RWE to study reserve potential offshore Azerbaijan
Hamburg, Germany (UPI) May 6, 2013 -
German energy company RWE Dea said Tuesday it signed an agreement to examine the oil and gas potential in the shallow waters off the coast of Azerbaijan.
"The agreement gives us the opportunity to deepen our knowledge about the subsurface in a highly prolific area of the Caspian Sea," Hans-Hermann Ecke, a vice president in charge of new ventures for the company, said in a statement. ...
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Euro agency urges black box life extension after MH370 crash
Paris (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
Europe's aviation safety watchdog called Tuesday for the transmission time of tracking beacons fitted onto black box flight recorders to be extended from 30 to 90 days, a reform that may have made it easier to find the missing Malaysia Airlines plane.
The aircraft disappeared on March 8 with 239 people on board, and an intense search for the plane has been scaled back after coming up with no ...
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China oil rig move 'provocative,' US says
Washington (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
The United States on Tuesday warned China that a decision to move a deep-sea oil rig into disputed waters in the South China Sea was a "provocative" step which it was monitoring closely.
"We're looking carefully into this matter," State Department deputy spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters.
"Given the recent history of tensions in the South China Sea, China's decision to operate its oil ...
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Robot mimics cartwheel movement of desert spider
Frankfurt, Germany (UPI) May 6, 2013 -
The newly discovered flic-flac spider is the gold medal gymnast of the arachnid world, cartwheeling and summersaulting its way along the sand dunes of Morocco's Erg Chebbi deserts, which border the Mediterranean coast.
The flic-flac spider, Cebrennus rechenbergi, is also the inspiration for a new robot.
Ingo Rechenberg, a scientist at the Technical University of Berlin, in German ...
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Israeli gas developer signs agreement for Egyptian exports
Houston (UPI) May 6, 2013 -
Noble Energy said it was considering sending as much as 440 trillion cubic feet of natural gas per day from the Tamar field offshore Israel to a plant in Egypt.
Noble and its field partners at Tamar signed a non-binding letter of intent with Union Fenosa Gas to deliver natural gas to a facility that can turn it into super-cooled liquefied natural gas. The letter of intent spells out a 1 ...
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Rail deliveries of crude oil up in Canada
Calgary, Alberta (UPI) May 6, 2013 -
Crude oil exported from Canada by rail topped 140,000 barrels per day during fourth quarter 2013, nearly double the 2012 figures, a regulator said.
The National Energy Board, Canada's energy regulator, published quarterly data for crude oil exports by rail Monday. It said that, combined, 184,907 barrels of oil per day were delivered by rail over 2012, with more than 40 percent of that v ...
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Waste from oil and gas operations tied to Oklahoma earthquakes
Washington (UPI) May 6, 2013 -
The U.S. and Oklahoma Geological Surveys said an increase in earthquakes in the state may be attributed to heightened oil and gas activity.
USGS said it examined the rate of increase in earthquakes in Oklahoma and found they weren't due to random fluctuations in seismic activity in that state.
The joint study found injecting wastewater underground can lead to pressure increases t ...
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Iranian gas pipeline to Iraq under construction
Tehran (UPI) May 6, 2013 -
A deputy oil minister in Iran said Tuesday there could be natural gas sent to power stations in southern Iraq during the current calendar year.
Ali Majedi, Iran's deputy oil minister for international affairs, said a pipeline from southern Iran across the border to power stations in Basra province is "currently under construction."
The pipeline will stretch from the Iranian port ...
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Google Chromebooks get boost from chip-computer giants
San Francisco (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
Google's drive to put the future of personal computing firmly in the Internet "cloud" got a boost on Tuesday from chip titan Intel and hardware giants including Lenovo.
The leading computer maker joined Acer, Dell, Toshiba, Hewlett-Packard, Asus, and LG Electronics to introduce an array of new Chromebooks, many powered by newer-generation Intel chips that promise improved performance and bat ...
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Siemens to buy Rolls Royce energy assets for 950 mn euro
Berlin (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
German engineering giant Siemens on Tuesday announced it would buy the energy production arm of Britain's Rolls Royce for 950 million euros ($1.3 billion) to strengthen its standing in the oil and gas industry.
"Siemens is acquiring the Rolls-Royce Energy aero-derivative gas turbine and compressor business and thereby strengthening its position in the growing oil and gas industry as well as ...
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Twitter sinks to new low as 'lockup' expires
New York (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
Twitter shares plunged to new lows Tuesday, under pressure after the expiration of the so-called lockup period, which banned sales by company insiders after its public offering.
The stock sank 17.8 percent to close at $31.85, the lowest level since the Twitter initial public offering (IPO) last November.
Under US securities lockup rules, some insiders were barred from selling for a perio ...
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China hikes state firms' dividend payments
Shanghai (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
China has increased the dividends that state firms must pay to the government by five percentage points, it said Tuesday, implementing an economic reform originally unveiled last November.
Most state-owned enterprises will now pay between 10 and 25 percent of their profits in dividends - the portion of a company's earnings distributed to shareholders - the Ministry of Finance said in a sta ...
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Energy-subsidy reform can be achieved with proper preparation, outside pressure
Houston TX (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
Reform of energy subsidies in oil-exporting countries can reduce carbon emissions and add years to oil exports, according to a new paper from Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy.
