Description: Die wirtschaftlichen Erfolge der Explorationsarbeiten auf Kohlenwasserstoffvorkommen in den Schelfgebieten veranlaBten bereits Ende der sechziger Jahre eine Intensivierung der geowissenschaftliehen Forschungsarbeiten an den Kontinentalrändern der Ozeane. Forschungsinstitutionen und Erdölindustrie beteiligen sich an diesen Arbeiten. Ziel dieses Berichtes ist es, an Hand von typischen Beispielen Anhaltspunkte zu gewinnen, ob jenseits der Schelfkante in den tieferen Teilen der Ozeane Kohlenwasserstoffvorkommen auftreten können. Nach den bisherigen Erkenntnissen entsprechen die strukturellen Verhältnisse im Untergrund von Kontinentalabhang und -anstieg oft denen unter dem angrenzenden Kohlenwasserstoff-führenden Schelf. Erdölmuttergesteine sind auch jenseits der Schelfkante bekannt geworden, Speichergesteine sind zu vermuten. Es kann daher im Prinzip auch dort mit Kohlenwasserstoffvorkommen gerechnet werden. Mehrere Konzessionen erstrecken sich über die Schelfkante ins Meer hinaus und erste Aufschlußbohrungen sind bereits in tieferen Wassergebieten der Ozeane abgeteuft worden. Hydrocarbon resources beyond the shelf break? - Based on encouraging results of oil and gas exploration ·activities in the shelf regions of the oceans, geoscientific investigations of the continental margin have considerably intensified since the end of the sixties. Research institutions and oil industry are interested in these investigations. The aim of this paper is to find out, by critical evaluation of some typical examples, wheth•ar there are areas beyond the shelf break that are probably prospective for hydrocarbon deposits. Source rocks have become known in the underground of the deep-water regions, reservoir rocks can be infered. According to our present knowledge, the geological conditions prevailing in the deep underground of the continental slope and rise often correspond to those of the bordering shelf area where oil or gas fields occur. Therefore, hydrocarbon deposits can also be expected beyond the continental shelf. Several oil concessions have already been granted for fields extending beyond the continental shelf and some wild cats have also been drilled there.

Description: Energies, Vol. 11, Pages 2054: Lifetime Prediction of a Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell under Automotive Load Cycling Using a Physically-Based Catalyst Degradation Model Energies doi: 10.3390/en11082054 Authors: Manik Mayur Mathias Gerard Pascal Schott Wolfgang G. Bessler One of the bottlenecks hindering the usage of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell technology in automotive applications is the highly load-sensitive degradation of the cell components. The cell failure cases reported in the literature show localized cell component degradation, mainly caused by flow-field dependent non-uniform distribution of reactants. The existing methodologies for diagnostics of localized cell failure are either invasive or require sophisticated and expensive apparatus. In this study, with the help of a multiscale simulation framework, a single polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) model is exposed to a standardized drive cycle provided by a system model of a fuel cell car. A 2D multiphysics model of the PEMFC is used to investigate catalyst degradation due to spatio-temporal variations in the fuel cell state variables under the highly transient load cycles. A three-step (extraction, oxidation, and dissolution) model of platinum loss in the cathode catalyst layer is used to investigate the cell performance degradation due to the consequent reduction in the electro-chemical active surface area (ECSA). By using a time-upscaling methodology, we present a comparative prediction of cell end-of-life (EOL) under different driving behavior of New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) and Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Cycle (WLTC).