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An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby mattduke » Thu 28 May 2009, 22:45:28

Given the US import situation, when the dollar crashes the US will skip the first, easy parts of the downslope and fast forward to the more interesting parts.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Sixstrings » Thu 28 May 2009, 22:59:12

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', ' ')You're right, what I'm really questioning here is the "Doom" factor of peak oil. I feel confident from what I've learned up to now that a peak on heavy crude is not a concern within my lifetime.



Then you are reading trash. The EROEI, cost and flow rate of heavy crude comes nowhere near light sweet crude in price or production rate.

Light sweet crude was the low hanging fruit. You now need a ladder.

Connect the dots.


Ok, so we need a ladder. The industrialized world has needed ladders before, you know. Heck, in WWII didn't the Germans make gasoline from COAL for crying out loud? If a world war can be fought despite a severe shortage of access to petrol, why do you assume the world will crumble in the face of post peak crisis?

And as for coal, I think it was Mos that mentioned in this thread "it's not an option" because of the pollution factor. I'm sorry, but if we end up facing down TETWAWKI, all those green concerns are gonna be thrown right under the bus.

EDIT: regarding the EROI of heavy crude.. a lot of the costs are due to environmental laws (extra processing for high sulfur content, etc.). If we throw all the green concerns out the window, wouldn't heavy crude refining get cheaper? Add to that, something that isn't done much is always expensive, and always gets cheaper when ramped up on a large scale.

Maybe gas from heavy crude has a low EROI simply because we're not doing much of it and we don't really need it -- we still have the light sweet after all.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby shortonsense » Thu 28 May 2009, 23:03:56

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', ' ')You're right, what I'm really questioning here is the "Doom" factor of peak oil. I feel confident from what I've learned up to now that a peak on heavy crude is not a concern within my lifetime.



Then you are reading trash. The EROEI, cost and flow rate of heavy crude comes nowhere near light sweet crude in price or production rate.


You should send out a memo to all people converting it into useable products, some of which you have undoubtedly used personally. Tell them that your biological experience demands they recognize your version of how science and EROEI works and stop doing what they've been doing longer than you've been alive just because you said so. Start with the Peoples Republik of Kalifornia, they've been producing heavy oil since before you were born.


$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', '
')
Light sweet crude was the low hanging fruit. You now need a ladder.

Connect the dots.


People with actual degree's already have. They have decided that EROEI and light sweet crude are so critically important that using copious amounts of fresh water, natural gas, and strip mining the northern end of Alberta to steam sludge off of sand grains to make it is a perfectly reasonable and profitable thing to do.

Do you now want them to put the billions of barrels they have produced by now back?
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby MonteQuest » Fri 29 May 2009, 00:08:20

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', ' ') Ok, so we need a ladder. The industrialized world has needed ladders before, you know. Heck, in WWII didn't the Germans make gasoline from COAL for crying out loud? If a world war can be fought despite a severe shortage of access to petrol, why do you assume the world will crumble in the face of post peak crisis?


Because the world was built upon the assumption that you wouldn't ever need a ladder. Ever.

Coal is soon to peak as well.

There is no basket of alternative energies capable of supporting the edifice we built using fossil fuels, nor will there ever be, unless we powerdown and reduce the population to a sustainable level.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'A')nd as for coal, I think it was Mos that mentioned in this thread "it's not an option" because of the pollution factor. I'm sorry, but if we end up facing down TETWAWKI, all those green concerns are gonna be thrown right under the bus.


Along with us.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'E')DIT: regarding the EROI of heavy crude.. a lot of the costs are due to environmental laws (extra processing for high sulfur content, etc.).


EROEI not ROI. Energy returned on energy invested.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby MonteQuest » Fri 29 May 2009, 00:10:36

Read this and you will understand better.

http://jeffvail.net/
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby MonteQuest » Fri 29 May 2009, 00:12:56

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', ' ')Do you now want them to put the billions of barrels they have produced by now back?


Flow rate.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Jotapay » Fri 29 May 2009, 00:27:12

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', 'R')ead this and you will understand better.

http://jeffvail.net/


Good thing I'm well into about 10 ounces of Dripping Springs vodka or I'd get alarmed. Regarding this guy, Jeff Vail, I'm not surprised now how many people who are concerned with energy, especially renewable energy, have military intelligence backgrounds. It is a predictable pattern these days.

To wit:
http://www.statesman.com/green/content/ ... imate.html
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby MonteQuest » Fri 29 May 2009, 00:32:25

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Jotapay', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', 'R')ead this and you will understand better.

http://jeffvail.net/


Good thing I'm well into about 10 ounces of Dripping Springs vodka or I'd get alarmed. Regarding this guy, Jeff Vail, I'm not surprised now how many people who are concerned with energy, especially renewable energy, have military intelligence backgrounds. It is a predictable pattern these days.

