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An Endless Sea Of Energy

Tyler Durden's picture




 

Submitted by Erico Matias Tavares via Sinclair & Co.,

With crude oil prices in a strong corrective mode, energy depletion is understandably not on people’s minds these days. However, this is a scenario that many of us might have to deal with at some point in our lifetimes.

Yes, the world currently has more than abundant supplies of crude oil. US tight oil production has been rising exponentially, accounting for the biggest share of global growth since 2009. This is by any measure an amazing technological and logistical achievement. OPEC has simply been incapable to accommodate the resurgence of the US as a major producer; and falling prices may actually prompt some of its members to sustain outputs, otherwise lost revenues will be even larger.

We might be swimming in oil for now, but this should be no reason to become complacent.

As an example, an important fact that is often overlooked is that tight oil exploration is a different animal, and relatively recent in terms of its significance. Each tight oil well has very steep decline rates – in many cases 90% within 5 to 7 years, much steeper than conventional wells. This means that to sustain (let alone increase) production many new wells need to be drilled each year. And at US$5-10 million cost per well, this is not cheap either.

Here’s an interesting question: with all these massive production increases, when is crude oil production projected to peak in the US?

In its annual energy outlook reports, the US Energy Information Agency (“EIA”) puts out estimates of future crude oil production taking into account the most recent reserve and production figures. Here’s when they believe production will peak according to their reference (baseline) scenario: 2019.

This is depicted in the following graphs extracted from their latest report:


Projected US Tight Oil Production (MMb/d) – Three EIA Scenarios

Source: EIA (Apr 2014).

That’s right. “Saudi America” may reach peak crude oil production just four years from now. After that the declining trend of net imports will reverse, and the US will once again become more dependent on foreign sources – with all the associated economic, financial and geopolitical considerations.

Given the uncertainties relating to tight oil production and recent technical advancements which have improved productivity, the EIA also developed a “High Oil & Gas” scenario, which is perhaps more in line with people’s current expectations based on all the headlines about a supply glut.

Perhaps this is quite possible indeed. But let’s take a quick look at shale gas production, where the US has become just flooded with the stuff in recent years. Given the technical similarities with tight oil, this can give us some clues about hydrocarbon availability in these types of plays going forward.

US Shale Gas production by Play (Billion Cubic Feet per Day): Jan 2000 - Jul 2014

Source: EIA, Post Carbon Institute.

We can see in the graph above that it is the relatively newer plays like the Marcellus that are driving production increases; the older ones are already in decline. The Haynesville is an interesting case study in that regard. Back in 2009, the CEO of Chesapeake Energy, a major US natural gas producer and a pioneer in many of these shale plays, was proclaiming that it was “primed to become world’s largest gas field by 2020.” That of course turned out to be a huge overstatement.

The US has incredible energy potential for sure, but in light of these hugely optimistic expectations which did not pan out it may be wise to moderate our optimism. Should these impressive hydrocarbon production increases prove to be unsustainable much quicker than people think, we could very quickly become anxious once again about our future energy supplies.

Then what?

Well, what if we told you that there is a virtually limitless source of energy, completely renewable and in theory being large enough to materially replace fossil fuels as they become scarcer?

Enter the world of ocean thermal energy conversion, or OTEC.

The OTEC cycle concept was introduced in 1881 by Jacques Arsene D’Arsonval, a French physicist. He proposed that the flow resulting from the significant volumetric increase of using tropical sea surface water to boil a liquid with a low boiling point, such as liquid ammonia, could be used to power a turbine and generate electricity. Cold water extracted from much deeper levels in the ocean would then be used to cool the vaporized ammonia, enabling the cycle to be repeated all over again.

The OTEC cycle requires at least a 20ºC differential between the warm sea surface and the cold sea water deeper below. These ideal conditions are only available in tropical zones, and even so in regions where water depths exceed 1000 meters. That said, it is estimated that the sea water warmed by the Sun in these regions absorbs approximately 10,000 times the energy consumed by all mankind – each day! And this can be used for baseload power generation, not intermittent like solar or wind.

Source: Lockheed Martin.

The most suitable regions for OTEC generation are outlined in the graph above. Most geopolitical powers of the 21st century have some territorial exposure to this resource (with the notable exception of Europe). The deep red region at the center of the graph is where that temperature differential is the most significant, thus offering the greatest prospect for development.

Georges Claude, a student of D’Arsonval, built the world’s first OTEC facility in Cuba in 1930 and successfully generated electricity. This sparked an on-off development effort over the following decades, which only gained real momentum after the oil shocks of the 1970s. Several countries got involved: the US developed a range of prototypes and mini-facilities; Japan broke the record for OTEC power production in 1981 and eventually established one of the leading research centers worldwide; and India has been making considerable research efforts since the turn of this century.