"Navigating the Perils of Energy-Subsidy Reform in Exporting Countries" was authored by Jim Krane, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at the Baker Institute, who specializes in energy ...
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21.2% World Record Efficiency PERC Silicon Solar Cell Using Heraeus Ag Metallization Pastes
Hanau, Germany (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
The Institute for Solar Energy Research Hamelin (ISFH) increases the conversion efficiency of industrial p-type silicon solar cells with screen-printed metal contacts from today's typical 17.5% to 19.5% to a record value of 21.2%, using leading-edge front-side metallization pastes supplied by the Photovoltaics Business Unit of Heraeus Precious Metals.
21.2% is the highest efficiency report ...
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High-Strengh Materials from the Pressure Cooker
Vienna, Austria (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
A Surprise in Materials Chemistry: At Vienna University of Technology, materials for lightweight construction, protective clothing or sports equipment can be produced at high temperatures and high pressures. This process is faster, better and more eco-friendly than other techniques.
The earth's crust works like a pressure cooker. Minerals typically do not form under standard conditions, bu ...
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Robots may need to include parental controls
University Park PA (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
Older adults' fears that companion robots will negatively affect young people may create design challenges for developers hoping to build robots for older users, according to Penn State researchers.
Companion robots provide emotional support for users and interact with them as they, for example, play a game, or watch a movie.
Older adults reported in a study that while they were not ...
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Natcore's Black Silicon Succeeds In First-Ever Solar Cell Production Line Test
Red Bank NJ (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
One of the world's largest photovoltaic manufacturers has been the first to process Natcore Technology's black silicon wafers into working solar cells in an actual production line rather than in a laboratory setting.
The wafers were given a black silicon etch by scientists of Natcore Technology using the company's proprietary process. The wafers were then shipped to the photovoltaic manufa ...
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Qnergy Captures World Record for Solar Thermoacoustic Power Generation
Ogden UT (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
Qnergy has announced a major breakthrough in solar thermoacoustic power generation. The company recently set a new world record, using acoustic waves created by solar heat to produce 1 kW of electrical power during a field test completed this month at its test facility in Ogden, Utah.
"This is a milestone achievement for Qnergy," said Erez Harel, Qnergy CEO, "and it marks a significant ste ...
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ORNL examines clues for superconductivity in an iron-based material
Oak Ridge TN (SPX) May 07, 2014 -
For the first time, scientists have a clearer understanding of how to control the appearance of a superconducting phase in a material, adding crucial fundamental knowledge and perhaps setting the stage for advances in the field of superconductivity.
The paper, published in Physical Review Letters, focuses on a calcium-iron-arsenide single crystal, which has structural, thermodynamic and tr ...
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Sweden's Vattenfall abandons research on CO2 storage
Stockholm (AFP) May 06, 2014 -
Swedish energy giant Vattenfall said Tuesday that it had given up its research on CO2 capture and storage, intended to make the company's coal power plants greener.
"Vattenfall will discontinue its R&D (research and development) activities regarding coal power with CCS (carbon capture and storage)," the group said in a statement explaining its new research plans.
The state-owned giant ha ...
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Sierra Nevada Corporation Completes and Delivers Satellites for ORBCOMM Mission 1 Launch
Sparks NV (SPX) May 02, 2014 -
Sierra Nevada has announced the successful completion of the ORBCOMM Generation 2 (OG2) Pre-Ship Review and shipment of six satellites from the company's Space Systems' location in Louisville, Colorado. SNC is the prime contractor for this upgraded communication constellation leading all development and integration efforts for the ORBCOMM Mission 1 launch in May.
SNC conducted a thorough O ...
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Peacekeeper Safing - The Ultimate Re-Use Project
White Sands NM (SPX) May 02, 2014 -
NASA Johnson Space Center's White Sands Test Facility (WSTF) contracted with the United States Air Force (USAF) to safe Peacekeeper Post Boost Propulsion System (PBPS) stages in the next four years by de-tanking hypergolic propellants, venting helium tanks and expending the ordnance so the stage can be destroyed by the USAF and reusable hardware and propellants could be harvested.
WSTF was ...
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Russia-US Space Launches Unaffected by Sanctions
Moscow (RIA Novosti) May 02, 2014 -
Lyudmila Chernova - Joint Russia-US space launches will not be affected by the latest round of sanctions against Russia, representatives of the Sea Launch and Inmarsat companies told RIA Novosti Wednesday.
Sea Launch, the world's only ocean-based space launch company, said it does not anticipate any impact on operations for the foreseeable future.
"All the necessary licenses have alr ...
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Latest Galileo satellite arrives at ESA's test centre
Paris (ESA) May 02, 2014 -
Europe's latest Galileo navigation satellite has arrived at the Agency's Netherlands-based technical centre for testing, as the previous two satellites are prepared for transport to French Guiana for launch in summer this year.
The new satellite travelled safely enclosed within an air-conditioned and environmentally-controlled protective container from its manufacturer, OHB in Bremen, Germ ...
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Boeing Showcases Future Commercial Spacecraft Interior
North Las Vegas NV (SPX) May 02, 2014 -
Boeing has unveiled a new commercial interior of its Crew Space Transportation (CST-100) next-generation manned space capsule, showing how people other than NASA astronauts may one day travel to space.
Boeing and partner Bigelow Aerospace highlighted the future commercial interior of the capsule it is developing for NASA, while Bigelow showcased a full-scale model of its BA 330 commercial ...
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