Why Are Coal, Gas, and Natural Gas Called Fossil Fuels?
Coal, oil (or gas), and natural gas are given the label “fossil fuels” because they were formed from the organic remains of carbon-based lifeforms such as prehistoric animals and plants. These fuels date from organisms that died 650 million years ago and have a large concentration o f carbon and hydrocarbons. The generally accepted theory on fossil fuel formation, states that they were formed due to the exposure to extreme heat and pressure inside of the Earth’s crust. Although you don’t have to give up on living a green life if you still use regular gasoline in your car, you should continue to educate yourself on the existing fuels being used in the market place and alternative energy options that are beginning to emerge.
How Much Do We Rely on Fossil Fuels?
Fossil fuels remain the predominant energy source for the world accounting for 86.% of the world’s energy consumption in 2007. Petroleum (or gas) accounts for 36%, coal 27.4%, and natural gas 23.0% of the energy used. Alternative energy usage increased in 2007, with nuclear energy accounting for 8.5%, hydroelectric 6.3%, and all other methods accounting for the remainder of the Earth’s energy use.
How Do Fossil Fuels Make Energy?
The classic cycle to convert fossil fuels to energy is:
1 – The Fossil fuel is burned
2 – Water is heated to make steam
3 – The steam is used to turn specialized turbines
4 – The turbines turn generators
5 – Electrical power is produced
Where natural gas and refined oil can be burned directly, coal normally has to be ground before burning. When the steam is created in the power plant, the steam will be cooled before being reused, which is why you see power plants built on the coast to use the sea or have large cooling towers to store cold water to aid the process. When coal is burned, sulphur dioxide is produced which helps create acid rain. Modern methods have starting incorporating flue gas desulphurisation in the exhaust of the power plant to remove the toxic gases. This significantly increases the cost to use coal to generate electricity though.
What Are the Disadvantages of Fossil Fuels?
The primary drawback to our continued high-level of use of fossil fuels is the pollution associated with burning the fuel. Coal is the biggest offender of the three with producing more carbon dioxide than burning oil or natural gas in addition to the release of sulphur dioxide. Mining coal can also be harmful to the local ecosystem when strip mining techniques are used to remove the coal while destroying the surrounding area. All three of the fossil fuels are not considered to have an infinite supply on Earth, and the world-wide increase in energy use is expected to be around 3% annually.