The most prominent corporate proponent of OTEC to date has been Lockheed Martin, the US defense and aerospace company. There are clear benefits for its key client, the US Military, possibly eliminating its dependency on fossil fuels in many bases around the world, which is a considerable strategic advantage.

Once the technology gains prominence, it is likely that many other big corporations will want a piece of the action, particularly the oil & gas giants of today. And the benefits of OTEC can go far beyond power generation alone: think transportation, food and clean water. All of these are major issues – and very sizable revenue opportunities – in the 21st century.

Cars, buses, trains, golf carts, ships and even submarines have recently been adapted to run on hydrogen. But the problem is that there is not enough of it. More energy is required to split the water molecules than what we get from the resulting hydrogen. This unfavorable energy balance makes hydrogen production very expensive using conventional approaches (although some progress has been made in recent years using natural gas as a primary input).

However, the vast amount of solar energy stored in the oceans can be tapped through OTEC, and as such the huge energy requirements to produce vast amounts of hydrogen become much less of a limiting factor. The resulting H2 and O2 gasses can then be liquified and transported in large tankers to destinations around the world – pretty much like natural gas and LNG (only that here temperatures need to be much lower).

Of course the challenges of incorporating hydrogen in our energy matrix should not be understated, but the technology is there. And with enough economic incentives, de-risking and the benefits of scale it can only get better.

Fresh water can be produced using the electric power to run a conventional desalination unit or by using specific OTEC processes where it can be one of the outputs. This should be music to people’s ears in many tropical islands and coastlines around the world, where water stresses are often prevalent.

Harnessing this energy resource can be done via land based or offshore facilities, each with its advantages. The latter offers the biggest potential for large scale deployments, so we could be looking at the emergence of a new marine industry, possibly rivaling its fossil fuel counterpart sometime this century. And all that water coming from the deep ocean is rich in nutrients, which can be used to spawn new fishing grounds.

So, for all its promise, where are all the OTEC facilities?

There is only one demonstration unit in operation today (in Japan, where else?), but several commercial facilities are on the drawing board and some could even come online before the end of this decade. Lockheed Martin has partnered with a Chinese resort developer to build a 10MW OTEC power plant off southern China’s Hainan Island by 2017. The US Military is apparently still interested in developing a 5 to 10MW pilot plant off the island of Oahu in Hawaii, with plans to eventually create a commercial plant of up to 100MW.

We all know the challenges of developing this type of infrastructure. Billions of dollars will be required to properly develop OTEC into a credible energy alternative. The first step is usually the hardest, with the price of admission being very steep for something that remains largely unproven at commercial scale. And interest for implementing new approaches has historically correlated directly with the price of crude oil.

So as long as energy prices remain relatively low, OTEC will have a hard time beating OPEC. But as we have seen, we should have a credible plan and suitable technologies that can be ramped up in a future where energy supplies are not as abundant as we had anticipated. The vast energy potential that OTEC can bring about should be in that mix.

Our children and grandchildren will thank us for it.

 

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Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:34 | 5646289 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

"Enter the world of ocean thermal energy conversion, or OTEC."

There is NO WAY the PTB will give up the petrodollar and the power and control it gives them to the OTEC. Period.

<We're going to have to pry it from their cold dead hands.>

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:41 | 5646311 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

It's my impression that the Saudi's have already bailed on the US and thus the petrodollar. Given the number of regular meetings they are having with the Chinese for example, it's apparent that they are already openly seeking a new protector. I believe also that this will become generally obvious in the course of the next few months. As you know, huge changes are on their way.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:50 | 5646333 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

Oh, I agree changes are a-coming. No doubt about it. But will the PTB presently controlling the petrodollar willing concede defeat?

Nope!

It really doesn't matter if the people who control the petrodollar also control the next fiat reserve currency. One must destroy the old to pave the way for complete acceptance of the new. And that is why the useful idiots who appear to be running the petrodollar will be instructed to fight to the end.

Besides...the rebuilding America contracts can then be doled out to the new friends of the new reserve currency. By then China will need to deploy their constructions crews somewhere other than China. :-)

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:04 | 5646395 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

I read and enjoy all your stuff, by the way. Mrs. Cog's emails as well. But I've also been reading Jim Willie since 2008 and I've got to tell you, the guy is psychic or a genius; he sound's crazy, but in my own experience, has been right on the money every step along the way. In my remarks, I took my que's from him. You should check him out for a fresh perspective --contrasts in style notwithstanding.... : )

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:54 | 5646559 Cognitive Dissonance
Cognitive Dissonance's picture

Both Mrs Cog and I listen to and read Jim all the time. I do enjoy his prrspective and he does sound like a madman. ;-)

He tends to be very early and right more often than people think. But he also tends to make statements about things I feel he knows little about.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:36 | 5646659 knukles
knukles's picture

So whatever happened to Nicky Tesla's ideas, huh?
Resonance

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:36 | 5646717 Uranus Hertz
Uranus Hertz's picture

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed-energy_weapon

Thats why Tesla, Einstein and I destroyed our work.

