Crude - The Incredible Journey of Oil May 2007 |
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There are many reasons why trains should play a greater role in Oklahoma's transportation system. But one which is of growing importance is rail's relative energy efficiency. There are some who believe we are about to enter a new energy paradigm. One where petroleum liquid fuels begins to decline in availability even as demand skyrockets.
Oklahoma if fuel cost five, seven, or even ten dollars a gallon? Could you afford to get to work or to school? Is our public transportation sufficient for you to continue to have some freedom to get around? Would a long driving trip or air travel even be possible? The Oklahoma Passenger Rail Association believes that expansion and modernization of our rail system is an essential step in addressing the energy crisis popularly known as Peak Oil. Worldwide, passenger and freight rail are more frugal users of fossil fuel than cars, trucks, or aviation. In addition, trains can be fully electrified to make use of more abundant and domestic clean coal, nuclear, and renewable power. Trains and transit encourage more sustainable forms of land use and development. Test your knowledge. Take the Peak Oil Quiz! Graphs Courtesy of the The Oil Drum. Projected oil exports through 2020. (July 2, 2006) Worldwide liquid petroleum production. The plateau
This graph demonstrates that US petroleum consumption is rather inelastic in relation to price. That is that prices have to get fairly high before demand begins to stop growing. Peak Oil Primers Comparing passenger rail's energy efficiency potential Amtrak's General Electric GENESIS SERIES locomotives consume about 3 gallons per mile. Pulling seven Superliner coaches carrying 300-500 passengers the train achieves 100-165 passenger miles per gallon. Colorado Rail Car's three unit DMU train carrying 180-290 passengers gets 270-435 passenger miles per gallon. A four occupant mid size automobile get 120 passenger miles per gallon. A similarly loaded motorcoach gets 240 passenger miles per gallon. Today in America, intercity buses achieve greater fuel efficiency than Amtrak. But it is kind of an apples vs oranges situation. For a bus to match the personal space of an Amtrak train, the seating density would have to dramatically reduced, with an accompanying reduction in energy efficiency. Most motorcoaches seat about 55 passengers in a tight four abreast arrangement with about 30" of pitch. To compare, Amtrak Superliner and Amfleet II rail cars have wide seats with 48" of pitch. Amtrak could reconfigure its coach fleet to match the bus standard. That would mean 5 abreast seating (like Japan National Railways and Maryland's MARC commuter cars) with about 32" of pitch. And all lounge and dining space would be eliminated. Amtrak could probably then exceed bus energy efficiency. But what do you think the market reaction would be? This is about what is versus what can be. Fuel efficiency had not been a priority for Amtrak until the David Gunn era (2002-2005). In fact, fuel efficiency decreased during the mail and express initiative as higher horsepower was assigned to trains in order to pull freight cars and RoadRailers. Of course that freight and mail removed energy consuming trucks from the highways. In order to promote efficiency, Mr. Gunn mandated a general reduction in the assignment of locomotives per train. For example, the Texas Eagle is probably dramatically more fuel efficient now with one locomotive instead of two. Oklahoma's Heartland Flyer is probably overpowered by 300-600% depending on whether it has the slug or a second locomotive at one end. For all the raw power those big General Electric units are capable of developing, it can't translate into particularly rapid acceleration. And the floor plans of the lower level of all the Heartland Flyer cars is inefficient for a short/medium haul train. The point is that there is room for improvements in fuel economy. Look for new equipment to be more efficient. Like the Colorado Rail Car Diesel Multiple Units (DMU). Also, General Electric has two programs under development to improve passenger locomotive efficiency. One is the EVOLUTION SERIES product line. A freight version is already in service. The passenger version is being readied for production. These are supposed to be 20% more efficient than existing models. Also, GE is building a hybrid locomotive that stores the dynamic braking energy in a new bank of batteries instead of dissipating it in the form of waste heat as is now the case. That power would then be available for rapid acceleration and pulling grades. Peak Oil is mainly about the coming drop in production of liquid transportation fuels (LTFs). Remember, rail can and does run very well onelectricity strung from overhead line or in some cases third rail. The electric generation situation is much more hopeful because it can be generated from renewable sources as well as from more abundant domestic coal and nuclear technology.
sustainable energy future The IEA, the energy watchdog for 26 industrialised countries including the Ireland (and the United States), says that its Energy Technology Perspectives: Scenarios & Strategies to 2050 report, which is published today, is in response to the Group of Eight (G8) leaders at their Gleneagles Summit in July 2005, and to the International Energy Agency's Energy Ministers, who called for the IEA to develop and advise on alternative scenarios and strategies aimed at a clean, clever and competitive energy future.
