SOCIETY OF AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERS, INC. 485 Lexington Avenue, New York 17, N. Y. Energy Supply and Military Mobility Errol J. Gay Consulting Engineer SOCIETY OF AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERS Automotive Engineering Congress Detroit, Micli. Jan. 13-17, 1964 790A Downloaded from SAE International by University of Leeds, Sunday, August 12, 2018ABSTRACT Without energy supply military mobility would not be possible. Liquid petroleum products will continue to supply energy to the military for some time to come. We and our allies will depend on crude reserves within the United States in time of war, so we would have the sizeable problem of delivery to overseas bases. Wartime requirements would af­ fect normal refinery balances, but could be handled. Mili­ tary equipment must be designed to use available fuels and require a minimum of maintenance. Energy Supply and Military Mobility Errol J. Gay Consulting Engineer A WORLD WAR 11 general once described mobility as "a state of mind." The dictionary described mobility as "the quality or condition of being mobile." But this definition defines only the condition or symptom. It does not accurately re­ flect the vast multitude of items that make up the core and heart of mobility. This hard core is not a vehicle, not an engine, not a gun, not even the soldier - it is, in fact, en­ ergy supply. It is the intent of this paper to explore this subject in some detail in order to make the vital role of mobility and energy supply more understandable. For the purpose of examining what goes into creating a truly mobile military force, let us assume that a major action is taking place on the shore of a mainland some 3000 miles from the United States. The soldier on that shore thinks of mobility in terms of the equip­ ment he uses. To the mud-slogging soldier, mobility is his feet, the shoes he has on, and the ever present mud. For the fork-lift driver, mobility begins and ends with his vehicle; the same is true of the operator of a landing craft or of a tank. The equipment's original concept requires many de­ cisions. Should it be tracked? Will it have wheels? What kind of powerplant will it use? What fuel will it use? This brings us right back to the subject of energy supply as the heart of mobility. The sum total of the information available today indi­ cates that, with few exceptions, the next several genera.tions of military equipment will derive their energy from liquid petroleum and its products. Why? Because it is available-- it can be shipped in bulk, divided into packages - and still smaller packages; it can be handled with reasonable safety; and, as of today, is the cheapest energy commodity we have. What other commodity could be delivered at 3.5 or 10.8 units (or gallons) as needed? Thus we can assume that the piston engine in gasoline or diesel form, and the gas turbine, will provide power for our military vehicles for a long time to come. Proved cmde reserves for the United States only, as of Jan. 1, 1963, are good for 13 years; natural gas reserves for 15 years (Table 1). Proved crude reserves for the Allied World, less the United States, are good for 50 years (Table 2). Possible wartime demands for the Western Hemisphere, when compared to the Jan. 1, 1963 proved reserves, show an 11 year reserve (Table 3). These data are shown to back up earlier statements that liquid petroleum products are avail­ able now and in the foreseeable future. Should conditions arise that would force us to draw on only the Western Hem­ isphere reserves, a war longer than the world could take could be supplied with petroleum products. It might be disastrous for our Western Hemisphere petroleum reserves - but the war could be won! The history of our modern military machine from 1940 to the present has shown that the military and civilians alike do not comprehend the day-to-day complexity of petroleum supply. The petroleum industry, through its research, and it