You don't know my name because I got there first and saw the ramifications those two experienced.

I burned the future because these political chimps will extinct it. I changed fields and still do what I love.

Probably there are others like me. Stay cool, hammers. Tiocfaidh ár lá. FU CAI "prizes". If I gave them my work you'd be dead.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 21:08 | 5647090 SafelyGraze
SafelyGraze's picture

this article just reminds everyone that the only reasonable solution is molten salt thorium reactors

 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:11 | 5646414 Element
Element's picture

Keep in mind Cog, many of the things that ail the US now would have been valid in 1933.

Yes, there's a gawd awful mess.

But will it remain a mess?

It's too easy to follow normalcy bias.  ;)

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:12 | 5646419 ebworthen
ebworthen's picture

The Saudi's will court whoever can buy oil and keep them in power, a likely pivot now to China and Russia and the rest of the BRICS.  It will all lead to a population event (war) sooner or later.

Any article about energy that does not address peak humanity and the unsustainable growth in human population is not thinking things all the way trhough.

Visual aid for both my comments:  http://www.truthmove.org/workspace/photos-content/WorldPopulationGraph_yearPre7000BCto2025AD_metalAges_703x578.jpg

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:23 | 5646455 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

Be sure to google, '.About that Overpopulation Problem' (Time)

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:33 | 5646507 ebworthen
ebworthen's picture

Can't find it on Time, but on pakalertpress, is that the one?: 

http://www.pakalertpress.com/2013/01/11/about-that-overpopulation-problem/

To me that research is another example of not thinking things through.  Does ayone really think humans are going to stop screwing?  Sure, developed countries have education, birth control, and abortion.  Which means undeveloped countries and societies will be the ones who grow the population.  Then, when the uneducated barbarians outnumber the dwindling educated - somehow all these technological marvels and medicines are going to continue rather than collapse?  I don't buy it.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:51 | 5646341 Payne
Payne's picture

Why not postulate Frozen Methane recovery at the bottom of the ocean.  A crawling powerplant that sucks up the methane converts it into electricty and sends it towards land.  Not going to happen either.

We the shepeople of the world don't have a real clue about the abundance or shortage of energy resources only that we are being played.

 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:06 | 5646405 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

By any chance, are you still in your pajamas?

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:02 | 5646388 DeadFred
DeadFred's picture

OTEC will take nutrient rich cold water from the depths and bring it to the surface. The unintended consequence would be an explosion of plankton growth leading to either anoxic dead zones of CO2 absorbing rich fisheries. It's a crap shoot which we'd get. Thermal energy coming from isolated ships or platforms in the oceans seem a bit vulnerable to terrorism or warfare. The system would have to change before this idea gets traction.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:32 | 5646291 Bloppy
Bloppy's picture

If the economy is permanently crushed, oil demand will remain low, we'll be more worried about scavenging for food.

 

Krauthammer: jihad now in dangerous 'third stage' -- are we paying attention or watching cat videos?

http://tinyurl.com/ptucuv9


Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:11 | 5646597 TruxtonSpangler
TruxtonSpangler's picture

Please dont quote Krauthammer, hes a neocon shill.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:53 | 5646861 Brazen Heist
Brazen Heist's picture

He's a Kraut Hammer

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:40 | 5646294 SickDollar
SickDollar's picture

Nothing new  there: The elite has always suppressed all" non-commercialized" energy,  hence Tesla etc.....and yet it is there for us free

 recommend checking:

WaterFuel (Jan. 28, 2002)
Water can replace gasoline as a fuel for your car, boat, etc. Stephen Chambers, Stanley Meyers and other inventors had worked out relatively simple systems to convert ordinary tap water into their constituent gases of hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen (and some oxygen) is burned in the cylinder's combustion chamber, while the "exhaust" is composed of unburnt oxygen and water vapor, which replensihes the atmosphere. The construction plans given here were anonymously faxed to Geoff Engle of Energy 2000 and later forwarded to Keeley Net (and probably other energy web sites as well).

