytotoxicity results showed that this oil does not act by inducing cell death, but rather by impairment of cellular metabolism specifically of the cancer cells. Furthermore, it presented antifungal activity against Paracoccidioides brasiliensis (156.25 μg·mL−1) but was inactive against other fungi and bacteria. Essential oil from B. salicifolius showed promising biological activities and is therefore a source of molecules to be exploited in medicine or by the pharmaceutical industry. PMID:29300307

  6. Estimation of the Impacts of Non-Oil Traditional and NonTraditional Export Sectors on Non-Oil Export of Azerbaijan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicat Hagverdiyev

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The significant share of oil sector of the Azerbaijan export portfolio necessitates promotion of non-oil exports. This study analyzes weather the commodities which contain the main share (more than 70% in non-oil export are traditional or non-traditional areas, using the so-called Commodity-specific cumulative export experience function, for the 1995-2015 time frame. Then, the impact of traditional and non-traditional exports on non-oil GDP investigated employing econometric model. The results of the study based on 16 non-oil commodities show that cotton, tobacco, and production of mechanic devices are traditional sectors in non-oil export. The estimation results of the model indicate that both, traditional and non-traditional non-oil export sectors have economically and statistically significant impact on non-oil GDP.

  7. 40 CFR 27.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 27.21 Section 27.21... Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for..., discovery is available only as ordered by the presiding officer. The presiding officer shall regulate the...

  8. 37 CFR 41.150 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 37 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 41.150 Section 41... COMMERCE PRACTICE BEFORE THE BOARD OF PATENT APPEALS AND INTERFERENCES Contested Cases § 41.150 Discovery. (a) Limited discovery. A party is not entitled to discovery except as authorized in this subpart. The...

  9. 14 CFR 13.220 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 13.220 Section 13.220... INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Rules of Practice in FAA Civil Penalty Actions § 13.220 Discovery. (a) Initiation of discovery. Any party may initiate discovery described in this section, without the consent or...

  10. 49 CFR 604.38 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 7 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 604.38 Section 604.38 Transportation... TRANSPORTATION CHARTER SERVICE Hearings. § 604.38 Discovery. (a) Permissible forms of discovery shall be within the discretion of the PO. (b) The PO shall limit the frequency and extent of discovery permitted by...

  11. 15 CFR 719.10 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 719.10 Section 719.10... Discovery. (a) General. The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery regarding any matter... the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure relating to discovery apply to the extent consistent with this...

  12. 24 CFR 26.18 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 26.18 Section 26.18... PROCEDURES Hearings Before Hearing Officers Discovery § 26.18 Discovery. (a) General. The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery procedures, which may commence at any time after an answer has...

  13. 42 CFR 426.532 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 426.532 Section 426.532 Public Health... § 426.532 Discovery. (a) General rule. If the Board orders discovery, the Board must establish a reasonable timeframe for discovery. (b) Protective order—(1) Request for a protective order. Any party...

  14. 49 CFR 1503.633 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 1503.633 Section 1503.633... Rules of Practice in TSA Civil Penalty Actions § 1503.633 Discovery. (a) Initiation of discovery. Any party may initiate discovery described in this section, without the consent or approval of the ALJ, at...

  15. 14 CFR 1264.120 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 1264.120 Section 1264.120... PENALTIES ACT OF 1986 § 1264.120 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1..., discovery is available only as ordered by the presiding officer. The presiding officer shall regulate the...

  16. 22 CFR 128.6 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 128.6 Section 128.6 Foreign... Discovery. (a) Discovery by the respondent. The respondent, through the Administrative Law Judge, may... discovery if the interests of national security or foreign policy so require, or if necessary to comply with...

  17. 24 CFR 26.42 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 26.42 Section 26.42... PROCEDURES Hearings Pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act Discovery § 26.42 Discovery. (a) General. The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery procedures, which may commence at any time...

  18. 49 CFR 386.37 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 386.37 Section 386.37 Transportation... and Hearings § 386.37 Discovery. (a) Parties may obtain discovery by one or more of the following...; and requests for admission. (b) Discovery may not commence until the matter is pending before the...

  19. 29 CFR 1955.32 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 9 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 1955.32 Section 1955.32 Labor Regulations...) PROCEDURES FOR WITHDRAWAL OF APPROVAL OF STATE PLANS Preliminary Conference and Discovery § 1955.32 Discovery... allow discovery by any other appropriate procedure, such as by interrogatories upon a party or request...

  20. Delta: the first pion nucleon resonance - its discovery and applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nagle, D.E.

    1984-07-01

    It is attempted to recapture some of the fun and excitement of the pion-scattering work that led to the discovery of what is now called the delta particle. How significant this discovery was became apparent only gradually. That the delta is alive today and thriving at Los Alamos (as well as other places) is described

  1. Viscous Flow Behaviour of Karanja Oil Based Bio-lubricant Base Oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharma, Umesh Chandra; Sachan, Sadhana; Trivedi, Rakesh Kumar

    2018-01-01

    Karanja oil (KO) is widely used for synthesis of bio-fuel karanja oil methyl ester (KOME) due to its competitive price, good energy values and environmentally friendly combustion properties. Bio-lubricant is another value added product that can be synthesized from KO via chemical modification. In this work karanja oil trimethylolpropane ester (KOTMPE) bio-lubricant was synthesized and evaluated for its viscous flow behaviour. A comparison of viscous flow behaviours of natural KO and synthesized bio-fuel KOME and bio-lubricant KOTMPE was also made. The aim of this comparison was to validate the superiority of KOTMPE bio-lubricant over its precursors KO and KOME in terms of stable viscous flow at high temperature and high shear rate conditions usually encountered in engine operations and industrial processes. The free fatty acid (FFA) content of KO was 5.76%. KOME was synthesized from KO in a two-step, acid catalyzed esterification followed by base catalyzed transesterification, process at 65°C for 5 hours with oil-methanol ratio 1:6, catalysts H 2 SO 4 and KOH (1 and 1.25% w/w KO, respectively). In the final step, KOTMPE was prepared from KOME via transesterification with trimethylolpropane (TMP) at 150°C for 3 hours with KOME-TMP ratio 4:1 and H 2 SO 4 (2% w/w KOME) as catalyst. The viscosity versus temperature studies were made at 0-80°C temperatures in shear rate ranges of 10-1000 s -1 using a Discovery Hybrid Rheometer, model HR-3 (TA instruments, USA). The study found that viscosities of all three samples decreased with increase in temperature, though KOTMPE was able to maintain a good enough viscosity at elevated temperatures due to chemical modifications in its molecular structure. The viscosity index (VI) value for KOTMPE was 206.72. The study confirmed that the synthesized bio-lubricant KOTMPE can be used at high temperatures as a good lubricant, though some additives may be required to improve properties other than viscosity.

  2. North Sea oil and gas: a geographical perspective

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chapman, K

    1976-01-01

    Only ten years after the first rig moved into position, British oil has been piped ashore from the North Sea and, by 1980, will be making a substantial contribution to UK energy supplies. The discovery of natural gas in 1967--for initially gas was the primary objective--has transformed the gas supply so that 90% of the UK's needs already come from the North Sea. The speed and concentration of exploration pinpoints the vital importance of this new energy source. Until now the major oil 'pipeline' in the world has been led between the Middle East and Western Europe, so this new energy source has far reaching implications, both political and economic. Keith Chapman examines these implications starting from events in the North Sea itself; the geological background, agreement on the division of the North Sea, relations between oil companies, and government embodied in offshore mining legislation. The latter part of the book concentrates on the onshore repercussions of offshore activities; how North Sea oil fits into the international oil system, the various options open for its utilisation, the attitude of the EEC towards Scottish-based resources, government policy for the North coast of Scotland--an area which planners classed as ''peripheral'' but which must now accommodate extensive support facilities and service industries for the oil sites. There is also the question of relations between national and commercial interests--government versus the giant multi-national companies which took the initial gamble in the North Sea and are now responsible for the development of a resource vital to the economic well-being of Western Europe.

  3. Empirical Assessment of Expectations Associated with the Recent Discovery of Commercialisable Oil in Ghana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kwarteng Ernest

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The paper aim at assessing empirically the various expectations held by people in the economy in the face of oil revenue in order to contribute to the body of knowledge that exist in expectation formation. The study is based on descriptive quantitative survey of students in first and third year marketing department of Sunyani Polytechnic offering Higher National Diploma programme. A sample size of 70 respondents was used and was selected using non probability (convenience sampling method. Questionnaires were prepared using the Likert scale and were distributed to the students. Data were analysed using SPSS and the result presented in tables. Results indicate that respondents hold mixed expectation in the face of the oil revenue. There was gender, age, religion, employment differences in some of the expectations held by respondents. Future research should look at issues such as why there are these differences in opinions and the effect of macroeconomic variables such as inflation, GDP on public confidence as well as ways of managing these expectations.

  4. Influence of Oil Viscosity on Alkaline Flooding for Enhanced Heavy Oil Recovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yong Du

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Oil viscosity was studied as an important factor for alkaline flooding based on the mechanism of “water drops” flow. Alkaline flooding for two oil samples with different viscosities but similar acid numbers was compared. Besides, series flooding tests for the same oil sample were conducted at different temperatures and permeabilities. The results of flooding tests indicated that a high tertiary oil recovery could be achieved only in the low-permeability (approximately 500 mD sandpacks for the low-viscosity heavy oil (Zhuangxi, 390 mPa·s; however, the high-viscosity heavy oil (Chenzhuang, 3450 mPa·s performed well in both the low- and medium-permeability (approximately 1000 mD sandpacks. In addition, the results of flooding tests for the same oil at different temperatures also indicated that the oil viscosity put a similar effect on alkaline flooding. Therefore, oil with a high-viscosity is favorable for alkaline flooding. The microscopic flooding test indicated that the water drops produced during alkaline flooding for oils with different viscosities differed significantly in their sizes, which might influence the flow behaviors and therefore the sweep efficiencies of alkaline fluids. This study provides an evidence for the feasibility of the development of high-viscosity heavy oil using alkaline flooding.

  5. 42 CFR 426.432 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 426.432 Section 426.432 Public Health... § 426.432 Discovery. (a) General rule. If the ALJ orders discovery, the ALJ must establish a reasonable timeframe for discovery. (b) Protective order—(1) Request for a protective order. Any party receiving a...

  6. 10 CFR 13.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 13.21 Section 13.21 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES § 13.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are...) Unless mutually agreed to by the parties, discovery is available only as ordered by the ALJ. The ALJ...

  7. 49 CFR 1121.2 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 8 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 1121.2 Section 1121.2 Transportation... TRANSPORTATION RULES OF PRACTICE RAIL EXEMPTION PROCEDURES § 1121.2 Discovery. Discovery shall follow the procedures set forth at 49 CFR part 1114, subpart B. Discovery may begin upon the filing of the petition for...

  8. 38 CFR 42.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 42.21 Section... IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT § 42.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are... creation of a document. (c) Unless mutually agreed to by the parties, discovery is available only as...

  9. 22 CFR 521.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 true Discovery. 521.21 Section 521.21 Foreign... Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for... interpreted to require the creation of a document. (c) Unless mutually agreed to by the parties, discovery is...

  10. 31 CFR 10.71 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 10.71 Section 10.71 Money... SERVICE Rules Applicable to Disciplinary Proceedings § 10.71 Discovery. (a) In general. Discovery may be... relevance, materiality and reasonableness of the requested discovery and subject to the requirements of § 10...

  11. 39 CFR 955.15 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 39 Postal Service 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 955.15 Section 955.15 Postal Service... APPEALS § 955.15 Discovery. (a) The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery procedures. In connection with any deposition or other discovery procedure, the Board may issue any order which justice...

  12. 43 CFR 35.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 35.21 Section 35.21 Public... AND STATEMENTS § 35.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests...) Unless mutually agreed to by the parties, discovery is available only as ordered by the ALJ. The ALJ...

  13. 15 CFR 766.9 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 766.9 Section 766.9... PROCEEDINGS § 766.9 Discovery. (a) General. The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery... provisions of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure relating to discovery apply to the extent consistent with...

  14. Oil Volatility Risk and Expected Stock Returns

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christoffersen, Peter; Pan, Xuhui (Nick)

    return between the quintile of stocks with low exposure and high exposure to oil volatility is significant at 0.66% per month, and oil volatility risk carries a significant risk premium of -0.60% per month. In the post-financialization period, oil volatility risk is strongly related with various measures...

  15. Get Involved in Planetary Discoveries through New Worlds, New Discoveries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shupla, Christine; Shipp, S. S.; Halligan, E.; Dalton, H.; Boonstra, D.; Buxner, S.; SMD Planetary Forum, NASA

    2013-01-01

    "New Worlds, New Discoveries" is a synthesis of NASA’s 50-year exploration history which provides an integrated picture of our new understanding of our solar system. As NASA spacecraft head to and arrive at key locations in our solar system, "New Worlds, New Discoveries" provides an integrated picture of our new understanding of the solar system to educators and the general public! The site combines the amazing discoveries of past NASA planetary missions with the most recent findings of ongoing missions, and connects them to the related planetary science topics. "New Worlds, New Discoveries," which includes the "Year of the Solar System" and the ongoing celebration of the "50 Years of Exploration," includes 20 topics that share thematic solar system educational resources and activities, tied to the national science standards. This online site and ongoing event offers numerous opportunities for the science community - including researchers and education and public outreach professionals - to raise awareness, build excitement, and make connections with educators, students, and the public about planetary science. Visitors to the site will find valuable hands-on science activities, resources and educational materials, as well as the latest news, to engage audiences in planetary science topics and their related mission discoveries. The topics are tied to the big questions of planetary science: how did the Sun’s family of planets and bodies originate and how have they evolved? How did life begin and evolve on Earth, and has it evolved elsewhere in our solar system? Scientists and educators are encouraged to get involved either directly or by sharing "New Worlds, New Discoveries" and its resources with educators, by conducting presentations and events, sharing their resources and events to add to the site, and adding their own public events to the site’s event calendar! Visit to find quality resources and ideas. Connect with educators, students and the public to

  16. 13 CFR 134.213 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 13 Business Credit and Assistance 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 134.213 Section 134.213... OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS Rules of Practice for Most Cases § 134.213 Discovery. (a) Motion. A party may obtain discovery only upon motion, and for good cause shown. (b) Forms. The forms of discovery...

  17. 31 CFR 16.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 16.21 Section 16.21 Money... FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT OF 1986 § 16.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized... to require the creation of a document. (c) Unless mutually agreed to by the parties, discovery is...

  18. Pegasus project. DLC coating and low viscosity oil reduce energy losses significantly

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Doerwald, Dave; Jacobs, Ruud [Hauzer Techno Coating (Netherlands). Tribological Coatings

    2012-03-15

    Pegasus, the flying horse from Greek mythology, is a suitable name for the research project initiated by a German automotive OEM with participation of Hauzer Techno Coating and several automotive suppliers. It will enable future automotive vehicles to reduce fuel consumption without losing power. The project described in this article focuses on the rear differential, because reducing friction here can contribute considerably to efficiency improvement of the whole vehicle. Surfaces, coating and oil viscosity have been investigated and interesting conclusions have been reached. (orig.)

  19. Pore-Scale Investigation of Crude Oil/CO2 Compositional Effects on Oil Recovery by Carbonated Water Injection

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Seyyedi, Mojtaba; Sohrabi, Mehran

    2017-01-01

    where the oil has significant dissolved gases. In such studies, oil swelling and oil viscosity reduction had been introduced as the main mechanisms of additional oil recovery by CWI. However, in our direct flow visualization (micro model) studies reported here, we have used live crude oil, and we have...

  20. 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.

  1. Changes in the world market in oil and oil refinements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ristik, Julija

    1996-01-01

    Since 1980's the world market for crude oil and oil products has faced significant changes that are going to have a grate influence on the supply and consumption of crude oil derivatives in Macedonia. The knowledge of these changes would have a grate contribution in planning the future development of this part of the energetic system of Macedonia. The purpose of this paper (which is a short version of the introductory report for the ZEMAK session with a theme 'Energetic policy and development of energetics in Macedonia') is to present the actual situation on the market for crude oil products, as well as to give the main factors that would have influence on this market in the future. (author). 4 refs., 3 ills

  2. Analysis and functional annotation of expressed sequence tags (ESTs from multiple tissues of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lee Weng-Wah

    2007-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Oil palm is the second largest source of edible oil which contributes to approximately 20% of the world's production of oils and fats. In order to understand the molecular biology involved in in vitro propagation, flowering, efficient utilization of nitrogen sources and root diseases, we have initiated an expressed sequence tag (EST analysis on oil palm. Results In this study, six cDNA libraries from oil palm zygotic embryos, suspension cells, shoot apical meristems, young flowers, mature flowers and roots, were constructed. We have generated a total of 14537 expressed sequence tags (ESTs from these libraries, from which 6464 tentative unique contigs (TUCs and 2129 singletons were obtained. Approximately 6008 of these tentative unique genes (TUGs have significant matches to the non-redundant protein database, from which 2361 were assigned to one or more Gene Ontology categories. Predominant transcripts and differentially expressed genes were identified in multiple oil palm tissues. Homologues of genes involved in many aspects of flower development were also identified among the EST collection, such as CONSTANS-like, AGAMOUS-like (AGL2, AGL20, LFY-like, SQUAMOSA, SQUAMOSA binding protein (SBP etc. Majority of them are the first representatives in oil palm, providing opportunities to explore the cause of epigenetic homeotic flowering abnormality in oil palm, given the importance of flowering in fruit production. The transcript levels of two flowering-related genes, EgSBP and EgSEP were analysed in the flower tissues of various developmental stages. Gene homologues for enzymes involved in oil biosynthesis, utilization of nitrogen sources, and scavenging of oxygen radicals, were also uncovered among the oil palm ESTs. Conclusion The EST sequences generated will allow comparative genomic studies between oil palm and other monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous plants, development of gene-targeted markers for the reference genetic map

  3. A review of shape memory material’s applications in the offshore oil and gas industry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patil, Devendra; Song, Gangbing

    2017-09-01

    The continuously increasing demand for oil and gas and the depleting number of new large reservoir discoveries have made it necessary for the oil and gas industry to investigate and design new, improved technologies that unlock new sources of energy and squeeze more from existing resources. Shape memory materials (SMM), with their remarkable properties such as the shape memory effect (SME), corrosion resistance, and superelasticity have shown great potential to meet these demands by significantly improving the functionality and durability of offshore systems. Shape memory alloy (SMA) and shape memory polymer (SMP) are two types of most commonly used SMM’s and are ideally suited for use over a range of robust engineering applications found within the oil and gas industry, such as deepwater actuators, valves, underwater connectors, seals, self-torqueing fasteners and sand management. The potential high strain and high force output of the SME of SMA can be harnessed to create a lightweight, solid state alternative to conventional hydraulic, pneumatic or motor based actuator systems. The phase transformation property enables the SMA to withstand erosive stresses, which is useful for minimizing the effect of erosion often experienced by downhole devices. The superelasticity of the SMA provides good energy dissipation, and can overcome the various defects and limitations suffered by conventional passive damping methods. The higher strain recovery during SME makes SMP ideal for developments of packers and sand management in downhole. The increasing number of SMM related research papers and patents from oil and gas industry indicate the growing research interest of the industry to implement SMM in offshore applications. This paper reviews the recent developments and applications of SMM in the offshore oil and gas industry.

  4. The outlook for crude oil supply and demand in Australia and its energy policy implications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1991-08-01

    Australia's oil reserves and production have contributed significantly to national economic prosperity and growth since the first large scale discoveries in Bass Strait in the 1960s. As a finite, non-renewable resource, the reserves ultimately must decline. In 1988 the forecast was that Australia's oil production would begin to decline in the mid 1990s and then rapidly tail off by the late 1990s. With this in mind, AMEC Ministers agreed in 1988 that a Working Group should review the energy policy implications of the forecast decline in the production of petroleum. The Working Group's findings are presented in this booklet. Chapter 2 examines the outlook for demand for petroleum products in Australia until 2005. This Chapter is based on current Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) forecasts as well as savings in fuel demand that are potentially available from fuel efficiency and fuel switching measures. Chapter 3, which includes BMR's recently revised petroleum production forecasts, looks at the outlook for crude oil and condensate production, also to 2005. Chapter 4 discusses the range of government initiatives already in place to foster the efficient exploration and production of petroleum in Australia. This Chapter also examines the outlook for Australian alternative liquid fuels. Chapter 5, which is based on analysis by ABARE, broadly examines the possible macroeconomic implications of declining oil production for Australia while Chapter 6 examines the issue of energy security and in particular its relationship with oil self sufficiency. Finally, Chapter 7 identifies some energy policy considerations and recommendations arising out of the Working Group's analysis. 7 tabs, 3 figs

  5. Linking the Value Assessment of Oil and Gas Firms to Ambidexterity Theory Using a Mixture of Normal Distributions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Casault Sébastien

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Oil and gas exploration and production firms have return profiles that are not easily explained by current financial theory – the variation in their market returns is non-Gaussian. In this paper, the nature and underlying reason for these significant deviations from expected behavior are considered. Understanding these differences in financial market behavior is important for a wide range of reasons, including: assessing investments, investor relations, decisions to raise capital, assessment of firm and management performance. We show that using a “thicker tailed” mixture of two normal distributions offers a significantly more accurate model than the traditionally Gaussian approach in describing the behavior of the value of oil and gas firms. This mixture of normal distribution is also more effective in bridging the gap between management theory and practice without the need to introduce complex time-sensitive GARCH and/or jump diffusion dynamics. The mixture distribution is consistent with ambidexterity theory that suggests firms operate in two distinct states driven by the primary focus of the firm: an exploration state with high uncertainty and, an exploitation (or production state with lower uncertainty. The findings have direct implications on improving the accuracy of real option pricing techniques and futures analysis of risk management. Traditional options pricing models assume that commercial returns from these assets are described by a normal random walk. However, a normal random walk model discounts the possibility of large changes to the marketplace from events such as the discovery of important reserves or the introduction of new technology. The mixture distribution proves to be well suited to inherently describe the unusually large risks and opportunities associated with oil and gas production and exploration. A significance testing study of 554 oil and gas exploration and production firms empirically supports using a mixture

  6. Recycling used palm oil and used engine oil to produce white bio oil, bio petroleum diesel and heavy fuel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-abbas, Mustafa Hamid; Ibrahim, Wan Aini Wan; Sanagi, Mohd. Marsin

    2012-09-01

    Recycling waste materials produced in our daily life is considered as an additional resource of a wide range of materials and it conserves the environment. Used engine oil and used cooking oil are two oils disposed off in large quantities as a by-product of our daily life. This study aims at providing white bio oil, bio petroleum diesel and heavy fuel from the disposed oils. Toxic organic materials suspected to be present in the used engine oil were separated using vacuum column chromatography to reduce the time needed for the separation process and to avoid solvent usage. The compounds separated were detected by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and found to contain toxic aromatic carboxylic acids. Used cooking oils (thermally cracked from usage) were collected and separated by vacuum column chromatography. White bio oil produced was examined by GC-MS. The white bio oil consists of non-toxic hydrocarbons and is found to be a good alternative to white mineral oil which is significantly used in food industry, cosmetics and drugs with the risk of containing polycyclic aromatic compounds which are carcinogenic and toxic. Different portions of the used cooking oil and used engine were mixed to produce several blends for use as heavy oil fuels. White bio oil was used to produce bio petroleum diesel by blending it with petroleum diesel and kerosene. The bio petroleum diesel produced passed the PETRONAS flash point and viscosity specification test. The heat of combustion of the two blends of heavy fuel produced was measured and one of the blends was burned to demonstrate its burning ability. Higher heat of combustion was obtained from the blend containing greater proportion of used engine oil. This study has provided a successful recycled alternative for white bio oil, bio petroleum fuel and diesel which can be an energy source.

  7. Research on oil recovery mechanisms in heavy oil reservoirs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kovscek, Anthony R.; Brigham, William E., Castanier, Louis M.

    2000-03-16

    The research described here was directed toward improved understanding of thermal and heavy-oil production mechanisms and is categorized into: (1) flow and rock properties, (2) in-situ combustion, (3) additives to improve mobility control, (4) reservoir definition, and (5) support services. The scope of activities extended over a three-year period. Significant work was accomplished in the area of flow properties of steam, water, and oil in consolidated and unconsolidated porous media, transport in fractured porous media, foam generation and flow in homogeneous and heterogeneous porous media, the effects of displacement pattern geometry and mobility ratio on oil recovery, and analytical representation of water influx.

