Coal liquefaction case study: Impact, potential, forecast

Abstract

The use of databases and microcomputers enables almost anyone to analyse a scientific field. Forecasting scientific production is a way of estimating trends in various countries, patents, thresholds of investment, etc. This analysis of trends can be used to determine research policy. Fundamental research and R&D must obviously be developed with full regard to results present in the international scientific literature. Moreover, it is important to view the various human and financial potentials involved in certain areas. The aim of this paper is to show how, with an information tool such as the Chemical Abstracts database, it is possible to carry out various analyses of scientific subjects. The authors present a real‐life case study developed at the laboratory of the Centre de Recherche Retrospective de Marseille; the work was closely related to the analytical work on various liquefaction products from the French coal liquefaction pilot plant. The database used was Chemical Abstracts. Two periods corresponding to two files have been considered: CA 77 (from 1977 to 1981) and CA 82 (from 1982 to date). The software used allows most types of search, and the mathematical analysis and trends were determined with an Apple II/e computer using the programs Vitrend, Visiplot and Appleplot.

Citation

Dou, H. and Hassanaly, P. (1985), "Coal liquefaction case study: Impact, potential, forecast", Online Review, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 137-146. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb024179