EES 119 Test 1
random coal facts
- 2011 study: 70% of rail traffic transporting coal • 1900-2011: • >100,000 workers killed in underground mining accidents in U.S. • >200,000 workers killed from "black lung" disease • Mountaintop removal: deforestation increases GHG footprint by ~17%; may have further emissions if soil C released • Other MTR impacts: streams damaged/polluted/filled, mudslides & dislodged boulders/trees, flash floods, blasts can damage housing, loss in property values, timber resources, crops, tourism, ammonia release from explosions, dust
Keystone XL
- Secretary of State has authority for international fossil-fuel infrastructure - Invites TransCanada to "promptly re-submit" application - Sec'y of State shall decide within 60 days - All past environmental assessment shall hold true (NEPA & ESA) - Expedited review of impacts on water, land use, migratory birds
1 gw to kw
1 gw = 1,000,000 kw
kw to watts
1 kw equals 1,000 watts
mw to kw
1 mw - 1,000 kw
1 terawatt to kw
1 tw = 1,000,000,000 kw
watts to jouls
1 watt = 1 j/sec
how do you get rid of sulfur from coal production places?
1) scrub the smokestack after combustion to remove the sulfur from exhaust gases or 2) use a cleaner-burning, low-sulfur coal. Generally speaking, switching coal sources is much easier.
causes of oil shortage after sandy
1. Coastal refineries closed down 2. Power outage a) Gas stations can't operate b) Back-up generators require gas 3. Panic
protective action regarding fraking
1. Collect baseline data on well-water and air quality. 2. Use zoning and setbacks to protect property owners. 3. Plan for large water withdrawals and wastewater disposal. 4. Require transparency: full disclosure of fracking fluids and regulatory process. 5. Assess a fee for each well drilled. 6. Determine civil penalties for safety violations of drilling and disposal. 7. Establish a website for resources on shale-gas issues.
How much energy does the US use per year
100 quads 70 million btu per person
petroleum consumption in US
19 MMBD Over two-thirds of the consumption fuels transportation. The remainder goes to the industrial, residential, and commercial sectors. A small fraction of petroleum is for electricity generation, mostly in Hawaii or as backup power in diesel generators. ndustrial use, as a feedstock for materials and as a source of process heat, has remained level for several decades. Use in the residential-commercial sector, primarily for water and space heating, has remained level or dropped. Also power sector
gain or swell
42 to 44
petroleum end uses
72% of petroleum is used for transportation; 23% of petroleum goes to industry, usually as a processed chemical to make materials like plastics or as a source for heat in manufacturing; and 4% of petroleum is used in the residential and commercial sector, mostly for space and water heaters including central boilers in the Northeast. Less than 1% of petroleum is used for electric power.
future energy projections
According to their projections, oil will continue to dominate, followed by natural gas, coal, nuclear, and renewables, in that order use expected is lowered every time
Background on EOR
Advanced oil recovery • Used since 1970s • Inject CO2 to produce "stranded oil" • EOR good sides for CO2 storage: • Oil companies: experience managing, injecting and tracking CO2 • Depleted oil fields have storage capacity • EOR fields have facilities to manage/inject CO2 • Oil fields are known traps (held fossil fuels) • Locations are used to oil/gas activity • Value to companies that may sell CO2 • Multiple wells allow management of plume (if spreads)
Advantages and disadvantages to coal
Air quality Pollutants (acid rain, smog, health impacts) Greenhouse gases Land use Waste production Water quality Health impacts waste during extraction and combustion leaks and acid rain
HIA issues addressed (health impact assessment) with fraking
Air quality Water and soil Traffic Noise, vibration, and light Community wellness Economic and employment Health infrastructure Accidents and malfunctions
problems with mercury
Airborne mercury à water à converted to methylmercury à accumulates in fish à people eat contaminated fish à damage to nervous system Finalized December 2011 • Applies to coal and oilfired power plants >25MW • Emissions standards: based on bestperforming current facilities • Up to 4 years to comply
how fossil fuels are made
Ancient organic matter stored energy from the sun through photosynthesis. Over time, ancient sedimentary layers of organic matter became coal seams, oil reservoirs, and gas pockets. Plant material in swamps or bogs subjected to several million years of high pressures, geological forces, and temperatures formed coal seams.
units of energy
Btu Calorie Joule kWh
units for energy
Btu quad joules kWh one kilojoule represents 1,000 joules and one megajoule equals 1 million joules calorie food calories, and are equivalent to kilocalories, which are 1,000 times larger than thermal calories. In other words, the energy contained in 1 food calorie is enough to raise the temperature of 1,000 grams of water by 1°C.
