The Experts below are selected from a list of 111 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Heather Poole - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Water Dependency of Energy Production and Power Generation Systems
Water, 2009Co-Authors: Rachelle Hill, Heather PooleAbstract:Water and energy systems constitute the foundation for modern infrastructures around the world. Water and energy infrastructure are interdependent. In the U.S., energy production and power generation systems are major users of freshwater resources besides agriculture. The major goal of this report is to show dependency of energy production and power generation systems on water availability. The data for this study is extracted from publically available governmental and scientific documents. In estimating water use, water loss (e.g. evaporation losses) is considered water consumed. Water is not considered consumed if the withdrawn water is returned to the source and can be used again for other purposes such as recreation, fisheries and water supplies. Energy production systems considered in this study include primary fuels sources (coal, natural gas and petroleum oil), biofuels (ethanol and diesel) and synthetic fuels (coal gasification, tar sands and oil shale). Power generation technologies considered include hydroelectric, fossil fueled thermoelectric, nuclear, geoThermal, solar thermoelectric and hydrogen. For comparison purposes, all energy Units are converted to a standardized Unit, i.e., British Thermal Unit (BTU). Water use efficiency of various energy/power technologies is expressed in gallons of water used per BTU generated. Results of this study show that natural gas is the most water efficient energy source while biofuels are the least water efficient. Synthetic fuel production processes are also water efficient but these technologies mostly depend on hydrocarbon feedstock such as coal and natural gas. In terms of power generation, hydroelectric power is the most water efficient while nuclear power is the least water efficient. The water use processes for energy production and power generation technologies are not well documented in the literature. Thus findings of this report are based on approximate water use volume. Furthermore, this report is solely focused on water use. Adverse impacts of energy production and power generation systems on environment such as water and air contamination are not considered in this report.
Rachelle Hill - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Water Dependency of Energy Production and Power Generation Systems
Water, 2009Co-Authors: Rachelle Hill, Heather PooleAbstract:Water and energy systems constitute the foundation for modern infrastructures around the world. Water and energy infrastructure are interdependent. In the U.S., energy production and power generation systems are major users of freshwater resources besides agriculture. The major goal of this report is to show dependency of energy production and power generation systems on water availability. The data for this study is extracted from publically available governmental and scientific documents. In estimating water use, water loss (e.g. evaporation losses) is considered water consumed. Water is not considered consumed if the withdrawn water is returned to the source and can be used again for other purposes such as recreation, fisheries and water supplies. Energy production systems considered in this study include primary fuels sources (coal, natural gas and petroleum oil), biofuels (ethanol and diesel) and synthetic fuels (coal gasification, tar sands and oil shale). Power generation technologies considered include hydroelectric, fossil fueled thermoelectric, nuclear, geoThermal, solar thermoelectric and hydrogen. For comparison purposes, all energy Units are converted to a standardized Unit, i.e., British Thermal Unit (BTU). Water use efficiency of various energy/power technologies is expressed in gallons of water used per BTU generated. Results of this study show that natural gas is the most water efficient energy source while biofuels are the least water efficient. Synthetic fuel production processes are also water efficient but these technologies mostly depend on hydrocarbon feedstock such as coal and natural gas. In terms of power generation, hydroelectric power is the most water efficient while nuclear power is the least water efficient. The water use processes for energy production and power generation technologies are not well documented in the literature. Thus findings of this report are based on approximate water use volume. Furthermore, this report is solely focused on water use. Adverse impacts of energy production and power generation systems on environment such as water and air contamination are not considered in this report.
Qiang Wang - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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natural gas from shale formation the evolution evidences and challenges of shale gas revolution in United states
Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2014Co-Authors: Qiang Wang, Xi Chen, Howard RogersAbstract:Extraction of natural gas from shale rock in the United States (US) is one of the landmark events in the 21st century. The combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing can extract huge quantities of natural gas from impermeable shale formations, which were previously thought to be either impossible or uneconomic to produce. This review offers a comprehensive insight into US shale gas opportUnities, appraising the evolution, evidence and the challenges of shale gas production in the US. The history of US shale gas in this article is divided into three periods and based on the change of oil price (i.e., the period before the 1970s oil crisis, the period from 1970s to 2000, and the period since 2000), the US has moved from being one of the world's biggest importers of gas to being self-sufficient in less than a decade, with the shale gas production increasing 12-fold (from 2000 to 2010). The US domestic natural gas price hit a 10-year low in 2012. The US domestic natural gas price in the first half of 2012 was about $2 per million British Thermal Unit (BTU), compared with Brent crude, the world benchmark price for oil, now about $ 80–100/barrel, or $14–17 per million BTU. Partly due to an increase in gas-fired power generation in response to low gas prices, US carbon emissions from fossil-fuel combustion fell by 430millionton CO2 – more than any other country – between 2006 and 2011. Shale gas also stimulated economic growth, creating 600,000 new jobs in the US by 2010. However, the US shale gas revolution would be curbed, if the environmental risks posed by hydraulic fracturing are not managed effectively. The hydraulic fracturing is water intensive, and can cause pollution in the marine environment, with implications for long-term environmental sustainability in several ways. Also, large amounts of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, can be emitted during the shale gas exploration and production. Hydraulic fracturing also may induce earthquakes. These environmental risks need to be managed by good practices which is not being applied by all the producers in all the locations. Enforcing stronger regulations are necessary to minimize risk to the environment and on human health. Robust regulatory oversight can however increase the cost of extraction, but stringent regulations can foster an historic opportUnity to provide cheaper and cleaner gas to meet the consumer demand, as well as to usher in the future growth of the industry.
