Dr. Shane Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 North Dakota could have a huge new oil field Dozens of fruitful wells beneath the rich Bakken shale in North Dakota continue to fuel a hunch among oilmen and geologists that another vast crude-bearing formation may be buried in the state's vast oil patch. Lynn Helms, director of the state Department of Mineral Resources, said recent production results from 103 newly tapped wells in the Three Forks-Sanish formation show many that are "as good or better" than some in the Bakken, which lies two miles under the surface in western North Dakota and holds billions of barrels of oil. "I think it's a big deal and we're pretty fired up about it," Helms said. Companies have reported some Three Forks wells recovering more than 800 barrels daily, considered decent by Bakken standards. Denver-based Whiting Petroleum Corp. has drilled two wells in the Three Forks formation, with one that recorded more than 1,000 barrels of oil a day, said John Kelso, a company spokesman... Whiting has one Bakken well that recorded more than 4,000 barrels a day last year, thought to be a record for the formation and about double the highest Three Forks well drilled to date... he Bakken formation encompasses some 25,000 square miles within the Williston Basin in North Dakota and Montana. The U.S. Geological Survey has called it the largest continuous oil accumulation it has ever assessed. The Three Forks-Sanish formation is made up of sand and porous rock directly below the Bakken shale. But geologists don't know whether the Three Forks-Sanish is a separate oil-producing formation or if it catches oil that flows from the Bakken shale above. Fort Worth, Texas-based XTO Energy Inc. has reported to the state that one of its Three Forks wells pulled more than 2,100 barrels a day... Oilmen and others had known for years that the Bakken held oil. High oil prices and demand in the past few years spurred technology enough to begin tapping it. Kessel said techniques learned from the Bakken are now being used at other oil shales in the U.S. and internationally. But he said advances in technology have slowed with lower oil prices that have idled drill rigs. [text from link] Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woody Posted July 15, 2009 Share Posted July 15, 2009 My neighbor has one of these oil rigs operating currently. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Gerr Posted July 19, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 19, 2009 I'm still wondering how oil got there 2 miles underground or under the ocean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Rich Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 Gerry, contrary to what we have heard that oil is ‘fossil full’ is not quite right. Oil is a mineral and has been on this earth since God created it. There will always be oil, but not the kind that is easy to get. The Brea tar pits point out that oil was here before the flood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted July 19, 2009 Author Share Posted July 19, 2009 I think it is pretty well accepted that oil is made from fossils. The only question is if all oil is made from fossils. Oil has been discovered at depths deeper than fossils have been discovered. I believe there is a worm or some kind of organism that has been discovered to excrete some sort of crude oil. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woody Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 May be we can start farming them there worms for energy independence. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted July 19, 2009 Author Share Posted July 19, 2009 Scientists find bugs that eat waste and excrete petrol Quote: He means bugs. To be more precise: the genetic alteration of bugs – very, very small ones – so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips or wheat straw, they do something extraordinary. They excrete crude oil. Unbelievably, this is not science fiction. Mr Pal holds up a small beaker of bug excretion that could, theoretically, be poured into the tank of the giant Lexus SUV next to us. Not that Mr Pal is willing to risk it just yet. He gives it a month before the first vehicle is filled up on what he calls “renewable petroleum”. After that, he grins, “it’s a brave new world”... What is most remarkable about what they are doing is that instead of trying to reengineer the global economy – as is required, for example, for the use of hydrogen fuel – they are trying to make a product that is interchangeable with oil. The company claims that this “Oil 2.0” will not only be renewable but also carbon negative – meaning that the carbon it emits will be less than that sucked from the atmosphere by the raw materials from which it is made. LS9 has already convinced one oil industry veteran of its plan: Bob Walsh, 50, who now serves as the firm’s president after a 26-year career at Shell, most recently running European supply operations in London... The company is not interested in using corn as feedstock, given the much-publicised problems created by using food crops for fuel, such as the tortilla inflation that recently caused food riots in Mexico City. Instead, different types of agricultural waste will be used according to whatever makes sense for the local climate and economy: wheat straw in California, for example, or woodchips in the South. Using genetically modified bugs for fermentation is essentially the same as using natural bacteria to produce ethanol, although the energy-intensive final process of distillation is virtually eliminated because the bugs excrete a substance that is almost pump-ready. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Gerr Posted July 21, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 21, 2009 Gerry, contrary to what we have heard that oil is ‘fossil full’ is not quite right. Oil is a mineral and has been on this earth since God created it. There will always be oil, but not the kind that is easy to get. The Brea tar pits point out that oil was here before the flood. Oil is hydrocarbon. Could you show me reference to your statement? And the Brea tar pits have ALL kinds of animals in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Gerr Posted July 21, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 21, 2009 May be we can start farming them there worms for energy independence. I seem to recall reading about a certain type of algae that could produce oil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woody Posted July 21, 2009 Share Posted July 21, 2009 Yes Gerry. I think that is the bottom line for Obama's energy independence plan. Go figure. Quote May we be one so that the world may be won. Christian from the cradle to the grave I believe in Hematology. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted July 21, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 21, 2009 With my class of beginning physics teachers yesterday, we calculated the energy we could get by putting solar cells on the roof of every private house in Australia. We figured it would cost something like 200 billion dollars, but would supply *all* of Australia's energy use 6 times over (you'd need a hydrogen economy or some other way to use electricity for transport). That was with 15% efficient solar cells, but we have recently produced 40% efficient cells. That would mean we could cover Australia's needs about 20 times over. So we could either be a net exporter of energy or (more realistically), only cover 5% of all roofs, at a cost of 10 billion dollars (on the order of our own recent stimulus package) and cover all our needs with no cost and no CO2 emissions at all basically forever (with maintenance). It's not that alternative energy doesn't work, it's purely a lack of political will to make it work. Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted July 21, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 21, 2009 PS The North Dakota oil find is definitely a Good Thing... all resources are valuable, and I *don't* believe they should stay in the ground. I do believe that if we can find ways to use other forms of energy than burning these precious resources, so that we can save the oil for lubrication and industrial feedstock, our grandchildren will have less reason to be horrified by us... Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Oplinger Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 With my class of beginning physics teachers yesterday, we calculated the energy we could get by putting solar cells on the roof of every private house in Australia. We figured it would cost something like 200 billion dollars, but would supply *all* of Australia's energy use 6 times over (you'd need a hydrogen economy or some other way to use electricity for transport). That was with 15% efficient solar cells, but we have recently produced 40% efficient cells. That would mean we could cover Australia's needs about 20 times over. So we could either be a net exporter of energy or (more realistically), only cover 5% of all roofs, at a cost of 10 billion dollars (on the order of our own recent stimulus package) and cover all our needs with no cost and no CO2 emissions at all basically forever (with maintenance). It's not that alternative energy doesn't work, it's purely a lack of political will to make it work. Well, not just the lack of political will, but some serious obstacles. Just a few I'd note needing some addressing: First, is Australia's energy consumption day-time only? Solar cells won't be powering your lights and computer at night. Hence, there are some serious electrical storage considerations, and solar cells aren't too noted for their battery-charging capabilities... Second, do solar cells produce the amperage needed to power certain devices and appliances. It's one thing to produce volts, another to produce amps. Solar cells, to my knowledge, are not high amperage producers - they can power radios, lights, and light-duty appliances, but cannot effectively power heavy duty things - like air conditioners and heaters. Third, there are the transmission lines to carry the power elsewhere. There needs to an oversupply of solar cells to make up for the loss of power during transmission along power lines. That's easy enough, though. Next, to install that many solar panels will spark protests from...your friendly local environmentalist groups for destroying the environment. Can Australia wade through all that litigation and keep capital flowing into the effort? Or will the Greenies shut down the fledgling going green industry? That's the reason T. Boon Pickens ceded his efforts for wind and solar energy here in the States. He was getting blocked at every step by the very people decreeing how we should be implementing said technology yesterday. Never you mind they had no case against him...it's the litigation fees alone that will bankrupt any effort. Hence, it's not about good, green stewardship; it's all about control... Better reign in my skepticism...I feel another "rant" coming on concerning things green...got...to...resist... Later friend! Quote "As iron sharpens iron, so also does one man sharpen another" - Proverbs 27:17 "The offense of the cross is that the cross is a confession of human frailty and sin and of inability to do any good thing. To take the cross of Christ means to depend solely on Him for everything, and this is the abasement of all human pride. Men love to fancy themselves independent. But let the cross be preached, let it be made known that in man dwells no good thing and that all must be received as a gift, and straightway someone is offended." Ellet J. Waggoner, The Glad Tidings "Courage is being scared to death - and saddling up anyway" - John Wayne "The person who pays an ounce of principle for a pound of popularity gets badly cheated" - Ronald Reagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted July 22, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 22, 2009 The transmission lines one is a bit of a furphy, since there's a lot less miles moving power around from a distributed network of 10 million power plants, all close to where the power is used, than from 20 or so large power stations some distance from where the power is used. Many of the issues about storage can be solved in a number of ways, from batteries (which do have their own environmental issues and concerns, but are improving constantly), to huge flywheels, to pumping water up into dams during the day and letting it come down again and drive hydro over night, to hydrogen fuel cells with storage tanks, to... it's only limited by our imaginations. The voltage and current issues can be fixed with transformers (which are also relevant to reducing transmission losses), and it's true that there would be more those, with the resultant maintenance and so on. One of the benefits is that if you have excess, free power, losses to transmission, or to inefficiencies in water pumping and hydro generators, for example, *just don't matter that much*. It's different if you have to pay for coal... I know greenies can sometimes be their own worst enemies, and even cede the point about some wanting power and control (but then some in any group do, including churches). But given that this is not building solar cell arrays or wind famrs on pristine bushland, but on top of existing structures, and the level of concern about climate change, I don't reckon they'd be too obstructive. Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Oplinger Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 The transmission lines one is a bit of a furphy, since there's a lot less miles moving power around from a distributed network of 10 million power plants, all close to where the power is used, than from 20 or so large power stations some distance from where the power is used. Quote "As iron sharpens iron, so also does one man sharpen another" - Proverbs 27:17 "The offense of the cross is that the cross is a confession of human frailty and sin and of inability to do any good thing. To take the cross of Christ means to depend solely on Him for everything, and this is the abasement of all human pride. Men love to fancy themselves independent. But let the cross be preached, let it be made known that in man dwells no good thing and that all must be received as a gift, and straightway someone is offended." Ellet J. Waggoner, The Glad Tidings "Courage is being scared to death - and saddling up anyway" - John Wayne "The person who pays an ounce of principle for a pound of popularity gets badly cheated" - Ronald Reagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted July 22, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 22, 2009 Thanks, as always. Solar is already charging batteries for a heap of self-sufficient house systems all over the world, so apparently at least that question (about the power (voltage x current=power) of solar cells. Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Oplinger Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 That is well. Let's see how the technology develops. If it can deliver on the promise of making houses substantially more energy-independent, it will nearly sell itself... especially with the Cap and Tax...er, Trade legislation pushing through the US Congress. Quote "As iron sharpens iron, so also does one man sharpen another" - Proverbs 27:17 "The offense of the cross is that the cross is a confession of human frailty and sin and of inability to do any good thing. To take the cross of Christ means to depend solely on Him for everything, and this is the abasement of all human pride. Men love to fancy themselves independent. But let the cross be preached, let it be made known that in man dwells no good thing and that all must be received as a gift, and straightway someone is offended." Ellet J. Waggoner, The Glad Tidings "Courage is being scared to death - and saddling up anyway" - John Wayne "The person who pays an ounce of principle for a pound of popularity gets badly cheated" - Ronald Reagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Oplinger Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Another point...what is the home maintenance requirements, and repair costs, for upkeep and repair? Quote "As iron sharpens iron, so also does one man sharpen another" - Proverbs 27:17 "The offense of the cross is that the cross is a confession of human frailty and sin and of inability to do any good thing. To take the cross of Christ means to depend solely on Him for everything, and this is the abasement of all human pride. Men love to fancy themselves independent. But let the cross be preached, let it be made known that in man dwells no good thing and that all must be received as a gift, and straightway someone is offended." Ellet J. Waggoner, The Glad Tidings "Courage is being scared to death - and saddling up anyway" - John Wayne "The person who pays an ounce of principle for a pound of popularity gets badly cheated" - Ronald Reagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Holbrook Posted August 5, 2009 Share Posted August 5, 2009 May be we can start farming them there worms for energy independence. Farm the worms! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted August 5, 2009 Moderators Share Posted August 5, 2009 lol - to the tune of 'Feed the world' Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted August 5, 2009 Share Posted August 5, 2009 Solar just isn't there yet for mass production. Nuclear is the way to go. Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted August 5, 2009 Moderators Share Posted August 5, 2009 Agreed. Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted August 5, 2009 Share Posted August 5, 2009 g Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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