changes in 2015 with coal
China: generation dropped due to slow increase in electricity demand and diversification in supply US: consumption dropped 15% due to cheap natural gas & Mercury and Air Toxics Standards leading to coal plants closing Biggest growth in India, Vietnam, Indonesia Prices rebounded in 2016 because China reduced production
coal tradeoffs
Coal extraction incurs significant land disturbance, especially for surface mining in the mountains. Coal combustion is very carbon-intensive, which exacerbates concerns about global climate change. Over millennia, coal has served as nature's water filter, cleaning the water by removing heavy metals and other elements and trapping them. Unfortunately, un-scrubbed coal combustion releases those heavy metals and other pollutants into the environment, including sulfur, mercury, and other toxins. In general, coal is dirtier than the other fossil fuels. On the other hand, coal is abundant, domestic, and historically cheap. The ease of storing coal—usually done by creating massive piles of the unburned rock—provides another advantage when compared to other fuels. Storage benefits power plant operators because it ensures fuel availability, even in the event of a supply disruption. It is not unusual for a 30-to-60-day supply of coal to sit outside a power plant. price advantage
coal end uses
Coal is closely coupled with generating electric power, which is responsible for 91% of its consumption. Most of the rest of the coal use in the United States is for cement or steel production, for which it provides heat and carbon. Before the 1950s, coal was used extensively for transportation in the form of coal-fired steam trains and also for heating buildings, but today those uses have been displaced by petroleum for transportation and a mix of natural gas, fuel oil, and electricity for space heating.
dirty natural gas
Dirty gas, also known as acid gas, has high fractions of CO2, which is not useful as fuel and therefore lowers the quality and value of natural gas.
first two laws of thermodynamics
ENERGY IS CONSERVED The second law of thermodynamics describes the unavoidable energy loss in a system, also known as ENTROPY. also the sun is the source of the most energy on earth
community changes with fraking
Economic growth Industrial activity in a previously non-industrial area Perceived loss of shared community ideals and cohesion Haves and have-nots (leases, employment, service sector) Declining property values Yet higher rents Infrastructure impacts Rapid population growth and change Cultural differences Increased crime Conflict management Employment challenges for local businesses Local control
What is the general formula that relates energy and power?
Energy = power X time Power = energy / time
Power for refineries? Pollution from refineries?
Energy Return on Investment (EROI): ratio of energy output to life-cycle energy input • Oil (1920s) - 100:1 • Conventional oil (current) - 20:1 • Canadian tar sands - 5:1
energy vs power
Energy is a quantity. power is a rate. It is the rate at which energy is produced, moved, or consumed. That means power is a measure of energy per unit of time, or work per unit of time. Power measures how quickly something is being done or how quickly energy is being consumed
oil spills
Exxon Valdez deep water horizon
pros and cons of flaring
Flaring prevents the gas from accumulating to unsafe levels, which would otherwise produce a risk for explosion. Further, from a climate perspective, burning the gas mitigates climate damage caused by venting gas, as unburned methane has much higher radiative forcing than carbon dioxide produced by combustion in the flare. Flaring has negative impacts in several ways. In addition to producing noise pollution, light pollution, and air pollution (flares can often be smelled from a far distance away) flaring wastes a lot of energy. In North Dakota, up to 30% of the gas extracted from the ground was flared in the early 2000s.[1] Even in Texas, where the gas pipeline infrastructure is extensive, flaring increased six-fold from 2010 to 2013, from 0.1% to 0.6% of production.
types of water in fraking
Flowback fluid - fluid used for fracturing returns to the surface after stimulation Formation water - water from joints and pores in the Marcellus Shale itself Produced water - wastewater that comes up with the gas after the well begins producing gas
what is in a barrel of oil?
For each barrel of crude that enters a facility, average refineries in the United States produce about 20 gallons of gasoline; about 10 gallons of diesel; a smaller percentage of kerosene, jet fuels, distillate, and residual fuel oils; and other products like waxes, tars, and asphalts.
water during fraking
For example, conventional and unconventional wells require drilling through the aquifer. Current regulation requires a secure well casing made from cement surrounding the shaft through the aquifer to avoid contaminating the groundwater. However, wells drilled for hydraulic fracturing undergo higher pressures and use different combinations of chemicals, placing cement casings under higher stress and raising the importance of installing them correctly. earthquakes Other public concerns include the possibility of fracturing fluids seeping into the aquifer. In theory, fluids can seep thousands of feet from the point of fracturing into the aquifer, but little evidence supports this possibility. Generally speaking, the biggest water risks center on surface water, not groundwater. Risks persist wherever water is stored above-ground, along roads where fracturing fluids and wastewater are trucked and could spill, and in locations where ill-equipped wastewater treatment plants accept water despite its exceeding their capabilities. 2-9 million gallons of water used per well
key properties of oil
High energy density (~42 MJ/kg for crude oil) Relatively easy to transport and store Valuable feedstock for products Most valuable global commodity
hydrofraking
High-volume Horizontal Slick-water Hydraulic fracturing Goal: create/extend network of joints (fractures) to allow trapped natural gas to flow into a well Process: Inject high-pressure fluid Break rocks at weak points Prop fractures open so gas can flow back into well
wet/dry natural gas
Higher fractions of natural gas liquids (NGLs), such as ethane, butane, and propane, characterize wet gas. Higher fractions of methane characterize dry gas because it contains relatively fewer NGLs.