  8. The Current and Future Role of Nigerian Indigenous Oil Companies in the Mature Niger Delta

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    David Rowlands, Spectrum Energy and Information Technology Ltd

    2002-01-01

    Over the last 10 years, there has been a steady increase in the number of successful Indigenous Oil Companies exploring for hydrocarbons in the Niger Delta. A number of these companies have already entered into partnership agreements with overseas based oil companies, however, many more are still seeking technical and financial partnership agreements with overseas based oil companies, however, many more are still seeking technical and financial partners to fulfil their licence commitments. The first exploration licence to an Indigenous Company was awarded in the mid eighties. However, it wasn't until the early nineties that the Nigerian Government's intention to privatise the oil industry gathered momentum. Between 1991 and 1993 a number of discretionary awards of acreage from various sedimentary basins in Nigeria were made to Nigerian Indigenous Companies. Many of these companies had little or no previous experience of hydrocarbon exploration.Sixteen of the Indigenous Companies have already reported discoveries in various parts of the delta, either in partnerships with foreign companies or independently. Eight of the Indigenous Companies are producing hydrocarbons. With very little production in the early 90's, the Indigenous Companies now account for over 4.5% of Nigeria's daily production. The government is intent on increasing this percentage through initiatives such as the Marginal Fields re-allocation programme, and the continued award of acreage in traditional license rounds. This paper takes a closer look at the operations and discoveries of two Indigenous Companies Solgas and Summit with the aim of providing an insight into the structure and mode of operation of typical Nigerian Indigenous Oil Companies.The more recent licensing activity in Nigeria includes the current Marginal Fields re-allocation programme and also possible participation of Nigerian companies in the join Development Zone between Nigeria and Sao Tome and Principe. The paper concludes with

  9. Belated recognition: Lise Meitner's role in the discovery of fission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sime, R.L.

    1990-01-01

    Although physicist Lise Meitner is known for the first theoretical explanation of nuclear fission, the discovery itself is generally attributed only to her co-workers Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann. In fact, however, Meitner was essential to the discovery at every phase: she brought the uranium investigation to Berlin, led the Berlin group for four years, and, even after fleeing Germany, provided the critical direction which culminated in the identification of barium in December 1983. Recognition of Lise Meitner's contributions remedies a significant historical omission, and places the discovery itself in its proper scientific context. (author) 48 refs

  10. Dietary Fats and Oxidative Stress: A Cross-Sectional Study Among Coronary Artery Disease Subjects Consuming Coconut Oil/Sunflower Oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palazhy, Sabitha; Kamath, Prakash; Vasudevan, D M

    2018-01-01

    Coconut oil has been used by the people of Kerala as a cooking medium for several decades. Due to its alleged hypercholesterolemic activity, general population in recent times is shifting to cooking oils rich in polyunsaturated fats, the most popular being sunflower oil. The effect of long-term consumption of sunflower oil on oxidative stress in humans is not well investigated. We studied oxidative stress among coronary artery disease (CAD) patients who were consuming coconut oil or sunflower oil as a part of their routine diet. Men, aged 35-70 years, with established CAD, who presented to the hospital for routine cardiac evaluations, were enrolled in this observational study. Group 1 and 2 consisted of 73 and 80 subjects consuming coconut oil and sunflower oil respectively for over a period of 2 years. Lipid profile and parameters for oxidative stress were evaluated among them. Conventional lipid parameters did not differ significantly between the two groups. Mean vitamin C concentration was significantly reduced for subjects on sunflower oil compared to those consuming coconut oil ( P  = 0.044). Malondialdehyde was higher for sunflower oil consumers compared to coconut oil consumers ( P  coconut oil did not induce hypercholesterolemia compared to sunflower oil. On the other hand, sunflower oil group had elevated oxidative stress compared to coconut oil group.

  11. Decades of Discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-06-01

    For the past two-and-a-half decades, the Office of Science at the U.S. Department of Energy has been at the forefront of scientific discovery. Over 100 important discoveries supported by the Office of Science are represented in this document.

  12. Oil spills

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spaulding, M.L.; Reed, M.

    1990-01-01

    Public awareness and concern for the potential short and long term impacts of oil spills on the marine environment has generally been high, particularly for regions of special ecological importance or where significant numbers of marine mammals and birds are present. This awareness was further heightened by the extraordinary number of recent large spills in coastal U.S. water: Exxon Valdez, Alaska; World Prodigy, Rhode Island; Presidente Rivera, Delaware; Rachel-B, Texas and American Trader, California. The occurrence of so many spills in a one year period is unprecedented in U.S. spill history. The legislative response to these spills has been immediate. New legislative initiative are rapidly being developed. Improved ways to organize spill response efforts are being devised and implemented. Funds are being allocated to further develop and improve spill response equipment and damage assessment methodologies. These spill events will have a significant impact in both the short and long term on oil exploration, development and transport in marine waters. They will result in major changes in management and operation of oil exploration and development. The purpose of this conference was to provide a forum for discussion of the changes which are currently taking place in oil spill legislation, management, and response strategies

  13. Discovery of a predynastic elephant burial at Hierakonpolis, Egypt

    OpenAIRE

    Barbara Adams

    1998-01-01

    It has long been known that the ancient Egyptians buried such animals as dogs, baboons and cattle, sometimes in human tombs and sometimes in separate graves of their own. Now excavation in a cemetery associated with the large settlement of Hierakonpolis has led to the unexpected discovery of a 5700-year-old elephant burial. Here the Research Curator of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology at UCL describes the discovery and discusses its significance.

  14. Discovery and the atom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1989-01-01

    ''Discovery and the Atom'' tells the story of the founding of nuclear physics. This programme looks at nuclear physics up to the discovery of the neutron in 1932. Animation explains the science of the classic experiments, such as the scattering of alpha particles by Rutherford and the discovery of the nucleus. Archive film shows the people: Lord Rutherford, James Chadwick, Marie Curie. (author)

  15. The discovery and measurements of a Higgs boson.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gianotti, F; Virdee, T S

    2015-01-13

    In July 2012, the ATLAS and CMS collaborations at CERN's Large Hadron Collider announced the discovery of a Higgs-like boson, a new heavy particle at a mass more than 130 times the mass of a proton. Since then, further data have revealed its properties to be strikingly similar to those of the Standard Model Higgs boson, a particle expected from the mechanism introduced almost 50 years ago by six theoreticians including British physicists Peter Higgs from Edinburgh University and Tom Kibble from Imperial College London. The discovery is the culmination of a truly remarkable scientific journey and undoubtedly the most significant scientific discovery of the twenty-first century so far. Its experimental confirmation turned out to be a monumental task requiring the creation of an accelerator and experiments of unprecedented capability and complexity, designed to discern the signatures that correspond to the Higgs boson. Thousands of scientists and engineers, in each of the ATLAS and CMS teams, came together from all four corners of the world to make this massive discovery possible.

  16. Effects on bread and oil quality after functionalization with microencapsulated chia oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González, Agustín; Martínez, Marcela L; León, Alberto E; Ribotta, Pablo D

    2018-03-23

    Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids-rich oils suffer oxidation reactions that alter their chemical and organoleptic quality. Microencapsulation can be a powerful tool for protection against ambient conditions. In the present study, the addition of microencapsulated chia oil as an ingredient in bread preparations and its effect on the technological and chemical quality of breads was investigated. Microencapsulation of chia oil was carried out by freeze-drying with soy proteins as wall material and oil release was determined under in vitro gastric and intestinal conditions. Encapsulated oil-containing bread showed no differences in specific volume, average cell area, firmness and chewiness with respect to control bread. Unencapsulated oil-containing bread showed a marked increase in hydroperoxide values respect to control, whereas encapsulated oil-containing bread values were not affected by baking and bread storage. The fatty acid profiles showed a decrease of 13% and 16%, respectively, in α-linolenic acid in the encapsulated and unencapsulated oils with respect to bulk chia oil. Sensory analysis showed no significant differences between bread samples. The addition of encapsulated chia oil did not alter the technological quality of breads and prevented the formation of hydroperoxide radicals. A ration of encapsulated oil-containing bread contributes 60% of the recommended dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

  17. Spectroscopic and chromatographic analysis of oil from an oil shale flash pyrolysis unit

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Khraisha, V.H.; Irqsousi, N.A. [University of Jordan, Amman (Jordan). Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Shabib, I.M. [Applied Science Univ., Amman (Jordan). Dept. of Chemistry

    2003-01-01

    In this investigation, spectroscopic (FT-IR, UV-Vis, {sup 1}H NMR) and chromatographic (GC) techniques were used to analyze two Jordanian shale oils, Sultani and El-Lajjun. The oils were extracted at different pyrolysis temperatures (400-500{sup o}C) using a fluidized bed reactor. The spectroscopic and chromatographic analyses show that the variation of pyrolysis temperature has no significant effect on the composition of the produced oil. The {sup 1}H NMR results indicate that the protons of methyl and methelyene represent the bulk of the hydrogen ({approx}90%) in most shale oil samples. GC analysis reveals that the oil samples contain n-alkanes with a predominant proportion of n-C{sub 25}. (Author)

  18. 29 CFR 2700.56 - Discovery; general.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ...(c) or 111 of the Act has been filed. 30 U.S.C. 815(c) and 821. (e) Completion of discovery... 29 Labor 9 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery; general. 2700.56 Section 2700.56 Labor... Hearings § 2700.56 Discovery; general. (a) Discovery methods. Parties may obtain discovery by one or more...

  19. A methodology for handling exploration risk and constructing supply curves for oil and gas plays when resources are stacked

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dallaire, S.M.

    1994-01-01

    The use of project economics to estimate full-cycle supply prices for undiscovered oil and gas resources is a straightforward exercise for those regions where oil and gas plays are not vertically superimposed on one another, ie. are not stacked. Exploration risk is incorporated into such an analysis by using a simple two-outcome decision tree model to include the costs of dry and abandoned wells. The decision tree model can be expanded to include multiple targets or discoveries, but this expansion requires additional drilling statistics and resource assessment data. A methodology is suggested to include exploration risk in the preparation of supply curves when stacked resources are expected and little or no information on uphole resources is available. In this method, all exploration costs for wells drilled to targets in the play being evaluated are assigned to that play, rather than prorated among the multiple targets or discoveries. Undiscovered pools are assumed to either bear all exploration costs (full cycle discoveries) or no exploration costs (half cycle discoveries). The weighted full- and half-cycle supply price is shown to be a more realistic estimate of the supply price of undiscovered pools in a play when stacked resources exist. The statistics required for this methodology are minimal, and resource estimates for prospects in other zones are not required. The equation relating the average pool finding cost to the discovery record is applicable to different scenarios regarding the presence of shallower and deeper resources. The equation derived for the two-outcome decision tree model is shown to be a special case of the general expression. 5 refs., 7 figs

  20. Hierarchical virtual screening approaches in small molecule drug discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Ashutosh; Zhang, Kam Y J

    2015-01-01

    Virtual screening has played a significant role in the discovery of small molecule inhibitors of therapeutic targets in last two decades. Various ligand and structure-based virtual screening approaches are employed to identify small molecule ligands for proteins of interest. These approaches are often combined in either hierarchical or parallel manner to take advantage of the strength and avoid the limitations associated with individual methods. Hierarchical combination of ligand and structure-based virtual screening approaches has received noteworthy success in numerous drug discovery campaigns. In hierarchical virtual screening, several filters using ligand and structure-based approaches are sequentially applied to reduce a large screening library to a number small enough for experimental testing. In this review, we focus on different hierarchical virtual screening strategies and their application in the discovery of small molecule modulators of important drug targets. Several virtual screening studies are discussed to demonstrate the successful application of hierarchical virtual screening in small molecule drug discovery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Petrophysical studies in heavy oil sands with early water production - Hamaca area, Orinoco Oil Belt

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Salisch, H.A.

    1982-07-01

    This study describes the main lines of petrophysical research in the Hamaca-Pao region of the Orinoco Oil Belt. The techniques and parameters most appropriate for petrophysical studies in the area of interest are discussed. Field tests have confirmed the conclusions of this study on early water production and low oil recovery. Steam injection was shown to be a means for increasing oil mobility to such a degree that significant amounts of additional oil can be produced.

  2. The North Cape oil spill assessment: PAHs in oil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brown, J.; Boehm, P. D.; Hardestine, J. H.; Douglas, G. S.

    1997-01-01

    The North Cape oil spill in January 1996 resulted in the release of an estimated 827,000 gallons of No. 2 home heating oil into the nearshore turbulent waters of coastal Rhode Island. The oil was mixed into the water column and was transported on the surface as well as below the surface. Some of the spilled oil entered the coastal ponds behind the beaches. Sampling and chemical analysis for detailed suites of petroleum saturated and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was undertaken as part of the assessment of the fate of the oil spill and of the exposure to the marine environment. The ponds were found to contain significant quantities of background petroleum hydrocarbons, including petrogenic PAHs and combustion PAHs. Initial assessment pointed (incorrectly as it turned out) to widespread contamination due only to the North Cape spill. Application of advanced chemical fingerprinting approaches, and geochemical biomarker data illustrated that many of the PAHs consisted of combustion-related 4- and 5-ringed PAHs, attributable to diesel fuel used routinely by boats in the area. The analysis demonstrated that the use of non-specific total PAH data and insufficient fingerprinting and allocation of petrogenic residues has the potential to overestimate contamination and hence injury to the environment in similar oil spill situations

  3. Characterization of Tertiary Catalan lacustrine oil shales: Discovery of extrmely organic sulphur-rich Type I kerogens

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sinninghe Damste, J.S.; Heras, F.X.C. De Las; Bergen, P.F. Van; Leeuw, J.W. De (Delft Univ. of Technology (Netherlands))

    1993-01-01

    The kerogens of three Tertiary Catalan lacustrine oil shales were analyzed by light microscopy, flash pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and bulk composition methods (elemental analysis, Rock Eval pyrolysis). Two of the three kerogens (Ribesalbes and Campins) are extremely rich in organic sulfur (atomic S[sub org]/C ratio > 0.04) and hydrogen (atomic ratio H/C ratio > 1.5) and are, consequently, classified as Type I-S kerogens. Very characteristic distribution patterns of flash pyrolysis products (e.g., alkan-9- and -10-ones, alkadienes) of the Ribesalbes kerogen revealed that it is predominantly composed of fossilized organic matter of the freshwater alga Botryococcus braunii. These two findings demonstrate that sulfurization of organic matter may also occur in lacustrine sediments provided that sulfate is supplied by external sources. Data on the third kerogen sample (Cerdanya) suggest that the freshwater alga Pediastrum may contain a (partly) aromatic biomacromolecule that is selectively preserved upon diagenesis. These findings testify to the large variability in palaeodepositional conditions in lacutrine environments. A comparison of the biomarker composition of the extract of the Ribesalbes oil shale with the kerogen composition indicate that biomarkers often cannot be used to assess the major sources of organic matter in such settings. A similar conclusion can be drawn from a comparison of literature data concerning the Messel Oil Shale. 75 refs., 18 figs., 7 tabs.

  4. Characterization of Tertiary Catalan lacustrine oil shales: Discovery of extremely organic sulphur-rich Type I kerogens

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sinninghe Damsté, Jaap S.; de las Heras, F. Xavier C.; van Bergen, Pim F.; de Leeuw, Jan W.

    1993-01-01

    The kerogens of three Tertiary Catalan lacustrine oil shales were analyzed by light microscopy, flash pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and bulk composition methods (elemental analysis, Rock Eval pyrolysis). Two of the three kerogens (Ribesalbes and Campins) are extremely rich in organic sulphur (atomic S org/C ratio > 0.04) and hydrogen (atomic ratio H/C ratio > 1.5) and are, consequently, classified as Type I-S kerogens. Very characteristic distribution patterns of flash pyrolysis products (e.g., alkan-9- and -10-ones, alkadienes) of the Ribesalbes kerogen revealed that it is predominantly composed of fossilized organic matter of the freshwater alga Botryococcus braunii. These two findings demonstrate that sulphurization of organic matter may also occur in lacustrine sediments provided that sulphate is supplied by external sources. Data on the third kerogen sample (Cerdanya) suggest that the freshwater alga Pediastrum may contain a (partly) aromatic biomacromolecule that is selectively preserved upon diagenesis. These findings testify to the large variability in palaeodepositional conditions in lacustrine environments. A comparison of the biomarker composition of the extract of the Ribesalbes oil shale with the kerogen composition indicate that biomarkers often cannot be used to assess the major sources of organic matter in such settings. A similar conclusion can be drawn from a comparison of literature data concerning the Messel Oil Shale.

  5. Discovery of a predynastic elephant burial at Hierakonpolis, Egypt

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barbara Adams

    1998-11-01

    Full Text Available It has long been known that the ancient Egyptians buried such animals as dogs, baboons and cattle, sometimes in human tombs and sometimes in separate graves of their own. Now excavation in a cemetery associated with the large settlement of Hierakonpolis has led to the unexpected discovery of a 5700-year-old elephant burial. Here the Research Curator of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology at UCL describes the discovery and discusses its significance.

  6. 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)

  7. Physical characteristics of cinnamon oil microcapsule

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hermanto, R. F.; Khasanah, L. U.; Kawiji; Atmaka, W.; Manuhara, G. J.; Utami, R.

    2016-02-01

    Cinnamon (Cinnamomum burmanii) oil products can be obtained from the bark by steam distillation. Essential oils are susceptible to high temperatures, oxidation, UV light, and humidity. Microencapsulation may change essential oils into powder, protect the sensitive core material and reduce the amount of flavor which lost during storage. In the microencapsulation, one of the important factors is the type of coating agent. The objective of this work was to characterize the cinnamon oil microcapsule. Ratio variations of coating agent maltodextrin and gum arabic were (1:0); (0:1); (1:1); (2:3). Physical characteristics such as water content, solubility, bulk density, surface oil, and microencapsulation efficiency of samples were investigated. Results showed that the ratio variations of the coating agent significantly affected the water content, bulk density, surface oil and microencapsulation efficiency but significantly affected the water solubility. Characteristics of selected microcapsule were 6.13% water content; 96.33% solubility; 0.46 g/cm3 bulk density; 2.68% surface oil; 70.68% microencapsulation efficiency and microstructures were rather good.

  8. Oil Price Shocks and Stock Markets in BRICs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ono, Shigeki

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper examines the impact of oil prices on real stock returns for Brazil, China, India and Russia over 1999:1-2009:9 using VAR models. The results suggest that whereas real stock returns positively respond to some of the oil price indicators with statistical significance for China, India and Russia, those of Brazil do not show any significant responses. In addition, statistically significant asymmetric effects of oil price increases and decreases are observed in India. The analysis of variance decomposition shows that the contribution of oil price shocks to volatility in real stock returns is relatively large and statistically significant for China and Russia.

  9. Injection halos of hydrocarbons above oil-gas fields with super-high pressures

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bakhtin, V.V.

    1979-09-01

    We studied the origin of injection halos of hydrocarbons above oil-gas fields with anomalously high formation pressures (AHFP). Using fields in Azerbaydzhan and Chechen-Ingushetiya as an example, we demonstrate the effect of certain factors (in particular, faults and zones of increased macro- and micro-jointing) on the morpholoy of the halos. The intensity of micro-jointing (jointing permeability, three-dimensional density of micro-jointing) is directly connected with vertical dimensions of the halos. We measured halos based on transverse profiles across the Khayan-Kort field and studied the distribution of bitumen saturation within the injection halo. Discovery of injection halos during drilling has enabled us to improve the technology of wiring deep-seated exploratory wells for oil and gas in regions with development of AHFP.

  10. Need For Coastal Water Management Tool For Oil Spill Simulation In Ghana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Uba

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Ghanaian water bodies have been under threats recently ranging from illegal mining sand winning reclamation of water bodies for the purposes of human settlement pollution etc. Civil and mechanical installations on the coastal waters have increase due to the discovery of oil recently and such situations are not spared by oil spills. Oil spills are an inevitable consequence of the need to produce store and transport oil. The commercialization of oil production has placed Ghana among High-Risk Zones which are characterised by high traffic density and the presence of navigational hazards. Despite Ghanas awareness about oil spill accidents in both preparedness and response it is likely it will be compromised when any accident occurs as it has more pressing demands on finite funds and resources. This situation might place Ghana among ill-prepared countries against oil spill combat. An important part of contingency plan is the prediction of locations that are susceptible to oil after spillage. This can be done by the use of satellite information reviewing and comparing previous incidents laboratory work or by fine tuning models which as of now the country is not having despite all the precautions to prevent oil spills. When spill models are used properly they provide ecological economic and social benefits. Hence the need for such decision-making tool for Ghana to create an environment for the contingency plans to be tested validated and upgraded. Such exercises not only maintain and increase the skills of the response personnel but also lead to improvements and fine tuning of the plan as weaknesses and gaps are identified.

  11. Postprandial lipid responses to an alpha-linolenic acid-rich oil, olive oil and butter in women: A randomized crossover trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosenquist Anna

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Postprandial lipaemia varies with gender and the composition of dietary fat due to the partitioning of fatty acids between beta-oxidation and incorporation into triacylglycerols (TAGs. Increasing evidence highlights the importance of postprandial measurements to evaluate atherogenic risk. Postprandial effects of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA in women are poorly characterized. We therefore studied the postprandial lipid response of women to an ALA-rich oil in comparison with olive oil and butter, and characterized the fatty acid composition of total lipids, TAGs, and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFAs in plasma. Methods A randomized crossover design (n = 19 was used to compare the postprandial effects of 3 meals containing 35 g fat. Blood samples were collected at regular intervals for 7 h. Statistical analysis was carried out with ANOVA (significant difference = P Results No significant difference was seen in incremental area under the curve (iAUC plasma-TAG between the meals. ALA and oleic acid levels were significantly increased in plasma after ALA-rich oil and olive oil meals, respectively. Palmitic acid was significantly increased in plasma-TAG after the butter meal. The ratios of 18:2 n-6 to18:3 n-3 in plasma-TAGs, three and seven hours after the ALA-rich oil meal, were 1.5 and 2.4, respectively. The corresponding values after the olive oil meal were: 13.8 and 16.9; and after the butter meal: 9.0 and 11.6. Conclusions The postprandial p-TAG and NEFA response in healthy pre-menopausal women was not significantly different after the intake of an ALA-rich oil, olive oil and butter. The ALA-rich oil significantly affected different plasma lipid fractions and improved the ratio of n-6 to n-3 fatty acids several hours postprandially.

  12. Impact of Recent Discoveries on Petroleum and Natural Gas Exploration: Emphasis on India

    OpenAIRE

    Herndon, J. Marvin

    2010-01-01

    Two discoveries have greatly impacted understanding relevant to the origination and emplacement of petroleum and natural gas deposits. One discovery, pertaining to hydrocarbon formation from methane broadens significantly potential regions where abiotic petroleum and natural gas deposits might be found. The other, discovery of the physical impossibility of Earth-mantle convection, restricts the range and domain of geodynamic behavior, and leads to new insights on the formation of petroleum an...

  13. The limits of de novo DNA motif discovery.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Simcha

    Full Text Available A major challenge in molecular biology is reverse-engineering the cis-regulatory logic that plays a major role in the control of gene expression. This program includes searching through DNA sequences to identify "motifs" that serve as the binding sites for transcription factors or, more generally, are predictive of gene expression across cellular conditions. Several approaches have been proposed for de novo motif discovery-searching sequences without prior knowledge of binding sites or nucleotide patterns. However, unbiased validation is not straightforward. We consider two approaches to unbiased validation of discovered motifs: testing the statistical significance of a motif using a DNA "background" sequence model to represent the null hypothesis and measuring performance in predicting membership in gene clusters. We demonstrate that the background models typically used are "too null," resulting in overly optimistic assessments of significance, and argue that performance in predicting TF binding or expression patterns from DNA motifs should be assessed by held-out data, as in predictive learning. Applying this criterion to common motif discovery methods resulted in universally poor performance, although there is a marked improvement when motifs are statistically significant against real background sequences. Moreover, on synthetic data where "ground truth" is known, discriminative performance of all algorithms is far below the theoretical upper bound, with pronounced "over-fitting" in training. A key conclusion from this work is that the failure of de novo discovery approaches to accurately identify motifs is basically due to statistical intractability resulting from the fixed size of co-regulated gene clusters, and thus such failures do not necessarily provide evidence that unfound motifs are not active biologically. Consequently, the use of prior knowledge to enhance motif discovery is not just advantageous but necessary. An implementation of

  14. A Tale of Two Discoveries: Comparing the Usability of Summon and EBSCO Discovery Service

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foster, Anita K.; MacDonald, Jean B.

    2013-01-01

    Web-scale discovery systems are gaining momentum among academic libraries as libraries seek a means to provide their users with a one-stop searching experience. Illinois State University's Milner Library found itself in the unique position of having access to two distinct discovery products, EBSCO Discovery Service and Serials Solutions' Summon.…

  15. The rise and fall of an oil company

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hanson, B.M.

    1991-01-01

    A tremendous amount of oil and gas reserves has been found. These reserves were discovered when geologists were in key positions. Exploration oriented leaders are not in key positions today. As with all living organisms, oil companies are governed by a life cycle which includes birth, adolescence, maturity, old age, and death. The life cycle of a company is characterized by its CEO/management team. During the birth of an oil company, a geologist and/or entrepreneur (leader) who has a desire to succeed is in charge. There are few tangible assets and the mortality rate is high. In the adolescence stage, the leader is willing to take high risks and is very receptive to new ideas. The discovery of company-making reserves are most likely to occur during this stage. During maturity, the key officer is usually an engineer who develops the newly found reserves. He has the desire to quantify exploration ventures in unrealistic, precise terms. Old age usually has a CPA as manager who prefers to take cash flow and transfer it to other businesses (diversification). The sale of properties starts in this stage. The last stage is death and the key officer is either a lawyer or a banker. The legal entanglement will start that inevitably plagues the cash-rich, asset-rich oil company. There is no residual expertise conducting exploration activity. We now have the liquidation of remaining assets and the company goes through mergers or sale

  16. Paths of discovery: Comparing the search effectiveness of EBSCO Discovery Service, Summon, Google Scholar, and conventional library resources.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Müge Akbulut

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available It is becoming hard for users to select significant sources among many others as number of scientific publications increase (Henning and Gunn, 2012. Search engines that are using cloud computing methods such as Google can list related documents successfully answering user requirements (Johnson, Levine and Smith, 2009. In order to meet users’ increasing demands, libraries started to use systems which enable users to access printed and electronic sources through a single interface. This study uses quantitative and qualitative methods to compare search effectiveness between Serial Solutions Summon, EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS web discovery tools, Google Scholar (GS and conventional library databases among users from Bucknell University and Illinois Wesleyan University.

