Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons^™

The Effects From Public Transportation On Property Values: A Closer Look At Scituate, Hanover, And Norwell, Massachusetts, Alexandra Taylor Perticone, Christine S. Coveney

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

Prior studies have expressed the value of location in real estate, but more recent studies have explored the influence that public transportation has had on housing prices. Access to public transportation is understood to increase the value of homes. Easier access to public transportation allows for shorter and more convenient commutes into or within cities. However, other studies have found that proximity to public transportation can also have adverse effects on property values. This paper investigates whether the implementation of the Greenbush Commuter line in Massachusetts in October 2007 increased the housing prices in Scituate, Ma--the furthest town from the …

When Trash Costs Money: Analyzing The Impact Of Pay-As-You-Throw Programs In Massachusetts, Thomas W. Barry Iv

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

This paper evaluates whether municipalities with Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) programs dispose of less trash per household than municipalities without them. Given how much trash U.S. residents produce, the negative environmental effects associated with trash disposal, as well as how much the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advocates for PAYT, it is important to closely analyze whether these programs actually do their job. This paper formally analyzes the effects of PAYT programs using the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection’s trash disposal data from 2011-2015. After controlling for municipality and time heterogeneity, my analysis shows that PAYT programs reduce trash per household by a …

Invited Introduction To Jerec, Matthew Kahn

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

No abstract provided.

Welcome By The Editor, Nathan W. Chan

Journal of Environmental and Resource Economics at Colby

No abstract provided.

Book Review: Peak Oil: Apocalyptic Environmentalism And Libertarian Political Culture, Matthew Schneider-Mayerson, The University Of Chicago Press, Chicago And London (2015), Corrie Grosse

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

One-Step Laser-Induced Hydrogen Generation From Coal Powders In Water, Dovletgeldi Seyitliyev

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study presents a simple way of obtaining hydrogen gas (H2) from various ranks of coal, coke, and graphite using nanosecond laser pulses. Powder samples of coal and graphite with and without water were irradiated with 1064 nm and 532 nm pulses from an Nd: YAG laser for 45 minutes under air and argon atmospheres. It was observed that 532 nm laser pulses were more effective than 1064 nm pulses in gas generation and both were nonlinearly correlated with respect to the laser energy density. Mainly hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) were observed. The H2 to CO ratio shows …

Solvent Degradation And Emissions From A 0.7mwe Pilot Co2 Capture System With Two-Stage Stripping, Jesse Thompson, Heather Nikolic, Megan Combs, Saloni Bhatnagar, Jonathan Pelgen, Keemia Abad, Kunlei Liu

Center for Applied Energy Research Faculty and Staff Publications

The UKy-CAER team successfully tested an advanced 0.7 MWe post-combustion CO₂ capture system on a coal-fired power plant using a heat integration process combined with two-stage stripping to enhance the CO₂ absorber performance. One of the unique feature of the UKy-CAER integrated process is a two-stage stripping unit for solvent regeneration. The secondary stripper is empowered by the heat rejection from a conventional steam-heated (primary) stripper. The secondary stripper outlet stream at the commercial scale can be used as boiler secondary combustion air, consequently enriching the flue gas with CO₂, resulting in less energy penalty required …

Extraction Of Oil From The Bakken Shales With Supercritical Co2, Lu Jin, Steven B. Hawthorne, James A. Sorensen, Bethany A. Kurz, Steven A. Smith, Loreal V. Heebink, Nicholas W. Bosshart, José A. Torres, Chantsalmaa Dalkhaa, Charles D. Gorecki, Edward N. Steadman, John A. Harju

EERC Publications, Papers, & Presentations

Results from 20 samples showed that supercritical CO₂ enables extraction of a considerable portion (15%–65%) of the hydrocarbons from the Bakken shales within 24 hours. The results may be used to improve modeling and forecasting the effects of CO₂ enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and suggest the possibility for increasing ultimate recovery, and possibly CO₂ storage, in some areas of the Bakken Formation.