recent regulations
House resolution (HR) 36: overrule BLM regulation to limit GHG emissions from flaring, venting and leaks on public and tribal land - HR 69: repeal FWS rule giving federal govt. control over managing populations on national wildlife refuges - Trump action HJ Res 41: allows secret payments from oil companies to foreign governments - Trump action HJ Res 38: kills Stream Protection Rule - Expected actions: overturn Clean Water Rule, Clean Power Plan, moratorium on coal leasing on federal lands
calculations
How to convert between Joules and kWh How to convert a power used/produced for a given time interval into energy (eg, W to kWh) How to use prefixes in calculations (T, M, G, k)
problem with hydrofraking and pads
In addition to threats of land disturbance, equipment at pad sites is prone to leaks introducing impacts on air quality. Leaks include greenhouse gases and pollutants that can degrade air quality. Additional emissions are produced from associated equipment, including pumps and diesel trucks on-site. Producers also worry about the sand used as proppants, which can blow out from the hoppers and create small dust clouds, reducing visibility and worsening air quality.
units of power
Its units include watts (named for Scottish inventor James Watt), kilowatts, megawatts, gigawatts, and horsepower. power density, which is the power per unit of area energy equals power times time For a 100-watt light bulb, its instantaneous power consumption is 100 watts, which means after 1 hour, it would consume 100 watt-hours, or 0.1 kWh
lightness in oil
Lightness refers to the viscosity of the petroleum. Low viscosity renders light crudes easy to handle. Heavy crudes flow less easily and are harder to manage.
Smil insights ********* 1/23 lecture
National-scale transitions: time scales from a century+ to a few years Global-scale transitions: all gradual and prolonged Fossil-fuel dominated civilization Transition motivated by limiting increase in global temperature, which necessitates decarbonization No evidence of accelerating global transition Only small shift in global electricity generation Not "extraordinarily rapid" growth in new renewables Even in deliberate transitions (Germany), only gradual progress Intermittency of wind and solar requires large FF systems for backup power Predict still get 70% global energy from FF by 2040. Challenge: difficult to replace liquid fuels Bigger challenge: replace fossil carbon used in manufacturing of iron, cement, ammonia & plastics Cannot simply throw away massive investment of infrastructure
composition of natural gas
Natural gas composition is not homogeneous. Methane (CH4) is the primary component of natural gas. However, natural gas includes many other hydrocarbon constituents such as ethane (C2H6), propane (C3H8), and butane (C4H10). Gas from geological deposits can also have high fractions of inert gases like CO2. Species like sulfur (S) might contaminate the mix in the form of hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Because natural gas is a balance of different components, producers must achieve a certain energy threshold before natural gas is "pipeline quality" and ready for distribution and sale via the gas grid. The standard varies around the world from roughly 700 to 1,300 British thermal units per standard cubic foot (Btu/Scf). Natural gas lacks a natural smell, which is a safety concern since the gas is highly combustible. Therefore, an odor is added to help identify gas leaks. Natural gas companies add a form of mercaptan (SH4), which has a similar chemical structure as CH4 and is very easy to detect due to its strong odor.
natural gas end uses
Natural gas has diverse applications, and consequently its use is split roughly into thirds across industry, electric power, and the residential/commercial sectors. In industry, natural gas serves not only as feedstock for materials and chemicals, such as fertilizers, but also as a source of process heat. In the residential and commercial sectors natural gas provides fuel for heating, cooking, and water heating. To date, transportation uses very little natural gas, primarily to operate compressors for pipelines, though the use of natural gas in cars and trucks is growing.
