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Books in Earth and planetary sciences

Elsevier's Earth and Planetary Sciences collection brings together pioneering research on the complexities of our planet and beyond. Covering topics from Earth's structural dynamics and ecosystems to planetary exploration, these titles support advancements in geoscience, environmental science, and space studies, offering essential insights for researchers, professionals, and students.

  • Water Resources and Water Management

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 28
    • January 1, 1987
    • M.K. Jermar
    • English
    The size and number of water projects and other development activities which influence the hydrological cycle have reached such proportions that the majority of problems involved extend beyond the boundaries of the traditional disciplines of hydraulics, hydrochemistry, hydrology and hydrogeology.New scientific methods for the solution of the contemporary problems in water management include analogy, operation research, system analysis and cybernetics. The distinctive features of these methods are their emphasis on measurement and on the use of conceptual models described in quantitative terms, the verification of their theoretical predictions, and their awareness that concepts are conditional and subject to growth and continuous change. This new approach should be defined within the framework of water resources management, i.e. within a complex of activities whose objective is the optimum utilization of water resources with regard to their quality and availability and the requirements of society. These water management activities should at the same time also ensure an optimum living environment, above all through protection of water resources against deterioration and exhaustion as well as through the protection of society against the harmful effects of water. In the course of these activities water resources management should avail itself of the entire spectrum of explicit sciences, gradually coming to form the sphere of its own theory.This monograph deals with the fundamental interdisciplinary problems of this complex sphere, an understanding of which is indispensable for successful water resources management in the widest sense of its social functions and environmental consequences. Thus, a common basis is provided for the mutual understanding of specialists from different backgrounds.
  • Reservoir Sedimentation

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 29
    • January 1, 1987
    • G.W. Annandale
    • English
    Research on reservoir sedimentation in recent years has been aimed mainly at water resources projects in developing countries. These countries, especially in Africa, often have to cope with long droughts, flash floods and severe erosion problems. Large reservoir capacities are required to capture water provided by flash floods so as to ensure the supply of water in periods of drought. The problem arising however is that these floods, due to their tremendous stream power, carry enormous volumes of sediment which, due to the size of reservoirs, are virtually deposited in toto in the reservoir basin, leading to fast deterioration of a costly investment. Accurate forecasting of reservoir behaviour is therefore of the utmost importance.This book fills a gap in current literature by providing in one volume comprehensive coverage of techniques required to practically investigate the effects sediment deposition in reservoirs has on the viability of water resources projects. Current techniques for practically estimating sediment yield from catchments, estimating the volume of sediment expected to deposit in reservoirs, predicting sediment distribution and calculating scour downstream of reservoirs are evaluated and presented. The liberal use of diagrams and graphs to explain the various techniques enhances understanding and makes practical application simple. A major feature of the book is the application of stream power theory to explain the process of reservoir sedimentation and to develop four new methods for predicting sediment distribution in reservoirs.The book is primarily directed at practising engineers involved in the planning and design of water resources projects and at post-graduate students interested in this field of study.
  • Application of Optimal Control Theory to Enhanced Oil Recovery

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 21
    • January 1, 1987
    • W. Fred Ramirez
    • English
    In recent years, enhanced oil recovery techniques have received much attention in the oil industry. Enhanced oil recovery methods can be divided into three major categories: thermal processes which include steam flooding, steam stimulation, and in-situ combustion; chemical processes which include surfactant-polymer injection, polymer flooding, and caustic flooding; and miscible displacement processes which include miscible hydrocarbon displacement, carbon dioxide injection of large amounts of rather expensive fluids into oil bearing reservoir formations. Commercial application of any enhanced oil recovery process relies upon economic projections that show a decent return on the investment. Because of high chemical costs, it is important to optimize enhanced oil recovery processes to provide the greatest recovery at the lowest chemical injection cost.The aim of this book is to develop an optimal control theory for the determination of operating strategies that maximize the economic attractiveness of enhanced oil recovery processes. The determination of optimal control histories or operating strategies is one of the key elements in the successful usage of new enhanced oil recovery techniques. The information contained in the book will therefore be both interesting and useful to all those working in petroleum engineering, petroleum management and chemical engineering.
  • Surface Operations in Petroleum Production I

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 19A
    • January 1, 1987
    • English
  • Quartz

    • 1st Edition
    • January 1, 1987
    • Michael O'Donoghue
    • Peter G. Read
    • English
  • Jet

    • 1st Edition
    • January 1, 1987
    • Helen Muller
    • Peter G. Read
    • English
  • Amber

    • 1st Edition
    • January 1, 1987
    • Helen Fraquet
    • Peter G. Read
    • English
  • Coal Exploration, Mine Planning and Development

    • 1st Edition
    • December 31, 1986
    • Roy Merritt
    • English
    This is an important look at coal exploration and mining worldwide, with discussions on the parameters and decision-making factors in drilling and processing coal.
  • The Petroleum Handbook

    • 6th Edition
    • December 1, 1986
    • Shell
    • English
    Those connected with the petroleum industry will need no introduction to The Petroleum Handbook. It is a technically-oriented manual whose aim is to provide explanations of the processes of today's petroleum industry, from crude oil exploration to product end use, with some historical background and explanation of the economic context in which the oil, gas and petrochemical businesses operation. Much of the material in this sixth edition is completely new and includes the latest information on world oil and gas reserves, future prospects, transportation, storage, refining, marketing, research, and environmental conservation.
  • Vitamins and Hormones

    • 1st Edition
    • Volume 43
    • November 17, 1986
    • English