Pore Resolved Simulations Of Char Particle Gasification, Greg Hingwah Fong

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Coal is a significant source of energy in today’s world and many studies have been conducted in order to better understand and optimize its use. To address greenhouse effects associated with coal combustion, cleaner methods for harnessing its energy are being explored. One such method is gasification, a process which converts coal into syngas, a mixture consisting primarily of H2 and CO. Syngas can be used to generate electricity or to produce hydrocarbons that can be used as fuels. To better understand and optimize the process, simulations can be used to study the gasification of individual porous char particles that …

Carbon And Nutrient Balances In Microalgal Bioenergy System, Eunyoung Lee

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research investigated life cycle environmental impacts and benefits of an integrated microalgae system with wastewater treatment system using an integrated process modeling approach combined with experimentation. The overall goal of this research is to understand energy, carbon and nutrient balances in the integrated system and to evaluate the environmental impacts and benefits of the integrated system from a carbon, nutrient, and energy perspective. In this study, four major research tasks were designed to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the environmental and economic sustainability of the integrated system, which included development of an integrated co-limitation kinetic model for microalgae …

Fossil Fuel Asset Risk Analysis: Clark University Endowment, Travis A. Dodge, B. Maiwand Akbari

Student Works

The environmental and social risks of climate change are well known and perhaps inevitable. The economic and financial risks are less so. The many financial risks associated with climate change embedded in endowment portfolio fossil fuel holdings are leading many institutional stakeholders to enter into dialogue and take action. Divestment is emerging as an effective strategy for limiting portfolio exposure and tackling climate change itself.

Our team’s goals were to assess whether the Clark University endowment portfolio faces any of these risks and evaluate the impacts on asset values. Our findings show that the Clark endowment does face these same …

Comprehensive Silica Removal With Ferric Compounds For Industrial Wastewater Reuse, Ehren D. Baca

Civil Engineering ETDs

Cooling towers, integrated circuit (IC) manufacture and reverse osmosis (RO) generate copious amounts of wastewater high in colloidal and reactive silica inhibiting on-site or synergistic reuse. Silica present in cooling water can reach solubility limits via evaporation and form impervious scale on heat transfer surfaces that decreases efficiency. When water is treated by RO operating at high rejection, silica forms difficult-to-remove scale on the membrane feed side in the form of glassy patches and communities of aggregate particles, inhibiting aspirations for zero liquid discharge. Current methods for silica scale mitigation include abundant dosing with chemical antiscalents or complex operating schemes. …

Economic Evaluation Of Coastal Land Loss In Louisiana, Stephen R. Barnes, Craig Bond, Nicholas Burger, Kate Anania, Aaron Strong, Sarah Weilant, Stephanie Virgets

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

Louisiana has lost approximately 1,880 square miles of land over the past eighty years. Projections suggest that in a future without action, the next fifty years could result in the loss of 1,750 additional square miles of land area. As land loss continues, a large portion of the natural and man-made capital stocks of coastal Louisiana will be at greater risk of damage, either from land loss or from the associated increase in storm damage. We estimate the replacement cost of capital stock directly at risk from land loss ranges from approximately $2.1 billion to $3.5 billion with economic activity …

Analysis Of Solar Community Energy Storage For Supporting Hawaii's 100% Renewable Energy Goals, Erin Takata

Master's Projects and Capstones

Solar PV generation has become an integral part of the renewable energy industry. With state-level, renewable portfolio standards in place, solar power demand has substantially increased and become a competitive and economically viable energy solution throughout the world. Hawaii has one of the most aggressive renewable portfolio standards with a goal of 100 percent renewable generation by 2045. However, there are challenges that are preventing the growth of the solar PV market in Hawaii including equal accessibility to solar power and solar power overloading causing grid instability. With Hawaii’s high annual solar radiation, PV generation could play a significant role …

Examining The Effects Of Policy Interventions On Increasing Electric Vehicle Adoption In California, Ethan G. Mcdermott

Master's Projects and Capstones

Any significant effort to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gasses must address the growing concern of the transportation sector’s inability to meaningfully reduce its emissions contribution. A major shift in the primary fuel used in the sector away from petroleum-based fuel to electricity is one potential way the sector can lower its emissions and transition into a sustainable future. However, a number of barriers face the electric vehicle market, including competing against an already mature vehicle market, battling consumer preferences, and overcoming technical challenges. This paper examines several policy proposals to combat these barriers and examines the impact similar policies …

California Public Electric Vehicle Charging Stations’ Accessibility To Amenities: A Gis Network Analysis Approach, Jeremy Yun Li Chen