  17. Gas reserves, discoveries and production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Saniere, A.

    2006-01-01

    Between 2000 and 2004, new discoveries, located mostly in the Asia/Pacific region, permitted a 71% produced reserve replacement rate. The Middle East and the offshore sector represent a growing proportion of world gas production Non-conventional gas resources are substantial but are not exploited to any significant extent, except in the United States, where they account for 30% of U.S. gas production. (author)

  18. 29 CFR 2200.208 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 9 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 2200.208 Section 2200.208 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION RULES OF PROCEDURE Simplified Proceedings § 2200.208 Discovery. Discovery, including requests for admissions, will only be...

  19. 47 CFR 65.105 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 65.105 Section 65.105... OF RETURN PRESCRIPTION PROCEDURES AND METHODOLOGIES Procedures § 65.105 Discovery. (a) Participants... evidence. (c) Discovery requests pursuant to § 65.105(b), including written interrogatories, shall be filed...

  20. 49 CFR 209.313 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 209.313 Section 209.313 Transportation... TRANSPORTATION RAILROAD SAFETY ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Disqualification Procedures § 209.313 Discovery. (a... parties. Discovery is designed to enable a party to obtain relevant information needed for preparation of...

  1. Long term prediction of unconventional oil production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohr, S.H.; Evans, G.M.

    2010-01-01

    Although considerable discussion surrounds unconventional oil's ability to mitigate the effects of peaking conventional oil production, very few models of unconventional oil production exist. The aim of this article was to project unconventional oil production to determine how significant its production may be. Two models were developed to predict the unconventional oil production, one model for in situ production and the other for mining the resources. Unconventional oil production is anticipated to reach between 18 and 32 Gb/y (49-88 Mb/d) in 2076-2084, before declining. If conventional oil production is at peak production then projected unconventional oil production cannot mitigate peaking of conventional oil alone.

  2. Quantifying the Ease of Scientific Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arbesman, Samuel

    2011-02-01

    It has long been known that scientific output proceeds on an exponential increase, or more properly, a logistic growth curve. The interplay between effort and discovery is clear, and the nature of the functional form has been thought to be due to many changes in the scientific process over time. Here I show a quantitative method for examining the ease of scientific progress, another necessary component in understanding scientific discovery. Using examples from three different scientific disciplines - mammalian species, chemical elements, and minor planets - I find the ease of discovery to conform to an exponential decay. In addition, I show how the pace of scientific discovery can be best understood as the outcome of both scientific output and ease of discovery. A quantitative study of the ease of scientific discovery in the aggregate, such as done here, has the potential to provide a great deal of insight into both the nature of future discoveries and the technical processes behind discoveries in science.

  3. Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR by Miscible CO2 and Water Flooding of Asphaltenic and Non-Asphaltenic Oils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edwin A. Chukwudeme

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available An EOR study has been performed applying miscible CO2 flooding and compared with that for water flooding. Three different oils are used, reference oil (n-decane, model oil (n-C10, SA, toluene and 0.35 wt % asphaltene and crude oil (10 wt % asphaltene obtained from the Middle East. Stearic acid (SA is added representing a natural surfactant in oil. For the non-asphaltenic oil, miscible CO2 flooding is shown to be more favourable than that by water. However, it is interesting to see that for first years after the start of the injection (< 3 years it is shown that there is almost no difference between the recovered oils by water and CO2, after which (> 3 years oil recovery by gas injection showed a significant increase. This may be due to the enhanced performance at the increased reservoir pressure during the first period. Maximum oil recovery is shown by miscible CO2 flooding of asphaltenic oil at combined temperatures and pressures of 50 °C/90 bar and 70 °C/120 bar (no significant difference between the two cases, about 1% compared to 80 °C/140 bar. This may support the positive influence of the high combined temperatures and pressures for the miscible CO2 flooding; however beyond a certain limit the oil recovery declined due to increased asphaltene deposition. Another interesting finding in this work is that for single phase oil, an almost linear relationship is observed between the pressure drop and the asphaltene deposition regardless of the flowing fluid pressure.

  4. The Factors Influencing on Consumption of Palm Cooking Oil in Indonesia

    OpenAIRE

    Teti, Ermy; Hutabarat, Sakti; Nofionna, Asriati

    2009-01-01

    Cooking oil is one of the most sensitive basic needs in Indonesia. The aims of the researchare to analyze factors influencing consumption of cooking oil, the cooking oil price, and theCrude Palm Oil price in Indonesia. Using simultaneous equation model, the study show thatpalm cooking oil consumption is significantly affected by domestic palm cooking oil priceand number of population. Whilst palm cooking oil price is significantly influenced by thecooking palm oil production and the domestic ...

  5. The Factors Influencing on Consumption of Palm Cooking Oil in Indonesia

    OpenAIRE

    Teti, Ermy; Hutabarat, Sakti; Nofionna, Asriati

    2011-01-01

    Cooking oil is one of the most sensitive basic needs in Indonesia. The aims of the researchare to analyze factors influencing consumption of cooking oil, the cooking oil price, and theCrude Palm Oil price in Indonesia. Using simultaneous equation model, the study show thatpalm cooking oil consumption is significantly affected by domestic palm cooking oil priceand number of population. Whilst palm cooking oil price is significantly influenced by thecooking palm oil production and the domestic ...

  6. 15 CFR 280.210 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 280.210 Section 280.210... STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ACCREDITATION AND ASSESSMENT PROGRAMS FASTENER QUALITY Enforcement § 280.210 Discovery. (a) General. The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery...

  7. Scientific Prediction and Prophetic Patenting in Drug Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curry, Stephen H; Schneiderman, Anne M

    2015-01-01

    Pharmaceutical patenting involves writing claims based on both discoveries already made, and on prophesy of future developments in an ongoing project. This is necessitated by the very different timelines involved in the drug discovery and product development process on the one hand, and successful patenting on the other. If patents are sought too early there is a risk that patent examiners will disallow claims because of lack of enablement. If patenting is delayed, claims are at risk of being denied on the basis of existence of prior art, because the body of relevant known science will have developed significantly while the project was being pursued. This review examines the role of prophetic patenting in relation to the essential predictability of many aspects of drug discovery science, promoting the concepts of discipline-related and project-related prediction. This is especially directed towards patenting activities supporting commercialization of academia-based discoveries, where long project timelines occur, and where experience, and resources to pay for patenting, are limited. The need for improved collaborative understanding among project scientists, technology transfer professionals in, for example, universities, patent attorneys, and patent examiners is emphasized.

  8. Alaska North Slope crude oil price and the behavior of diesel prices in California

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Adrangi, B.; Chatrath, A.; Raffiee, K.; Ripple, R.

    2001-01-01

    In this paper we analyze the price dynamics of Alaska North Slope crude oil and L.A. diesel fuel prices. We employ VAR methodology and bivariate GARCH model to show that there is a strong evidence of a uni-directional causal relationship between the two prices. The L.A. diesel market is found to bear the majority of the burden of convergence when there is a price spread. This finding may be seen as being consistent with the general consensus that price discovery emanates from the larger, more liquid market where trading volume is concentrated. The contestability of the West Coast crude oil market tends to cause it to react relatively competitively, while the lack of contestability for the West Coast diesel market tends to limit its competitiveness, causing price adjustment to be slow but to follow the price signals of crude oil. Our findings also suggest that the derived demand theory of input pricing may not hold in this case. The Alaska North Slope crude oil price is the driving force in changes of L.A. diesel price

  9. The influence of magnetic fields on crude oils viscosity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Goncalves, Jose L.; Bombard, Antonio J. F. [Universidade Federal de Itajuba (UNIFEI), Itajuba, MG (Brazil). Instituto de Ciencias Exatas. Lab. de Reologia

    2009-07-01

    The crystallization of paraffin causes serious problems in the process of transportation of petroleum. This phenomenon increases the crude oil viscosity and implies an organic resin accumulation on pipeline wall, resulting in a reduced flux area or totally blocked pipes. One of the most challenging tasks for pipeline maintenance is solving this problem at low cost. Therefore, a method that inhibits the crystallization of paraffin and reduces the viscosity of crude oil could have many useful applications within the petroleum industry. Recent studies showed that magnetic fields reduce the Wax Appearance Temperature (WAT) and the viscosity of paraffin-based crude oil. For better understanding of this discovery, a series of tests was performed. This paper will show the influence of a DC magnetic field on rheological proprieties of three crude oils with different paraffin concentrations: a crude oil sample with 11 % p/p of paraffin concentration (sample 1); a crude oil sample with 6 % p/p of paraffin concentration (sample 2); a mixture of paraffin plus light crude oil with a total of 11 % p/p of paraffin concentration. These samples were placed in an electromagnet that generates a magnetic field of 1.3 Tesla. The samples' temperatures were conditioned around their Wax Appearance Temperature (WAT), and they were exposed to the field. As the viscosity of crude oil is very sensitive to the changes in temperature, it was ensured that the temperature has remained constant throughout the process. The sample 1 revealed a considerable reduction of viscosity: its original viscosity was 66 cP before magnetic field exposure, after that its viscosity was reduced to 39 cP. The other samples showed the same viscosity, before and after the magnetic field exposure. Since the samples 1 and 3 have the same paraffin concentrations, the viscosity reduction is not due only to the presence of paraffin; there must be other factors responsible for the interaction of sample 1 with the

  10. 10 CFR 1013.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 10 Energy 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 1013.21 Section 1013.21 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (GENERAL PROVISIONS) PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES AND PROCEDURES § 1013.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for inspection and...

  11. 37 CFR 2.120 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 37 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 2.120 Section 2... COMMERCE RULES OF PRACTICE IN TRADEMARK CASES Procedure in Inter Partes Proceedings § 2.120 Discovery. (a... to disclosure and discovery shall apply in opposition, cancellation, interference and concurrent use...

  12. 46 CFR 550.502 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 46 Shipping 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 550.502 Section 550.502 Shipping FEDERAL... Proceedings § 550.502 Discovery. The Commission may authorize a party to a proceeding to use depositions, written interrogatories, and discovery procedures that, to the extent practicable, are in conformity with...

  13. 15 CFR 785.8 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 15 Commerce and Foreign Trade 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 785.8 Section 785.8... INDUSTRY AND SECURITY, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL REGULATIONS ENFORCEMENT § 785.8 Discovery. (a) General. The parties are encouraged to engage in voluntary discovery regarding any matter, not...

  14. 22 CFR 35.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 35.21 Section 35.21 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE CLAIMS AND STOLEN PROPERTY PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES § 35.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for...

  15. 45 CFR 96.65 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 96.65 Section 96.65 Public Welfare DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES GENERAL ADMINISTRATION BLOCK GRANTS Hearing Procedure § 96.65 Discovery. The use of interrogatories, depositions, and other forms of discovery shall not be allowed. ...

  16. 49 CFR 31.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 31.21 Section 31.21 Transportation Office of the Secretary of Transportation PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES § 31.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for inspection and...

  17. 43 CFR 4.1130 - Discovery methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery methods. 4.1130 Section 4.1130... Special Rules Applicable to Surface Coal Mining Hearings and Appeals Discovery § 4.1130 Discovery methods. Parties may obtain discovery by one or more of the following methods— (a) Depositions upon oral...

  18. Oil shale technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, S.

    1991-01-01

    Oil shale is undoubtedly an excellent energy source that has great abundance and world-wide distribution. Oil shale industries have seen ups and downs over more than 100 years, depending on the availability and price of conventional petroleum crudes. Market forces as well as environmental factors will greatly affect the interest in development of oil shale. Besides competing with conventional crude oil and natural gas, shale oil will have to compete favorably with coal-derived fuels for similar markets. Crude shale oil is obtained from oil shale by a relatively simple process called retorting. However, the process economics are greatly affected by the thermal efficiencies, the richness of shale, the mass transfer effectiveness, the conversion efficiency, the design of retort, the environmental post-treatment, etc. A great many process ideas and patents related to the oil shale pyrolysis have been developed; however, relatively few field and engineering data have been published. Due to the vast heterogeneity of oil shale and to the complexities of physicochemical process mechanisms, scientific or technological generalization of oil shale retorting is difficult to achieve. Dwindling supplied of worldwide petroleum reserves, as well as the unprecedented appetite of mankind for clean liquid fuel, has made the public concern for future energy market grow rapidly. the clean coal technology and the alternate fuel technology are currently of great significance not only to policy makers, but also to process and chemical researchers. In this book, efforts have been made to make a comprehensive text for the science and technology of oil shale utilization. Therefore, subjects dealing with the terminological definitions, geology and petrology, chemistry, characterization, process engineering, mathematical modeling, chemical reaction engineering, experimental methods, and statistical experimental design, etc. are covered in detail

  19. ECONOMICS AND APPRAISAL OF CONVENTIONAL OIL AND GAS IN THE WESTERN GULF OF MEXICO.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Attanasi, E.D.; Haynes, John L.

    1984-01-01

    The oil and gas industry frequently appraises undiscovered oil and gas resources on a regional basis to decide whether to start or continue exploration programs. The appraisals are of little value unless conditioned by estimates of the costs of finding and producing the resources. This paper presents an economic appraisal of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the western Gulf of Mexico. Also presented are a description of the model used to make the assessment, results of a sensitivity analysis, and a discussion of the implications of the results to the industry. The appraisal is shown to be relatively robust to changes in physical and engineering assumptions. Because the number of commercial discoveries was found to be quite sensitive to economic conditions, the analysis has important implications in terms of forecasting future industry drilling and other associated activities in the western Gulf of Mexico.

  20. Co-processing of standard gas oil and biocrude oil to hydrocarbon fuels

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Agblevor, Foster A.; Mante, O.; McClung, R.; Oyama, S.T.

    2012-01-01

    The major obstacle in thermochemical biomass conversion to hydrocarbon fuels using pyrolysis has been the high oxygen content and the poor stability of the product oils, which cause them to solidify during secondary processing. We have developed a fractional catalytic pyrolysis process to convert biomass feedstocks into a product termed “biocrude oils” (stable biomass pyrolysis oils) which are distinct from unstable conventional pyrolysis oils. The biocrude oils are stable, low viscosity liquids that are storable at ambient conditions without any significant increases in viscosity; distillable at both atmospheric pressure and under vacuum without char or solid formation. About 15 wt% biocrude oils containing 20–25% oxygen were blended with 85 wt% standard gas oil and co-cracked in an Advanced Catalyst Evaluation (ACE™) unit using fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts to produce hydrocarbon fuels that contain negligible amount of oxygen. For the same conversion of 70% for both the standard gas oil and the biocrude oil/gas oil blends, the product gasoline yield was 44 wt%, light cycle oil (LCO) 17 wt%, heavy cycle oil (HCO) 13 wt%, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) 16 wt%. However, the coke yield for the standard gas oil was 7.06 wt% compared to 6.64–6.81 wt% for the blends. There appeared to be hydrogen transfer from the cracking of the standard gas oil to the biocrude oil which subsequently eliminated the oxygen in the fuel without external hydrogen addition. We have demonstrated for the first time that biomass pyrolysis oils can be successfully converted into hydrocarbons without hydrogenation pretreatment. -- Highlights: ► The co-processed product had less than 1% oxygen content and contained biocarbons determined by 14 C analysis. ► The co-processing did not affect the yields of gasoline, LCO, and HCO. ► First demonstration of direct conversion of pyrolysis oils into drop-in hydrocarbon fuels.

  1. Oil demand asymmetry in the OECD

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shealy, M.T.

    1990-01-01

    Oil demand asymmetry exists, is significant, and can be captured with a simple demand equation using a Pmax term. The unstable parameters of the original symmetric equations suggest misspecification. Addition of a Pmax term to represent asymmetry yields stable parameters from 1982 through 1989 and so suggests proper specification. Asymmetry is significant because the short-run (and long-run) price elasticity is less than half as large when oil price falls as when price rises beyond the past peak. The lower elasticity applies both to price decreases and also to price increases for which price remains below the past peak. As long as the real oil price remains well below the 1981 peak, asymmetry implies that OECD oil demand should be less sensitive to oil price variations than in 1981. More specifically, the results shown suggest that today's oil demand elasticity should be less than half as large as the elasticity for a price increase in 1981. Forecasts from the asymmetric equations are significantly higher than the DOE base-case forecast. DOE's lower forecast is due to greater price asymmetry through 1995 and to higher long-run price elasticity beyond 1995. One reason for the higher long-run price elasticity might be greater assumed improvements in energy-efficiency than implied by the historical data

  2. CLARM: An integrative approach for functional modules discovery

    KAUST Repository

    Salem, Saeed M.; Alroobi, Rami; Banitaan, Shadi; Seridi, Loqmane; Brewer, James E.; Aljarah, Ibrahim

    2011-01-01

    Functional module discovery aims to find well-connected subnetworks which can serve as candidate protein complexes. Advances in High-throughput proteomic technologies have enabled the collection of large amount of interaction data as well as gene expression data. We propose, CLARM, a clustering algorithm that integrates gene expression profiles and protein protein interaction network for biological modules discovery. The main premise is that by enriching the interaction network by adding interactions between genes which are highly co-expressed over a wide range of biological and environmental conditions, we can improve the quality of the discovered modules. Protein protein interactions, known protein complexes, and gene expression profiles for diverse environmental conditions from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae were used for evaluate the biological significance of the reported modules. Our experiments show that the CLARM approach is competitive to wellestablished module discovery methods. Copyright © 2011 ACM.

  3. 6 CFR 13.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 6 Domestic Security 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 13.21 Section 13.21 Domestic Security DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES § 13.21 Discovery. (a) In general. (1) The following types of discovery are authorized: (i) Requests for production of...

  4. 45 CFR 99.23 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 99.23 Section 99.23 Public Welfare... DEVELOPMENT FUND Hearing Procedures § 99.23 Discovery. The Department, the Lead Agency, and any individuals or groups recognized as parties shall have the right to conduct discovery (including depositions) against...

  5. 20 CFR 355.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 355.21 Section 355.21 Employees... UNDER THE PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT OF 1986 § 355.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for inspection and copying; (2) Requests...

  6. 10 CFR 2.1018 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 2.1018 Section 2.1018 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY... Geologic Repository § 2.1018 Discovery. (a)(1) Parties, potential parties, and interested governmental participants in the high-level waste licensing proceeding may obtain discovery by one or more of the following...

  7. 28 CFR 71.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 71.21 Section 71.21 Judicial... REMEDIES ACT OF 1986 Implementation for Actions Initiated by the Department of Justice § 71.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for...

  8. 13 CFR 134.310 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 13 Business Credit and Assistance 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 134.310 Section 134.310 Business Credit and Assistance SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION RULES OF PROCEDURE GOVERNING CASES BEFORE THE... Designations § 134.310 Discovery. Discovery will not be permitted in appeals from size determinations or NAICS...

  9. 34 CFR 33.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 34 Education 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 33.21 Section 33.21 Education Office of the Secretary, Department of Education PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT § 33.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for inspection and copying...

  10. 28 CFR 18.7 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 28 Judicial Administration 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 18.7 Section 18.7 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS HEARING AND APPEAL PROCEDURES § 18.7 Discovery.... Such order may be entered upon a showing that the deposition is necessary for discovery purposes, and...

  11. 7 CFR 1.322 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 1.322 Section 1.322 Agriculture Office of... Under the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986 § 1.322 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production, inspection and photocopying of documents; (2...

  12. 45 CFR 1386.103 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 1386.103 Section 1386.103 Public... Hearing Procedures § 1386.103 Discovery. The Department and any party named in the Notice issued pursuant to § 1386.90 has the right to conduct discovery (including depositions) against opposing parties as...

  13. 45 CFR 79.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 79.21 Section 79.21 Public Welfare DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES GENERAL ADMINISTRATION PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES § 79.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for...

  14. 12 CFR 308.520 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 12 Banks and Banking 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 308.520 Section 308.520 Banks and... PROCEDURE Program Fraud Civil Remedies and Procedures § 308.520 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for inspection and copying; (2) Requests...

  15. 47 CFR 1.729 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 1.729 Section 1.729..., and Reports Involving Common Carriers Formal Complaints § 1.729 Discovery. (a) Subject to paragraph (i... seek discovery of any non-privileged matter that is relevant to the material facts in dispute in the...

  16. 7 CFR 283.12 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 283.12 Section 283.12 Agriculture... of $50,000 or More § 283.12 Discovery. (a) Dispositions—(1) Motion for taking deposition. Only upon a... exist if the information sought appears reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible...

  17. Soybean (Glycine max) oil bodies and their associated phytochemicals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fisk, Ian D; Gray, David A

    2011-01-01

    Soybean oil bodies were isolated from 3 cultivars (Ustie, K98, and Elena) and the occurrence of 2 classes of phytochemicals (tocopherol isoforms and isoflavones) and strength of their association with isolated oil bodies was evaluated. Tocopherol is shown to be closely associated with soybean oil bodies; δ-tocopherol demonstrated a significantly greater association with oil bodies over other tocopherol isoforms. Isoflavones do not show a significant physical association with oil bodies, although there is some indication of a passive association of the more hydrophobic aglycones during oil body isolation. Oil bodies are small droplets of oil that are stored as energy reserves in the seeds of oil seeds, and have the potential to be used as future food ingredients. If oil body suspensions are commercialized on a large scale, knowledge of the association of phytochemicals with oil bodies will be valuable in deciding species of preference and predicting shelf life and nutritional value. © 2011 Institute of Food Technologists®

  18. How to avoid the ditch when trying to find and develop oil and gas internationally

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dilger, C.

    2002-01-01

    It is easy to understand why a large number of Canadian oil and gas companies are expanding their operations on an international basis. The Western Canadian Basin is becoming more and more competitive, and the discoveries are significantly smaller, whereas several hydrocarbon regions of the world have not been explored as much. There are real possibilities for the application of the advanced technologies in use in Canada to recover hydrocarbons in those regions. There are risks associated with foreign operations, as the operators are exposed to unfamiliar situations. In this presentation, the author discusses a survey of Canadian managers and executives that attempted to identify the risks and strategies used to manage those risks in foreign operations. In addition, the author includes an extensive review of relevant literature and detailed case study. Project selection and data access; political, economic and business risks; National Oil Companies (NOC)/government relationships and cultural differences; project leadership and organization; environmental, health and safety (EH and S) and security risks; technical risk; and senior management support are the various categories used to summarize the approaches to risk management. 5 refs., 1 fig

  19. Characterisation of Tertiary Catalan lacustrine oil shales: Discovery of extremely organic sulphur-rich type I kerogens

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sinninghe Damsté, J.S.; Las Heras, F.X.C. de; Bergen, P.F. van; Leeuw, J.W. de

    1993-01-01

    The kerogens of three Tertiary Catalan lacustrine oil shales were analyzed by light microscopy, flash pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and bulk composition methods (elemental analysis, Rock Eval pyrolysis). Two of the three kerogens (Ribesalbes and Campins) are extremely rich in

  20. Oil-in-oil-emulsions with enhanced substantivity for the treatment of chronic skin diseases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lunter, Dominique Jasmin; Rottke, Michael; Daniels, Rolf

    2014-05-01

    The therapy of chronic skin diseases often requires several applications of creams or ointments per day. This is inconvenient to the patients and frequently leads to poor acceptance and compliance. We therefore developed oil-in-oil-emulsions that deliver the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) to the skin over a prolonged period of time. In this study, we compare the permeation of the API from a conventional formulation to its permeation from an oil-in-oil-emulsion under infinite and finite dosing. Furthermore, we evaluate the substantivity of the formulations. Our results show that the permeation from oil-in-oil-emulsions is constant over a prolonged time and that the emulsions show significantly higher substantivity than conventional formulations. Because of that, the treatment intervals can be extended substantially and compliance can be increased. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

  1. The Peak of the Oil Age - Analyzing the world oil production Reference Scenario in World Energy Outlook 2008

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aleklett, Kjell; Hoeoek, Mikael; Jakobsson, Kristofer; Lardelli, Michael; Snowden, Simon; Soederbergh, Bengt

    2010-01-01

    The assessment of future global oil production presented in the IEA's World Energy Outlook 2008 (WEO 2008) is divided into 6 fractions; four relate to crude oil, one to non-conventional oil, and the final fraction is natural-gas-liquids (NGL). Using the production parameter, depletion-rate-of-recoverable-resources, we have analyzed the four crude oil fractions and found that the 75 Mb/d of crude oil production forecast for year 2030 appears significantly overstated, and is more likely to be in the region of 55 Mb/d. Moreover, analysis of the other fractions strongly suggests lower than expected production levels. In total, our analysis points to a world oil supply in 2030 of 75 Mb/d, some 26 Mb/d lower than the IEA predicts. The connection between economic growth and energy use is fundamental in the IEA's present modelling approach. Since our forecast sees little chance of a significant increase in global oil production, our findings suggest that the 'policy makers, investors and end users' to whom WEO 2008 is addressed should rethink their future plans for economic growth. The fact that global oil production has very probably passed its maximum implies that we have reached the Peak of the Oil Age.

