Value of time: Speeding behavior and gasoline prices

‘Value of Time’ (VOT) is a key parameter in economics and policy. This paper presents an alternative method to estimate VOT by analyzing an hourly dataset on drivers speeding behavior as a function of the gasoline price. Our identification strategy is novel as it is based on the intensive margin. In comparison, previous studies reveal VOT on the extensive margin, but choice alternatives have multiple attributes thereby potentially confounding estimates. Consistent with the range of the prior literature, we find a VOT of about 50% of the wage rate and analyze sources of bias from accidents and traffic tickets. These bias functions suggest that previous stated preference VOT estimates are likely downward whereas previous revealed preference estimates are likely upward biased.     

Gasoline prices and traffic safety in Mississippi

Problem

Limited literature suggests that gasoline prices have substantial effects on reducing fatal crashes. However, the literature focuses only on fatal crashes and does not examine the effects on all traffic crashes.

Methods

Mississippi traffic crash data from April 2004–December 2008 from the Mississippi Highway Patrol and regular-grade unleaded gasoline price data from the Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy were used to investigate the effects of gasoline prices on traffic safety by age, gender, and race.

Results

Gasoline prices have both short-term and intermediate-term effects on reducing total traffic crashes and crashes of females, whites, and blacks. The intermediate-term effects are generally stronger than the short-term effects. Gasoline prices also have short-term effects on reducing crashes of younger drivers and intermediate-term effects on older drivers and male drivers.

Impact on Industry

Higher gasoline taxes reduce traffic crashes and may result in additional societal benefits.     

The impact of gasoline emission on plants – a review

This review presents the status of knowledge about gasoline exhaust pollution and its impact biochemical and physiological characteristics of plants. Parameters on such as leaf conductance, membrane permeability, ascorbic acid, chlorophyll and relative water content have been used as indicators to assess the impact of gasoline exhaust pollution on plant health. Tolerant plants such as Mangifera indica Linn. are reported showing an insignificant decrease in the percentage of chlorophyll content (3.6%) and a significant increase in the percentage of ascorbic acid (84.6%) and sensitive plants such as Cassia fistula are reported showing a significant decrease in the percentage of chlorophyll (66.4%) as well as ascorbic acid (32.9%). In the case of ornamental plants, Dracaena deremensis has been reported to show an insignificant decrease in the chlorophyll content but a significant increase in the ascorbic acid, pH and relative water content, which were found to be in tolerant category, while Dianthus caryophyllus showed sensitive characteristics. Such plants can be used as sinks and bioindicators for gasoline exhaust pollution. Though several studies reported biochemical impacts of individual or combined exhaust gases on plant species, the cumulative effect of gasoline exhaust on plant species has not been studied extensively, especially in the developing countries.     

European regulations to reduce lead emissions from automobiles – did they have an economic impact on the German gasoline and automobile markets?

Environmental protection policies in the automobile market were not implemented until the motorisation of the masses in the 1960s caused an increasing environmental burden. The rising air pollution was considered a latent danger to humans, animals and plants. In the years up to 1985 the EU passed several regulations to limit the mass pollutants CO, CxHy and NOx. Germany was the first EU-member nation to also be concerned with lead in gasoline, passing reduction regulations as early as 1971. In 1986, several EU-member nations implemented the supply of unleaded gasoline. This decision was predominantly based on information about widespread forest damage. The reduction of lead emissions due to these regulations could be verified in different environmental systems. An example of this was the decline of atmospheric lead concentrations and human blood lead levels in Germany. With regard to industries, the German mineral oil and automobile markets were affected mostly. The price trend of gasoline was no longer only influenced by varying crude oil prices but also by tax discrimination between leaded and unleaded fuel. With regard to the distribution system, the market positions particularly of the medium-sized traders and the independent importers were weakened. In the automobile market, favourable terms of competition were experienced by producers who had already gained experience with catalyst systems in the US market. The Gasoline Lead Content Regulations had no significant effects on further economic indicators, except for competition. Electronic Publication     