natural gas tradeoffs
Natural gas, just like coal and all other resources, has its merits and drawbacks. Natural gas is relatively clean compared to coal and petroleum. Burning natural gas emits fewer pollutants such as carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen oxides (NOX), sulfur oxides (SOX), particulate matter (PM), and heavy metals like mercury (Hg). Domestic abundance, relative affordability, and resource flexibility are among the merits of natural gas. The drawbacks of natural gas include many environmental factors. Even though it is relatively clean at its point of use, its full life cycle, including extraction and distribution, negatively impacts the environment. For example, surface equipment for extraction impacts the land at the drilling pad. Advanced production methods like hydraulic fracturing require abundant water, and flaring and fugitive emissions remain unresolved issues. In addition to its environmental risks, natural gas has had historically volatile prices, which introduces difficulties for consumers and planners. Natural gas leaks introduce more problems. While switching from coal to natural gas in the power sector helps to reduce CO2 emissions, methane leaks from the natural gas system might undo the good of displacing coal because the methane (CH4) is a much more potent greenhouse gas. Gas leaks are not only an environmental problem but also a safety concern, as explosions can occur if gas accumulates to dangerous levels. Unfortunately, these types of explosions occur too often due to leaks in the aging natural gas infrastructure.
why risk seems higher with fraking
New or complex "Unnecessary" rather than beneficial Involuntary/affects those not involved in decision-making Unfair distribution of risks Alternatives seriously considered?
mineral extration on BIA (indian affrairs) land
Often takes 3x as long to go through 50 steps of permitting/approval vs if on private land AND poor management in BIA long times and lost revenue Estimated: 2% of nation's land and up to 20% of US oil and gas reserves, also lots of coal Some tribes rejected drilling because of environmental risks Others see economic benefits
how are oil sands produced?
Oil sands, or bitumen, which were known as tar sands for decades, can be produced using two approaches: 1) mining and 2) in-situ. Mining removes several hundred feet of overburden to scrape oil sands using front loaders, similar to coal mining or other traditional surface mining techniques. Trucks transport oil sands from the site to processing plants, where producers dilute the bitumen and pipe intermediaries to refineries. Until the point of dilution, oil sands are essentially a solid fuel, not at all like the fluid of conventional petroleum. The in-situ method is used for deeper deposits and has the advantage of less topographic disruption. Instead of mining the surface, producers drill two wells: an injection well and a producing well. The injection well employs steam in what is called steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD). Steam injected into the wells transforms the oil sands into a liquid form that then flows out of the producing well to the surface.
market influences of shale
One of those impacts is the decoupling of North American oil and gas prices. Oil and gas prices have fluctuated for years, but typically moved in the same direction and showed similar trends. In 2008, natural gas prices in North America separated from petroleum as gas prices dropped while petroleum prices increased. Early shale activity produced natural gas, not liquids, flooding markets with an abundance of gases while tight markets for liquids remained. Today separation persists because the global liquid petroleum market heavily influences domestic oil prices, keeping them relatively high. By contrast, global gas markets do not heavily influence domestic natural gas prices. That separation is another of the significant market impacts. Just as natural gas prices separated from oil prices, North American natural gas prices decoupled from global natural gas prices.
Why oil is so great
Petroleum-based fuels have both high gravimetric energy density, which is the energy density per unit mass, and high volumetric energy density, which is the energy density per unit volume. As a result, a small amount of mass or a small amount of volume stores large quantities of energy. A single tank of gasoline can move a car several hundreds of miles, a feat difficult for other fuels to match. Petroleum and petroleum products can be piped thousands of miles without losing their molecular attributes. Therefore, crude oil pumped through pipelines or transported in a ship's hold over thousands of miles remains crude oil. The same applies for gasoline and other refined fuels. This product stability is an advantage for storing and distributing the fuels for a global customer base. In addition to molecular stability, these fuels have convenient boiling and freezing points for liquid fuels. Jet fuel remains liquid on the tarmac in Iraq in summer, on the tarmac in Alaska in winter, or in planes at high altitudes where the temperatures are even lower.
primary vs secondary energy
Primary energy consists of unconverted or original fuels. Secondary energy includes resources that have been converted or stored. For example, primary energy sources include petroleum, natural gas, coal, biomass, flowing water, wind, and solar radiation. Those are the fuels that can be mined, reaped, extracted, harvested, or harnessed directly. Secondary energy cannot be harnessed directly from nature; rather, secondary energy is energy that has already been converted. For example, electricity cannot be mined or harvested, though it is available in quick bursts on occasion from lightning. It is generated as a secondary form from primary fuels, like natural gas. Hydrogen is also a secondary form because it is not harvested from nature but produced by reformation of natural gas or electrolysis of water.