  2. Effect Supermint oil (Peppermint oil on children's pain during Colonoscopy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M Najafi

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Pain during colonoscopy, especially in children, including the challenges faced by the medical team. The aim of study was investigation the analgesic effect Supermint oil (peppermint oil on pain in children during colonoscopy. Methods and Materials: In this clinical trial study, 101 children (7-14 years old candidate colonoscopy were randomly divided into two groups, respectively. About half an hour before the colonoscopy case group (n=51 was administrated oral drops Supermint oil (peppermint oil. Patients were filled a pediatric pain questionnaire. In control group (n=50 filled a questionnaire without any administration. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 11.5 and (T-test and Paired sample t-test, Corraletion,Man withney. Results: Mean value of pain, duration of colonoscopy in control group was 5/60+1/85 and in case group was 4/20+1/70 and this diference was significant (P

  3. 42 CFR 1005.7 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 1005.7 Section 1005.7 Public Health... OF EXCLUSIONS, CIVIL MONEY PENALTIES AND ASSESSMENTS § 1005.7 Discovery. (a) A party may make a... and any forms of discovery, other than those permitted under paragraph (a) of this section, are not...

  4. 29 CFR 1603.210 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 4 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 1603.210 Section 1603.210 Labor Regulations... GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE RIGHTS ACT OF 1991 Hearings § 1603.210 Discovery. (a) Unless otherwise ordered by the administrative law judge, discovery may begin as soon as the complaint has been transmitted to the administrative...

  5. 45 CFR 150.435 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 150.435 Section 150.435 Public Welfare... AND INDIVIDUAL INSURANCE MARKETS Administrative Hearings § 150.435 Discovery. (a) The parties must identify any need for discovery from the opposing party as soon as possible, but no later than the time for...

  6. 34 CFR 81.16 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 34 Education 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 81.16 Section 81.16 Education Office of the... Discovery. (a) The parties to a case are encouraged to exchange relevant documents and information voluntarily. (b) The ALJ, at a party's request, may order compulsory discovery described in paragraph (c) of...

  7. 29 CFR 1905.25 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 5 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Discovery. 1905.25 Section 1905.25 Labor Regulations... OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ACT OF 1970 Hearings § 1905.25 Discovery. (a) Depositions. (1) For reasons of... discovery. Whenever appropriate to a just disposition of any issue in a hearing, the presiding hearing...

  8. 12 CFR 1780.26 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 12 Banks and Banking 7 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 1780.26 Section 1780.26 Banks and... OF PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE RULES OF PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE Prehearing Proceedings § 1780.26 Discovery. (a) Limits on discovery. Subject to the limitations set out in paragraphs (b), (d), and (e) of this...

  9. 45 CFR 160.516 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 160.516 Section 160.516 Public Welfare... ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS Procedures for Hearings § 160.516 Discovery. (a) A party may make a request to... forms of discovery, other than those permitted under paragraph (a) of this section, are not authorized...

  10. 42 CFR 430.86 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 430.86 Section 430.86 Public Health... Plans and Practice to Federal Requirements § 430.86 Discovery. CMS and any party named in the notice issued under § 430.70 has the right to conduct discovery (including depositions) against opposing parties...

  11. An oil demand and supply model incorporating monetary policy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Askari, Hossein; Krichene, Noureddine

    2010-01-01

    Oil price inflation may have had a significant role in pushing the world economy into its worst post-war recession during 2008-2009. Reserve currency central banks pursued an overly expansionary monetary policy during 2001-2009, in the form of low or negative real interest rates and accompanied by a rapidly falling US dollar, while paying inadequate attention to the destabilizing effects on oil markets. In this paper, we show that monetary policy variables, namely key interest rates and the US dollar exchange rate, had a powerful effect on oil markets. World oil demand was significantly influenced by interest and dollar exchange rates, while oil supply was rigid. Oil demand and supply have very low price elasticity and this characteristic makes oil prices highly volatile and subject to wider fluctuations than the prices of other commodities. Aggressive monetary policy would stimulate oil demand, however, it would be met with rigid oil supply and would turn inflationary and disruptive to economic growth if there was little excess capacity in oil output. We argue that a measure of stability in oil markets cannot be achieved unless monetary policy is restrained and real interest rates become significantly positive. Monetary tightening during 1979-1982 might imply that monetary policy has to be restrained for a long period and with high interest rates in order to bring stability back to oil markets. (author)

  12. Solidifier effectiveness : variation due to oil composition, oil thickness and temperature

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fieldhouse, B.; Fingas, M.

    2009-01-01

    This paper provided an overview of solidifier types and composition. Solidifiers are a class of spill treating agents that offer an effective means to convert a liquid oil into a solid material. They are used as a treatment option for oil spills on water. This paper also reported on recent laboratory studies that consist of 4 components: (1) a qualitative examination of the characteristics of the interaction of a broad range of solidifier products with a standard oil to evaluate reaction rate, states of solidification, and the impact of dosage, (2) a comparison of a smaller subset of solidifiers on the standard oil at lower temperatures, (3) solidifier treatment on a range of oils of varying physical properties and composition to assess the potential scope of application, and (4) the treatment of a series of small-scale oil layers of varying thickness to determine the significance of oil thickness on solidifier effectiveness and recovery. This paper also reviewed solidifier chemistry with particular reference to polymer sorbents; cross-linking agents; and cross-linking agents and polymeric sorbents combined. Toxicity is also an important issue regarding solidifiers. The aquatic toxicity of solidifiers is low and not measurable as the products are not water-soluble. There have not been any studies on the effects of the solidifier or the treated oil on surface feeders and shoreline wildlife that may come into contact with the products. It was concluded that oil composition may play a major role in solidifier effectiveness. The effectiveness of solidifiers is also inhibited at reduced temperatures, increased viscosity and density of the oil. 25 refs., 5 tabs., 2 figs., 1 appendix

  13. 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.

  14. Repellent effectiveness of seven plant essential oils, sunflower oil and natural insecticides against horn flies on pastured dairy cows and heifers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lachance, S; Grange, G

    2014-06-01

    Plant essential oils (basil, geranium, balsam fir, lavender, lemongrass, peppermint, pine and tea tree), mixed with either sunflower oil or ethyl alcohol, were applied at 5% concentrations to the sides of Holstein cattle. Pastured cattle treated with essential oils diluted in sunflower oil had less flies than the untreated control for a 24-h period. However, the essential oil treatments were not significantly different than the carrier oil alone. Barn-held heifers treated with essential oils and sunflower oil alone had significantly less flies than the untreated control for up to 8 h after treatment. Basil, geranium, lavender, lemongrass and peppermint repelled more flies than sunflower oil alone for a period ranging from 1.5 to 4 h after treatments applied to heifers. All essential oils repelled > 75% of the flies on the treated area for 6 and 8 h on pastured cows and indoor heifers, respectively. Geranium, lemongrass and peppermint stayed effective for a longer duration. Essential oils mixed with ethyl alcohol demonstrated less repellence than when mixed with the carrier oil. Safer's soap, natural pyrethrins without piperonyl butoxide and ethyl alcohol alone were not efficient at repelling flies. Essential oils could be formulated for use as fly repellents in livestock production. © 2013 The Royal Entomological Society.

  15. Olive oil increases the magnitude of postprandial chylomicron remnants compared to milk fat and safflower oil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Higashi, K; Ishikawa, T; Shige, H; Tomiyasu, K; Yoshida, H; Ito, T; Nakajima, K; Yonemura, A; Sawada, S; Nakamura, H

    1997-10-01

    The acute effects of olive oil, milk fat and safflower oil on postprandial lipemia and remnant lipoprotein metabolism were investigated. Eight Healthy male volunteers randomly underwent three types of oral fat-vitamin A loading tests. The test drink was a mixture of retinyl palmitate (RP)(50,000 IU of aqueous vitamin A/m2 body surface area) and one of the three types of oils (40 g of fat/m2 body surface area): olive oil (70.7% oleic acid of total fatty acids); milk fat (69.3% saturated fatty acid); safflower oil (74.2% linoleic acid). Olive oil significantly increased plasma triacylglycerol and RP concentrations 4 hours after fat loading, as compared to other fats. Increases of remnant like particle concentrations were higher after olive oil than after the other two fats. These results show that olive oil increases the magnitude of postprandial chylomicrons and chylomicron remnants compared to milk fat and safflower oil.

  16. Discovery Driven Growth

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bukh, Per Nikolaj

    2009-01-01

    Anmeldelse af Discovery Driven Growh : A breakthrough process to reduce risk and seize opportunity, af Rita G. McGrath & Ian C. MacMillan, Boston: Harvard Business Press. Udgivelsesdato: 14 august......Anmeldelse af Discovery Driven Growh : A breakthrough process to reduce risk and seize opportunity, af Rita G. McGrath & Ian C. MacMillan, Boston: Harvard Business Press. Udgivelsesdato: 14 august...

  17. 42 CFR 405.1037 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 405.1037 Section 405.1037 Public Health... Appeals Under Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) Alj Hearings § 405.1037 Discovery. (a) General rules. (1) Discovery is permissible only when CMS or its contractor elects to participate in an ALJ hearing...

  18. 20 CFR 498.207 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 498.207 Section 498.207 Employees... § 498.207 Discovery. (a) For the purpose of inspection and copying, a party may make a request to...) Any form of discovery other than that permitted under paragraph (a) of this section, such as requests...

  19. 42 CFR 93.512 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 93.512 Section 93.512 Public Health... Process § 93.512 Discovery. (a) Request to provide documents. A party may only request another party to...) Responses to a discovery request. Within 30 days of receiving a request for the production of documents, a...

  20. 42 CFR 3.516 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 42 Public Health 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 3.516 Section 3.516 Public Health PUBLIC... AND PATIENT SAFETY WORK PRODUCT Enforcement Program § 3.516 Discovery. (a) A party may make a request... and any forms of discovery, other than those permitted under paragraph (a) of this section, are not...

  1. 29 CFR 22.21 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Discovery. 22.21 Section 22.21 Labor Office of the Secretary of Labor PROGRAM FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT OF 1986 § 22.21 Discovery. (a) The following types of discovery are authorized: (1) Requests for production of documents for inspection and copying; (2) Requests...

  2. Computational methods in drug discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sumudu P. Leelananda

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The process for drug discovery and development is challenging, time consuming and expensive. Computer-aided drug discovery (CADD tools can act as a virtual shortcut, assisting in the expedition of this long process and potentially reducing the cost of research and development. Today CADD has become an effective and indispensable tool in therapeutic development. The human genome project has made available a substantial amount of sequence data that can be used in various drug discovery projects. Additionally, increasing knowledge of biological structures, as well as increasing computer power have made it possible to use computational methods effectively in various phases of the drug discovery and development pipeline. The importance of in silico tools is greater than ever before and has advanced pharmaceutical research. Here we present an overview of computational methods used in different facets of drug discovery and highlight some of the recent successes. In this review, both structure-based and ligand-based drug discovery methods are discussed. Advances in virtual high-throughput screening, protein structure prediction methods, protein–ligand docking, pharmacophore modeling and QSAR techniques are reviewed.

  3. Allocation of multiple, widely spread oil spills associated with one polluter : GC-MS fingerprinting and diagnostic ratios of spilled oil and oiled seabirds

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hansen, A.B.; Avnskjold, J.

    2005-01-01

    In January 2005, a Cypriot cargo ship leaked about 5 tons of heavy fuel bunker oil in Kerteminde Bay in the Great Belt, Denmark. The ship was stopped to inspect and collect oil samples from its 2 damaged tanks for forensic oil spill identification by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Two weeks following the accident, a series of waterborne and stranded oil spills showed up in the Great Belt area, north and south of the vessel's route. Thousands of oiled seabirds on small islands and coastlines were affected. The Danish Coast Guard suspected that the vessel might be responsible for the observed spills. More than 50 oil samples were collected and sent for forensic analysis at the National Environmental Research Institute. Both waterborne and stranded spill samples showed an almost perfect match of diagnostic ratios and chromatograph with the potential responsible party (PRP) bunker. The spill samples therefore matched the reference oil and were allocated to the spill associated with the Cypriot cargo ship. One sample deviated significantly from the other samples and was not allocated to the ship's accidental spill. Oil samples collected from oiled seabirds showed larger variations between diagnostic ratios and the reference bunker oils. The variations can be attributed to weathering and biodegradation, but also to contamination by non-petrogenic material. It was concluded that the oiled seabirds represented non-match samples that cannot be allocated to the oil spill associated with the Cypriot cargo ship. 14 refs., 3 tabs., 4 figs

  4. 10 CFR 205.198 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 205.198 Section 205.198 Energy DEPARTMENT OF... of Proposed Disallowance, and Order of Disallowance § 205.198 Discovery. (a) If a person intends to file a Motion for Discovery, he must file it at the same time that he files his Statement of Objections...

  5. 12 CFR 908.46 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 12 Banks and Banking 7 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Discovery. 908.46 Section 908.46 Banks and... PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE IN HEARINGS ON THE RECORD Pre-Hearing Proceedings § 908.46 Discovery. (a) Limits on discovery. Subject to the limitations set out in paragraphs (b), (d), and (e) of this section, any party to...

  6. 21 CFR 17.23 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Discovery. 17.23 Section 17.23 Food and Drugs FOOD... HEARINGS § 17.23 Discovery. (a) No later than 60 days prior to the hearing, unless otherwise ordered by the..., depositions, and any forms of discovery, other than those permitted under paragraphs (a) and (e) of this...

  7. Outlook for Saskatchewan heavy oil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Youzwa, P.

    1993-01-01

    Some of the opportunities and challenges currently facing the heavy oil industry in Saskatchewan are discussed from a government perspective. By the end of September 1993, 220 heavy oil wells were drilled in the province, and 26% of the land sales in 1993 were in heavy oil areas. About 41% of the wells drilled in heavy oil areas were horizontal oil wells. Of the total horizontal wells drilled in Saskatchewan, 48% are for heavy oil, and horizontal well production averages 85 bbl/d. Initial trends suggest that horizontal wells both accelerate production and contribute to ultimate recovery. Total heavy oil production in 1992 reached 28.9 million bbl and recoverable reserves in 1991 were 262.3 million bbl, or 1.5% of total oil in place. The low recovery is not only due to technical factors such as high viscosity but also to low investment in the heavy oil sector due to poor economics. It is hoped that lower interest and exchange rates, the success of horizontal wells and the provincial royalty structure will maintain the recent increase in heavy oil activity. The provincial government recently launched a comprehensive energy strategy in which development of a heavy oil strategy is an important component. Total heavy oil reserves exceed those of light and medium oil and have significant development potential. The Saskatchewan government wishes to adopt a cooperative and partnership approach in its dealings with the heavy oil industry to help realize this potential. 9 figs

  8. Oil prices, fiscal policy, and economic growth in oil-exporting countries

    Science.gov (United States)

    El-Anshasy, Amany A.

    This dissertation argues that in oil-exporting countries fiscal policy could play an important role in transmitting the oil shocks to the economy and that the indirect effects of the changes in oil prices via the fiscal channel could be quite significant. The study comprises three distinct, yet related, essays. In the first essay, I try to study the fiscal policy response to the changes in oil prices and to their growing volatility. In a dynamic general equilibrium framework, a fiscal policy reaction function is derived and is empirically tested for a panel of 15 oil-exporters covering the period 1970--2000. After the link between oil price shocks and fiscal policy is established, the second essay tries to investigate the impact of the highly volatile oil prices on economic growth for the same sample, controlling for the fiscal channel. In both essays the study employs recent dynamic panel-data estimation techniques: System GMM. This approach has the potential advantages of minimizing the bias resulting from estimating dynamic panel models, exploiting the time series properties of the data, controlling for the unobserved country-specific effects, and correcting for any simultaneity bias. In the third essay, I focus on the case of Venezuela for the period 1950--2001. The recent developments in the cointegrating vector autoregression, CVAR technique is applied to provide a suitable framework for analyzing the short-run dynamics and the long-run relationships among oil prices, government revenues, government consumption, investment, and output.

  9. Application of synthetic fire-resistant oils in oil systems of turbine equipment for NPPs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galimova, L. A.

    2017-10-01

    Results of the investigation of the synthetic fire-resistant turbine oil Fyrquel-L state in oil systems of turbosets under their operation in the equipment and oil supply facilities of nuclear power plants (NPPs) are presented. On the basis of the analysis of the operating experience, it is established that, for reliable and safe operation of the turbine equipment, at which oil systems synthetic fire-resistant oils on the phosphoric acid esters basis are used, special attention should be paid to two main factors, namely, both the guarantee of the normalized oil water content under the operation and storage and temperature regime of the operation. Methods of the acid number maintenance and reduction are shown. Results of the analysis and investigation of influence of temperature and of the variation of the qualitative state of the synthetic fair-resistant oil on its water content are reported. It is shown that the fire-resistant turbine oils are characterized by high hydrophilicity, and, in distinction to the mineral turbine oils, are capable to contain a significant amount of dissolved water, which is not extracted under the use of separation technologies. It is shown that the more degradation products are contained in oil and higher acid number, the more amount of dissolved water it is capable to retain. It is demonstrated that the organization of chemical control of the total water content of fireresistant oils with the use of the coulometric method is an important element to support the reliable operation of oil systems. It is recommended to use automatic controls of water content for organization of daily monitoring of oil state in the oil system. Recommendations and measures for improvement of oil operation on the NPP, the water content control, the use of oil cleaning plants, and the oil transfer for storage during repair works are developed.

  10. A multi-stage oil-water-separating process design for the sea oil spill recovery robot

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Min-ge; Wu, Jian-guo; Lin, Xinhua; Wang, Xiao-ming

    2018-03-01

    Oil spill have the most common pollution to the marine ecological environment. In the late stage of physical method recovery, because of the thin oil and the strong sea breeze, the recovery vessels has low efficiency and high energy consumption. This paper develops a multi-stage oil-water-separating process carried by the sea oil spill recovery robot in severe conditions. This design consists of three separation process, among which both the first and third process adopt corrugated sheets horizontal oil-water separator, while the second is hydraulic rotary breaker. This design also equiptment with rectifier and cyclone separator and other important components. This process has high flexibility and high recovery efficiency. The implement effect is significant.

  11. 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

  12. The effect of fish oil supplements on blood pressure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lofgren, R P; Wilt, T J; Nichol, K L; Crespin, L; Pluhar, R; Eckfeldt, J

    1993-01-01

    We conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study to determine the effects of fish oil supplementation on blood pressure in middle-aged men. Subjects were randomly assigned to consume either 20 g of fish oil or safflower oil for 12 weeks and then consume the other oil for an additional 12 weeks after a 4-week washout period. We found no significant changes from the pretreatment value in systolic or diastolic blood pressure with the use of fish oil supplements. In addition, there were no significant differences in the posttreatment blood pressures comparing the fish and safflower oil phases of the study. PMID:8427339

  13. A History of the Discovery of Random X Chromosome Inactivation in the Human Female and its Significance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sophia Balderman

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Genetic determinants of sex in placental mammals developed by the evolution of primordial autosomes into the male and female sex chromosomes. The Y chromosome determines maleness by the action of the gene SRY, which encodes a protein that initiates a sequence of events prompting the embryonic gonads to develop into testes. The X chromosome in the absence of a Y chromosome results in a female by permitting the conversion of the embryonic gonads into ovaries. We trace the historical progress that resulted in the discovery that one X chromosome in the female is randomly inactivated in early embryogenesis, accomplishing approximate equivalency of X chromosome gene dosage in both sexes. This event results in half of the somatic cells in a tissue containing proteins encoded by the genes of the maternal X chromosome and half having proteins encoded by the genes of the paternal X chromosome, on average, accounting for the phenotype of a female heterozygote with an X chromosome mutation. The hypothesis of X chromosome inactivation as a random event early in embryogenesis was first described as a result of studies of variegated coat color in female mice. Similar results were found in women using the X chromosome-linked gene, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, studied in red cells. The random inactivation of the X chromosome-bearing genes for isoenzyme types A and B of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase was used to establish the clonal origin of neoplasms in informative women with leiomyomas. Behind these discoveries are the stories of the men and women scientists whose research enlightened these aspects of X chromosome function and their implication for medicine.

  14. Non-OPEC Oil Supply: Economics and Energy Policy Options

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mourik, Maarten van [Paris (France); Shepherd, Richard K. [Perpignan (France)

    2003-07-01

    Apart from the enigmatic FSU, there is little prospect of long term growth for non-OPEC oil supply and a strong likelihood that over the next few years the trend will flatten and then decline irrevocably. Decline will come faster if the spectacular discoveries in the deep water offshore plays of the southern Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico attract sufficient investment to match the loss of production in the North Sea. Deep water oil supply might be expected to reach a peak of as much as 6-7 million barrels a day by the time the North Sea has lost more than half its current output in the period beyond 2010. But economics play as strong a role as geology in real world oil business. Current indicators suggest that the prolific deep water wells are delivering less oil than expected and for a shorter period. That means less revenue. This paper outlines the disappointing performance of recent offshore fields, in both deep water and conventional water depths, and suggests consequences for global supply in the next decade. The 30 year success story of non-OPEC oil supply stems directly from the oil price revolution of the 1970s, without which the North Sea and most other offshore oil plays would not have been economic. The non-OPEC oil boom was also necessary because access to the cheap oil of the Persian Gulf and a few other plays were simply not available to the international private sector oil industry, as they had been before. That era is now over. It is ending not because oil is too cheap, but because there are powerful reasons for change. Firstly there is not enough oil left to make a difference beyond the next few years. Secondly, the economics of deep water and other offshore oil may not be attractive enough. Thirdly the doors to the Middle East are now being opened again to companies that can write those assets on their balance sheets and generate profits, allowing better return on investment and their higher share prices. There is no more compelling reason for a

  15. Characteristic differences in essential oil composition of six Zanthoxylum bungeanum Maxim. (Rutaceae) cultivars and their biological significance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Shu-Ming; Wang, Shi-Jun; Song, Si-Yao; Zou, Yong; Wang, Jun-Ru; Sun, Bing-Yin

    Great variations have been found in composition and content of the essential oil of Zanthoxylum bungeanum Maxim. (Rutaceae), resulting from various factors such as harvest time, drying and extraction methods (Huang et al., 2006; Shao et al., 2013), solvent and herbal parts used (Zhang, 1996; Cao and Zhang, 2010; Wang et al., 2011). However, in terms of artificial introduction and cultivation, there is little research on the chemical composition of essential oil extracted from Z. bungeanum Maxim. cultivars, which have been introduced from different origins. In this study, the composition and content of essential oil from six cultivars (I-VI) have been investigated. They were introduced and cultivated for 11 years in the same cultivation conditions. Cultivars were as followings: Qin'an (I) cultivar originally introduced from Qin'an City in Gansu Province; Dahongpao A (II) from She County in Hebei Province; Dahongpao B (III) from Fuping County; Dahongpao C (IV) from Tongchuan City; Meifengjiao (V) from Feng County; and, Shizitou (VI) from Hancheng City, in Shaanxi Province, China. This research is expected to provide a theoretical basis for further introduction, cultivation, and commercial development of Z. bungeanum Maxim.

  16. The theoretical physics ecosystem behind the discovery of the Higgs boson

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wells, James D.; Michigan Univ., Ann Arbor, MI

    2016-09-01

    The discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012 was one of the most significant developments of science in the last half century. A simplified history has Peter Higgs positing it in the mid-1960s followed by a long wait while experimentalists progressively turned up collider energies until it appeared several decades later. However, in order for both the hypothesis and the experimental discovery to occur, a vast and complex theory ecosystem had to thrive in the years before Higgs's hypothesis and in the years that followed, building up to its discovery. It is further claimed that the Higgs boson hypothesis was an immoderate speculation, and therefore faith in theory argumentation and speculation was mandatory for the discovery program to proceed and reach its fulfillment. The Higgs boson could not have been discovered experimentally by accident.

  17. The theoretical physics ecosystem behind the discovery of the Higgs boson

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wells, James D. [Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY), Hamburg (Germany); Michigan Univ., Ann Arbor, MI (United States). Michigan Center for Theoretical Physics

    2016-09-15

    The discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012 was one of the most significant developments of science in the last half century. A simplified history has Peter Higgs positing it in the mid-1960s followed by a long wait while experimentalists progressively turned up collider energies until it appeared several decades later. However, in order for both the hypothesis and the experimental discovery to occur, a vast and complex theory ecosystem had to thrive in the years before Higgs's hypothesis and in the years that followed, building up to its discovery. It is further claimed that the Higgs boson hypothesis was an immoderate speculation, and therefore faith in theory argumentation and speculation was mandatory for the discovery program to proceed and reach its fulfillment. The Higgs boson could not have been discovered experimentally by accident.

  18. NASA Reverb: Standards-Driven Earth Science Data and Service Discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cechini, M. F.; Mitchell, A.; Pilone, D.

