Author Archives: energyskeptic

Electric truck & car range less in cold weather

Posted on June 4, 2016 by

Preface. What follows are two articles. The first has excerpts from Calstart’s study of the effects cold weather had on lithium and Sodium Nickel Chloride e-truck batteries. The second article is from Consumer Reports, which says that half of driving … Continue reading →

Posted in Automobiles, Batteries, Cold weather, Electric & Hydrogen trucks impossible, Electrification, Trucks: Electric | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Once upon a time Congress knew an energy crisis was coming

Posted on June 4, 2016 by

Extracts from the 2005 Senate hearing “High Costs of Crude” [ In Mason Inman’s outstanding biography of M. King Hubbert, “The Oracle of Oil”, he shows five different models Hubbert used to predict the continental peak of U.S. production that … Continue reading →

Posted in U.S. Congress Energy Dependence, U.S. Congress Energy Policy | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Once upon a time Congress knew an energy crisis was coming

Sex, crime, and death on the high seas. A U.S. Senate investigation of the cruise ship industry

Posted on June 1, 2016 by

Senate 113–642. July 24, 2013. Cruise Industry Oversight: recent incidents show need for stronger focus on consumer protection. U.S. Senate hearing. 169 pages. Since 2011, cruise lines voluntarily reported 959 alleged crimes to the FBI, and 130 crimes that must … Continue reading →

Posted in Congressional Record U.S., Ships and Barges | Tagged , | Comments Off on Sex, crime, and death on the high seas. A U.S. Senate investigation of the cruise ship industry

California oil EROI dropped from 6.5 to 3.5 by 2005

Posted on May 30, 2016 by

Brandt, A. R. October 12, 2011. Oil Depletion and the Energy Efficiency of Oil Production: The Case of California. Sustainability 2011, 3, 1833-1854 [ Brandt estimates the energy return on investment (EROI) dropped from ~6.5 in 1955 to ~3.5 fifty … Continue reading →

Posted in EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Hall and Lambert: EROI of different fuels and the implications for society

Posted on May 27, 2016 by

[ Excerpts from the Hall, Lambert, and Balogh EROI paper. You may want to read the original paper here since I’ve left out charts, figures, and text.  In my opinion, EROI is important because it is  due diligence – society ought to … Continue reading →

Posted in EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Hall and Lambert: EROI of different fuels and the implications for society

How Nixon and the Catholic Church conspired to stop actions to prevent overpopulation

Posted on May 27, 2016 by

[ All of what follows is from the article below.  Mumford makes the case that: “Had the recommendations of NSSM 200 been implemented in 1975, the world would be very different today. The prospects would have improved for every nation … Continue reading →

Posted in Overpopulation, Population | Tagged , , | Comments Off on How Nixon and the Catholic Church conspired to stop actions to prevent overpopulation

The Hidden Costs of Oil. U.S. Senate hearing 2006.

Posted on May 25, 2016 by

[ This post has excerpts from the 2006 U.S. Senate hearing “The Hidden Cost of Oil”.  It is a timely reminder, now that gasoline prices are low and peak oil off the radar, that we are nowhere near the American … Continue reading →

Posted in Caused by Scarce Resources, Military, Peak Oil, U.S. Congress Energy Dependence, U.S. Congress Energy Policy | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on The Hidden Costs of Oil. U.S. Senate hearing 2006.

Energy return of ultra-deepwater Gulf of Mexico oil and gas

Posted on May 24, 2016 by

Moerschbaecher, M., John W. Day Jr. October 21, 2011. Ultra-Deepwater Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas: Energy Return on Financial Investment and a Preliminary Assessment of Energy Return on Energy. Sustainability 2011, 3, 2009-2026 [Excerpts from this 18 page paper … Continue reading →

Posted in EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested, Threats to oil supply | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tar sand EROI 2013 Poisson and Hall

Posted on May 21, 2016 by

Alexandre Poisson, Charles A. S. Hall. 2013. Time Series EROI for Canadian Oil and Gas. Energies 2013, 6, 5940-5959 [ This is an extract from this 20-page paper. Tar sands are the hope offered by techno-optimists that a great deal … Continue reading →

Posted in Charles A. S. Hall, EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested, Tar Sands (Oil Sands) | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Book review of Door to Door and the amazing world of transportation

Posted on May 19, 2016 by

Edward Humes.  2016. Door to Door: The Magnificent, Maddening, Mysterious World of Transportation. HarperCollins. A book review by Alice Friedemann at www.energyskeptic.com  author of “When Trucks Stop Running: Energy and the Future of Transportation, 2015, Springer] I was in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Energy Books, Transportation, Travel | Tagged , , | 3 Comments