Assessing the Army Power and Energy Efforts for the Warfighter

Abstract

Armies are dependent on power and energy. When these resources for any reason are not available on the front lines, everything is affected. The importance of petroleum-based liquid fuels in warfare became evident in 1892 when Rudolph Diesel developed his fourcycle spark ignition engine.1 By 1909 the French had switched from coal to oil-fired ships. Japan's inability to obtain sufficient petroleum to supply their war machine was one of the major reasons for their need to expand their dominion to include sources of petroleum. The logistics of warfare in World War II were a controlling factor in critical times. For example, in the European theater General Patton's Third Army, on its dash to Germany, ground to a halt when it ran out of fuel. Similar shortages affected the Germans in the latter stages of the war, especially during the Battle of the Bulge. Fuel supply remains a challenge to logisticians in today's conflicts.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2011
Accession Number
ADA539876

Entities

People

  • James J. Valdes
  • John W. Lyons
  • Richard Chait

Organizations

  • National Defense University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Business Administration
  • Chemical Synthesis
  • Chemistry
  • Electric Power
  • Energy
  • Energy Consumption
  • Hybrid Power
  • Internal Combustion Engines
  • Lithium Ion Batteries
  • Management Personnel
  • Materials Laboratories
  • Materials Science
  • Materials Testing
  • National Security
  • Renewable Energy
  • Solar Cells
  • Turbines

Readers

  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Petroleum Engineering