    2011-12-01

    NASA's Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) is a core capability in NASA's Earth Science Data Systems Program. NASA's EOS ClearingHOuse (ECHO) is a metadata catalog for the EOSDIS, providing a centralized catalog of data products and registry of related data services. Working closely with the EOSDIS community, the ECHO team identified a need to develop the next generation EOS data and service discovery tool. This development effort relied on the following principles: + Metadata Driven User Interface - Users should be presented with data and service discovery capabilities based on dynamic processing of metadata describing the targeted data. + Integrated Data & Service Discovery - Users should be able to discovery data and associated data services that facilitate their research objectives. + Leverage Common Standards - Users should be able to discover and invoke services that utilize common interface standards. Metadata plays a vital role facilitating data discovery and access. As data providers enhance their metadata, more advanced search capabilities become available enriching a user's search experience. Maturing metadata formats such as ISO 19115 provide the necessary depth of metadata that facilitates advanced data discovery capabilities. Data discovery and access is not limited to simply the retrieval of data granules, but is growing into the more complex discovery of data services. These services include, but are not limited to, services facilitating additional data discovery, subsetting, reformatting, and re-projecting. The discovery and invocation of these data services is made significantly simpler through the use of consistent and interoperable standards. By utilizing an adopted standard, developing standard-specific adapters can be utilized to communicate with multiple services implementing a specific protocol. The emergence of metadata standards such as ISO 19119 plays a similarly important role in discovery as the 19115 standard

  19. Removal of oil films from stainless steel tubes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yan, J.F.; Saez, A.E.; Grant, C.S. [North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, NC (United States). Dept. of Chemical Engineering

    1997-01-01

    The contamination of metal surfaces with oil is a widespread problem in the chemical, metalworking, and automotive industries. The main source of oil fouling comes from the process fluids in various operations. For example, in a heat exchanger, the oil contaminates the equipment surface causing a lower heat-transfer efficiency. The fouled equipment leads to increased costs due to added heat-transfer area, maintenance, energy, and production losses caused by unit downtime. The removal of oil films from the inner surface of a stainless steel tube cell using aqueous cleaning solutions was studied. The two oils used in the cleaning experiments, Sunquench 1042 and heavy mineral oil, contained P{sup 32} labeled tributyl phosphate (TBP) as a radioactive tracer. The {beta}{sup {minus}} particles emitted from the radioactive TBP were detected by a CaF{sub 2} scintillator and used as a measure of the amount of oil remaining in the tube cell. Cleaning experiments performed at different flow rates, surface treatment, and surfactant concentrations indicated that initially the oil films were removed rapidly. At the end of the experiments, the oil removal rate reduced significantly, eventually becoming negligible. The stainless steel morphology affected oil removal significantly, and the rougher tube tended to retard the oil removal. The rate and extent of the decontamination were significantly increased in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate, a nonionic surfactant. Experimental data were compared to a hydrodynamic model based on the removal of a liquid contaminant from a solid surface by an immiscible fluid. The model deviated from the experimental data due to the presence of instabilities at the oil-water interface.

  20. Assessment of the relationship between oil prices and US oil stocks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Saif Ghouri, Salman

    2006-01-01

    This paper qualitatively and quantitatively analyzes the relationship between US monthly ending oil stocks position with that of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil prices from February 1995 to July 2004. The paper concludes if other things are held constant, WTI is inversely related to the petroleum products (PPP), combined petroleum products and crude oil (CPPP), crude oil alone (Crude), total oil stocks including petroleum products, crude oil and strategic petroleum reserves SPR (Total), total gasoline (TGO), total distillate (TDO). It could not establish a statistically significant and negative relationship with SPR when run alone. One percent increase (decrease) in CPPP, PPP, Crude, Total, TGO and TDO leads to decrease (increase) in WTI, respectively, by 0.70, 0.43, 0.37, 0.97, 0.26 and 0.21 percent. Oil prices are largely influenced by total crude and Crude and PPP inventories levels while modestly with variations in gasoline and distillate stocks levels. Despite a healthy increase of over 22 percent in SPR from January 2001 to April 2004, it did not result in easing of oil prices. Primarily because SPR are meant for security of supply concern and are only released under extreme conditions by the President of United States, they are neither meant for the purposes of balancing supply-demand gap nor for the stability of oil prices. The aggressive SPR buildup in recent years is related to international terrorism, geopolitical situation in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq, that encourages US government to enhance its SPR to meet any short-term eventuality. The analyst must keep a close eye on CPPP and the total oil stocks variation to forecast WTI in the short run whilst gasoline and distillate influence oil prices modestly in the short run. SPR, on the other hand, are expected to play a pivotal role in balancing oil prices and in providing a critical resource for the economy in case of any major shortfall in the long run

  1. Assessment of the relationship between oil prices and US oil stocks

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Saif Ghouri, Salman [Business Environment Section, Corporate Planning Department, Qatar Petroleum, Doha (Qatar)]. E-mail: ghouri@qp.com.qa

    2006-11-15

    This paper qualitatively and quantitatively analyzes the relationship between US monthly ending oil stocks position with that of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil prices from February 1995 to July 2004. The paper concludes if other things are held constant, WTI is inversely related to the petroleum products (PPP), combined petroleum products and crude oil (CPPP), crude oil alone (Crude), total oil stocks including petroleum products, crude oil and strategic petroleum reserves SPR (Total), total gasoline (TGO), total distillate (TDO). It could not establish a statistically significant and negative relationship with SPR when run alone. One percent increase (decrease) in CPPP, PPP, Crude, Total, TGO and TDO leads to decrease (increase) in WTI, respectively, by 0.70, 0.43, 0.37, 0.97, 0.26 and 0.21 percent. Oil prices are largely influenced by total crude and Crude and PPP inventories levels while modestly with variations in gasoline and distillate stocks levels. Despite a healthy increase of over 22 percent in SPR from January 2001 to April 2004, it did not result in easing of oil prices. Primarily because SPR are meant for security of supply concern and are only released under extreme conditions by the President of United States, they are neither meant for the purposes of balancing supply-demand gap nor for the stability of oil prices. The aggressive SPR buildup in recent years is related to international terrorism, geopolitical situation in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq, that encourages US government to enhance its SPR to meet any short-term eventuality. The analyst must keep a close eye on CPPP and the total oil stocks variation to forecast WTI in the short run whilst gasoline and distillate influence oil prices modestly in the short run. SPR, on the other hand, are expected to play a pivotal role in balancing oil prices and in providing a critical resource for the economy in case of any major shortfall in the long run.

  2. The circumstances of minor planet discovery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pilcher, F.

    1989-01-01

    The circumstances of discoveries of minor planets are presented in tabular form. Complete data are given for planets 2125-4044, together with notes pertaining to these planets. Information in the table includes the permanent number; the official name; for planets 330 and forward, the table includes the provisional designation attached to the discovery apparition and the year, month, the day of discovery, and the discovery place

  3. OPEC and non-OPEC oil production and the global economy

    OpenAIRE

    Ratti, Ronald A.; Vespignani, Joaquin L.

    2014-01-01

    Hamilton identifies 1973 to 1996 as “the age of OPEC” and 1997 to the present as “a new industrial age.” During 1974-1996 growth in non-OPEC oil production Granger causes growth in OPEC oil production. OPEC oil production decreases significantly with positive shocks to non-OPEC oil production in the earlier period, but does not do so in the “new industrial age”. In the “new industrial age” OPEC oil production rises significantly with an increase in oil prices, unlike during “the age of OPEC” ...

  4. Metal working oils. Cutting oils, rolling oils, quenching oils, rust preventive oils; Kinzoku kakoyu. Sessakuyu, atsuenyu, yakiireyu, boseiyu

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Koyama, S. [Idemitsu Kosan Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

    1996-04-01

    With the demand against complicating working techniques for a background, foundations of the consideration for each of the lubricants in future are outlined. 1. Cutting oils: From the standpoint of speeding up and fireproofing, share of water-soluble type has come up to 30-40%. In this type, emulsifying dispersants and preservatives are combined. 2. Rolling oils: According to thinning of the standard thickness of steel plates, pressure of contacting surfaces has come up to 300 kg/mm{sup 2}(max.) and slip speed has increased too. In stainless steel plates, in order to get rid of the heat-streak (baking streak originated from wearing-out of oil film) shifting from neat oil to emulsion type is required. 3. Quenching oils: Following two systems are recent tendencies, the mineral oil system having excellent thermostability or the water system containing polyalkylneglycol etc., but the latter is expected from the viewpoint of fireproofing. 4. Rust preventive oils: As this oils do not aim at the rust prevention for long term, degreasing property is required. 20 refs., 5 figs., 1 tab.

  5. Oxidative flavour deterioration of fish oil enriched milk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruni Let, Mette; Jacobsen, Charlotte; Frankel, E.N.

    2003-01-01

    The oxidative deterioration of milk emulsions supplemented with 1.5 wt-% fish oil was investigated by sensory evaluation and by determining the peroxide value and volatile oxidation products after cold storage. Two types of milk emulsions were produced, one with a highly unsaturated tuna oil (38 wt......-% of n-3 fatty acids) and one with cod liver oil (26 wt-% of n-3 fatty acids). The effect of added calcium disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA) on oxidation was also investigated. Emulsions based on cod liver oil with a slightly elevated peroxide value (1.5 meq/kg) oxidised significantly faster...... than the tuna oil emulsions, having a lower initial peroxide value (0.1 meq/kg). In the tuna oil emulsions the fishy off-flavour could not be detected throughout the storage period. Addition of 5-50 ppm EDTA significantly reduced the development of volatile oxidation products in the cod liver oil...

  6. Strategy of Chavez determines oil future of Venezuela

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Widdershoven, C.

    2008-01-01

    The perspective of the oil and gas industry remains unclear as long as the current president, Hugo Chavez, continues to implement his own political ideas. The announcement of another tax increase on high oil revenues of oil companies will significantly weaken the appeal to invest in the oil sector. [mk] [nl

  7. Tail dependence between oil and stocks of major oil-exporting countries using the CoVaR approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nader Trabelsi

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper investigates the negative tail risk dependence between oil shocks and stock indices (at aggregated and desegregated levels for Saudi Arabia (KSA, United Arab Emirates (UAE and Russia, over the period between 2007 and 2016. DCC-MGARCH approach and CoVaR measure are employed to assess the oil shock exposure. The results show that the tail dependence is significant and depends on the origin of the oil shocks, with intensity that varies across countries and sectors. Keywords: Oil price shocks, Oil-exporting countries, Conditional VaR, JEL Classification: C58, G11, Q4

  8. Toxins and drug discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harvey, Alan L

    2014-12-15

    Components from venoms have stimulated many drug discovery projects, with some notable successes. These are briefly reviewed, from captopril to ziconotide. However, there have been many more disappointments on the road from toxin discovery to approval of a new medicine. Drug discovery and development is an inherently risky business, and the main causes of failure during development programmes are outlined in order to highlight steps that might be taken to increase the chances of success with toxin-based drug discovery. These include having a clear focus on unmet therapeutic needs, concentrating on targets that are well-validated in terms of their relevance to the disease in question, making use of phenotypic screening rather than molecular-based assays, and working with development partners with the resources required for the long and expensive development process. Copyright © 2014 The Author. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  9. Relationship between Saskatchewan government regulatory agencies and the oil and gas industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lechner, L.J.; Mathieson, B.

    1998-01-01

    The roles and responsibilities of various government agencies as they interact with the oil and gas industry in Saskatchewan were described. The regulatory agencies featured in this paper were Saskatchewan Energy and Mines (SEM), Saskatchewan Environment and Resource Management (SERM), and Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food (SAF). The management of land sales, seismic activities, exploration and oil and gas production activities were reviewed. While each of the agencies has a different mandate, they have a common goal regarding petroleum resources, and that is to ensure that the oil and gas industry carries out its activities in a sustainable manner while protecting and conserving the environment. The mandate of SEM is to facilitate the discovery, development and use of Saskatchewan's energy and mineral resources. SERM's mandate is to manage, enhance and protect Saskatchewan's natural and environmental resources such as fish, wildlife, lands, forests, parks, air, water and soil, for conservation, recreation, social and economic purposes. The mandate of SAF is to manage crown land in the province and to control surface access to these lands

  10. mHealth Visual Discovery Dashboard.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fang, Dezhi; Hohman, Fred; Polack, Peter; Sarker, Hillol; Kahng, Minsuk; Sharmin, Moushumi; al'Absi, Mustafa; Chau, Duen Horng

    2017-09-01

    We present Discovery Dashboard, a visual analytics system for exploring large volumes of time series data from mobile medical field studies. Discovery Dashboard offers interactive exploration tools and a data mining motif discovery algorithm to help researchers formulate hypotheses, discover trends and patterns, and ultimately gain a deeper understanding of their data. Discovery Dashboard emphasizes user freedom and flexibility during the data exploration process and enables researchers to do things previously challenging or impossible to do - in the web-browser and in real time. We demonstrate our system visualizing data from a mobile sensor study conducted at the University of Minnesota that included 52 participants who were trying to quit smoking.

  11. Oil Depletion and the Energy Efficiency of Oil Production: The Case of California

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam R. Brandt

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available This study explores the impact of oil depletion on the energetic efficiency of oil extraction and refining in California. These changes are measured using energy return ratios (such as the energy return on investment, or EROI. I construct a time-varying first-order process model of energy inputs and outputs of oil extraction. The model includes factors such as oil quality, reservoir depth, enhanced recovery techniques, and water cut. This model is populated with historical data for 306 California oil fields over a 50 year period. The model focuses on the effects of resource quality decline, while technical efficiencies are modeled simply. Results indicate that the energy intensity of oil extraction in California increased significantly from 1955 to 2005. This resulted in a decline in the life-cycle EROI from 6.5 to 3.5 (measured as megajoules (MJ delivered to final consumers per MJ primary energy invested in energy extraction, transport, and refining. Most of this decline in energy returns is due to increasing need for steam-based thermal enhanced oil recovery, with secondary effects due to conventional resource depletion (e.g., increased water cut.

  12. Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) by miscible CO{sub 2} and water flooding of asphaltenic and non-asphaltenic oils

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chukwudeme, E. A.; Hamouda, A. A. [Department of Petroleum Engineering, University of Stavanger, 4036 Stavanger (Norway)

    2009-07-01

    An EOR study has been performed applying miscible CO{sub 2} flooding and compared with that for water flooding. Three different oils are used, reference oil (n-decane), model oil (n-C10, SA, toluene and 0.35 wt % asphaltene) and crude oil (10 wt % asphaltene) obtained from the Middle East. Stearic acid (SA) is added representing a natural surfactant in oil. For the non-asphaltenic oil, miscible CO{sub 2} flooding is shown to be more favourable than that by water. However, it is interesting to see that for first years after the start of the injection (< 3 years) it is shown that there is almost no difference between the recovered oils by water and CO{sub 2}, after which (> 3 years) oil recovery by gas injection showed a significant increase. This may be due to the enhanced performance at the increased reservoir pressure during the first period. Maximum oil recovery is shown by miscible CO{sub 2} flooding of asphaltenic oil at combined temperatures and pressures of 50 {sup o}C/90 bar and 70 {sup o}C/120 bar (no significant difference between the two cases, about 1%) compared to 80 {sup o}C/140 bar. This may support the positive influence of the high combined temperatures and pressures for the miscible CO{sub 2} flooding; however beyond a certain limit the oil recovery declined due to increased asphaltene deposition. Another interesting finding in this work is that for single phase oil, an almost linear relationship is observed between the pressure drop and the asphaltene deposition regardless of the flowing fluid pressure. (author)

  13. Quantification of oil recovery efficiency, CO 2 storage potential, and fluid-rock interactions by CWI in heterogeneous sandstone oil reservoirs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Seyyedi, Mojtaba; Sohrabi, Mehran; Sisson, Adam

    2017-01-01

    Significant interest exists in improving recovery from oil reservoirs while addressing concerns about increasing CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere. The combination of Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) and safe geologic storage of CO2 in oil reservoirs is appealing and can be achieved by carbonated (CO...... for oil recovery and CO2 storage potential on heterogeneous cores. Since not all the oil reservoirs are homogenous, understanding the potential of CWI as an integrated EOR and CO2 storage scenario in heterogeneous oil reservoirs is essential....

  14. Biodegradability of northern crude oil

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cook, F D; Westlake, D W.S.

    1976-01-01

    Field studies on the microbiological degradation of crude oils encompassed the placing of oil-soaked plots in two areas in the Northwest Territories and Alberta. Replicate plots received amendments of fertilizer, oil-utilizing bacteria, fertilizer plus bacteria or were untreated except for the oil. Changes in microbial numbers and chemical composition of recovered oil were determined periodically. The initial stimulatory effect on bacterial numbers brought about by the addition of fertilizers to oil-soaked plots diminished two years after the application to a point where the differences were no longer significant. Experiments carried out in the Norman Wells area to determine the effect of the amount of fertilizer applied on oil degradation have yielded inconclusive results. The data suggest that at least 2.7 kg of urea-phosphate fertilizer per kl of oil is required to maintain a reasonable oil degradation rate. Preliminary studies on the use of fertilizer coated with chemicals to increase its hydrophobic character indicate that they could be useful in treating wet-land oil spills. Soils from the McKenzie River drainage basin indicate that bacteria are present which can use oil under mesophilic conditions. However, the ability to use the same oil under psychrophilic conditions is more restricted. At least one bacterial species from each mixed population studied was capable of bringing about chemical changes in oil similar to those observed for the original mixed culture. The potential hazards and uses of the seeding of oil spills is discussed relative to the environmental conditions found in the northern part of Canada. 35 refs., 2 figs., 15 tabs.

  15. Service discovery at home

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sundramoorthy, V.; Scholten, Johan; Jansen, P.G.; Hartel, Pieter H.

    2003-01-01

    Service discovery is a fairly new field that kicked off since the advent of ubiquitous computing and has been found essential in the making of intelligent networks by implementing automated discovery and remote control between devices. This paper provides an overview and comparison of several

  16. The Greatest Mathematical Discovery?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bailey, David H.; Borwein, Jonathan M.

    2010-05-12

    What mathematical discovery more than 1500 years ago: (1) Is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, single discovery in the field of mathematics? (2) Involved three subtle ideas that eluded the greatest minds of antiquity, even geniuses such as Archimedes? (3) Was fiercely resisted in Europe for hundreds of years after its discovery? (4) Even today, in historical treatments of mathematics, is often dismissed with scant mention, or else is ascribed to the wrong source? Answer: Our modern system of positional decimal notation with zero, together with the basic arithmetic computational schemes, which were discovered in India about 500 CE.

  17. Separation of compressor oil from helium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Strauss, R.; Perrotta, K.A.

    1982-01-01

    Compression of helium by an oil-sealed rorary screw compressor entrains as much as 4000 parts per million by weight of liquid and vapor oil impurities in the gas. The reduction below about 0.1 ppm for cryogenic applications is discussed. Oil seperation equipment designed for compressed air must be modified significantly to produce the desired results with helium. The main differences between air and helium filtration are described. A description of the coalescers is given with the continuous coalescing of liquid mist from air or other gas illustrated. Oil vapor in helium is discussed in terms of typical compressor oils, experimental procedure for measuring oil vapor concentration, measured volatile hydrocarbons in the lubricants, and calculated concentration of oil vapor in Helium. Liquid oil contamination in helium gas can be reduced well below 0.1 ppm by a properly designed multiple state coalescing filter system containing graded efficiency filter elements. The oil vapor problem is best attached by efficiently treating the oil to remove most of the colatiles before charging the compressor

  18. The future for heavy crude oil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Horsnell, P.

    1995-01-01

    The expectation, still held in 1993, that the light oil-heavy crude oil differential would go on increasing in favour of light oil has not been fulfilled. Current perceptions are that heavy oil will continue to be relatively strong and there is no inevitable upward trend in light-heavy crude differentials. Non-OPEC production has grown significantly lighter overall in recent years and is likely to continue so for several more years. This is due to expanded light oil production in the North Sea, Latin America and the Far East, and contractions in heavy oil production in Russia and the USA. OPEC production has also become lighter with, in particular, an expansion in light oil and contraction in heavy grades from Saudi Arabia. At the same time, the nature of the demand from refineries has changed with the introduction of new units designed to process the residium from heavy oil distillation. Thus the supply of light oil has expanded while demand for it has contracted with the reverse being true for heavy oil. (2 figures, 1 table) (UK)

  19. Discovery of asphalt seeps in the deep Southwest Atlantic off Brazil

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fujikura, Katsunori; Yamanaka, Toshiro; Sumida, Paulo Y. G.; Bernardino, Angelo F.; Pereira, Olivia S.; Kanehara, Toshiyuki; Nagano, Yuriko; Nakayama, Cristina R.; Nobrega, Marcos; Pellizari, Vivian H.; Shigeno, Shuichi; Yoshida, Takao; Zhang, Jing; Kitazato, Hiroshi

    2017-12-01

    The discovery and description of cold seeps with deep-sea chemosynthetic communities in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean are still incomplete, despite the large proven oil and gas reserves off the coast of Brazil. In the southeastern Brazilian continental margin, where over 71% of the country's oil and gas production takes place, there are previous geological and qualitative biological evidence of seep biota associated with pockmarks on the upper slope of the Santos Basin. In order to further study seep ecosystems on the Brazilian margin, a deep-sea investigation named Iatá-Piúna cruise was conducted using the human-occupied vehicle Shinkai 6500 off Brazil's southeast continental margin. Asphalt seeps were discovered on the seafloor of the North São Paulo Plateau from depths of 2652-2752 m, representing only the third discovery of this type of seep worldwide, following those in the Gulf of Mexico and off Angola. Video and isotopic analyses indicated a number of megabenthic animals in the asphalt seeps in the North São Paulo Plateau and revealed typical deep-sea heterotrophic and photosynthesis-based fauna occupying hard substrates provided by the asphalt seep. There was no evidence of chemosynthesis-based megabenthic fauna such as vesicomyid clams, Bathymodiolus mussels, and siboglinid tube worms, or any sediment bacterial mats, gas seepage, and carbonate rock in/around the seeps. The benthic fauna was composed mainly of sponges (ca. 15 species), such as the hexactinellids Caulophacus sp., Poliopogon amadou, Saccocalyx pedunculatus, Farrea occa and cf. Chonelasma choanoides; besides typical deep-sea isidid octocorals, brisingid starfishes and galatheid crabs. The δ13C values of poriferan sponges suggested a heterotrophic and pelagic nutrition. Geochemical analyses of asphalt revealed a heavy biodegradation of hydrocarbon molecules, supported by the depletion of light n-alkanes and other labile compounds. This advanced asphalt biodegradation is the likely reason

  20. The oil boom in the US is the most significant fact of 2012, according to BP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    2013-01-01

    In 2012 the USA reached a peak in their production of oil (more than 1 million barrels) thanks to shale gas. The world economic recession that concerned most of OECD countries led to a decrease in energy consumption in the USA, European Union and Japan but because of the energy thirst of the BRICS countries the consumption of energy increased at the world scale as well as the CO 2 level. The world consumption of coal increased by 2.5% which is less than in the previous years but for the first time since 1970 coal reached almost 30% of the world consumption of primary energy. The article includes 3 tables giving the 2012 world consumption of oil, of coal according to continents and listing the places and quantities of proved reserves of natural gas. (A.C.)

  1. Offshore oil: Correctness of perspective

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Burns, R.F.

    1993-01-01

    Except for the Gulf of Mexico, the offshore oil industry has been virtually banned from the US Exclusive Economic Zone for ten years. The oil potential in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is also off limits. The Gulf of Mexico is the only place with prospects for future success and a number of companies both large and small are determined to move forward. The depressed price of oil does not encourage development but recently gas prices in the US have increased, making offshore gas development more feasible. Perhaps most significant is development and application of new technology and more intense management to make sure it works. The offshore oil companies and support industries have made significant technological advances, expending over and above the dollars paid in taxes, lease fees, and royalties. The ocean industries harbor a great reservoir of high technology knowledge. They have demonstrated the ability to successfully meet a vast array of challenges in exploring for, drilling, and producing oil and gas in extreme conditions. These facts beg the question as to the rational basis of each and every regulation and the ban on drilling

  2. Open Drug Discovery Toolkit (ODDT): a new open-source player in the drug discovery field.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wójcikowski, Maciej; Zielenkiewicz, Piotr; Siedlecki, Pawel

    2015-01-01

    There has been huge progress in the open cheminformatics field in both methods and software development. Unfortunately, there has been little effort to unite those methods and software into one package. We here describe the Open Drug Discovery Toolkit (ODDT), which aims to fulfill the need for comprehensive and open source drug discovery software. The Open Drug Discovery Toolkit was developed as a free and open source tool for both computer aided drug discovery (CADD) developers and researchers. ODDT reimplements many state-of-the-art methods, such as machine learning scoring functions (RF-Score and NNScore) and wraps other external software to ease the process of developing CADD pipelines. ODDT is an out-of-the-box solution designed to be easily customizable and extensible. Therefore, users are strongly encouraged to extend it and develop new methods. We here present three use cases for ODDT in common tasks in computer-aided drug discovery. Open Drug Discovery Toolkit is released on a permissive 3-clause BSD license for both academic and industrial use. ODDT's source code, additional examples and documentation are available on GitHub (https://github.com/oddt/oddt).