 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:45 | 5646328 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

This getting a down vote is what makes me think we are doomed. A car was just announced in the UK that get 300 miles to a tank of saltwater, does 217 mph, and uses a graphene membrane to help seperate the hydrogen and oxygen and uses the salt for electrolysis. Thats about as far as i understand the tech. most humans cant understand technology past fire. Fire is what man equate to power. Its going to take quite a bit of effort and education to change that perception, however, the oil industry owns the education industry in many developed countries, which leads to very narrow paths of research.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:55 | 5646351 Thorny Xi
Thorny Xi's picture

That "salt water" is actually a combination of two saturated metal salts that require a lot of energy to make and distribute - it's not seawater or even sodium chloride salt as the manufacturer's meme on Facebook suggests.  Reseach your posts.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:06 | 5646397 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

Info directly from manufacturer.

Four-seater car is 5.25 metres (0.4ft) long, 2.2 metres wide (7.2ft), the 1.35 metre (4.4ft).

Its 22-inch wheels sit just beneath impressive double gull-wing doors.

The 920 horsepower (680 kW) Quant e-Sportlimousine uses an electrolyte flow cell.

It works like a hydrogen fuel cell, however, the liquid used for storing energy is salt water.

The liquid passes through a membrane in between the two tanks, creating an electric charge. 

The 5,070lbs (2,300kg) car has a top speed of 217.5 mph (350 km/h) and reaches each 0-62 mph (100 km/h) in 2.8 seconds.

Point out where its  states to be using special saltwater, as you suggest.


 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:44 | 5646548 zaphod
zaphod's picture

You're a fucking moron of you thing a gallon of salt water produces that much energy. I suppose you believed Obama when he said he was going to give people free healthcare

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:22 | 5646780 disabledvet
disabledvet's picture

I've always wondered by these articles inspire me to such hilarity...the utter nonsense and outright lies have truly become mainstream.

 

Next up:  Dow 20,000....

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 21:59 | 5647189 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

There is  a car that prove YOU are the moron, you need to provide facts stating otherwise my friend.

http://www.nanoflowcell.com/en/quant

Tank capacity 2x200 liters. Of Saltwater. Do I need to drive to the dealership for special water or can i get 400 liters of seawater? I dont see anywhere that I need special water. Please point me in the right direction, I am on the manufacturers website. Should I call them and ask? What am I putting in their 200 liter tanks?

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 22:14 | 5647244 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

The flow cell battery’s greatest advantage lies in its range: It can drive a vehicle 20-times further than a conventional lead-acid battery and 5-times further than the lithium-ion technology that powers most of today’s electric cars. Flow cell batteries are also durable. Furthermore, recharging them does not take hours and hours. All that is required to recharge them is to exchange spent electrolytes (which can be recharged outside the vehicle) for new, charged fluid.

http://www.nanoflowcell.com/en/nanoflowcell

As per the manufacturers website (which is not facbook as you prescribe) where can I get information on this fluid that I need to put inside my tanks?

And you can fuck right off with your presidents. i could give two fractional fucks about Merikistan prezdents.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:03 | 5646385 Mi Naem
Mi Naem's picture

If this works, there would be folks driving them.  Too good to be true. 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:40 | 5646305 ninja247
ninja247's picture

I love zh for stuff like this. I have never heard of this in my life

 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:40 | 5646307 Barnaby
Barnaby's picture

Oil is ubiquitous. Macondo barfs it from a deep rift in the Gulf to this day.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:06 | 5646394 daveO
daveO's picture

Right. The earth's hot core 'cooks' it, from carbon and hydrogen, continuously. Our only problem is the 'means' of production are intentionally stifled to maximize profit.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:51 | 5646553 techstrategy
techstrategy's picture

If it was really ubiquitous,  do you really think the US and our global companies would let the House of Saud make us be their biyatches?  100B plus a year maintaining Middle East stability?   C'mon.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:14 | 5646610 Barnaby
Barnaby's picture

Proxy is as proxy does. Arms are called "arms" for a reason, because they tax the greater beast by their reach.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:31 | 5646643 natty light
natty light's picture

Yes because is rationalizes the huge us navy presence in the world, maintaining the american empire.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:56 | 5646571 MarkGoldman
MarkGoldman's picture
Giant ferns I tell ya!
Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:49 | 5646312 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

Energy is all around us, the problem is storage of energy, storing energy is much more difficult than creating it. Oil is cheap and easy, combustion is easy to contain.  That being said, we need some serious overhaul of the energy industry, first and foremost we need to revoke the ban on hemp. Without hemp manufacturing we are truly doomed. No amount of harnassing solar will save us. No amount of using the currents of the ocean will save us, simple beause storing that energy and converting it to AC is costly. Fire burns fast and its cheap.

