Category Archives: Energy

the posts in this category used to be in “Energy in A Nutshell” at my former web site.

Anyone who whines about airplanes should have to take the Oregon Trail

Posted on June 20, 2017 by

Source: Book cover of “Oregon Or Bust: True Short Stories from the Descendants of Oregon Trail Pioneers, Prospectors, Trappers, and Settlers in the Great Northwest Hardcover” by Gentry Ward Cutsforth (2012), XLibris. Preface. Also listen to the Louis CK rant … Continue reading →

Posted in Airplanes, Lithium-ion, Transportation What To Do | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

California hits the solar wall

Posted on June 17, 2017 by

[ What is a solar wall?  Read part 1: California could hit the solar wall and then excerpts from the following article in the financial times, Britain’s Wall street journal.  I’ve also reworded some of it. Renewables are rendering existing … Continue reading →

Posted in Natural Gas, Solar | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Minerals: Coal from Ugo Bardi’s “Extracted”

Posted on June 11, 2017 by

Preface. This is just a small sampling of what Bardi thinks might happen post fossil fuels, mostly shortened and reworded. Here are 7 other posts from this great book: Mining: Waste, Pollution, Destruction Ugo Bardi predictions of the future Minerals … Continue reading →

Posted in Coal, Peak Coal, Ugo Bardi | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Minerals: Coal from Ugo Bardi’s “Extracted”

America’s energy future. U.S. House hearing 2011

Posted on June 2, 2017 by

[  It’s always good to look back in time to when our representatives were worried about our dependency on oil.  Apparently they were desperate, since the proposed H.R. 909 bill included Coal-To-Liquids (CTL), much of it for the military.  I … Continue reading →

Posted in Coal to Liquids (CTL), U.S. Congress Energy Dependence | Tagged , | Comments Off on America’s energy future. U.S. House hearing 2011

The Peak Oil paradox revisited by Euan Mearns

Posted on April 26, 2017 by

Euan Mearns. July 16, 2016. The Peak Oil Paradox Revisited. theautomaticearth.com Euan Mearns: Back in the mid-noughties the peak oil meme gained significant traction in part due to The Oil Drum blog where I played a prominent role. Sharply rising … Continue reading →

Posted in How Much Left, Other Experts, Peak Oil | Tagged , | Comments Off on The Peak Oil paradox revisited by Euan Mearns

Art Berman: Oil Prices Lower Forever? Hard Times In A Failing Global Economy

Posted on April 23, 2017 by

Art Berman. July 15, 2016. Oil Prices Lower Forever? Hard Times In A Failing Global Economy. Forbes. A pumpjack sits on the outskirts of town at dawn in the Permian Basin oil field on January 21 in the oil town … Continue reading →

Posted in How Much Left | Tagged | 5 Comments

M. King Hubbert and the future of peak oil by Kurt Cobb

Posted on April 20, 2017 by

Preface. M. King Hubbert predicted that if we were unable to replace fossil energy with water, nuclear and solar power, that we would go back to an agrarian existence (Hubbert MK (1949) Energy from Fossil Fuels. Science). That is how … Continue reading →

Posted in How Much Left, Kurt Cobb, Peak Oil | Tagged , | Comments Off on M. King Hubbert and the future of peak oil by Kurt Cobb

How are energy storage batteries coming along? U.S. House hearing 2015

Posted on April 5, 2017 by

[ My favorite quotes from this U.S. House of Representatives session: THOMAS MASSIE, KENTUCKY. I want to say this has been a very enlightening hearing, and it confirms my personal experience, which is batteries are not sexy. Buckets of acid … Continue reading →

Posted in Batteries, Energy Storage, U.S. Congress Energy Policy | Tagged , | Comments Off on How are energy storage batteries coming along? U.S. House hearing 2015

Gail Tverberg: Why peak coal, oil, and natural gas will all happen at the same time

Posted on March 27, 2017 by

China: Is peak coal part of its problem? by Gail Tverberg,  OurFiniteWorld.com  | Jun 20, 2016 The world’s coal resources are clearly huge. How could China, or the world in total, reach peak coal in a timeframe that makes a … Continue reading →

Posted in China, Gail Tverberg, Peak Coal, Peak Natural Gas, Peak Oil | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Gail Tverberg: Why peak coal, oil, and natural gas will all happen at the same time

Why studies come up with different Energy Returned on Invest (EROI) results: can it be fixed?

Posted on March 21, 2017 by

[ There are many issues with biofuels beyond their trivial to negative energy return on investment (EROI). In Peak Soil I point out that current industrial farming techniques are destroying topsoil about 15 times faster than pre-fossil fuel economies — … Continue reading →

Posted in Biofuels, Biomass EROI, Charles A. S. Hall | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Why studies come up with different Energy Returned on Invest (EROI) results: can it be fixed?