possibilities of problems with wastewater
Producers often store wastewater on-site in ponds or pits before disposal. Because of the possibility for leaks, pits should be lined to protect the soil and groundwater from contamination. Although infrequent, leaks do occur. Few areas have enough closely spaced wells to support a makeshift pipeline network, so trucks typically haul both water for hydraulic fracturing and wastewater to be disposed of or treated. Trucks introduce noise, air pollution, and dust. They damage roads and increase risks of accidents, including property damage, bodily injury, and death on roads and highways. Likewise, a collision or spill can contaminate water resources. Because of wastewater's high TDS, even specialized treatment facilities are not always able to treat the wastewater to safe standards before returning it to waterways. Water passing under-processed through wastewater treatment facilities but returned to rivers pollutes surface water. In some regions where shale production boomed quickly, massive volumes of low-quality wastewater overwhelmed the regional treatment infrastructure capacity. injecting it back into the ground: However, if producers inject water at or near a fault, the fluids and high pressure can lubricate the fault, inducing seismicity. Several events of artificially induced seismicity from wastewater injection relate to shale gas production. Another solution would be recycling wastewater whereby producers take the wastewater from one well and reuse it at subsequent wells after minimal treatment. This process mitigates environmental and seismological risks but often poses logistical difficulties, depending on location.
the four largest fields in North America for shale
Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk Field in Alaska, Spraberry Field in West Texas, and the East Texas oil field
air pollution in fraking
Return fluids carry gases that vent into air Volatile organic carbons (VOCs): toxic, contribute to smog Heavy truck travel: 2,000+ trips/well Generators/other equipment Cited as biggest health concern in one study Each part of process counted separately à looser rules in Clean Air Act Natural gas industry exempt from 7/15 federal environmental laws
Tar sands / oil sands basics
Sandstone reservoirs: mix of clay, sand, water and bitumen (heavy, viscous crude oil) Must be surface mined or extracted by underground heating Requires extraction, separation & upgrading BEFORE refining Must be diluted before pipeline transport
kenetic energy
Societies have deployed kinetic energy for several applications throughout history. Dutch and Flemish windmills, medieval water wheels, sails, and muscle power are all examples of humans harnessing the natural elements for kinetic energy to do mechanical work. Medieval applications of kinetic energy include the use of power wheels, powered by water or wind, for sawing wood, grinding grain, and polishing glass. Wind and flowing water were used for transportation to move people and cargo using sails or oars. While kinetic energy has been important to mankind for a long time, the defining element of pre-industrial society is the relatively limited use of kinetic energy. Post-industrial societies are marked by a major increase in energy use in the transportation sector with a rise in petroleum-fired engines and with electric motors in the industrial sector instead of waterwheels and windmills.
sweet/sour natural gas
Sour gas has high concentrations of sulfur, and sweet gas has low concentrations of sulfur.
options for treating fraking water?
Storage in open lagoon Storage in tanks Send to treatment plants Recycling and reuse
results of shale production
Sustained price separation between oil and gas and between North American and global gas prices offers an economic boost to the United States and Canada. One immediate result is the onshoring of gas-intensive industries such as fertilizer and chemical manufacturing, which companies had been offshoring to other countries during prior decades. Another result is reduced imports of petroleum and increased exports of petroleum products with favorable price spreads. Additional revenue pours in as producers establish a good economic balance of trade for the United States. As always, trade-offs accompany unconventional fossil fuels. Abundant, cheap natural gas complicates the growth of renewables, as renewables compete with natural gas for market share in the power sector. Balancing the roles of unconventional fossil fuels and other options including renewables remains an important policy challenge.
Sweet/sour oil
Sweet oil or sweet crude has low sulfur content, and sour crude has high sulfur content.
overall energy consumption end us for US
The end-use consumption sectors are residential, taking about 21 quads of energy; commercial, with about 18 quads of energy; industrial, with about 31 quads of energy; and transportation, with about 27 quads of energy.
mechanical/kinetic/electric/thermal /chemical/radiant/atomic energy (Mreact)
The force of an object equals its mass times acceleration Work is the product of force and the distance over which that work is done
uses for natural gas in US
The industrial sector uses natural gas as a source of process heat and as a feedstock for materials. The residential and commercial sectors consume natural gas for cooking and heating. The transportation sector requires natural gas for operating pipeline compressors. Trucks and buses operating on natural gas are a small but growing factor in the transportation sector. 27 tCf industry and electric power, top two, then residential
renewables end use
The majority of the renewable energy consumption is in biofuels for transportation and in the form of hydroelectric, wind turbines, geothermal, and solar for electric power generation. Renewables provide about 9% of the energy for the residential and commercial sectors. The use of wood pellets and wood stoves for home heating or water heating is growing. Renewables also appear in the paper industry, where pulp or sawdust is used as a fuel to generate heat on-site for making paper. Nuclear is 100% devoted to electricity, because it is not considered a good fit for home heating, industry, or transportation. Even in cases where nuclear power is used for transportation, such as on naval vessels, the nuclear reactors are generating electricity that is then used to power the ship.