Hemp based nano graphene super capacitors must be brought to the mainstream and fast, or we are fucked. Pure and simple. We must ignore the oil industry all together. Hemp is the future. Will mans greed be satisified enough to see this reality? Time will tell, but from what I can extrapolate from the data available to me, Im voting no.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:45 | 5646321 thatthingcanfly
thatthingcanfly's picture

Yeah, but none of this is going to matter THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, when global warming causes all the oceans to freeze and helicopters start falling out of the sky and wolves break out of the zoos and start chasing us around cities and stuff. Durr.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:45 | 5646325 kchrisc
kchrisc's picture

Give Gore a piece of the action, and the Reids too, and you might have a chance. Say 20% each?!

Gore in The Inconvenient Truth 2.0: "Global-cooling is diminishing the ability of mankind to harness the oceans' energy. Even the polar bears' fur coats are not enough to prevent them from freezing in the harsher winters in the arctic..."

The banksters need to repay us.

 

"My guillotine can induce a political 'climate-change.'"

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:46 | 5646327 falak pema
falak pema's picture

Arsene d'Arsonval was the original Captain Nemo.  

In his second resurrection he became Arsene Lupin ! in his fourth Arsene Wenger of Arsenal ! 

Find Vulcania and make it the capital of OTEC with Nemo as Potus and you will have eternal energy and whales will be tamed and squids will be eaten like oysters.

Watch out Blankfein ! 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:59 | 5646339 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

There are literally seas of abiotically generated oil deep within the crust.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:11 | 5646418 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

Someone apparently still believes that oil comes from rotting dinosaurs and fossil plankton. How sad. Among other things, they must not have read about the Swedish discovery...

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 03:16 | 5647711 Rusty Shorts
Rusty Shorts's picture

seems legit. Water + Carbon + Heat/Pressure? = Oil

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 12:13 | 5648307 AchtungAffen
AchtungAffen's picture

You mean the Siljan Ring crater? No abiotic oil was ever found there.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:52 | 5646344 Thorny Xi
Thorny Xi's picture

Energy all around us - diffuse, not concentrated - is going nowhere in an ecology requiring concentrated energy sources.  Hemp-based graphene super capacitors?  LOL

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:00 | 5646359 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

https://www.asme.org/engineering-topics/articles/energy/hemp-carbon-make...

Why not look it up before you deride it? You fucking moron. Now that you stand corrected, how stupid do you feel? Kill yourself, you're part of the problem. Please dont have children.

Just in case you're too stupid to point and click the link:

""The nanosheets ranged in thickness from 10 to 30 nm with high specific surface area (> 2200 m2 g-1) significant mesoporosity (up to 58 percent), and good electrical conductivity (211-226 S m-1). Mitlin indicates the nanosheets are compatible for various ionic liquid-based supercapacitor applications from about 0-100° C.

“At 0° C and a current density of 10 A g-1, the electrode maintains a remarkable capacitance of 106 F g-1,” notes Mitlin.  “At 20, 60, and 100° C and an extreme current density of 100 A g-1, there is excellent capacitance retention (72%-92%). These characteristics favorably place the material among the best power-energy characteristics ever reported for an electrochemical capacitor. At a very high power density of 20 kW kg-1 and 20, 60, and 100° C, the energy densities are 19, 34, and 40 Wh kg-1, respectively.”

Moreover, adds Mitlin, the assembled supercapacitor device yielded a maximum energy density of 12 Wh kg-1—significantly higher than those for commercially available supercapacitors. By taking advantage of the complex multilayered structure of a hemp bast fiber precursor, these high-performing carbons were created by simple hydrothermal carbonization combined with activation.""

As per The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Got anything els to add?

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:03 | 5646390 Five8Charlie
Five8Charlie's picture

A capacitor is an energy storage device. They are not an energy source.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:09 | 5646412 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

Exactly. Never suggested otherwise. I only suggested how difficult and expensive it is to store energy, nothing more. Hemp based super capacitors are an obvious solution to energy storage for solar, and sea currents. It can also be used in cars and cell phones, laptops you name it. And it performs better than their rare earth counter parts and you can GROW the material used for them. Seems like a good step in the right direction. You wanna travel in space? Better have a fucking nice greenhouse, some 3d printers and a good science lab.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:24 | 5646624 Dugald
Dugald's picture

 

Sounds neat, Radio Shack or Dick Smith???

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 03:44 | 5647725 bonin006
bonin006's picture

I got something "els" to add.

Lithium ion batteries have an energy density of 100 to 250 WH/kg, Vs 12 for what you are touting. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium-ion_battery

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 09:08 | 5647930 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

Wrong again. I though zerohedgers were supposed to be smarter than the average cnn crowd. Im beginning to wonder.

While it isnt as electrically coductive as standard carbon based graphene it touts 100 time power density as that of a Li battery. As per the physicists and chemists that invented it.

