Robert Rapier

Shout outs to Robert Rapier

sara: hi robert - great to see your comments! keep em coming. about 1 year ago

About Me

I am a chemical engineer working for "Big Oil." I am very concerned that we are stumbling into the future unprepared for the formidable energy challenges ahead. My career has been devoted to energy issues. I have worked on cellulosic ethanol, butanol production, oil refining, natural gas production, and gas-to-liquids (GTL). I was born in Oklahoma, received my M.S. in chemical engineering from Texas A&M University, and recently left Montana for an assignment in Scotland. I maintain the R-Squared Energy Blog, a blog on my travels in Europe, and a blog on what I have been reading.

Featured Graphs

The Power of Compounding Money

People always find this hard to believe. Ask them to double a penny each day for 30 days. This shows what you end up with.

Featured Data Sets

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Recent Comments

Dollars by Day

Robert Rapier: This shows the effect of compounding money. If you take a penny on Day 1, and double the amount each day, this graph shows how that penny grows (although this graph is not cumulative; I did not sum the amounts as I went along). On Day 10, you are only at $5.12, at Day 20 you are up to $5,243, and on Day 30 you are at $5.4 million. This is the same concept that can allow someone earning a small salary to become a millionaire - providing they start saving early in life. (about 1 year ago)

Production of crude
oil..

Robert Rapier: This is a great summary of information. It answers a number of questions that people constantly pose to me about oil production statistics. Thanks for posting this. (about 1 year ago)

U.S. Gasoline
Inventories..

Robert Rapier: We are currently heading into summer driving season with very low gasoline inventories. If the trend does not change soon, we could be facing $4/gal gasoline this summer. (about 1 year ago)

databong: There was a study by some microeconomist in the last year or so (I'll try to find it) that said that in the US, demand for gasoline is so inelastic, that it would take prices of $7/gallon for significant changes in consumer behavior. So while $4/gallon seems high, my guess is it will just generate a lot of sensational "the sky is falling" kind of breathy press coverage, but there will be very little shifts from heavy trucks and SUVs or a movement from the exurbs to more dense living arrangements that reduce commute time. (11 months ago)