Sara Behdad - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Predictive Modeling Techniques to Forecast Energy Demand in the United States: A Focus on Economic and Demographic Factors
Journal of Energy Resources Technology-transactions of The Asme, 2015Co-Authors: Angshuman Deka, Nima Hamta, Behzad Esmaeilian, Sara BehdadAbstract:Effective energy planning and governmental decision-making policies heavily rely on accurate forecast of energy demand. This paper discusses and compares five different forecasting techniques to model energy demand in the United States using economic and demographic factors. Two artificial neural network (ANN) models, two regression analysis models, and one autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model are developed based on the historical data from 1950 to 2013. While ANN model 1 and regression model 1 use gross domestic product (GDP), gross national product (GNP), and per capita personal income as independent input factors, ANN model 2 and regression model 2 employ GDP, GNP, and population (POP) as the predictive factors. The forecasted values resulted from these models are compared with the forecast made by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) for the period of 2014–2019. The forecasted results of ANN models and regression model 1 are close to those of the U.S. EIA; however, the results of regression model 2 and ARIMA model are significantly different from the forecast made by the U.S. EIA. Finally, a comparison of the forecasted values resulted from three efficient models showed that the energy demand would vary between 95.51 and 100.08 quadrillion British Thermal Unit (btu) for the period of 2014–2019. In addition, we have discussed the possibility of self-sufficiency of the United States in terms of energy generation based on the information of current available technologies nationwide.
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Predictive Modeling Techniques to Forecast Energy Demand in the United States: A Focus on Economic and Demographic Factors
Volume 4: 20th Design for Manufacturing and the Life Cycle Conference; 9th International Conference on Micro- and Nanosystems, 2015Co-Authors: Angshuman Deka, Nima Hamta, Behzad Esmaeilian, Sara BehdadAbstract:Effective energy planning and governmental decision making policies heavily rely on accurate forecast of energy demand. This paper discusses and compares five different forecasting techniques to model energy demand in the United States using economic and demographic factors. Two Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models, two regression analysis models and one autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model are developed based on historical data from 1950–2013. While ANN model 1 and regression model 1 use Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Gross National Product (GNP) and per capita personal income as independent input factors, ANN model 2 and regression model 2 employ GDP, GNP and population (POP) as the predictive factors. The forecasted values resulted from these models are compared with the forecast made by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) for the period of 2014–2019. The forecasted results of ANN models and regression model 1 are close to those of the U.S. EIA, however the results of regression model 2 and ARIMA model are significantly different from the forecast made by the U.S. EIA. Finally, a comparison of the forecasted values resulted from three efficient models showed the energy demand would vary between 95.51 and 100.08 quadrillion British Thermal Unit for the period of 2014–2019.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Howard Rogers - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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natural gas from shale formation the evolution evidences and challenges of shale gas revolution in United states
Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2014Co-Authors: Qiang Wang, Xi Chen, Howard RogersAbstract:Extraction of natural gas from shale rock in the United States (US) is one of the landmark events in the 21st century. The combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing can extract huge quantities of natural gas from impermeable shale formations, which were previously thought to be either impossible or uneconomic to produce. This review offers a comprehensive insight into US shale gas opportUnities, appraising the evolution, evidence and the challenges of shale gas production in the US. The history of US shale gas in this article is divided into three periods and based on the change of oil price (i.e., the period before the 1970s oil crisis, the period from 1970s to 2000, and the period since 2000), the US has moved from being one of the world's biggest importers of gas to being self-sufficient in less than a decade, with the shale gas production increasing 12-fold (from 2000 to 2010). The US domestic natural gas price hit a 10-year low in 2012. The US domestic natural gas price in the first half of 2012 was about $2 per million British Thermal Unit (BTU), compared with Brent crude, the world benchmark price for oil, now about $ 80–100/barrel, or $14–17 per million BTU. Partly due to an increase in gas-fired power generation in response to low gas prices, US carbon emissions from fossil-fuel combustion fell by 430millionton CO2 – more than any other country – between 2006 and 2011. Shale gas also stimulated economic growth, creating 600,000 new jobs in the US by 2010. However, the US shale gas revolution would be curbed, if the environmental risks posed by hydraulic fracturing are not managed effectively. The hydraulic fracturing is water intensive, and can cause pollution in the marine environment, with implications for long-term environmental sustainability in several ways. Also, large amounts of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, can be emitted during the shale gas exploration and production. Hydraulic fracturing also may induce earthquakes. These environmental risks need to be managed by good practices which is not being applied by all the producers in all the locations. Enforcing stronger regulations are necessary to minimize risk to the environment and on human health. Robust regulatory oversight can however increase the cost of extraction, but stringent regulations can foster an historic opportUnity to provide cheaper and cleaner gas to meet the consumer demand, as well as to usher in the future growth of the industry.