The 10-30 nanometer thick sheets are highly electrically conductive, which is essential for supercapacitors. They aren’t quite as conductive as graphite, which is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions, but Mitlin says they are 10 times more conductive than state of the art activated carbon.

The supercapacitors built using the hemp-derived nanosheets performed very well, yielding energy densities up to 12 Wh/kg, compared to the 5Wh/kg of commercially available supercapacitors, and power densities over 100 times higher than conventional Li-ion batteries.

http://www.intelligentliving.co/hemp-derived-carbon-nanosheets-cheaper-g...

And since you have an avatar of Lt. Data ii assume you are even smarter than most. Because star trek and people who like science FICTION are the only ones who really understand science....

http://nanographene.org/documents/cannabis_graphene.pdf

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:09 | 5646411 daveO
daveO's picture

Ever heard of a green house?

Thu, 01/15/2015 - 12:43 | 5650303 cents gradeschool
cents gradeschool's picture

Only you would get this joke, Papi! [I've never played online games like EVE, btw]

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:57 | 5646369 MalteseFalcon
MalteseFalcon's picture

Peak oil joins global climate change and bites the dust.

Time to deal with the academics responsible for propagating these hoaxes.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:14 | 5646426 daveO
daveO's picture

Defund those academics. First, their enablers, in the political class, would necessarily need to be defunded, too. This means the 'big oil' money will have to run out. Just like a forest fire, things will have to burn down before a regrowth is possible.    

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 16:57 | 5646371 Ewtman
Ewtman's picture

In a deflationary vortex you can expect to see companies collapsing, wages and prices falling and unemployment rising. The bubble has burst...

 

http://www.globaldeflationnews.com/anatomy-of-a-bubble-how-the-federal-r...

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:24 | 5646463 Carpenter1
Carpenter1's picture

I doubt you'll find one ZH'er who disagrees with you. The only question we want answered is when.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:01 | 5646372 Ewtman
Ewtman's picture

OIL prices will find some temporary support shortly but the longer term is still downward...

 

http://www.globaldeflationnews.com/oil-light-sweet-crudeelliott-wave-upd...

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:20 | 5646449 yrbmegr
yrbmegr's picture

That makes no sense, whatsoever.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:29 | 5646494 Carpenter1
Carpenter1's picture

It's trying to climb back to $50 and tag up a day or two, since it dididn't so much as nod on the way down past $50. But the bears have such control now that they sell every rally,or attempt at a rally, so we're stuck at $47-$48.

 

Need to tag $50 before taking next leg down, or tire out the bulls defending  $47, but it'd be better to fill at $50 if we want a more permanent leg down.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:04 | 5646382 NubianSundance
NubianSundance's picture

It's not just about oil, the mess is much deeper than that. The world economy is entering a slump, all commodities are suffering not only oil. That's a sign it's much more than a plain recession.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:37 | 5646658 Peter Pan
Peter Pan's picture

Agreed and to put it slightly differently, too many economies have been relying on the sale of their commodities to make ends meet rather than their own productive efforts.

Russia, Venezuela and Australia rely on their commodity sales. Dangerous times for them.

The USA on the other hand relies on its "sales" of US dollars to keep its economy going. Dangerous time for the USA as well.

 

 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:05 | 5646393 Peter Pan
Peter Pan's picture

Necessity is the mother of invention and going forward energy sources will either be discovered or created. The greater challenge to humanity is its ability to retain its humanity.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:06 | 5646402 ejmoosa
ejmoosa's picture

Our children will never be thanking us.  

If there is still any aboilty left to think clearly, they will wonder why in the hell did we let so many interfere with the free markets, hindering the development of new energy sources, subsidizing so many bad energy sources, and wasting so much time on rules and regulations that only benefitted lawyers, government, and businesses that were afraid of competition.

 

Face it, we have been F'ing it up for generations.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:07 | 5646404 directaction
directaction's picture

These baggies filled with highly addictive abiotic hopium get tossed at us from time to time. It's best to avoid getting sucked into smoking this garbage. Once you start, you'll try anything to score a quick buzz. 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:12 | 5646425 hotrod
hotrod's picture

Well someone needs to mothball the 5 billion dollar(govt funded Tesla owned) Nevada battery plant pronto.  Maybe GOP can inform Harry. 

The value proposition for Electric is history for now. My daugher now gets 480 miles for $24 fill up in her Hyundai.  $50 bucks per 1000 miles or $5000 for her next 100,000 miles of driving Appx..  Her car cost $17,000.