petroleum reserves vs resources
The term petroleum resources denotes the total petroleum in the earth's crust. Unproved reserves form a subset of the total resource base including probable and possible reserves. Advanced technology and favorable pricing might render those reserves accessible someday. Proven or proved reserves are the subset of the total resources that can be extracted favorably with today's prices and current technology. Even in the future, despite technological advances, producers will never be able to extract the total resource from the crust. • Resources: total amount existing • Reserves: amount known/accessible • Proved • Probable • Technically recoverable • Economically recoverable
thermal energy
There are several examples of applications of thermal energy, or heat, in antiquity for processes like cooking, making glass, boiling soap, and making lye. The fuels used to generate thermal energy were common resources like wood, charcoal, peat, dung, and straw. Both thermal and kinetic energy still occupy a place in the energy mix today, but the sources of energy and the scale of their use have changed over time. Wood, water, wind, and dung transitioned to coal, oil, and electricity. thermal to kinetic was the steam engine
energy use in US
U.S. total energy use ~100 quads U.S. daily petroleum use ~19 million gallons/day
top coal reserves
US
top consumers of natural gas
US
top consumers of oil
US
Gas hydrates
Water ice w/entrapped gas molecules Gas: mostly methane, some higher hydrocarbons or CO2 Stable at low temperature, high pressure conditions Other names: Methane hydrates; Clathrates
oil shale vs sands
While oil shale is a solid hydrocarbon, liquids trapped in shale formations make up shale oils.
coal use in US
about 90% is for electric power, and the rest is for industry For example, the steelmaking and cement-making industries use coal as a source of heat and carbon. The residential and commercial sectors use very little coal though some older homes and buildings in the Northeast use coal for water and space heating through boilers and radiators.
alternative energy
alternative to what varies by use and location
where does most of our oil come from?
canada
Energy efficiency (and how to calculate the overall efficiency of a multi-step process)
capacity factor, what percent you are actually getting out. multiply the steps.
energy intensity
carbon emissions in grams of carbon emitted per British thermal unit (Btu) of energy consumed
why doesn't US export more coal
cheaper for other countries indonisia
top coal producers and consumers
china
unconventional fossil fuels
coal-to-liquids; petroleum from sands, shales, or heavy oils; and natural gas from shales, coalbed methane, and gas-to-liquids unconventional coal includes coal-to-liquids. Unconventional natural gas includes coalbed methane, gas-to-liquids, and shale gas. Unconventional petroleum includes tar sands, also known as oil sands, heavy oil, oil shale, and shale oil.
Upsides to coal
domestic and cheap combustion and land disturbance are problems
fraking waste water
drilling muds, flowback water, and produced water. Drilling muds lubricate the tools and remove the cuttings during the drilling process. Flowback water refers to water that returns over the course of the first few days or weeks of hydraulic fracturing, and produced water refers to water brought to the surface once in production radioactive material
Which sector consumes the most primary energy in the U.S.?**********
electricity, transportation, industrial, residential
upstream
exploration and production finding subterranean reserves, developing fields, and extracting the oil from those fields. peaked in 1981 with 324, now 142 refineries
what happens to gas in the process of hydrofraking
flaring, which brings problems
fossil fuel combustion
fossil fuel + O2 → energy + CO2 + H2O (+ other stuff)
energy return on investment
how much you get / amount of energy needed to obtain
IEA
international energy agency. after 73 energy crisis. Improve availabity of reliabilty of info. Polcy advisor. Oil reserves.
when did peak energy use occur?
late 1970s, 358 btu now around 303
Coal ranked from least to most
lignite, subbatumanious, batuminous, anthracite
beura of land management
manage onshore mineral state. leasing
Downsides of energy consumption?
may not be at the price we want depleting resources national security so economic, environmental, security
What makes a country consume more energy?
more populous farther away extreme weather rich
Why has coal use in steel manufacturing declined in recent years? What is one reason why WY coal production has increased so much relative to WV's?
more recycling Abundant, cheap, low volatility in price, domestic, easy to transport and store Land disruption, carbon emissions, dirty (pollution: sulfur, mercury, "other toxins") Cheaper to do surface mining, also lower-sulfur so easier to comply with regulations on air quality
What fuel source only goes to electricity
nuclear
how is petroleum and natural gas formed?
oceans
possible 4th stream
ome consider the petrochemical sector to be the fourth market segment where petroleum feedstocks become chemicals, intermediates, synthetics, and polymers.