  3. Electrocoagulation with polarity switch for fast oil removal from oil in water emulsions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gobbi, Lorena C A; Nascimento, Izabela L; Muniz, Eduardo P; Rocha, Sandra M S; Porto, Paulo S S

    2018-05-01

    An electrocoagulation technique using a 3.5 L reactor, with aluminum electrodes in a monopolar arrangement with polarity switch at each 10 s was used to separate oil from synthetic oily water similar in oil concentration to produced water from offshore platforms. Up to 98% of oil removal was achieved after 20 min of processing. Processing time dependence of the oil removal and pH was measured and successfully adjusted to exponential models, indicating a pseudo first order behavior. Statistical analysis was used to prove that electrical conductivity and total solids depend significantly on the concentration of electrolyte (NaCl) in the medium. Oil removal depends mostly on the distance between the electrodes but is proportional to electrolyte concentration when initial pH is 8. Electrocoagulation with polarity switch maximizes the lifetime of the electrodes. The process reduced oil concentration to a value below that stipulated by law, proving it can be an efficient technology to minimize the offshore drilling impact in the environment. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. The in silico drug discovery toolbox: applications in lead discovery and optimization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruno, Agostino; Costantino, Gabriele; Sartori, Luca; Radi, Marco

    2017-11-06

    Discovery and development of a new drug is a long lasting and expensive journey that takes around 15 years from starting idea to approval and marketing of new medication. Despite the R&D expenditures have been constantly increasing in the last few years, number of new drugs introduced into market has been steadily declining. This is mainly due to preclinical and clinical safety issues, which still represent about 40% of drug discontinuation. From this point of view, it is clear that if we want to increase drug-discovery success rate and reduce costs associated with development of a new drug, a comprehensive evaluation/prediction of potential safety issues should be conducted as soon as possible during early drug discovery phase. In the present review, we will analyse the early steps of drug-discovery pipeline, describing the sequence of steps from disease selection to lead optimization and focusing on the most common in silico tools used to assess attrition risks and build a mitigation plan. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  5. Academic Drug Discovery Centres

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kirkegaard, Henriette Schultz; Valentin, Finn

    2014-01-01

    Academic drug discovery centres (ADDCs) are seen as one of the solutions to fill the innovation gap in early drug discovery, which has proven challenging for previous organisational models. Prior studies of ADDCs have identified the need to analyse them from the angle of their economic...

  6. Service Discovery At Home

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sundramoorthy, V.; Scholten, Johan; Jansen, P.G.; Hartel, Pieter H.

    Service discovery is a fady new field that kicked off since the advent of ubiquitous computing and has been found essential in the making of intelligent networks by implementing automated discovery and remote control between deviies. This paper provides an ovewiew and comparison of several prominent

  7. Exocrine pancreatic secretion is stimulated in piglets fed Fish oil compared with those fed Coconut Oil or Lard

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hedemann, Mette Skou; Pedersen, Asger Roer; Engberg, Ricarda M.

    2001-01-01

    An experiment was conducted to study the effect of feeding diets containing fat sources with different fatty acid composition (fish oil, coconut oil or lard, 10 g/100 g diet) on exocrine pancreatic secretion in piglets after weaning. A total of 16 barrows were weaned at 4 wk of age; 3 d later...... the coconut oil or lard diets. The output [U/(h. kg(0.75))] of lipase was higher in piglets fed fish oil than in piglets fed lard or coconut oil. The output of colipase was greater in piglets fed fish oil and coconut oil than in those fed lard. The dietary treatments did not affect the output of carboxylester...... hydrolase. The output of trypsin was significantly lower in piglets fed lard than in piglets fed fish oil or coconut oil diets and the output of carboxypeptidase B was greater in those fed the fish oil diet. Protein, chymotrypsin, carboxypeptidase A, elastase and amylase outputs did not differ among...

  8. Fluid diversion in oil recovery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nimir, Hassan B.

    1999-01-01

    In any oil recovery process, large scale heterogeneities, such as fractures, channels, or high-permeability streaks, can cause early break through of injected fluid which will reduce oil recovery efficiency. In waterflooding, enhanced oil recovery, and acidizing operations, this problem is particularly acute because of the cost of the injected fluid. On the other hand coping with excess water production is always a challenging task for field operators. The cost of handling and disposing produced water can significantly shorten the economic production life of an oil well. The hydrostatic pressure created by high fluid levels in a well (water coning) is also detrimental to oil production. In this paper, the concept of fluid diversion is explained. Different methods that are suggested to divert the fluid into the oil-bearing-zones are briefly discussed, to show their advantages and disadvantages. Methods of reducing water production in production well are also discussed. (Author)

  9. Oil vulnerability index of oil-importing countries

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gupta, Eshita

    2008-01-01

    This paper assesses the relative oil vulnerability of 26 net oil-importing countries for the year 2004 on the basis of various indicators - the ratio of value of oil imports to gross domestic product (GDP), oil consumption per unit of GDP, GDP per capita and oil share in total energy supply, ratio of domestic reserves to oil consumption, exposure to geopolitical oil market concentration risks as measured by net oil import dependence, diversification of supply sources, political risk in oil-supplying countries, and market liquidity. The approach using the principal component technique has been adopted to combine these individual indicators into a composite index of oil vulnerability. Such an index captures the relative sensitivity of various economies towards developments of the international oil market, with a higher index indicating higher vulnerability. The results show that there are considerable differences in the values of individual indicators of oil vulnerability and overall oil vulnerability index among the countries (both inter and intraregional). (author)

  10. Oil vulnerability index of oil-importing countries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gupta, Eshita [The Energy and Resources Institute, Darbari Seth Block, Habitat Place, New Delhi 110 003 (India)

    2008-03-15

    This paper assesses the relative oil vulnerability of 26 net oil-importing countries for the year 2004 on the basis of various indicators - the ratio of value of oil imports to gross domestic product (GDP), oil consumption per unit of GDP, GDP per capita and oil share in total energy supply, ratio of domestic reserves to oil consumption, exposure to geopolitical oil market concentration risks as measured by net oil import dependence, diversification of supply sources, political risk in oil-supplying countries, and market liquidity. The approach using the principal component technique has been adopted to combine these individual indicators into a composite index of oil vulnerability. Such an index captures the relative sensitivity of various economies towards developments of the international oil market, with a higher index indicating higher vulnerability. The results show that there are considerable differences in the values of individual indicators of oil vulnerability and overall oil vulnerability index among the countries (both inter and intraregional). (author)

  11. Oil Dependence: The Value of R{ampersand}D

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Greene, D.L.

    1997-07-01

    Over the past quarter century the United States` dependence on oil has cost its economy on the order of $5 trillion. Oil dependence is defined as economically significant consumption of oil, given price inelastic demand in the short and long run and given the ability of the OPEC cartel to use market power to influence oil prices. Although oil prices have been lower and more stable over the past decade, OPEC still holds the majority of the world`s conventional oil resources according to the best available estimates. OPEC`s share of the world oil market is likely to grow significantly in the future,restoring much if not all of their former market power. Other than market share, the key determinants of OPEC`s market power are the long and short run price elasticities of world oil demand and supply. These elasticities depend critically on the technologies of oil supply and demand, especially the technology of energy use in transportation. Research and development can change these elasticities in fundamental ways, and given the nature of the problem,the government has an important role to play in supporting such research.

  12. Synthetic biology of antimicrobial discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zakeri, Bijan; Lu, Timothy K

    2013-07-19

    Antibiotic discovery has a storied history. From the discovery of penicillin by Sir Alexander Fleming to the relentless quest for antibiotics by Selman Waksman, the stories have become like folklore used to inspire future generations of scientists. However, recent discovery pipelines have run dry at a time when multidrug-resistant pathogens are on the rise. Nature has proven to be a valuable reservoir of antimicrobial agents, which are primarily produced by modularized biochemical pathways. Such modularization is well suited to remodeling by an interdisciplinary approach that spans science and engineering. Herein, we discuss the biological engineering of small molecules, peptides, and non-traditional antimicrobials and provide an overview of the growing applicability of synthetic biology to antimicrobials discovery.

  13. Clean and Secure Energy from Domestic Oil Shale and Oil Sands Resources

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Spinti, Jennifer [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Birgenheier, Lauren [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Deo, Milind [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Facelli, Julio [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Hradisky, Michal [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Kelly, Kerry [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Miller, Jan [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); McLennan, John [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Ring, Terry [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Ruple, John [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States); Uchitel, Kirsten [Inst. for Clean and Secure Energy, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)

    2015-09-30

    This report summarizes the significant findings from the Clean and Secure Energy from Domestic Oil Shale and Oil Sands Resources program sponsored by the Department of Energy through the National Energy Technology Laboratory. There were four principle areas of research; Environmental, legal, and policy issues related to development of oil shale and oil sands resources; Economic and environmental assessment of domestic unconventional fuels industry; Basin-scale assessment of conventional and unconventional fuel development impacts; and Liquid fuel production by in situ thermal processing of oil shale Multiple research projects were conducted in each area and the results have been communicated via sponsored conferences, conference presentations, invited talks, interviews with the media, numerous topical reports, journal publications, and a book that summarizes much of the oil shale research relating to Utah’s Uinta Basin. In addition, a repository of materials related to oil shale and oil sands has been created within the University of Utah’s Institutional Repository, including the materials generated during this research program. Below is a listing of all topical and progress reports generated by this project and submitted to the Office of Science and Technical Information (OSTI). A listing of all peer-reviewed publications generated as a result of this project is included at the end of this report; Geomechanical and Fluid Transport Properties 1 (December, 2015); Validation Results for Core-Scale Oil Shale Pyrolysis (February, 2015); and Rates and Mechanisms of Oil Shale Pyrolysis: A Chemical Structure Approach (November, 2014); Policy Issues Associated With Using Simulation to Assess Environmental Impacts (November, 2014); Policy Analysis of the Canadian Oil Sands Experience (September, 2013); V-UQ of Generation 1 Simulator with AMSO Experimental Data (August, 2013); Lands with Wilderness Characteristics, Resource Management Plan Constraints, and Land Exchanges

  14. "Seeing is believing": perspectives of applying imaging technology in discovery toxicology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Jinghai James; Dunn, Margaret Condon; Smith, Arthur Russell

    2009-11-01

    Efficiency and accuracy in addressing drug safety issues proactively are critical in minimizing late-stage drug attritions. Discovery toxicology has become a specialty subdivision of toxicology seeking to effectively provide early predictions and safety assessment in the drug discovery process. Among the many technologies utilized to select safer compounds for further development, in vitro imaging technology is one of the best characterized and validated to provide translatable biomarkers towards clinically-relevant outcomes of drug safety. By carefully applying imaging technologies in genetic, hepatic, and cardiac toxicology, and integrating them with the rest of the drug discovery processes, it was possible to demonstrate significant impact of imaging technology on drug research and development and substantial returns on investment.

  15. Application of backflush and micro-flow techniques to the analysis of C5-C13 hydrocarbons in crude oils and its geochemical significance

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2007-01-01

    An Agilent 6890N GC equipped with both FID and Agilent 5975 MSD analyzer has been employed to analyze C5-C13 hydrocarbon fractions of crude oils. A technical combination of program temperature volatilizer injection, backflush and micro-flow controller afforded a fine separation of C5-C13 compounds on a PONA column with the heavy part of crude oils being cut off before entering the analytical column. Both GC-FID chromatogram and GC-MS mass chromatograrns (MID and full scan) could be obtained at the same time. The retension time differences of nC6-nC13 alkanes between GC and TIC were in the range of 0.02-0. 58 minutes. Totally 286 peaks have been assigned group compositions. Results on 8 typical oil samples from CNPC Key Laboratory Crude Oil Library showed that the characteristics of C6-C13 hydrocarbon group composition could be used in oil-oil correlation studies.

  16. Have we run out of oil yet? Oil peaking analysis from an optimist's perspective

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Greene, David L.; Hopson, Janet L.; Li Jia

    2006-01-01

    This study addresses several questions concerning the peaking of conventional oil production from an optimist's perspective. Is the oil peak imminent? What is the range of uncertainty? What are the key determining factors? Will a transition to unconventional oil undermine or strengthen OPEC's influence over world oil markets? These issues are explored using a model combining alternative world energy scenarios with an accounting of resource depletion and a market-based simulation of transition to unconventional oil resources. No political or environmental constraints are allowed to hinder oil production, geological constraints on the rates at which oil can be produced are not represented, and when USGS resource estimates are used, more than the mean estimate of ultimately recoverable resources is assumed to exist. The issue is framed not as a question of 'running out' of conventional oil, but in terms of the timing and rate of transition from conventional to unconventional oil resources. Unconventional oil is chosen because production from Venezuela's heavy-oil fields and Canada's Athabascan oil sands is already underway on a significant scale and unconventional oil is most consistent with the existing infrastructure for producing, refining, distributing and consuming petroleum. However, natural gas or even coal might also prove to be economical sources of liquid hydrocarbon fuels. These results indicate a high probability that production of conventional oil from outside of the Middle East region will peak, or that the rate of increase of production will become highly constrained before 2025. If world consumption of hydrocarbon fuels is to continue growing, massive development of unconventional resources will be required. While there are grounds for pessimism and optimism, it is certainly not too soon for extensive, detailed analysis of transitions to alternative energy sources

  17. Oil risk in oil stocks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Scholtens, Bert; Wang, L

    2008-01-01

    We assess the oil price sensitivities and oil risk premiums of NYSE listed oil & gas firms' returns by using a two-step regression analysis under two different arbitrage pricing models. Thus, we apply the Fama and French (1992) factor returns in a study of oil stocks. In all, we find that the return

  18. Production and characterization of refined oils obtained from Indian oil sardine (Sardinella longiceps).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chakraborty, Kajal; Joseph, Deepu

    2015-01-28

    Crude Sardinella longiceps oil was refined in different stages such as degumming, neutralization, bleaching, and deodorization. The efficiency of these processes was evaluated on the basis of free fatty acid (FFA), peroxide (PV), p-anisidine (pAV), total oxidation (TOTOX), thiobarbituric acid reactive species (TBARS) values, Lovibond CIE-L*a*b* color analyses, and (1)H NMR or GC-MS experiments. The utilities of NMR-based proton signal characteristics as new analytical tools to understand the signature peaks and relative abundance of different fatty acids and monitoring the refining process of fish oil have been demonstrated. Phosphoric acid (1%) was found to be an effective degumming reagent to obtain oil with the lowest FFA, PV, pAV, TOTOX, and TBARS values and highest color reduction. Significant reduction in the contents of hydrocarbon functionalities as shown by the decrease in proton integral in the characteristic (1)H NMR region was demonstrated by using 1% H3PO4 during the course of the degumming process. A combination (1.25:3.75%) of activated charcoal and Fuller's earth at 3% concentration for a stirring time of 40 min was found to be effective in bleaching the sardine oil. This study demonstrated that unfavorable odor-causing components, particularly low molecular weight carbonyl compounds, could successfully be removed by the refining process. The alkane-dienals/alkanes, which cause unfavorable fishy odors, were successfully removed by distillation (100 °C) under vacuum with aqueous acetic acid solution (0.25 N) to obtain greater quality of refined sardine oil, a rich source of essential fatty acids and improved oxidative stability. The present study demonstrated that the four-stage refinement process of sardine oil resulted in a significant improvement in quality characteristics and nutritional values, particularly n-3 PUFAs, with improved fish oil characteristics for use in the pharmaceutical and functional food industries.

  19. Successful phytoremediation of crude-oil contaminated soil at an oil exploration and production company by plants-bacterial synergism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fatima, Kaneez; Imran, Asma; Amin, Imran; Khan, Qaiser M; Afzal, Muhammad

    2018-06-07

    Phytoremediation is a promising approach for the cleanup of soil contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons. This study aimed to develop plant-bacterial synergism for the successful remediation of crude oil-contaminated soil. A consortia of three endophytic bacteria was augmented to two grasses, Leptochloa fusca and Brachiaria mutica, grown in oil-contaminated soil (46.8 g oil kg -1 soil) in the vicinity of an oil exploration and production company. Endophytes augmentation improved plant growth, crude oil degradation, and soil health. Maximum oil degradation (80%) was achieved with B. mutica plants augmented with the endophytes and it was significantly (P oil reduction indicates that catabolic gene expression is important for hydrocarbon mineralization. This investigation showed that the use of endophytes with appropriate plant is an effective strategy for the cleanup of oil-contaminated soil under field conditions.

  20. A New Era of Oil Abundance?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aoun, Marie-Claire

    2015-01-01

    From 2014 to 2015, the price of oil fell. The price drop is explained by several factors: a significant increase of oil production in the United States, the resumption of Libyan and Iraqi exports, the possible lifting of sanctions against Iran, and slowing growth in developing countries. The situation is having negative effects on oil-producing countries, but the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) remains divided as to its stance on the situation, making it all the more difficult to predict future trends in oil prices

  1. Evaluating Web-Scale Discovery Services: A Step-by-Step Guide

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joseph Deodato

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Selecting a web-scale discovery service is a large and important undertaking that involves a significant investment of time, staff, and resources. Finding the right match begins with a thorough and carefully planned evaluation process. In order to be successful, this process should be inclusive, goal-oriented, data-driven, user-centered, and transparent. The following article offers a step-by-step guide for developing a web-scale discovery evaluation plan rooted in these five key principles based on best practices synthesized from the literature as well as the author’s own experiences coordinating the evaluation process at Rutgers University. The goal is to offer academic libraries that are considering acquiring a web-scale discovery service a blueprint for planning a structured and comprehensive evaluation process.

  2. Fragment-based drug discovery and molecular docking in drug design.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Tao; Wu, Mian-Bin; Chen, Zheng-Jie; Chen, Hua; Lin, Jian-Ping; Yang, Li-Rong

    2015-01-01

    Fragment-based drug discovery (FBDD) has caused a revolution in the process of drug discovery and design, with many FBDD leads being developed into clinical trials or approved in the past few years. Compared with traditional high-throughput screening, it displays obvious advantages such as efficiently covering chemical space, achieving higher hit rates, and so forth. In this review, we focus on the most recent developments of FBDD for improving drug discovery, illustrating the process and the importance of FBDD. In particular, the computational strategies applied in the process of FBDD and molecular-docking programs are highlighted elaborately. In most cases, docking is used for predicting the ligand-receptor interaction modes and hit identification by structurebased virtual screening. The successful cases of typical significance and the hits identified most recently are discussed.

  3. Oil and natural gas prospects: Middle East and North Africa

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khatib, Hisham

    2014-01-01

    The MENA region is endowed with enormous resources of oil and gas, rendering it the world′s richest region in this regard. Endowment differs from one country to another with few countries are almost dry; however the economic benefits proliferated to almost every country in the region. In spite of some doubts being cast about the amount of proven oil reserves, these with improved technology and new discoveries are increasing year after another. With no long term feasible alternatives to oil for transport and the increasing trade in LNG, the region′s importance as a world′s leading supplier of fossil fuels will continue for decades to come. However, these favourable prospects hide many challenges facing the MENA region, among them is the difficulty in mobilizing investment funds for sustaining and increasing output to feed growing global demand. Growing local demand, due to the proliferation of subsides, is another worrying aspect that already caused few countries with modest resources to become oil importers instead of exporters, with larger exporters decreasing their surplus output. The region is also still mainly dependant on foreign technologies and skilled manpower. Regional cooperation in oil and gas networks and electricity interconnections is still modest. The region has a long history of conflict; correspondingly it is a major importer of armaments which is increasingly eating a lot of its surplus income. With the political and social changes presently taking place in many MENA countries, due to the Arab spring and continuation of local conflicts, the sustainability of supplies from the region are increasingly a source of worry to MENA exporters and its many importers. It is also causing increasing involvement of the super powers in regional affairs. - Highlights: • Global oil and gas reserves and prices. • Energy sustainability and the Middle East. • Energy economics and investments in the Middle East

  4. SOVENT BASED ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY FOR IN-SITU UPGRADING OF HEAVY OIL SANDS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Munroe, Norman

    2009-01-30

    With the depletion of conventional crude oil reserves in the world, heavy oil and bitumen resources have great potential to meet the future demand for petroleum products. However, oil recovery from heavy oil and bitumen reservoirs is much more difficult than that from conventional oil reservoirs. This is mainly because heavy oil or bitumen is partially or completely immobile under reservoir conditions due to its extremely high viscosity, which creates special production challenges. In order to overcome these challenges significant efforts were devoted by Applied Research Center (ARC) at Florida International University and The Center for Energy Economics (CEE) at the University of Texas. A simplified model was developed to assess the density of the upgraded crude depending on the ratio of solvent mass to crude oil mass, temperature, pressure and the properties of the crude oil. The simplified model incorporated the interaction dynamics into a homogeneous, porous heavy oil reservoir to simulate the dispersion and concentration of injected CO2. The model also incorporated the characteristic of a highly varying CO2 density near the critical point. Since the major challenge in heavy oil recovery is its high viscosity, most researchers have focused their investigations on this parameter in the laboratory as well as in the field resulting in disparaging results. This was attributed to oil being a complex poly-disperse blend of light and heavy paraffins, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes, which have diverse behaviors at reservoir temperature and pressures. The situation is exacerbated by a dearth of experimental data on gas diffusion coefficients in heavy oils due to the tedious nature of diffusivity measurements. Ultimately, the viscosity and thus oil recovery is regulated by pressure and its effect on the diffusion coefficient and oil swelling factors. The generation of a new phase within the crude and the differences in mobility between the new crude matrix and the

  5. Machine-assisted discovery of relationships in astronomy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Graham, Matthew J.; Djorgovski, S. G.; Mahabal, Ashish A.; Donalek, Ciro; Drake, Andrew J.

    2013-05-01

    High-volume feature-rich data sets are becoming the bread-and-butter of 21st century astronomy but present significant challenges to scientific discovery. In particular, identifying scientifically significant relationships between sets of parameters is non-trivial. Similar problems in biological and geosciences have led to the development of systems which can explore large parameter spaces and identify potentially interesting sets of associations. In this paper, we describe the application of automated discovery systems of relationships to astronomical data sets, focusing on an evolutionary programming technique and an information-theory technique. We demonstrate their use with classical astronomical relationships - the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram and the Fundamental Plane of elliptical galaxies. We also show how they work with the issue of binary classification which is relevant to the next generation of large synoptic sky surveys, such as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). We find that comparable results to more familiar techniques, such as decision trees, are achievable. Finally, we consider the reality of the relationships discovered and how this can be used for feature selection and extraction.

  6. α-Linalool - a marker compound of forged/synthetic sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) essential oils.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Radulović, Niko S; Blagojević, Polina D; Miltojević, Ana B

    2013-10-01

    Ocimum basilicum L. (sweet basil) is known to occur as several chemotypes or cultivars that differ in their essential oil composition. The surprising discovery of 3,7-dimethylocta-1,7-dien-3-ol, the rare α isomer of the well-known monoterpene alcohol β-linalool (3,7-dimethylocta-1,6-dien-3-ol), in samples of Serbian basil oil provoked an investigation of the origin of α-linalool in these samples. Three scenarios were considered, namely (a) the existence of a new natural chemotype, (b) an artefactual formation during the isolation procedure and (c) the case of a synthetic/forged oil. Noteworthy amounts (15.1-16.9%) of pure α-linalool were isolated from a commercial sample of basil oil, and detailed spectral analyses (MS, IR, (1) H and (13) C NMR) unequivocally confirmed its identity. The analysis by GC and GC/MS of an additional 20 samples of different O. basilicum oils commercially available on the Serbian market or isolated from plant material cultivated in Serbia resulted in the identification of 149 compounds. The obtained compositional data were compared using multivariate statistical analysis to reveal the possible existence of a new basil chemotype. The results of the chemical and statistical analyses give more pro arguments for the synthetic/forged oil hypothesis and suggest that α-linalool could be used as a marker compound of such O. basilicum oils. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry.

  7. The discovery of radioactivity: the centenary

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Patil, S.K.

    1995-01-01

    In the last decade of the nineteenth century, a number of fundamental discoveries of outstanding importance were made unexpectedly which marked the beginning of a new era in physics. A cascade of spectacular discoveries began with the announcement of the discovery of x-rays by Roentgen followed by the discoveries, in quick succession, of radioactivity by Becquerel, of Zeeman effect, of electron by J.J. Thomson, and of polonium and radium by the Curies. Both x-rays and radioactivity have wide applications in scientific, medical and industrial fields and have made outstanding contribution to the advancement of human knowledge and welfare. Radioactivity is well known and no other discovery in the field of physics or chemistry has had a more profound effect on our fundamental knowledge of nature. Present article, on the occasion of the centenary of the discovery of radioactivity, makes an attempt to describe some glimpses of the history of radioactivity. (author). 59 refs

  8. The π discovery

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fowler, P.H.

    1988-01-01

    The paper traces the discovery of the Π meson. The discovery was made by exposure of nuclear emulsions to cosmic radiation at high altitudes, with subsequent scanning of the emulsions for meson tracks. Disintegration of nuclei by a negative meson, and the decay of a Π meson were both observed. Further measurements revealed the mass of the meson. The studies carried out on the origin of the Π-mesons, and their mode of decay, are both described. (U.K.)