Master's Projects and Capstones

In California, the number of electric vehicles (EVs) on the roads has been increasing over the past several years. As EVs continue to grow, additional electric vehicle charging stations (EVCSs) will be needed for EV drivers to utilize. However, before implementing EVCSs in the public, there are various criteria that need to be considered. One of these criteria is public EVCSs’ accessibility to amenities. When people are charging their EVs that require a significant amount of waiting time, having amenities nearby will provide them with the option to spend their time efficiently on worthwhile activities. To understand the accessibility of …

Sub 2 Nm Particle Characterization In Systems With Aerosol Formation And Growth, Yang Wang

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Aerosol science and technology enable continual advances in material synthesis and atmospheric pollutant control. Among these advances, one important frontier is characterizing the initial stages of particle formation by real time measurement of particles below 2 nm in size. Sub 2 nm particles play important roles by acting as seeds for particle growth, ultimately determining the final properties of the generated particles. Tailoring nanoparticle properties requires a thorough understanding and precise control of the particle formation processes, which in turn requires characterizing nanoparticle formation from the initial stages. The knowledge on particle formation in early stages can also be applied …

Software Development For Home Energy Audits: Reducing Energy Consumption In Harrisonburg Through Technology, Brantley E. Gilbert

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Fossil fuels play a vital role in our daily lives. Oil, natural gas, and coal powers our cars, heats our homes and water, and are used by power companies to generate the massive amounts of electricity used every day by the United States. However, this reliance on a finite source of energy is not sustainable. Fossil fuels such as these are non-renewable resources whose production will eventually be unable to keep up with the rate of consumption. Furthermore, the extraction of the stored energy in these fuels through combustion releases harmful substances into the environment, including toxins and greenhouse gases …

Water-Energy Sector Collaboration In The United States: Benefits, Barriers, And Climate-Change Implications, Cassandra J. Osterhoudt

Sustainability and Social Justice

The purpose of this report is to examine the impact of the water-energy nexus in the United States, and identify opportunities for increased collaboration between water and energy utilities. Through reviewing the regulatory history of both sectors, I explore how regulations on utilities align with the Porter Hypothesis, and the impacts the water-energy nexus will have moving forward, including under climate-change scenarios. The extent of collaboration between sectors has been relatively limited to states with progressive energy and water efficiency policies. This report identifies existing barriers and benefits to collaboration, and utilizes two case studies; California and Massachusetts. Results are …

An Analysis Of Structural And Psychological Barriers To The Adoption Of Demand Response Smart Grid Technologies: Lessons Learned, John M. Richards

Sustainability and Social Justice

Over the past decade, America’s utility grid has undergone fundamental changes on a scale not seen during the past 100 years (Energetics Incorporated, 2014). These changes have largely been driven by the need to replace aging infrastructure, modernize the grid, incorporate new sources of energy, and better balance the supply and demand of energy. In order to address some of these changes, utilities have increasingly implemented smart grid programs that provide customers with consumer-focused demand response technologies that aim to reduce peak demand. This report examined the success these technologies have in reducing peak demand for smart grid programs by …

Impacts On The Stakeholders Of The Nexus Pipeline, Jessica A. Speweike

Honors Projects

This journalistic feature covers the different impacts on those individuals who are involved with or affected by the Nexus Gas Transmission pipeline. Testimony from Ohio landowners, activists, scientists and public officials cover a variety of opinions and concerns raised by the pipeline. Private property rights, environmental impact, and possible economic implications are detailed by those who have been involved with the Nexus pipeline since its early stages of implementation.

Pine Needle Pyrolysis: Bio-Waste Into Biofuel, Alexandra Fuentes

Scholarly and Creative Works Conference (2015 - 2021)

This project explores the alternate uses of biomass. In particular, it focuses on pine needles as a source for biofuels. Pine needles are of interest because in certain Mountain communities they are collected and removed from residential properties. By removing the pine needles, communities create a “defensible space” to prevent wild fires from destroying homes. These needles are often placed in regional landfills. The South Tahoe Refuse and Recycling Services alone has more than 4,340 tons of pine needles dumped at their facility annually. This large amount of biomass can be a potential energy source.