To wit:
http://www.statesman.com/green/content/ ... imate.html



Ad hom the best you got?

Try attacking the presentation, not the man.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')his post is the first in a series on structural problems of transitioning to renewable energy. Broadly labeled “The Renewables Hump,” this series will address net energy, scalability, bootstrapping, and time-frame considerations involved in such a transition.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Jotapay » Fri 29 May 2009, 00:36:38

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', 'A')d hom the best you got?

Try attacking the presentation, not the man.


I'm not attacking him. You misunderstand my intentions. Maybe I should have been more clear, I'm alarmed at the data he presents. He seems to have firm grip on the subject material.

To illustrate an extreme, I will have dinner with the devil, knowing he's the devil, to learn how to play the fiddle. I have the devil in me too. We all do.

I'm just pointing out a pattern I'm seeing which isn't acknowledged in mainstream media. The informed mind has the chance to make better-informed decisions. Make sense?

I bookmarked the blog, FWIW.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby MonteQuest » Fri 29 May 2009, 01:09:55

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Jotapay', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', 'A')d hom the best you got?

Try attacking the presentation, not the man.


I'm not attacking him. You misunderstand my intentions. Maybe I should have been more clear, I'm alarmed at the data he presents. He seems to have firm grip on the subject material.



My sincere apologies. Yes, I misunderstood. I think this is a very good series he is writing. Perhaps it will rein in our "excessive optimism."
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby hardtootell-2 » Fri 29 May 2009, 01:20:01

if this article along with its excellent graphics and well respected source do not convince you, I think there may not be much else I could offer. It shows how much oil we burn/yr and what the alternatives would be if it needed to be replaced.

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/jan07/4820
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby shortonsense » Fri 29 May 2009, 01:37:54

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', 'R')ead this and you will understand better.

http://jeffvail.net/


Hey! I remember this guy! Apparently he is confused about how much heavy oil is produced in the United States as well!
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby shortonsense » Fri 29 May 2009, 01:40:06

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', ' ')Do you now want them to put the billions of barrels they have produced by now back?


Flow rate.


So...you want them to put the 1,000,000 barrels a day they make back? Maybe dig a big hole near Fort McMurray, pour it all back in?

When is this EROEI thing going to work anyway...after 100 years of producing heavy oil, let alone steaming the sands of Alberta, you want to suddenly make believe that EROEI matters NOW?
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby shortonsense » Fri 29 May 2009, 01:43:20

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('MonteQuest', '
')
Try attacking the presentation, not the man.


Try to remember that California heavy oils have been in production since before you were born, maybe EROEI won't seem so worrisome if you actually knew some of these interesting tidbits.

And they did it with oil rigs and stuff instead of ladders!
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Plantagenet » Fri 29 May 2009, 01:48:49

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', 'C')alifornia heavy oils have been in production since before you were born...


That doesn't help your case---the California heavy oilfields peaked decades ago.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Sixstrings » Fri 29 May 2009, 03:22:12

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('hardtootell-2', 'i')f this article along with its excellent graphics and well respected source do not convince you, I think there may not be much else I could offer. It shows how much oil we burn/yr and what the alternatives would be if it needed to be replaced.

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/jan07/4820


Thanks for linking the graphic, but I'm not swayed. To clarify by the way, I'm not trying to be difficult here, and I don't plan on becoming a perennial doubter on the forum. I really don't have a dog in this fight, other than curiosity about the truth. So this should be my one and only Doubting Thomas thread, after a long time on this forum I just got in the mood for some objectivity.

Now back to that graphic.. first of all, a CUBIC MILE of oil is of a lot oil. Secondly, what the heck are these generic "WIND TURBINES" and "SOLAR PANELS." There is a multitude of different systems, with the latest being the most efficient. So which systems is the author using to represent all "solar panels" and "wind turbines"?

And then the coal part of the graphic, 104 plants. Ok, so? We have 600 coal fired plants in the US right now. I don't see what would stop us from building more. And before anyone mentions greenhouse gasses, I'll say it again -- when the peak comes, nobody will sacrifice their lifestyle for the planet's sake. The engines of industry will continue, whatever the costs.

Lastly, the graphic seems to imply that these alternatives would need to be a TOTAL REPLACEMENT for that cubic mile of oil. Well as we all know, peak oil isn't about running out, it's about dealing with a SHORTFALL -- not a sudden and total disappearance.

And so, all the other forms of energy just need to make up the shortage as we head down the peak oil curve. It could take another hundred years to get close to hitting the other side of the bell curve, so it could be argued this is gradual enough for these alternative energy sources to take up oil's slack.