  9. Oral evening primrose oil and borage oil for eczema.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bamford, Joel T M; Ray, Sujoy; Musekiwa, Alfred; van Gool, Christel; Humphreys, Rosemary; Ernst, Edzard

    2013-04-30

    Eczema is a chronic inflammatory skin condition, which usually develops in early childhood. Many children outgrow this disorder as they reach secondary school age, and although It may improve with age, there is no cure. Constant itch makes life uncomfortable for those with this condition, no matter what age they are, so it may have a significant effect on a person's quality of life. Its prevalence seems to be increasing as populations move from rural locations to cities. Some people, who do not see an adequate improvement or fear side-effects of conventional medical products, try complementary alternatives to conventional treatment. This is a review of evening primrose oil (EPO) and borage oil (BO) taken orally (by mouth); these have been thought to be beneficial because of their gamma-linolenic acid content. To assess the effects of oral evening primrose oil or borage oil for treating the symptoms of atopic eczema. We searched the following databases up to August 2012: Cochrane Skin Group Specialised Register, CENTRAL in The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE (from 1946), EMBASE (from 1974), AMED (from 1985), and LILACS (from 1982). We also searched online trials registers and checked the bibliographies of included studies for further references to relevant trials. We corresponded with trial investigators and pharmaceutical companies to try to identify unpublished and ongoing trials. We performed a separate search for adverse effects of evening primrose oil and borage oil in November 2011. All randomised controlled, parallel, or cross-over trials investigating oral intake of evening primrose oil or borage oil for eczema. Two review authors independently applied eligibility criteria, assessed risk of bias, and extracted data. We pooled dichotomous outcomes using risk ratios (RR), and continuous outcomes using the mean difference (MD). Where possible, we pooled study results using random-effects meta-analysis and tested statistical heterogeneity using both the Chi(²) test

  10. Moringa Seed Oils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joana O. Ilesanmi

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available This study was conducted to determine the effects of neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss and moringa (Moringa oleifera seed oils on the storability of cowpea grain. Cowpea samples were treated with various concentrations (0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 mL/200 g cowpea of pure neem and moringa oils and their mixtures in ratios of 1:1, 1:2, and 1:3. The treated cowpea samples were stored for 180 days. Data were collected every 30 days on number of eggs laid, total weevil population, and percentage of uninfested grains and analysed statistically. Significantly different means were compared using LSD at <.05. Increasing oil concentration resulted in better cowpea protection, for example, in oviposition where the control had 6513 eggs, only 8 eggs were recorded in pure neem oil-treated sample at 0.5 mL/200 g. Generally, better results were obtained with higher oil concentrations either in their pure forms or mixtures. The control had a total weevil population of 4988, while most treated samples had none. The control samples had 0% uninfested grains, while 73–94% of uninfested grains were observed in treated samples after 6 months of storage. Therefore, mixture of the oils at 1.5 mL/200 g can be effectively used to store cowpea.

  11. Corn fiber oil lowers plasma cholesterol levels and increases cholesterol excretion greater than corn oil and similar to diets containing soy sterols and soy stanols in hamsters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, T A; DeSimone, A P; Romano, C A; Nicolosi, R J

    2000-09-01

    The aims of this study were to compare the cholesterol-lowering properties of corn fiber oil (CFO) to corn oil (CO), whether the addition of soy stanols or soy sterols to CO at similar levels in CFO would increase CO's cholesterol-lowering properties, and the mechanism(s) of action of these dietary ingredients. Fifty male Golden Syrian hamsters were divided into 5 groups of 10 hamsters each, based on similar plasma total cholesterol (TC) levels. The first group of hamsters was fed a chow-based hypercholesterolemic diet containing either 5% coconut oil + 0.24% cholesterol (coconut oil), 5% CO, 5% CFO, 5% CO + 0.6% soy sterols (sterol), or 5% CO + 0.6% soy stanols (stanol) in place of the coconut oil for 4 weeks. The stanol diet significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma TC compared to all other dietary treatments. Also, the CFO and sterol diets significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma TC compared to the CO and coconut oil diets. The CFO, sterol, and stanol diets significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol compared to the CO and coconut oil diets. The stanol diet significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) compared to all other dietary treatments. The sterol diet significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma HDL-C compared to the CO and coconut oil diets, whereas the CFO diet significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma HDL-C compared to the coconut oil diet only. No differences were observed between the CFO and CO for plasma HDL-C. There were no differences observed between groups for plasma triglycerides. The CO and CFO diets had significantly less hepatic TC compared to the coconut oil, sterol, and stanol diets. The CO and CFO diets had significantly less hepatic free cholesterol compared to the sterol and stanol diets but not compared to the coconut oil diet; whereas the coconut oil and sterol diets had significantly less hepatic free cholesterol

  12. Incineration of contaminated oil from Sellafield - 16246

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Broadbent, Craig; Cassidy, Helen; Stenmark, Anders

    2009-01-01

    Studsvik have been incinerating Low Level Waste (LLW) at its licensed facility in Sweden since the mid-1970's. This process not only enables the volume of waste to be significantly reduced but also produces an inert residue suitable for final disposal. The facility has historically incinerated only solid dry LLW, however in 2008 an authorisation was obtained to permit the routine incineration of LLW contaminated oil at the facility. Prior to obtaining the authorisation to incinerate oils and other organic liquids - both from clean-up activities on the Studsvik site and on a commercial basis - a development program was established. The primary aims of this were to identify the optimum process set-up for the incinerator and also to demonstrate to the regulatory authorities that the appropriate environmental and radiological parameters would be maintained throughout the new process. The final phase of the development program was to incinerate a larger campaign of contaminated oil from the nuclear industry. A suitable accumulation of oil was identified on the Sellafield site in Cumbria and a commercial contract was established to incinerate approximately 40 tonnes of oil from the site. The inventory of oil chosen for the trial incineration represented a significant challenge to the incineration facility as it had been generated from various facilities on-site and had degraded significantly following years of storage. In order to transport the contaminated oil from the Sellafield site in the UK to the Studsvik facility in Sweden several challenges had to be overcome. These included characterisation, packaging and international transportation (under a Transfrontier Shipment (TFS) authorisation) for one of the first transports of liquid radioactive wastes outside the UK. The incineration commenced in late 2007 and was successfully completed in early 2008. The total volume reduction achieved was greater than 97%, with the resultant ash packaged and returned to the UK (for

  13. Oil Spill Related Heavy Metal: A Review

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmad Dasuki Mustafa; Hafizan Juahir; Kamaruzzaman Yunus; Mohammad Azizi Amran; Che Noraini Che Hasnam; Fazureen Azaman; Ismail Zainal Abidin; Syahril Hirman Azmee; Nur Hishaam Sulaiman

    2015-01-01

    Oil spill occurs every day worldwide and oil contamination is a significant contributor for the higher levels of heavy metals in the environment. This study is purposely to summarize the heavy metals which significant to major oil spill incidents around the world and effects of toxic metals to human health. The study performed a comprehensive review of relevant scientific journal articles and government documents concerning heavy metals contamination and oil spills. Overall, the heavy metals most frequently been detected in oil spill related study where Pb>Ni>V>Zn>Cd and caused many effects to human health especially cancer. In conclusion, the comparison of heavy metal level between the post - spill and baseline levels must be done, and implementation of continuous monitoring of heavy metal. In addition, the result based on the strategies must be transparent to public in order to maintaining human health. (author)

  14. Recovery of oil from underground drill sites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Streeter, W.S.; Hutchinson, T.S.; Ameri, S.; Wasson, J.A.; Aminian, K.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports that a significant quantity of oil is left in reservoirs after conventional oil recovery techniques have been applied. In West Virginia and Pennsylvania alone, this oil has been estimated at over 4.5 billion barrels (0.72 billion m 3 ). Conventional recovery methods are already being used when applicable. But a new recovery method is needed for use in reservoirs that have been abandoned. One alternative method for recovery of the residual oil is known as oil recovery from underground drill sites. This recovery technology is a combination of proven methods and equipment from the petroleum, mining, and civil construction industries. Underground oil recovery can be an economically viable method of producing oil. This has been shown in producing fields, field tests, and feasibility, studies. Faced with decreasing domestic oil production, the petroleum industry should give serious consideration to the use of oil recovery from underground drill sites as a safe, practical, and environmentally sensitive alternative method of producing oil from many reservoirs

  15. Study on incineration technology of oil gas generated during the recovery process of oil spill

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hou, Shuhn-Shyurng; Ko, Yung-Chang; Lin, Ta-Hui

    2011-01-01

    The objective of this study is to design, set up and operate an incinerator system capable of providing clean exhaust and safety control for burning oil gas generated during the recovery process of oil spill in Taiwan. In this study, we successfully develop a vertical-type incinerator, which consists of five oil gas burners with entrained primary air, a pilot burner, and an auxiliary burner. The incinerator system is equipped with necessary control units in order to achieve safe, easy, fast, and efficient operation. Flame appearance, flue gas temperature and CO emission of the incinerator system for burning oil gas are reported and discussed. Under the long-term operation, it is found that the new designed incinerator is satisfactory for burning oil gas with low supply pressure at various compositions and supply rates during the recovery process of oil spill. It is noteworthy that the results obtained herein are of great significance to provide a good guidance for those who need to design, set up and operate an incinerator system providing clean exhaust and safety control for burning oil gas generated during the recovery process of oil spill in a polluted site with a large area.

  16. Study on incineration technology of oil gas generated during the recovery process of oil spill

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hou, Shuhn-Shyurng [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kun Shan University, Tainan 71003 (China); Ko, Yung-Chang [China Steel Corporation, Kaohsiung 81233 (China); Lin, Ta-Hui [Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101 (China)

    2011-03-15

    The objective of this study is to design, set up and operate an incinerator system capable of providing clean exhaust and safety control for burning oil gas generated during the recovery process of oil spill in Taiwan. In this study, we successfully develop a vertical-type incinerator, which consists of five oil gas burners with entrained primary air, a pilot burner, and an auxiliary burner. The incinerator system is equipped with necessary control units in order to achieve safe, easy, fast, and efficient operation. Flame appearance, flue gas temperature and CO emission of the incinerator system for burning oil gas are reported and discussed. Under the long-term operation, it is found that the new designed incinerator is satisfactory for burning oil gas with low supply pressure at various compositions and supply rates during the recovery process of oil spill. It is noteworthy that the results obtained herein are of great significance to provide a good guidance for those who need to design, set up and operate an incinerator system providing clean exhaust and safety control for burning oil gas generated during the recovery process of oil spill in a polluted site with a large area. (author)

  17. Synthetic biology of antimicrobial discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zakeri, Bijan; Lu, Timothy K.

    2012-01-01

    Antibiotic discovery has a storied history. From the discovery of penicillin by Sir Alexander Fleming to the relentless quest for antibiotics by Selman Waksman, the stories have become like folklore, used to inspire future generations of scientists. However, recent discovery pipelines have run dry at a time when multidrug resistant pathogens are on the rise. Nature has proven to be a valuable reservoir of antimicrobial agents, which are primarily produced by modularized biochemical pathways. Such modularization is well suited to remodeling by an interdisciplinary approach that spans science and engineering. Herein, we discuss the biological engineering of small molecules, peptides, and non-traditional antimicrobials and provide an overview of the growing applicability of synthetic biology to antimicrobials discovery. PMID:23654251

  18. Trace elements and radionuclides in palm oil, soil, water, and leaves from oil palm plantations: A review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olafisoye, O B; Oguntibeju, O O; Osibote, O A

    2017-05-03

    Oil palm (Elaeisguineensis) is one of the most productive oil producing plant in the world. Crude palm oil is composed of triglycerides supplying the world's need of edible oils and fats. Palm oil also provides essential elements and antioxidants that are potential mediators of cellular functions. Experimental studies have demonstrated the toxicity of the accumulation of significant amounts of nonessential trace elements and radionuclides in palm oil that affects the health of consumers. It has been reported that uptake of trace elements and radionuclides from the oil palm tree may be from water and soil on the palm plantations. In the present review, an attempt was made to revise and access knowledge on the presence of some selected trace elements and radionuclides in palm oil, soil, water, and leaves from oil palm plantations based on the available facts and data. Existing reports show that the presence of nonessential trace elements and radionuclides in palm oil may be from natural or anthropogenic sources in the environment. However, the available literature is limited and further research need to be channeled to the investigation of trace elements and radionuclides in soil, water, leaves, and palm oil from oil palm plantations around the globe.

  19. Oil troubles waters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bravo, E.

    1998-01-01

    The sea provides a vast array of natural resources for thousands of local communities in the tropics. But the presence of the oil industry has significant social and environmental impacts, both from accidents and from routine activities like seismic exploration, drilling and the generation of polluting wastes. When accidents occur, sessile life (species attached to surface such as rocks or the seabed) is the first to be affected; its mortality increases as oil accumulates, although certain organisms, like gastropods, tolerate it better

  20. Effects of Thymus vulgaris Essential Oil on Decay Resistance and Quality of Iranian Table Grape

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahsa GERANSAYEH

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Because of greater consumer awareness and concern regarding synthetic chemical additives, foods preserved with natural additives have become popular. Medicinal plants have been used by human being since ages in traditional medicine due to their therapeutic potential and the search on medicinal plants have led the discovery of novel drug candidates used against diverse diseases. Therefore Thymus vulgaris essential oil was applied in Bidaneh Qermez grape cultivar at six concentrations (0, 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 ?l/l in water. Quality characteristics (pH, decay, vitamin C, reducing sugars, weight loss, berry abscission, dehydration of rachis, berry cracking and sensory analyses were evaluated. The results showed that treated fruits with essential oil had lower decay percentage, dehydration of rachis, berry abscission, berry cracking and higher pH, reducing sugars and storage quality compared to control. As a general result, essential oil treatment caused lower decay incident and longer storability.

  1. Effects of Thymus vulgaris Essential Oil on Decay Resistance and Quality of Iranian Table Grape

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahsa GERANSAYEH

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Because of greater consumer awareness and concern regarding synthetic chemical additives, foods preserved with natural additives have become popular. Medicinal plants have been used by human being since ages in traditional medicine due to their therapeutic potential and the search on medicinal plants have led the discovery of novel drug candidates used against diverse diseases. Therefore Thymus vulgaris essential oil was applied in �Bidaneh Qermez� grape cultivar at six concentrations (0, 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 ?l/l in water. Quality characteristics (pH, decay, vitamin C, reducing sugars, weight loss, berry abscission, dehydration of rachis, berry cracking and sensory analyses were evaluated. The results showed that treated fruits with essential oil had lower decay percentage, dehydration of rachis, berry abscission, berry cracking and higher pH, reducing sugars and storage quality compared to control. As a general result, essential oil treatment caused lower decay incident and longer storability.

  2. Do oil shocks predict economic policy uncertainty?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rehman, Mobeen Ur

    2018-05-01

    Oil price fluctuations have influential role in global economic policies for developed as well as emerging countries. I investigate the role of international oil prices disintegrated into structural (i) oil supply shock, (ii) aggregate demand shock and (iii) oil market specific demand shocks, based on the work of Kilian (2009) using structural VAR framework on economic policies uncertainty of sampled markets. Economic policy uncertainty, due to its non-linear behavior is modeled in a regime switching framework with disintegrated structural oil shocks. Our results highlight that Indian, Spain and Japanese economic policy uncertainty responds to the global oil price shocks, however aggregate demand shocks fail to induce any change. Oil specific demand shocks are significant only for China and India in high volatility state.

  3. 'The Lusiads', poem of discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natasha Furlan Felizi

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The article proposes reading Os Lusíadas as a discovery journey. Discovery here read as aletheia or “revelation”, as proposed by Sophia de Mello Brey­ner Andresen in 1980. Using Martin Heidegger’s notion of aletheia in the book Parmenides along with Jorge de Sena and Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen reflections on Camões, I’ll seek to point out alternative readings for Os Lusíadas as a “discovery journey”.

  4. Computational methods in drug discovery

    OpenAIRE

    Sumudu P. Leelananda; Steffen Lindert

    2016-01-01

    The process for drug discovery and development is challenging, time consuming and expensive. Computer-aided drug discovery (CADD) tools can act as a virtual shortcut, assisting in the expedition of this long process and potentially reducing the cost of research and development. Today CADD has become an effective and indispensable tool in therapeutic development. The human genome project has made available a substantial amount of sequence data that can be used in various drug discovery project...

  5. Effect of soy oil, orange (Citrus sinensis) peel oil and their blends on total phospholipid, lipid peroxidation, and antioxidant defense system in brain tissues of normo rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Erukainure, O.L.; Ajiboye, J.A.; Davis, F.F.; Obabire, K.; Okoro, E.E.; Adenekan, S.O.; Adegbola, M.V.; Awogbemi, B.J.; Odjobo, B.O.; Zaruwa, M.Z.

    2016-07-01

    Soy and orange peel (C. sinensis) oils were fed to albino male rats to determine their effects on malondialdehyde (MDA), total phospholipid (TP) content and oxidative stress biomarkers of brain tissue. Beside mouse chow, four diets were designed to contain 50% of their energy as carbohydrate, 35% as fat, and 15% as protein, and one lipid-free diet which had distilled water substituted for fat. Groups of five rats were each fed one of these diets, while a fifth group was fed pelletized mouse chow. A significant difference (p < 0.05) was observed in the TP of the mouse chow group. The TP was highest (p < 0.05) in those fed the soy and orange peel oil blend as compared to those fed these oils separately. Feeding soy oil led to decreased MDA in brain tissues and influenced the TP content. Significantly lower (p < 0.05) GSH and SOD activities were observed in the groups fed soy oil+orange peel oil, and soy oil diets respectively. Higher significant (p < 0.05) activities were observed in the orange oil fed group. Significantly higher (p < 0.05) catalase activity was observed in the lipid free diet fed group, which was followed by orange peel oil, and soy oil+orange peel oil diets, respectively. A combination of both oils may be useful in the management of certain neurological diseases or illnesses and protect against other oxidative stress complications. (Author)

  6. Levels of bioactive lipids in cooking oils: olive oil is the richest source of oleoyl serine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradshaw, Heather B; Leishman, Emma

    2016-05-01

    Rates of osteoporosis are significantly lower in regions of the world where olive oil consumption is a dietary cornerstone. Olive oil may represent a source of oleoyl serine (OS), which showed efficacy in animal models of osteoporosis. Here, we tested the hypothesis that OS as well as structurally analogous N-acyl amide and 2-acyl glycerol lipids are present in the following cooking oils: olive, walnut, canola, high heat canola, peanut, safflower, sesame, toasted sesame, grape seed, and smart balance omega. Methanolic lipid extracts from each of the cooking oils were partially purified on C-18 solid-phase extraction columns. Extracts were analyzed with high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, and 33 lipids were measured in each sample, including OS and bioactive analogs. Of the oils screened here, walnut oil had the highest number of lipids detected (22/33). Olive oil had the second highest number of lipids detected (20/33), whereas grape-seed and high-heat canola oil were tied for lowest number of detected lipids (6/33). OS was detected in 8 of the 10 oils tested and the levels were highest in olive oil, suggesting that there is something about the olive plant that enriches this lipid. Cooking oils contain varying levels of bioactive lipids from the N-acyl amide and 2-acyl glycerol families. Olive oil is a dietary source of OS, which may contribute to lowered prevalence of osteoporosis in countries with high consumption of this oil.

  7. Preconditioning methods to improve SAGD performance in heavy oil and bitumen reservoirs with variable oil phase viscosity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gates, I.D. [Gushor Inc., Calgary, AB (Canada)]|[Calgary Univ., AB (Canada). Dept. of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering; Larter, S.R.; Adams, J.J.; Snowdon, L.; Jiang, C. [Gushor Inc., Calgary, AB (Canada)]|[Calgary Univ., Calgary, AB (Canada). Dept. of Geoscience

    2008-10-15

    This study investigated preconditioning techniques for altering reservoir fluid properties prior to steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) recovery processes. Viscosity-reducing agents were distributed in mobile reservoir water. Simulations were conducted to demonstrate the method's ability to modify oil viscosity prior to steam injection. The study simulated the action of water soluble organic solvents that preferentially partitioned in the oil phase. The solvent was injected with water into the reservoir in a slow waterflood that did not displace oil from the near wellbore region. A reservoir simulation model was used to investigate the technique. Shu's correlation was used to establish a viscosity correlation for the bitumen and solvent mixtures. Solvent injection was modelled by converting the oil phase viscosity through time. Over the first 2 years, oil rates of the preconditioned case were double that of the non-preconditioned case study. However, after 11 years, the preconditioned case's rates declined below rates observed in the non-preconditioned case. The model demonstrated that oil viscosity distributions were significantly altered using the preconditioners. The majority of the most viscous oil surrounding the production well was significantly reduced. It was concluded that accelerated steam chamber growth provided faster access to lower viscosity materials at the top of the reservoir. 12 refs., 9 figs.

  8. Choosing Discovery: A Literature Review on the Selection and Evaluation of Discovery Layers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moore, Kate B.; Greene, Courtney

    2012-01-01

    Within the next few years, traditional online public access catalogs will be replaced by more robust and interconnected discovery layers that can serve as primary public interfaces to simultaneously search many separate collections of resources. Librarians have envisioned this type of discovery tool since the 1980s, and research shows that…

  9. Investigations into Library Web-Scale Discovery Services

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jason Vaughan

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available Web-scale discovery services for libraries provide deep discovery to a library’s local and licensed content, and represent an evolution, perhaps a revolution, for end user information discovery as pertains to library collections.  This article frames the topic of web-scale discovery, and begins by illuminating web-scale discovery from an academic library’s perspective – that is, the internal perspective seeking widespread staff participation in the discovery conversation.  This included the creation of a discovery task force, a group which educated library staff, conducted internal staff surveys, and gathered observations from early adopters.  The article next addresses the substantial research conducted with library vendors which have developed these services.  Such work included drafting of multiple comprehensive question lists distributed to the vendors, onsite vendor visits, and continual tracking of service enhancements.  Together, feedback gained from library staff, insights arrived at by the Discovery Task Force, and information gathered from vendors collectively informed the recommendation of a service for the UNLV Libraries.

  10. The Europa Ocean Discovery mission

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Edwards, B.C. [Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States); Chyba, C.F. [Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ (United States); Abshire, J.B. [National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Greenbelt, MD (United States). Goddard Space Flight Center] [and others

    1997-06-01

    Since it was first proposed that tidal heating of Europa by Jupiter might lead to liquid water oceans below Europa`s ice cover, there has been speculation over the possible exobiological implications of such an ocean. Liquid water is the essential ingredient for life as it is known, and the existence of a second water ocean in the Solar System would be of paramount importance for seeking the origin and existence of life beyond Earth. The authors present here a Discovery-class mission concept (Europa Ocean Discovery) to determine the existence of a liquid water ocean on Europa and to characterize Europa`s surface structure. The technical goal of the Europa Ocean Discovery mission is to study Europa with an orbiting spacecraft. This goal is challenging but entirely feasible within the Discovery envelope. There are four key challenges: entering Europan orbit, generating power, surviving long enough in the radiation environment to return valuable science, and complete the mission within the Discovery program`s launch vehicle and budget constraints. The authors will present here a viable mission that meets these challenges.

  11. 29 CFR 18.13 - Discovery methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Discovery methods. 18.13 Section 18.13 Labor Office of the... ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES General § 18.13 Discovery methods. Parties may obtain discovery by one or more of the following methods: Depositions upon oral examination or written questions; written interrogatories...

  12. Organic synthesis provides opportunities to transform drug discovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blakemore, David C.; Castro, Luis; Churcher, Ian; Rees, David C.; Thomas, Andrew W.; Wilson, David M.; Wood, Anthony

    2018-03-01

    Despite decades of ground-breaking research in academia, organic synthesis is still a rate-limiting factor in drug-discovery projects. Here we present some current challenges in synthetic organic chemistry from the perspective of the pharmaceutical industry and highlight problematic steps that, if overcome, would find extensive application in the discovery of transformational medicines. Significant synthesis challenges arise from the fact that drug molecules typically contain amines and N-heterocycles, as well as unprotected polar groups. There is also a need for new reactions that enable non-traditional disconnections, more C-H bond activation and late-stage functionalization, as well as stereoselectively substituted aliphatic heterocyclic ring synthesis, C-X or C-C bond formation. We also emphasize that syntheses compatible with biomacromolecules will find increasing use, while new technologies such as machine-assisted approaches and artificial intelligence for synthesis planning have the potential to dramatically accelerate the drug-discovery process. We believe that increasing collaboration between academic and industrial chemists is crucial to address the challenges outlined here.

  13. BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES IN THE WOUNDS OF GOATS FOLLOWING TREATMENT OF SUNFLOWER OIL AND OLIVE OIL

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abhishek Anand

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Experimentally created forty eight wounds of similar size and shape were randomly divided in to three groups, of 16 wounds in each group. Sunflower seed oil impregnated gauze were subjected to the wounds of goats belonging to group I, while Olive oil (Olea europaea impregnated gauze were subjected to the wounds of goats of group II and normal saline solution (control soaked gauze to the wounds of goats of group III. Healing tissues were collected from the junction of wound and intact skin from all the experimental wounds in each of the three groups on 3, 10, 15 and 25 days. Biochemical examinations of healing tissue were done for collagen, elastin, hexosamine and hydroxyproline. The level of collagen, elastin, hexosamine and hydroxyproline were significantly higher in group I followed by group II and then group III. It can be concluded that both sunflower oil and olive oil are effective for acceleration of wound healing and sunflower oil is more effective than olive oil.

  14. Discovery of the neutron (to the fiftieth anniversary of neutron discovery)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pasechnik, M.V.