The focus of this research …

A “Green” Approach To Hedge Fund Regulation And Reform, Matthew Keehn

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Survey Says . . . ? An Argument For More Frontloaded Ferc Public Use Provider Determinations As A Means Of Streamlining The Commission S Regulatory Role Over Interstate Natural Gas Pipeline Operators, Christopher Earle

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Modeling Net Energy Balance Of Ethanol Production From Native Warm Season Grasses, Prabodh Illukpitiya, Chandra Reddy, Ankit Bansal

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

There has been an increasing interest in the use of perennial grasses as potential feedstock for ethanol production. The characteristics which make perennial grasses attractive for bioenergy feedstock development initiative are their high yield potential and the high contents of lignin and cellulose. The objective of the study is to model energy input and output and simulate Net Energy Value (NEV) of producing ethanol from native warm season grasses. According to simulated results, the mean NEV of ethanol production from native warm season grasses considered in the analysis was positive. Mean NEV for switchgrass and eastern gammagrass was higher compared …

Diffusion Of Renewable Energy Policies, Khatera Alizada

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the global diffusion of renewable energy policies: feed-in tariffs (FIT) and renewable portfolio standards (RPS). Existing studies of policy diffusion have failed to differentiate between four possible mechanisms of policy diffusion: emulation, suasion, learning and competition. To test these competing explanations, the study uses a mixed-method research design that combines statistical analysis of time-series cross-sectional data with an agent-based model of diffusion processes. The findings of the statistical analysis show strong support for the suasion (European Union Membership, Clean Development Mechanisms) and emulation mechanisms (cultural similarity or common language) in the diffusion of FIT. In the diffusion …

Optimization And Performance Study Of Select Heating Ventilation And Air Conditioning Technologies For Commercial Buildings, Rajeev Kamal

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Buildings contribute a significant part to the electricity demand profile and peak demand for the electrical utilities. The addition of renewable energy generation adds additional variability and uncertainty to the power system. Demand side management in the buildings can help improve the demand profile for the utilities by shifting some of the demand from peak to off-peak times.

Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning contribute around 45% to the overall demand of a building. This research studies two strategies for reducing the peak as well as shifting some demand from peak to off-peak periods in commercial buildings:

1. Use of gas heat …

Development Of A Holistic Maritime Energy Management Programme At The Postgraduate Level: The Case Of Wmu, Aykut I. Ölçer, Fabio Ballini, Momoko Kitada, Dimitrios Dalaklis

Conference Papers

Energy efficiency in shipping is regarded as one of the most urgent tasks to which the industry needs to respond. According to the 2014 International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Green-House Gas (GHG) Study, the average respective missions from shipping accounted for approximately 3.1% of annual global CO2 during the period of 2007–2012.
Mandatory technical and operational energy-efficiency measures adopted via Annex VI of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) entered into force on 1 January 2013. It is mandatory to implement the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) for certain types of new ships, as well as …

Composition And Quantification Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Deep-Pelagic Fauna, Cruises Dp01 And Dp02 From May 2015 - August 2015, Isabel C. Romero

DEEPEND Datasets

This data set includes the biological PAH (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) data of target species collected during the DP01 (May 1-8, 2015) and DP02 cruises (August 8-21, 2015) in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. The target fish species include Ceratoscopelus warmingii, Chaulidus spp., Diaphus spp., Argyropelecus spp, Lampanyctus alatus, and Sigma elongatum. Also, analysis of shrimp (Acanthephyra purpurea) and cephalopod (Grimalditeuthis bonplandi, Histioteuthis corona, Japetella diaphana) samples were conducted. PAHs were analyzed following modified EPA method 8270D and QA/QC strict protocols. Detection and quantification of PAHs were performed using a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometric detector (GC/MS/MS).

The Death Of Opec? The Displacement Of Saudi Arabia As The World's Swing Producer And The Futility Of An Output Freeze, Christopher Hanewald

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

On November 27, 2014, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries met in Vienna and adopted a bold stance against increasing supply from beyond the reach of the cartel. Rather than reduce their own production, the cartel decided to allow market forces to dictate the price of a barrel of oil. By doing this, Saudi Arabia-the de-facto leader of the cartel-made a bet that the burgeoning shale gas industry within the United States would be unable to cope with a sharp fall in the price of oil. Over the course of the following two years, the U.S. energy sector-aided by further …