There is already a couple of trillion missing from the US GDP that no one talks about.  Odd how there is all this stated growth yet energy consumption been down for years.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:17 | 5646436 daveO
daveO's picture

I agree, but $17K for the Hyundai is still highway robbery.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:32 | 5646506 Pullmyfinger
Pullmyfinger's picture

Is it? In 1970, prices for most everything were, roughly, less than a tenth of those today. A new Volkswagen -one of the cheapest cars on the market at that time-- retailed for $1999. ..

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 22:52 | 5647333 directaction
directaction's picture

And the minimum wage was $1.85/hr. Should be $20/hr now.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:19 | 5646442 yrbmegr
yrbmegr's picture

Because energy efficiency is increasing.  It's the law.  And electric cars are here to stay.  There is no enduring abundance of oil.  There is a short, temporary abundance that will evaporate soon.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:29 | 5646493 hotrod
hotrod's picture

"There is a short, temporary abundance that will evaporate soon."

We dont know that and we should. The world could better plan and allocate resources if we knew what exactly is the oil reserve. Instead political games are played with this resource which causes disruptions and hardship and ultimately lost opportunity.  I am not suggesting going on an energy wasting binge with V12 Pintos but we would all be better off if energy was in the public domain like water and not private.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 22:07 | 5647230 Bunga Bunga
Bunga Bunga's picture

Increased Energy efficiency does increase the energy consumption in the long term -> Jevons' Paradox.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:25 | 5646466 trulz4lulz
trulz4lulz's picture

Make the car from hemp for $7500 and then re do the math. Hemp fibres, hemp oil, hemp rubber for tires, hemp super capacitors, aluminum parts here and there and some stainless for the rigid bits. You can build a whole fucking car out of something that grows from the Earth (at a net GAIN to the environment) for cheaper than you can with oil. The only real loss is the overhead of greed. Thats it. As a civilization we are totally insane with lust for greed that is unmatched. With just a hint of madness, for theatrics, of course.

We could grow peace, but they would shoot us.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:15 | 5646435 yrbmegr
yrbmegr's picture

This bugs me.  Energy does not equal oil.  There is no "energy depletion" going on.  As oil supplies become tighter, we will get energy from other sources.  We already do.  It is merely a matter of price.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:26 | 5646477 daveO
daveO's picture

Right. I've argued this to friends and relatives for decades. "It's all a matter of price." They completely fall for the MSM brainwashing. Think of how many centuries mankind lived under tyrants from Rome's collapse until the late 1700's. It's that sort of ignorance that we're up against. They would rather believe a lie, handed down to them from 'on high', no matter how costly. 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:30 | 5646646 Peter Pan
Peter Pan's picture

You are correct up to a point but not beyond it.

If a greater portion of our income has to be gobbled up by higher and higher cost oil, the productive outcome of our economies will shrink as a great many sectors are shut out due to the necessity of buying oil.

If at this moment oil was double the recent price instead of half, would you be scaling back your fuel purchases which you need to go to work or would you be terminating your cable subscription?

 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:22 | 5646454 Jack Burton
Jack Burton's picture

I see one problem with this. The heat that formerly was held in surface waters has quickly migrated to deep levels. This seems to be a rather new event, and related to heat forcing due to a change in atmospheric chemistry. In short, a changed wind pattern has driven warm waters down deep. But. It isn't important the physics as to how heat has been transfered to the deeper ocean, what is important is that this is a proven fact. So I see trouble with a simple thermocline of hot surface, cooler lower layers. It seems this sharp difference is needed, and 20 degrees is very sharp! 

But I will send a link to a specialist I know who has worked hard on this new deep ocean heat event. See what he says.

" US tight oil production has been rising exponentially, accounting for the biggest share of global growth since 2009. This is by any measure an amazing technological and logistical achievement. OPEC has simply been incapable to accommodate the resurgence of the US as a major producer"

This quote is more of the old hype around chale oil miracles. It is very wrong in it's conclusions. Shale Oil and Tar Mines are oil on the margines. It is the high cost oil, the oil that only gets produced at a profit when oil prices are relatively high. Shale Oil costs around 6-7 times more to produce than the most expensive Saudi oil. This is oil at the margine. It was being produced at high volume due to both high oil prices and the promise of longer term high oil prices. Due to the long term bet being heavily leveraged, the Shale Play was a ponzi, IF oil fell and left frackers heavily in debt and faced with prices below production costs. Which is, right where we are. Leverage in a market like this is the kiss of death, that borrowed money must have it's interest serviced at the very least.

The writer makes too much of the shale miracle, there was no miracle, only a heavily leverage move to high cost oil on the long term bet that oil prices stayed high. It was on levergae, and now is revealed for a ponzi. Billions of investor cash is being lost, and many tens of billions more are about to evaporate. The market has spoken, and it is a bitch!