汽油车尾气遥感检测结果统计分析与限值制定

选取汽油车尾气中CO、HC、NO等3种气态污染物,以稳态工况法为基准,与车辆实际行驶时的遥感测试结果比对,从而制定相应的排放控制限值。建议遥感检测法对于CO、HC、NO的限值,2001年10月1日前注册登记的汽油车分别为3．0％、1000×10-6、3500×10-6,2001年10月1日起注册登记的汽油车分别为2．0％、500×10-6、2000×10-6。提出当机动车所有人对检测结果有异议时,可在规定期限内至指定机构按年检方法复检。     

Three-dimensional visualization and quantification of non-aqueous phase liquid volumes in natural porous media using a medical X-ray Computed Tomography scanner

This study demonstrates the capabilities of a typical medical X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) scanner to non-destructively quantify non-aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) volumes, saturation levels, and three-dimensional spatial distributions in packed soil columns. Columns packed with homogeneous sand, heterogeneous sand, or natural soil, were saturated with water and injected with known quantities of gasoline or tetrachloroethene and scanned. A methodology based on image subtraction was implemented for computing soil porosity and NAPL volumes in each 0.35 mm x 0.35 mm x 1 mm voxel of the columns. Elimination of sample positioning errors and instrument drift artifacts was essential for obtaining reliable estimates of above parameters. The CT data-derived total NAPL volume was in agreement with the measured NAPL volumes injected into the columns. CT data-derived NAPL volume is subject to a 2.6% error for PCE and a 15.5% error for gasoline, at average NAPL saturations as low as 5%, and is mainly due to instrument noise. Non-uniform distributions of NAPL due to preferential flow, and accumulation of NAPL above finer-grained layers could be observed from the data on 3-D distributions of NAPL volume fractions.     

Laboratory evidence of MTBE biodegradation in Borden aquifer material

Mainly due to intrinsic biodegradation, monitored natural attenuation can be an effective and inexpensive remediation strategy at petroleum release sites. However, gasoline additives such as methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) can jeopardize this strategy because these compounds often degrade, if at all, at a slower rate than the collectively benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and the xylene (BTEX) compounds. Investigation of whether a compound degrades under certain conditions, and at what rate, is therefore important to the assessment of the intrinsic remediation potential of aquifers. A natural gradient experiment with dissolved MTBE-containing gasoline in the shallow, aerobic sand aquifer at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Borden (Ontario, Canada) from 1988 to 1996 suggested that biodegradation was the main cause of attenuation for MTBE within the aquifer. This laboratory study demonstrates biologically catalyzed MTBE degradation in Borden aquifer-like environments, and so supports the idea that attenuation due to biodegradation may have occurred in the natural gradient experiment. In an experiment with batch microcosms of aquifer material, three of the microcosms ultimately degraded MTBE to below detection, although this required more than 189 days (or >300 days in one case). Failure to detect the daughter product tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) in the field and the batch experiments could be because TBA was more readily degradable than MTBE under Borden conditions.     

甲基叔丁基醚和三羰基甲基戊基锰的毒理学比较

在汽油无铅化的进程中，甲基叔丁基醚和三羰基甲基戊基锰是两种主要的汽油添加剂。它们可有效地增加汽油的辛烷值，提高汽油的燃烧效率；同时，作为氧化剂，还可减少ＣＯ和其它有在物质的排放。但是，这两种物质会否给人体健康带来潜在的危害或影响，也日益引起广泛的关注。     

废弃塑料裂解油化技术

综述了废弃塑料进行热裂解和催化裂解以获得聚合单体、柴油、汽油和燃料气的工艺原理、工艺流程和常用的裂解催化剂。指出裂解油化技术是今后处理废弃塑料的主要方式之一。     

汽油密闭液下装车与油气回收

着重探讨了我厂汽油密闭液下装车的现状，存在的问题及改进的措拖，论述了实现我厂汽油装车油气回收是减少汽油装车损耗的途径。