OPEC
organization of peyrolum exporting countries. try and stabalize market. production ceilings.
energy efficiency
output/input
efficiency
overall efficiency is the product of the individual efficiencies of each step, not the sum or average of the individual efficiencies. Therefore, if there are five conversions in a series, multiplying the five efficiencies determines the total efficiency.
what is risk?
probability of occurrence x probability of harm
how is oil shale produced?
production can be done via surface mining or in-situ. In-situ methods use wells to inject heat to melt the rock so it can flow from nearby producer wells. In-situ production induces less topographic disturbance but requires more energy investment. Surface methods remove the rocks from their site, greatly impacting the land. potatoes bulk of US energy reserves
natural gas as bridge fuel??
reduce GHG emissions BUT delay in cleaner energy increasing energy use overall leakage control
downstream
refining and retail Refineries transform crude oil into refined products, blend products with additives or biofuels, and market the fuels
sustainable/green energy
renewables considers multiple impacts varies by location
top reserves and producers of natural gas
russia
hydrofraking and sand?
sand is used to keep the cracks open
top reserves and producers of oil
saudi arabia
what is shale gas?
sedimentary rock from fine-grained mud • Organic material in rock à natural gas • Relatively low concentration of gas + low permeability rock à must artificially fracture • High water needs • High water output
key dimensions of resilience
spare production capacity backup equipment storage capacity along supply chain reserves
carbon emissions over the last century
stable because we were using more energy, despite decarbonization however, Since 2008, carbon emissions in the United States have dropped for three reasons: 1) the economic recession in 2008-2009, which reduced the consumption of energy and therefore reduced carbon emissions, 2) fuel switching, and 3) increases in efficiency. The United States has been switching from more carbon-intensive fuels, like coal, to less carbon-intensive fuels, like natural gas, reducing total emissions in the process. At the same time, more efficient cars, home appliances, and other devices also help to reduce emissions.
renewable energy
strict definition varies by rate of use
how is coal made?
swamps
problem with oil
technical and political support investments innovation
state with the most energy use
texas
feedstock for fossil fuels
the chemical industry uses petroleum, natural gas, and natural gas liquids to manufacture fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, and other chemicals. Fossil fuels not only provide fuels but also products, similar to the way wood is used for fuel in a stove and as feedstock for fence posts or lumber for building a house.
today the global economy consumes most of its energy through only four technologies
the steam turbine, gas turbine, gasoline engine and diesel engine old technologies
top security concerns
tight market/volitile prices instability of oil-exporting nations scramble for suppliers Persian-Gulf specific • Terrorism • Societal stability • Iran General concerns • Attacks on infrastructure • Integrity of entire supply chain
which sector uses the least electricity?
transportation
midstream
transportation and storage oil storage and transportation via pipeline, train, barge, or ship from the upstream to the downstream sector
types of mining, with pros and cons
underground mining and surface mining. Mining companies either remove the coal from the mountain (underground mining) or remove the mountain from the coal (surface mining).[1] Underground mining is the more familiar and classic approach to mining and consists of a pillar-and-boom system where miners create tunnels below the surface. Equipment cuts through the rock and removes the coal and other cuttings from the mountain, with some variation. One variation is the slope mine, which angles down below the ground rather than cutting in a perpendicular fashion. Another version is a shaft mine, in which elevators might extend thousands of feet below the surface. One elevator transports the miners, and another elevator transports coal up to the surface. This system is even more energy intensive, because moving people, equipment, and coal up and down requires energy. Additional depth requires an investment of more energy and more money to extract the coal, so each foot deeper becomes more expensive. Underground methods produce relatively little disturbance on the surface. The mine's footprint might be as small as a mineshaft, an elevator shaft, or a truck-sized opening. While underground mining impacts the land significantly less than surface mining, dangers arise from being underground. Pressure from rock above constantly induces the risk of cave-ins or collapse and leaking gases from coal bed methane introduce a risk of explosion. Underground mining is a trade-off between decreased environmental impacts and increased danger to miners. By contrast, surface mining methods, rather than tunneling or boring through a mountain to reach a coal seam, completely remove the rock and dirt overburden to extract the coal. In mountainous areas such as Appalachia, surface mining removes dirt and rocks which are often dumped in nearby valleys. One variation, the contour bench, requires cutting away the side of the mountain to reach the coal beds. Miners can also remove an entire mountaintop to reach the coal beneath. The environmental impacts of both are quite severe. Many hills in West Virginia have been leveled and flat-topped in a way that is visible from space or from planes in the air. However, surface mining exposes miners and workers to less risk and often costs substantially less than underground mining. While high-impact in Appalachia, if coal lies under large fields or prairies, as in coal fields in the western United States, miners can remove a few feet of overburden, extract the coal, and replace the grass and dirt to reclaim the landscape. Some surface mines resemble a field or a prairie after mining is complete, because the topography is not complicated to reclaim. mostly surface mining
risks of fraking
water in wells (amount and dirty) land death/surface spills leading to water-less hydrofraking with new gel?