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:30 | 5646498 daveO
daveO's picture

Shale oil is malinvestment created by the FED. It'd never see the light of day w/o FED interest rate suppression which caused high oil prices (low petrodollar and pulling demand from the future) along with low borrowing costs for drillers.  

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:57 | 5646567 ClassicalLib17
ClassicalLib17's picture

@Jack Burton,  I see how you tried to sneak your climate disruption meme in there.  Apparently you are not aware of the deep monitoring devices now in place that don't reflect your AGW meme. 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:18 | 5646766 Uranus Hertz
Uranus Hertz's picture

Present a real argument, libtool. The US SOSUS devices were replaced by satellites. BB owns your heartbeat. 

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:52 | 5646858 Jack Burton
Jack Burton's picture

They never have a counter argument. That is proof enough. Physics doesn't tell lies, or have a political party. That is why denial is a useless exercise, good only for blowing hot air. The physics are doing what they do, and that is heating the earth land, sea and air temperature.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 20:48 | 5647033 ThankYouSatan
ThankYouSatan's picture

How about the sun. 

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 12:04 | 5648278 AchtungAffen
AchtungAffen's picture

Yeah. Too bad that since the 80's when satellites started measuring TSI, there's been a slight downtrend. Which is why the sun can't account as being the primary driver of warming temperatures.

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 05:44 | 5647789 Jano
Jano's picture

based on your contribuion to the discussion, either

 

1. you did not read the whole article.

 

or

 

2. maybe you did read it, but then you did not comprehend it.

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 17:53 | 5646558 Sirius Wonderblast
Sirius Wonderblast's picture

And Europe is still fucked (copyright, V Nuland).

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 18:09 | 5646595 MASTER OF UNIVERSE
MASTER OF UNIVERSE's picture

When all is said and done your children and grandchildren won't thank you for anything after this bitch we call the economy has puppies that turn out to be rabid, frothing at the mouth, partially blind, and crazed

with rage aggression. The future does not look bright, with the exception of nuclear war, and all that that physically entails, of course.

 

:|

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:20 | 5646770 SweetDoug
SweetDoug's picture

'

'

'

Thorium bitchez! Thorium!

 

•?•
V-V

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:22 | 5646777 T-NUTZ
T-NUTZ's picture

last time I checked you could not run a tractor trailer or an airliner on electricity.  

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 19:53 | 5646860 Fuku Ben
Fuku Ben's picture

Well isn't it all about energy and power? It's just limiting knowledge and eliminating competition that stands in the way of consolidating enough resources for complete domination, control and breaking free. Well that's the concept anyway. The execution and outcome hasn't been so successful as time has progressed. The hope is that CERN may change all that. Alas, in the end it too will fail. But keep trying. There's always hope. And change.. not so much. It will always be the same old song and dance

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 22:09 | 5647237 Bunga Bunga
Bunga Bunga's picture

Theoretical efficiency limit is 6..7%. I wonder what will be the net energy efficiency after building and maintenance cost. ERoEI?

Sat, 01/10/2015 - 23:55 | 5647457 NoWayJose
NoWayJose's picture

The great 'Hay Shortage of 1898/1899' severely disrupted commerce, deliveries, and individual travel within the United States. How could the country survive and prosper in the future, as there was NO alternative to the horse!

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 04:13 | 5647740 AchtungAffen
AchtungAffen's picture

I believe that instead of looking for ways to extract more and more from the planet, and thus trying to avoid the physical limits it imposes; we should be thinking about how to live with what we have now, how to exist and prevail in time without the need for ever increasing rates of extraction. Simply because the constant growth model is purely an illusion, and if we are expected to survive a couple generations longer (and I mean longer than what could be logically expected now, not more than 2 to 4 generations), a world of change (specially in the way we think) is required.

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 09:04 | 5647939 BlackVoid
BlackVoid's picture

OTEC is probablz not feasible.

It only works, while you can use cheap oil to build it.

Photovoltaic and wind are the energies of the future unless some miracle comes along.

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 15:19 | 5648767 Dre4dwolf
Dre4dwolf's picture

Wind is a joke, no one wants a giant noisy dangerous spinning object that only generates electricity "when it feels like it"....

 

Photo-voltaic are great, but you can't punch out tires, boots, gaskets , and plastics with sun-rays and I don't see cars driving around with solar panels anytime soon.

 

Solar-panels, fusion, thorium and oil. . . thats our choices/the mix we need to become a space colonizing race of beings.

Fusion is the ideal energy system... as water would naturally become the primary fuel if we achieved it....

Sun, 01/11/2015 - 09:42 | 5647991 Herdee
Herdee's picture

You should be aware of this oil derivatives situation;http://thenewsdoctors.com/oil-derivatives-explode-in-early-2015-rob-kirb...

Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site!