long-term balance of supply and demand. “Improved energy efficiency is an indispensable component of any policy mix”, said Mr. Mandil, “and it is available immediately”. Accelerating energy efficiency improvements alone can reduce the world’s energy demand in 2050 by an amount equivalent to almost half of today’s global energy consumption. To achieve this, however, “governments, in both OECD and non-OECD countries, must be willing to implement measures that encourage the investment in energy-efficient technologies“, Mr. Mandil added. Claude Mandil is executive director of the IEA. (Finfacts Ireland-June 22, 2006) |
Petroleum Geologist Jeffrey Brown warns about the coming peak in world oil production and suggests developing more rail transit and making changes to the tax laws to prepare for it in this June 11, 2006 Dallas Morning News guest column. |
| Excellent Chicago Tribune article on the challenges industry faces finding oil today. |
Listen to this March 15th, 2006 CNN interview with Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (R) MD discussing the reality of peak oil. 4:40 min Audio Coutesy of Global Public Media. |
Listen to this radio news interview with Houston energy banker and presidential energy advisor Matthew Simmons, of Simmons & Company International. Simmons is one of the foremost authorities on Peak Oil. About 39 min Audio Coutesy of Global Public Media. |
Congressman Roscoe Bartlett's floor speech on peak oil. About 60 min Video courtesy of Energy Bulletin. |
Sponsors of the The Oil Drum, respond to the political posturing in Washington over high pump prices. An excellent read. Click here. |
The Daily Oklahoman Recognizes Peak Oil! "...when peak production of oil is in the foreseeable future and the United States and the world must be looking for the next-generation of energy sources, it's the president's job." |
| Futureshock Irish news documentary explaining peak oil. June 2007 |
| Financial Sense Newhour's Jim Puplava interviews Matthew Simmons. Click here to listen. |
| T. Boone Pickens on the threat of Peak Oil. Click here for the article @ ResourceInvestor.com. |
| Springfield Republican: Gas Crisis Should Fuel Amtrak Funding Click here to read editorial. |
| China and India, Start Your Engines Investor's Business Daily |
| Chevron is one energy company that is acknowledging we have a problem. Watch these ad spots. Timeline Manhole Two barrels Strollers Five countries Untapped |
| A short clip introducing the concept of peak oil. About 2 min |
| WCCO television (CBS) in Minneapolis/Saint Paul has been running a series called Project Energy. Lots of good information relating to peak oil. |
| Watch this clip of Commedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. A lighthearted but informative review of the book A Thousand Barrels A Second. About a serious topic, the peaking of global oil production.
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Today, we can move a ton of freight an average of 410 miles on just one gallon of diesel fuel. Mileage like this keeps America's economy moving. Norfolk Southern Railway |
Former U.S. president Bill Clinton has urged newspaper editors to focus more attention on the depletion of the world’s oil reserves. In a June 17 speech to the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies convention in Little Rock, Arkansas, Clinton said a “significant number of petroleum geologists” have warned that the world could be nearing the peak in oil production. Clinton suggested that at current consumption rates (now more than 30 billion barrels per year, according to the International Energy Agency), the world could be out of “recoverable oil” in 35 to 50 years, elevating the risk of “resource-based wars of all kinds”. STRAIGHT.COM |
Chicago Tribune editorial recognizes challenges of scarce energy for our future. |
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"We have only
two modes—
complacency and
panic."
—James R. Schlesinger,
America's first Secretary of Energy
“The days of
inexpensive,
convenient, abundant
energy sources are
quickly drawing to a
close,” according to a
recently released US
Army Corps Of
Engineers' strategic
report. The report
posits that a peak in
global oil production
looks likely to be
imminent, with wide
reaching implications
for the US Army and
society in general.
inexpensive,
convenient, abundant
energy sources are
quickly drawing to a
close,” according to a
recently released US
Army Corps Of
Engineers' strategic
report. The report
posits that a peak in
global oil production
looks likely to be
imminent, with wide
reaching implications
for the US Army and
society in general.
The Hirsch Report is a
risk mitigation study on
Peak Oil released in
early 2005,
commissioned by the
US Department of
Energy. Prepared by
the Science
Applications
International
Corporation (SAIC),
and titled "Peaking of
World Oil Production:
Impacts, Mitigation and
Risk Management", it
is known commonly as
the Hirsch Report after
its primary author
Robert L. Hirsch.
risk mitigation study on
Peak Oil released in
early 2005,
commissioned by the
US Department of
Energy. Prepared by
the Science
Applications
International
Corporation (SAIC),
and titled "Peaking of
World Oil Production:
Impacts, Mitigation and
Risk Management", it
is known commonly as
the Hirsch Report after
its primary author
Robert L. Hirsch.
| Say what you want about high prices at the pump. Gallon for gallon, nothing on the horizon even approaches the power and portability of gasoline. "Gasoline is an incredibly, astoundingly energy-dense material," said Charles Chamberlin, co-director of the Schatz Energy Research Center at Humboldt State University. "We are going to be hard-pressed to find something that matches that. We've been incredibly fortunate, or damned, by our easy access to petroleum." The advantage of hydrogen is that it offers another avenue, besides electric batteries, to load energy onto a moving vehicle. Although electric-car battery technology has improved, results have been disappointing even after decades of trial and error. |
Atlanta Journal Constitution article raises concerns about Saudi Arabia's ability to continue to meet world's petroleum needs. |