Benifits of fraking
who receives them? -people in town -companies Local energy source Cleaner energy source economic
What was the typical pathway of energy sources?
wood > coal + whale oil > oil > natural gas > renewable
which state has leased the most land for natural gas extraction?
wyoming
international collab on oil
• 1974: International Energy Treaty 2007: International Energy Forum - "Energy Security Through Dialogue" - Joint Oil Data Initiative (JODI)
Al Qaeda
• 1996: Protect as "Islamic wealth" • 2004: Use as economic weapon to harm western countries • 2005: terrorist knowledge • 2006: processing plant attack • 2010: oil tanker attack • Future: ??
The Macondo Well
• BP: operated the well • Transocean: owned the well • Halliburton: cemented the well Federal Court ruling 4 September 2014 • BP: 67% responsible - $18 billion in pollution fines for "gross negligence" - Up to $4,300 per barrel spilled - Previous: $4 billion criminal agreement with U.S. govt. • Transocean: 30% responsible - Previous: $1 billion civil settlement with U.S. govt. (Jan. 2013) - Previous: $400 million criminal agreement with U.S. govt. (Jan. 2013) • Halliburton: 3% responsible - Previous: $1.1 billion settlement to Gulf Coast residents (Sept. 2014)
coal combustion
• Blow pulverized coal into furnace • Burns while airborne • Tubes in furnace carry water à steam • Steam à turbine à generator produces electricity • Water is condensed, cooled, circulated back into furnace
regulations regarding acid rain
• Clean Air Act (1970): • Set National Ambient Air Quality Standards • Tracked criteria air pollutants, including SOx and Nox • States establish own implementation plan • CAA Amendments (1990): created Acid Rain Program • Permanent cap on sulfur-dioxide emissions from electricitygenerating units (EGUs) • Created national cap-and-trade program for SO2 • NOx reductions only apply to subset of coal power plants mercury emissions from power plants
Regulatory response to climate change
• Clean Power Plan (2015): • CO2 reductions at fossil fuel-fired electric steam generating units (coal and oil) • CO2 reductions at natural gas-fired combined cycle generating units • Components: • Rate-based goal [pounds/MWh] • Mass-based goal [tons CO2] • Paths to compliance: • Reduce carbon intensity of coal-fired power plants • Substitute natural gas for coal power plants • Substitute zero-carbon renewable sources for coal power plants
Underground CO2 storage
• Geological sequestration (GS) • Larger volumes and time frames than past projects • 2010: new class of wells specifically for large-scale GS • 2011 rules for: • Permitting • Construction • Operation • Plugging of well • Post-injection care • Site closure
Components of the PEIS
• How, when, and where to lease • Address environmental and public health impacts of coal produced on federal lands • Ensure fair return to American taxpayers (adjust current royalty rates?)
Dakota Access
• Instructs Sec'y of Army to review and approve construction permits • Consider "whether to withdraw the Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement in Connection with Dakota Access, LLC's Request for an Easement to Cross Lake Oahe, North Dakota" • "Review and grant, to the extent permitted by law and as warranted, requests for waivers of notice periods arising from or related to USACE [US Army Core of Engineers] real estate policies and regulations".
Coal program review
• January 2016: Secretarial Order 3338: pause on new coal leasing during review • Completion of Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS): evaluation of all environmental and economic effects of Federal Coal Program. • Required reforms focused on transparency: • Publicly available database of carbon emissions from fossil fuels extracted from public lands • Publicly post requests to lease coal or reduce royalties • Facilitate capture of waste mine methane
oil spill policy change
• Minerals Management Service à - Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) - of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) - Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) • Other actions: - Tougher well standards - More frequent inspections - Investigations and Review unit - Policy for employee recusal
transition to oil examples
• Private vehicles: animal-powered à internal combustion engine • Rejection of electric vehicles • Ships and trains: steam à diesel • Boilers: coal à oil • Wood stoves/fireplaces à oil/gas furnaces
sevarence tax
• State tax based on volume or value of production • Iowa, New York, Pennsylvania: no severance tax on fossil fuels • Can be used to advance goals - Ex: Texas: if capture and sell NG previously vented or flared, no severance tax for life of well - No/reduced tax if oil price falls below certain level
Land use impacts for coal
• Stream Protection Rule / Stream Buffer Rule [Dec. 2016, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE)] • Prevents water pollution outside drilling area • Requires protection of restoration of streams • Authorizes mountaintop removal only if not destroying natural waterways • Requires long-term treatment of unexpected water pollution • Outcome: protect 6,000 miles of streams and 52,000 acres of forests mountain top removal
what is energy security?
• Yergin's definition: availability of sufficient supplies at affordable prices • Dimensions: - Physical security - Access to energy - Political and institutional system - Investment Security of SUPPLY - Security of DEMAND availability, stewardship, affordability, efficiency