    1984-01-01

    Development of neutron physics in the USSR for the recent 50 years from the moment of neutron discovery is considered. History of neutron discovery is presented in brief. Neutron properties and fundamental problems of physics: electric dipole neutron moment, neutron β-decay, neutron interaction with nuclei and potential of nucleon interaction not conserving spatial parity are discussed. Main aspects of neutron physics application in power engineering, nuclear technology and other branches of science and technique are set forth

  15. Comparison of the Effects of Lavender Essential Oil and Sesame Oil on Sleep Quality of Nurses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    AA Ghods

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Sleep disorders in nurses due to rotational shiftwork and diversity of the working time are highly prevalent, which can be improved by aromatherapy. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of aromatherapy with lavender essential oil on sleep quality of nurses covered by social security. METHODS: This clinical trial study was conducted in 78 nurses randomly divided into two groups of lavender and sesame oil (placebo. The participants used lavender essential oil and sesame oil for two hours in early hours of their shift for four weeks. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI was employed to evaluate sleep quality of both groups pre-intervention and at the end of the second and fourth weeks of the intervention (IRCT: 201407176342N4. FINDINGS: According to the results, mean ages of the lavender and placebo groups were 34.87±4.85 and 36.49±5.38 years, respectively. Moreover, there was no significant difference between the two groups regarding anthropometric variables (i.e., the mean height, weight, and overtime working hours. In addition, the groups were homogenous in terms of gender, marital status, work shift, department, and educational level. The results indicated no significant difference between the lavender and sesame groups regarding the mean scores of sleep quality (7.79±3.78 vs. 7.44±4.24; this mean was not significantly different between the groups at the end of the second and fourth weeks, as well. CONCLUSION: In this study, lavender essential oil had no significant impact on sleep quality of the nurses

  16. Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric determination of aniline in foods oils associated with the Spanish toxic oil syndrome

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hill, R.H. Jr.; Todd, G.D.; Kilbourne, E.M.; Cline, R.E.; McCraw, J.; Orti, D.L.; Bailey, S.L.; Needham, L.L.

    1987-01-01

    In 1981, a new disease, known today as the toxic oil syndrome (TOS), descended upon the people of Spin. A strong association between TOS and contaminated food oil was established early. Subsequent investigations implicated food oils containing rapeseed oil denatured with aniline. However, little aniline was found in the oils; some other etiologic agent in the oil had apparently produced the illness. Many researchers have investigated these oils, but the specific etiologic agent has not been identified. Significant progress in this research has been hampered by the difficulty in identifying the specific oil samples that produced illness in specific TOS cases. In 1984, the Spanish Government invited the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to participate in its research efforts to study the TOS problem. One of the authors was detailed to Spain to assist in the study of the illness. Part of their work in this area has been an attempt in their laboratories to classify a group of blind-coded case and control oils according to selected chemical measurements. They report here a newly developed method for determining aniline in these oils and the results of these analyses

  17. 41 CFR 60-30.33 - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Discovery. 60-30.33... 11246 Expedited Hearing Procedures § 60-30.33 Discovery. (a) Any party may serve requests for admissions... with § 60-30.8, the Administrative Law Judge may allow the taking of depositions. Other discovery will...

  18. Discovery and Development of ATP-Competitive mTOR Inhibitors Using Computational Approaches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, Yao; Wang, Ling

    2017-11-16

    The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a central controller of cell growth, proliferation, metabolism, and angiogenesis. This protein is an attractive target for new anticancer drug development. Significant progress has been made in hit discovery, lead optimization, drug candidate development and determination of the three-dimensional (3D) structure of mTOR. Computational methods have been applied to accelerate the discovery and development of mTOR inhibitors helping to model the structure of mTOR, screen compound databases, uncover structure-activity relationship (SAR) and optimize the hits, mine the privileged fragments and design focused libraries. Besides, computational approaches were also applied to study protein-ligand interactions mechanisms and in natural product-driven drug discovery. Herein, we survey the most recent progress on the application of computational approaches to advance the discovery and development of compounds targeting mTOR. Future directions in the discovery of new mTOR inhibitors using computational methods are also discussed. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  19. Representation Discovery using Harmonic Analysis

    CERN Document Server

    Mahadevan, Sridhar

    2008-01-01

    Representations are at the heart of artificial intelligence (AI). This book is devoted to the problem of representation discovery: how can an intelligent system construct representations from its experience? Representation discovery re-parameterizes the state space - prior to the application of information retrieval, machine learning, or optimization techniques - facilitating later inference processes by constructing new task-specific bases adapted to the state space geometry. This book presents a general approach to representation discovery using the framework of harmonic analysis, in particu

  20. Brazil in the global energy world

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Frank D.; Vossoughi, Shapour [University of Kansas (KU), KS (United States)

    2012-07-01

    Brazil is the 10th largest energy consumer in the world and the third largest in the Western Hemisphere, behind the United States and Canada. Total primary energy consumption in Brazil has increased significantly in recent years; and over the past decade, Brazil has made great strides in increasing its total energy production, particularly oil. Brazil has the second-largest crude oil reserves in South America (behind Venezuela), and is one of the fastest growing oil producers in the world. According to United States Energy Information Administration (EIA), Brazil had 12.2 billion barrels of proven oil reserves in 2008. In 2007, Brazil's state owned Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (PETROBRAS) announced that it had discovered an estimated 5-8 billion barrels of recoverable reserves (including both oil and natural gas) in the Tupi field, located in the Santos Basin. In 2008, subsequent discoveries were announced, to include Jupiter and Carioca (aka Sugar Loaf). Although PETROBRAS has yet to confirm the size of the discoveries, some industry analysts estimate the total extent of recoverable oil and natural gas reserves in the entire pre-salt layer have approached 40 to 80 billion barrels of oil equivalent. The reserves occur below a salt zone that is estimated to be 7,000 meters below the ocean surface. However, Brazil faces many challenges to recover the hydrocarbons to include technical, political, fiscal, and infrastructure hurdles. In spite of the challenges ahead, these discoveries transformed the nature and focus of Brazil's oil industry, economy, and future; and the potential impact of the pre-salt discoveries upon world oil markets is vast. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how the recent discoveries will affect Brazil's future and the impact it will have on the global energy world. (author)

  1. Heavy oil : PetroChina's perspective

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    He, C. [PetroChina Co., Ltd., Beijing (China)

    2010-07-01

    This keynote presentation discussed China's future in relation to heavy oil refining. An overview of PetroChina's overseas operations was also presented. China currently has six 200,000 bpd refineries as well as an additional 12 refineries with a 100,000 bpd capacity that are able to process lower quality feedstocks with a high acid and sulphur content. Seven new 200,000 bpd refineries will be built by 2020. Poor and heavy crude oil from global heavy oil reserves will form a significant percentages of China's refinery feedstocks, and Canada is expected to provide a significant portion of its heavy oil and bitumen resources for further refining in China. China's existing refineries are being reconfigured and optimized for the processing of heavy crude oils. Additional hydrotreating and hydrocracking technologies have been added, and resid fluid catalytic cracking technologies have been retrofitted. China envisages a future with steady increases in oil consumption, high oil prices, and an increased reliance on heavy and poor quality crude oils. China's strong economic growth will increase demand for petrochemical feedstocks. Various research organizations and institutions have been established to accelerate innovation and technology development for ensuring that clean fuels standards are met. New refineries in China will include resid upgrading and new generation catalyst technologies. Details of various technologies were included. tabs., figs.

  2. Antibody informatics for drug discovery

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Shirai, Hiroki; Prades, Catherine; Vita, Randi

    2014-01-01

    to the antibody science in every project in antibody drug discovery. Recent experimental technologies allow for the rapid generation of large-scale data on antibody sequences, affinity, potency, structures, and biological functions; this should accelerate drug discovery research. Therefore, a robust bioinformatic...... infrastructure for these large data sets has become necessary. In this article, we first identify and discuss the typical obstacles faced during the antibody drug discovery process. We then summarize the current status of three sub-fields of antibody informatics as follows: (i) recent progress in technologies...... for antibody rational design using computational approaches to affinity and stability improvement, as well as ab-initio and homology-based antibody modeling; (ii) resources for antibody sequences, structures, and immune epitopes and open drug discovery resources for development of antibody drugs; and (iii...

  3. Quantification of rice bran oil in oil blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mishra, R.

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Blends consisting of physically refined rice bran oil (PRBO: sunflower oil (SnF and PRBO: safflower oil (SAF in different proportions were analyzed for various physicochemical parameters. The quantification of pure rice bran oil in the blended oils was carried out using different methods including gas chromatographic, HPLC, ultrasonic velocity and methods based on physico-chemical parameters. The physicochemical parameters such as ultrasonic velocity, relative association and acoustic impedance at 2 MHz, iodine value, palmitic acid content and oryzanol content reflected significant changes with increased proportions of PRBO in the blended oils. These parameters were selected as dependent parameters and % PRBO proportion was selected as independent parameters. The study revealed that regression equations based on the oryzanol content, palmitic acid composition, ultrasonic velocity, relative association, acoustic impedance, and iodine value can be used for the quantification of rice bran oil in blended oils. The rice bran oil can easily be quantified in the blended oils based on the oryzanol content by HPLC even at a 1% level. The palmitic acid content in blended oils can also be used as an indicator to quantify rice bran oil at or above the 20% level in blended oils whereas the method based on ultrasonic velocity, acoustic impedance and relative association showed initial promise in the quantification of rice bran oil.

    Se analizaron diversos parámetros físico-químicos para la evaluación de mezclas de aceites en diferentes proporciones que incluyen: aceite de salvado de arroz físícamente refinado (PRBO: aceite de girasol (SNF y las mezclas PRBO: aceite de cártamo (SAF en diferentes proporciones. La cuantificación de la presencia del aceite de salvado de arroz en las mezclas se llevó a cabo por diferentes métodos, como cromatografía de gases (GC, cromatografía líquida (HPLC, ultrasonidos y métodos basados en otros parámetros f

  4. A Contemporary Introduction to Essential Oils: Chemistry, Bioactivity and Prospects for Australian Agriculture

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicholas Sadgrove

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available This review is a comprehensive introduction to pertinent aspects of the extraction methodology, chemistry, analysis and pharmacology of essential oils, whilst providing a background of general organic chemistry concepts to readers from non-chemistry oriented backgrounds. Furthermore, it describes the historical aspects of essential oil research whilst exploring contentious issues of terminology. This follows with an examination of essential oil producing plants in the Australian context with particular attention to Aboriginal custom use, historical successes and contemporary commercial prospects. Due to the harsh dry environment of the Australian landmass, particularly to the cyclical climatic variation attendant upon repeated glaciation/post-glaciation cycles, the arid regions have evolved a rich assortment of unique endemic essential oil yielding plants. Though some of these aromatic plants (particularly myrtaceous species have given birth to commercially valuable industries, much remains to be discovered. Given the market potential, it is likely that recent discoveries in our laboratory and elsewhere will lead to new product development. This review concludes with an emphasis on the use of chemotaxonomy in selection of commercially viable cultivar chemotypes from the Australian continent. Finally, drawing largely from our own results we propose a list of Australian endemic species with novel commercial potential.

  5. Oil prices: Breaks and trends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Noguera, José

    2013-01-01

    This paper contributes to the literature of the stationarity of financial time series and the literature on oil and macroeconomics in several ways. First, it uses Kejriwal and Perron (2010) sequential procedure to endogenously determine multiple structural changes in real oil prices without facing the circular testing problem between structural changes and stationary assumptions of previous tests. Second, it performs a diagnostic check to detect the significance and magnitude of the potential breaks. Third, it uses the above information to test for the existence of stochastic trends in real oil prices, and fourth, it speculates about possible explanations for the break dates found in order to encourage further work and discussions. The exercise uses monthly data from January 1861 to August 2011. - Highlights: ► The model endogenously determine multiple structural changes in real oil prices. ► The methods used does not face the circular testing problem. ► It also detect the significance and magnitude of the breaks detected. ► It tests for the existence of stochastic trends. ► It explains the reasons for the break dates found

  6. Radioactive Waste in Oil Exploration

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Landsberger, S.; Graham, G.

    2014-01-01

    Naturally occurring radioactive material commonly known as NORM composes the majority of the dose received by a person each year at approximately 80% of the total amount. However, there is a noticeably higher concentration of radioisotopes present in technologically enhanced NORM, often called TENORM, which results directly from human industrial activities. NORM is formed in the process of mineral mining including phosphate production, where the end goal is to concentrate high quantities of metals or elements (e.g. phosphorous). However, NORM has also become a widely recognized problem in the oil and gas industry. It is approximately one hundred and fifty years since oil was discovered in the continental United States and the mention of radioactivity in mineral oils and natural gases occurred in 1904, just eight years after the discovery of radioactivity by Henri Bequerel in 1896. In just over three decades the problems from naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) wastes arising from the oil and gas industry have been much more scrutinized. In the 1980’s 226Ra began to be noticed when scrap metal dealers would detect unacceptably high levels of radiation from oil-field piping1. In 1991 Raloff2 published an article on the new hot wastes in NORM and in 1992 Wilson et. al3 described the health physics aspects of radioactive petroleum piping scale. NORM will develop in high concentrations in by-product oil and gas waste streams4-7. The NORM will chemically separate from other piped material in the process of the extraction of oil, resulting in high concentrations of 226Ra, 228 Ra and 210Pb and other radioisotopes in a densely caked layer on the inner surfaces of the piping1 . The activity of the 226Ra from NORM ranges from 185 to several tens of thousands Bq/kg of sample. By comparison, the NORM concentrations of radium in rock and soil is, at a natural level, 18.5 - 185 Bq/kg1. Disposal of NORM becomes more problematic as higher concentrations of

  7. 45 CFR 213.23a - Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Discovery. 213.23a Section 213.23a Public Welfare... Discovery. The Department and any party named in the notice issued pursuant to § 213.11 shall have the right to conduct discovery (including depositions) against opposing parties. Rules 26-37 of the Federal...

  8. Evaluation the Phytoremediation of Oil-contaminated Soils Around Isfahan Oil Refinery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Farida Iraji-Asiabadi

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Petroleum compounds are pollutants that most commonly occur in soils around oil refineries and that often find their ways into groundwater resources. Phytoremediation is a cost-effective alternative to physicochemical methods for oil-contaminated soil remediation, where feasible. In this study, a greenhouse experiment was conducted to evaluate the phytoremediation of oil-contaminated soils around Isfahan Oil Refinery. Four different plants (namely, sorghum, barley, agropyron, and festuca were initially evaluated in terms of their germinability in both contaminated and control (non-contaminated soils. Sorghum and barley (recording the highest germinability values were chosen as the species for use in the phytoremediation experiments. Shoot and root dry weights, total and oil-degrading bacteria counts, microbial activity, and total concentrations of petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs were determined at harvest 120 days after planting. A significant difference was observed in the bacterial counts (total and oil-degrading bacteria between the planted soils and the control. In contaminated soils, a higher microbial activity was observed in the rhizosphere of the sorghum soil than in that of barley. TPHs concentration decreased by 52%‒64% after 120 days in contaminated soil in which sorghum and barley had been cultivated. This represented an improvement of 30% compared to the contaminated soil without plants. Based on the results obtained, sorghum and barley may be recommended for the removal of petro-contaminants in areas close to Isfahan Oil Refinery. Nevertheless, caution must be taken as such cultivated lands may need to be protected against grazing animals.

  9. A numerical study on the oil retention of R410A and PVE oil mixture in multi heat pump system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Hak Soo; Kim, Min Soo [Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-04-15

    Predicting an amount of discharged oil from a compressor is necessary to charge the compressor with proper amount of oil. The amount of discharged oil can be predicted by calculating the oil retention amount in each component of a heat pump system. This study suggests a method for calculating the oil retention amount in a heat pump system. In addition, flow pattern of refrigerant and oil mixture in horizontal gas line of refrigerant was ascertained by flow visualization. The oil retention amounts in each component of multi heat pump system were calculated with respect to mass flux of refrigerant, Oil circulation ratio (OCR), length of horizontal and vertical lines. Oil retention amounts in horizontal and vertical gas lines of refrigerant were significant. To validate the model for gas lines of refrigerant, comparison between predicted and experimental oil retention amounts was conducted, and mean absolute percentage error was 15.0%.

  10. A New Era of Oil Abundance?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aoun, Marie-Claire

    2015-09-01

    From 2014 to 2015, the price of oil fell. The price drop is explained by several factors: a significant increase of oil production in the United States, the resumption of Libyan and Iraqi exports, the possible lifting of sanctions against Iran, and slowing growth in developing countries. The situation is having negative effects on oil-producing countries, but the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) remains divided as to its stance on the situation, making it all the more difficult to predict future trends in oil prices. Reprint of an article published in 'Politique Etrangere', vol. 80, no.4, Winter 2015. (author)

  11. Essential oil content and composition of aniseed

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aćimović Milica G.

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The field experiments were carried out during 2011 and 2012 in three localities in Vojvodina (Serbia with the application of six different fertilizer regimes aimed at determining the content and composition of the aniseed essential oil. It was found that the average essential oil content of aniseed, obtained by hydrodistillation, was 3.72%. The weather conditions during the year and the locality had a statistically significant effect on the essential oil content, while different source of fertilizers was not statistically significant for the essential oil content and its composition. Essential oil composition was determined using GC-MS technique, and a total of 15 compounds were identified. It was found that the major component was trans-anethole, 94.78% on the average, and the coefficient of variation was 2%. The second most abundant component was γ-himachalene with 2.53% (CV 28%. All other components were present in less than 1%.

  12. Turbine oil change - the smart way

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahlf, J.; Prenzel, H.; Ertelt, R.

    2002-01-01

    The Nuclear Plant Unterweser (KKU) was commissioned in 1978. The gross installed capacity amounts to 1,410 MW. Prior to commissioning the nuclear power plant in 1978, the turbine was filled with fresh oil. This turbine oil did not display any significant ageing or operational restrictions in the following 15 years. Based on our experience, we believe that this behaviour is typical for all initial fillings in new plants. Since the beginning of the 90ies, the contamination of the entire turbine cycle has increased due to the precipitation of oil ageing products and additives decomposed by oxygen. Therefore, the initial filling was replaced by a new oil in 1994, without measures to remove ageing products or additive deposits from the oil cycle. Therefore, it is not surprising that after merely four years this oil filling displayed the same properties as the first filling after 15 years. As a consequence, another oil change was urgently required in 1999. (orig.) [de

  13. The impact of heavy and acid oil production in PETROBRAS downstream area; A influencia dos petroleos pesados e acidos no parque de refino da PETROBRAS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Perisse, Juarez Barbosa; Oddone, Maria Regina Rezende; Bela, Donizeti Aurelio Silva [PETROBRAS, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2004-07-01

    PETROBRAS is facing a great challenge processing heavy and acid oils. The low API of the more recent offshore discoveries leads to an increase in vacuum residue yields which is one important component of the fuel oil's 'pool'. The fuel oil demand is expected to decrease along the next years due to natural gas substitution and to environmental issues, generating exceeding fuel oil exportation at low prices. This paper will discuss World and PETROBRAS technological choices to process these oils meeting the required future demand and quality. A comparison among various residue conversion technologies is also presented in this paper focused on the reduction of fuel oil production and on the improvement of diesel / gasoline rate. Another important issue that will be discussed in this paper is related to the different solutions implemented all over the world to deal with the crude acidity problem and the solutions adopted by PETROBRAS. (author)

  14. Effect of Dietary Intake of Avocado Oil and Olive Oil on Biochemical Markers of Liver Function in Sucrose-Fed Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Octavio Carvajal-Zarrabal

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Metabolic changes, along with cardiovascular and hepatic factors, are associated with the development of diseases such as diabetes, dyslipidemia, and obesity. We evaluated the effect of avocado oil supplementation (centrifuged and solvent extracted, compared with olive oil, upon the hepatic function in sucrose-fed rats. Twenty-five rats were divided into five groups: control (basal diet, a sucrose-fed group (basal diet plus 30% sucrose solution, and three other groups (S-OO, S-AOC, and S-AOS, indicating basal diet plus 30% sucrose solution plus olive oil OO, avocado oil extracted by centrifugation AOC or using solvent AOS, resp.. Glucose, total cholesterol, triglycerides, total protein, albumin, globulin, direct bilirubin, glutamic pyruvic transaminase, glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, cholinesterase, and α-amylase concentrations were determined and avocado oil effect on them was studied. In some cases the induced metabolic alteration significantly affected total protein and bilirubin levels and also had a highly significant effect on α-amylase levels. AOC and AOS exhibited effects similar to those of olive oil, according to the nonsignificant difference in fatty acid profile observed by other authors. Avocado oil consumption could be beneficial in the control of altered metabolic profile illnesses as it presents effects on hepatic function biochemical markers similar to olive oil.

  15. Neptune's Discovery: Le Verrier, Adams, and the Assignment of Credit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheehan, William

    2011-01-01

    As one of the most significant achievements of 19th century astronomy, the discovery of Neptune has been the subject of a vast literature. A large part of this literature--beginning with the period immediately after the optical discovery in Berlin--has been the obsession with assigning credit to the two men who attempted to calculate the planet's position (and initially this played out against the international rivalry between France and England). Le Verrier and Adams occupied much different positions in the Scientific Establishments of their respective countries; had markedly different personalities; and approached the investigation using different methods. A psychiatrist and historian of astronomy tries to provide some new contexts to the familiar story of the discovery of Neptune, and argues that the personalities of these two men played crucial roles in their approaches to the problem they set themselves and the way others reacted to their stimuli. Adams had features of high-functioning autism, while Le Verrier's domineering, obsessive, orderly personality--though it allowed him to be immensely productive--eventually led to serious difficulties with his peers (and an outright revolt). Though it took extraordinary smarts to calculate the position of Neptune, the discovery required social skills that these men lacked--and thus the process to discovery was more bumbling and adventitious than it might have been. The discovery of Neptune occurred at a moment when astronomy was changing from that of heroic individuals to team collaborations involving multiple experts, and remains an object lesson in the sociological aspects of scientific endeavor.

  16. Effects of Microwave Radiation on Oil Recovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Esmaeili, Abdollah

    2011-12-01

    A variety of oil recovery methods have been developed and applied to mature and depleted reservoirs in order to improve the efficiency. Microwave radiation oil recovery method is a relatively new method and has been of great interest in the recent years. Crude oil is typically co-mingled with suspended solids and water. To increase oil recovery, it is necessary to remove these components. The separation of oil from water and solids using gravitational settling methods is typically incomplete. Oil-in-water and oil-water-solid emulsions can be demulsified and separated into their individual layers by microwave radiation. The data also show that microwave separation is faster than gravity separation and can be faster than conventional heating at many conditions. After separation of emulsion into water and oil layers, water can be discharged and oil is collected. High-frequency microwave recycling process can recover oil and gases from oil shale, residual oil, drill cuttings, tar sands oil, contaminated dredge/sediments, tires and plastics with significantly greater yields and lower costs than are available utilizing existing known technologies. This process is environmentally friendly, fuel-generating recycler to reduce waste, cut emissions, and save energy. This paper presents a critical review of Microwave radiation method for oil recovery.

  17. 40 CFR 721.10141 - Oils, ginger, zingiber purpureum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 30 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Oils, ginger, zingiber purpureum. 721... Substances § 721.10141 Oils, ginger, zingiber purpureum. (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified as oils, ginger, zingiber purpureum (PMN P-06...

  18. Development and production prospects for oil and gas from the UK continental shelf after the Gulf crisis: a financial simulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kemp, A.G.; Rose, David; Dandie, Russell

    1991-01-01

    A large computerized financial model has been developed to simulate the future exploitation of oil and gas in the UK north sea. Primary inputs into the model include all the publicity available information on currently producing fields relating to their historic and expected production rates, investment, operating and abandonment costs. Information has also been gathered on all new discoveries which have not yet been developed and estimates made of the timing of their development, the commencement of production and costs. Three oil price scenarios base, low and high, have been used in the analysis which extends to the year 2015. The results are presented for two major regions, the central and northern waters and the Southern Gas Basin, including the Irish Sea. Very large numbers of discovered but undeveloped oil and gas fields exist in the UK continental shelf substantial numbers of which could be developed in the event of a very modest real growth in oil and gas prices. The considerable sensitivity of development to movements in oil prices is brought out by the analysis of the three scenarios. (UK)

  19. Converting heavy oils into light oils, etc

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mony, H

    1915-12-22

    A process is described for transforming heavy oils obtained by the carbonization of lignites, peats, coals, shales into light oils, and also the heavy oils of mineral and vegetable origin, consisting of heating the heavy oils or tars in the presence of one or more solid substances or liquids suitably chosen to cause the distillation of the oils under atmospheric pressure at an appropriate temperature; solid and liquid substances which favor the production of light products under the influence of heat being added preferably to the oil to be treated before putting it in the retort and before heating, so that light oils are obtained by treatment of the heavy oils in a single operation.

  20. Geotechnical properties of crude oil contaminated sand

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Puri, V.K.; Das, B.M.; Cook, E.E.; Shin, E.C.

    1994-01-01

    Contamination of soil due to an oil spill influences its subsequent engineering behavior. An investigation was conducted to study the effect of crude oil contamination on compaction characteristics, shear strength, one-dimensional compression, and coefficient of permeability. Water permeability was also determined by using commercial grade motor oils as contaminants. The test results indicate that the compaction characteristics are influenced by oil contamination. The angle of internal friction of sand (based on total stress condition) decreases due to presence of oil within the pore spaces in sand. One dimensional compression characteristics of sand are significantly influenced by oil contamination resulting in a decrease in the value of constrained modulus with increase in the degree of oil contamination compared to the case of dry sand. Water permeability was observed to be a function of the initial viscosity and the degree of saturation due to the contaminating oil