Also, everyone here is assuming current usage will just continue as it is on into the future. When a peak on light sweet becomes obvious, there will likely be much more conservation to preserve the remaining oil. For an honest prediction here, you'd have to start factoring in the effects of an all-electric vehicle fleet. Petrol would naturally become reserved for what cannot be replaced with electric power -- things like air and sea travel, plastics, chemicals, etc.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Quinny » Fri 29 May 2009, 06:53:49

6S did you by any chance miss the (per year for 50 years!!!!).


and how many currently in existence? :roll:
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby argyle » Fri 29 May 2009, 07:22:02

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Sixstrings', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('hardtootell-2', 'i')f this article along with its excellent graphics and well respected source do not convince you, I think there may not be much else I could offer. It shows how much oil we burn/yr and what the alternatives would be if it needed to be replaced.

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/jan07/4820


Thanks for linking the graphic, but I'm not swayed. To clarify by the way, I'm not trying to be difficult here, and I don't plan on becoming a perennial doubter on the forum. I really don't have a dog in this fight, other than curiosity about the truth. So this should be my one and only Doubting Thomas thread, after a long time on this forum I just got in the mood for some objectivity.

Now back to that graphic.. first of all, a CUBIC MILE of oil is of a lot oil. Secondly, what the heck are these generic "WIND TURBINES" and "SOLAR PANELS." There is a multitude of different systems, with the latest being the most efficient. So which systems is the author using to represent all "solar panels" and "wind turbines"?

And then the coal part of the graphic, 104 plants. Ok, so? We have 600 coal fired plants in the US right now. I don't see what would stop us from building more. And before anyone mentions greenhouse gasses, I'll say it again -- when the peak comes, nobody will sacrifice their lifestyle for the planet's sake. The engines of industry will continue, whatever the costs.

Lastly, the graphic seems to imply that these alternatives would need to be a TOTAL REPLACEMENT for that cubic mile of oil. Well as we all know, peak oil isn't about running out, it's about dealing with a SHORTFALL -- not a sudden and total disappearance.

And so, all the other forms of energy just need to make up the shortage as we head down the peak oil curve. It could take another hundred years to get close to hitting the other side of the bell curve, so it could be argued this is gradual enough for these alternative energy sources to take up oil's slack.

Also, everyone here is assuming current usage will just continue as it is on into the future. When a peak on light sweet becomes obvious, there will likely be much more conservation to preserve the remaining oil. For an honest prediction here, you'd have to start factoring in the effects of an all-electric vehicle fleet. Petrol would naturally become reserved for what cannot be replaced with electric power -- things like air and sea travel, plastics, chemicals, etc.


1cubic mile of oil = rougly 26.363.984.360 barrels of oil (which seems a lot, but I don't know that much about oil production -> how many years of curent consumption is that worth?)

After reading the article, that would be one year worth of oil consumption. (is that is what currently being used, or is that the energy being used that is extracted from it, I'm still confused).

Like burning 1 liter of oil (petrol) in an ICE gives you a ..?% efficiency? but the 1kwh from a solar panel/windfarm/nuke can be used with a very high efficiency in any electric tool (appliance or electric car)

Does anyone have an idea how many windgenerators/solarpanels/nukes are installed every year globablly?

For example, due to tax reductions and susidies the amount of solar panels that are going to be installed in Belgium will triple this year as opposed to last year. (not sure how many MW that will be in total)

I don't want to dispute peak oil. But even if it's "late" now, if we drastically switch from oil to renewables (together with conservation (which doesn't always mean loss of comfort or loss of job -> for example replace a regular 100watt led bulb with a CFL light bulb) and invest locally (instead of oil rich middle-east countries) a considerable difference and softening of the crash can be done.
Actually investing locally also means more local jobs (maintenance, production,.. of windfarms, solar, ..) instead of prepping up some distant middle-east country funds.
Last edited by argyle on Fri 29 May 2009, 07:57:19, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Aaron » Fri 29 May 2009, 07:46:25

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ludi', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('shortonsense', '
')I think that about covers USGS peak oil dates. :-D



So are you saying USGS information doesn't indicate Peak Oil will be "later"?

Or what, exactly?

Sorry about not really understanding what your response to Aaron was meant to convey. :oops:


Aaron and I already went round and round over this.

The USGS used some specific language in their reports related to what they were quantifying.

ASPO ignored that language either because they didn't understand it, didn't read it, or actually wanted to misrepresent it, and then ASPO created a graph showing multiple scenario's based on that misunderstanding/ignorance/willful misrepresentation.

I can provide a link to the thread rather than rehashing it here if you'd like.


Which in no way answers the question posed here.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'S')o are you saying USGS information doesn't indicate Peak Oil will be "later"?
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Re: An admission -- I'm not sure if Peak Oil is true

Unread postby Sixstrings » Fri 29 May 2009, 08:10:16

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Quinny', '6')S did you by any chance miss the (per year for 50 years!!!!).


and how many currently in existence? :roll:


Um.. ya, I missed that part.

Mkay, I'll get back to the doomstead and do my chores. 8O
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