Chapter 19: Fossil fuels, their impacts and energy conservation
What are the variety of energy sources?
-Most of our energy comes from the sun! - Solar, wind, hydroelectric, photosynthesis, biomass.
What is the Keystone XL Pipeline and why are there concerns?
-The U.S. is a major purchaser of this oil -The transcended corp. wants to build an extension to deliver more oil more quickly all the way to Texas.
What are the issues with oil sands/tar sands?
-To get to the sands you have to clear boreal forests and strip mine the area. -The sands are made with hot water and chemicals that create a toxic waste water.
What are the environmental impacts of the mining process?
-environmentally destructive
What are the grades of coal?
-lignite -sub bituminous coal -bituminous coal -anthracite
What impacts EROI?
-ratios can change -they rise as technology improves
How is coal mined?
-strip mined -subsurface mined -mountaintop removal mining
At current levels of production how many years of coal do we have left?
112 more years
When and where was the first oil well drilled?
1859, Titusville, Pennsylvania
At current levels of production how many years of oil do we have left?
54 years of oil left
At current levels of production how many years of natural gas do we have left?
64 more years
For what is most of the energy in the U.S. used for?
A secondary form of energy that us east to transfer and apply to different uses.
EROI (energy returned on investment)
Energy returned divided by energy invested.
Refining
Hydrocarbons are separated into different size classes and are chemically transformed, creating specialized fuels for many uses.
What are oil sands/tar sands?
Layers of sand or clay saturated with a type of petroleum called bitumen.
Which country holds the most natural gas?
Russia
If you were in the geologic explorations business looking for oil and natural gas, where would you explore?
The arctic and the ocean floor.
Which country possesses the most coal?
United States
Peat
a brown, soil-like material characteristic of boggy, acid ground, consisting of partly decomposed vegetable matter. It is widely cut and dried for use in gardening and as fuel.
Methane
a colorless, odorless flammable gas that is the main constituent of natural gas. It is the simplest member of the alkane series of hydrocarbons.
Coal
a hard blackish substance formed from organic matter (woody plant material) compressed under very high pressure to form dense, solid carbon structures.
Anthracite
a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest calorific content of all types of coal except for graphite.
Electricity
a secondary form of energy that is easy to transfer and apply to a variety of uses.
Crude oil (petroleum)
a sludge like liquid mixture of hundreds of different types of hydrocarbon molecules.
Lignite
a soft brownish coal showing traces of plant structure, intermediate between bituminous coal and peat.
Which grade of coal is cleanest burning?
anthracite
What determines the grades of coal?
based on variations in heat and pressure during burial
Bituminous coal
black coal having a relatively high volatile content. It burns with a characteristically bright smoky flame.
Sub bituminous coal
coal is a type of coal whose properties range from those of lignite to those of bituminous coal and are used primarily as fuel for steam-electric power generation.
How is natural gas formed?
formed the same way as oil, but at temps higher than 100 degrees c
Which source of energy is most used in the U.S.?
fossil fuels
How is coal formed?
heat, pressure and time turned the plant material into carbon-rich rock (coal)
Fossil fuel
highly combustible substances from the remains of organisms from past geologic ages
Natural gas
methane (CH4) and other volatile hydrocarbons.
Which part of the world has the most proven crude oil reserves?
middle east
Methane hydrate
molecules of methane in a crystal lattice of ice molecules
Anaerobic decomposition
occurs with little or no air; yields hydrocarbons
What are the three (3) largest sources of fossil fuels consumption for the world?
oil, coal, and natural gas
Nonrenewable energy
once depleted, supplies will not be replaced within any time san useful to our civilization.
Aerobic decomposition
organic material is broken down and recycled in the pretense of air; yields CO2
How is oil formed?
sediment deposited over microsopic plants heat pressure and time turned into hydrocarbons
Oil shale/shale oil
sedimentary rock filled with kerogen
Renewable energy
supplies will not be depleted by our use
Proven recoverable reserve
the amount of oil (or any other fossil fuel) that is technically and economically feasible to remove under current conditions
Net energy
the difference between energy returned and energy invested.
Peak oil
when rate of production peaks and then declines
