Slide 2 Fossil Fuels Slide 3 Many power plant use steam to turn
generators. Water is heated by burning fossil fuels or through
nuclear reaction, and when the water boils, steam is produced. The
steam is then fed through the turbines, forcing them to rotate.
Energy Production using Steam
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/wupt-coalplant-diagram.html Slide 4
Fossil Fuels include coal, oil (from petroleum/crude oil), natural
gas, tar sands, and oil shale. formed over a period of time from
compressed vegetation and other organisms. are considered
nonrenewable resources. Why? Slide 5 Coal Coal is the most abundant
and least expensive of the fossil fuels. It is also the most
popular, accounting for almost 40 per cent of the total worldwide
power generation. www.freedigitalphotos.net Slide 6 Coal is a rock
consisting almost entirely of organic material
www.freedigitalphotos.net Slide 7 The great coal forests Todays
coal formed from prehistoric vegetation that accumulated thousands
of years ago when much of the Earth's surface was covered in
swamps. As the plants and trees in these swampy areas began to die,
their remains sank into the swamp land, which eventually formed a
dense material called peat. During this time there were huge
forests of mosses, horsetails, and tree ferns
www.freedigitalphotos.net Slide 8 Peat an early step in coal
formation www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com photo by: dModer101 Slide 9
A good place to look for peat formation Peat only forms where there
are low oxygen conditions, such as in this damp low spot on a swamp
or bog. Bodies dont decay in bogs very well as you can tell! Bog
Man www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: saamiblog
www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: LonePine Slide 10 The Coal
Formation Process The organic matter accumulates and forms a bed of
peat. The peat bed gets buried by other sediments and under heat
and pressure begins to transform to a low grade coal known as
lignite. More heat and pressure further change the lignite into
bituminous coal. Even more heat and pressure change the bituminous
coal into a nice hard shiny anthracite coal. Slide 11 The Steps of
Coal Formation www.uky.edu Slide 12 U.S. Coal Deposits www.usgs.gov
Slide 13 Is coal being made now? Coal formation is a continuing
process, however large deposits of sediment are no longer covering
swamp lands as in the past! Today, in areas such as the Great
Dismal Swamp of North Carolina and Virginia, the Okefenokee Swamp
of Georgia, and the Everglades in Florida, plant life decays and
subsides, eventually to be covered by silts and sands, and other
matter. Perhaps many years from now, those areas will contain large
coal beds. The Florida Everglades www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by:
Surrealplaces Slide 14 Coal Mining 2 main methods of coal mining:
Underground Surface strip mining mountaintop removal (a new type of
mining) http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-renewable_resource
Slide 15 Coal mining has always been a dirty, dangerous job.
http://hewit.unco.edu/dohist/mining/work/coal/photo1.htm Slide 16 A
coal seam exposed by mining http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riese
Slide 17 Strip mining coal Slide 18 Mountaintop Removal a large
scale type of coal mining What effect does this type of mining have
on the environment? www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by : Mr. Stabile
Slide 19 Health and environmental impacts of using coal as an
energy source Surface mining requires the removal of massive
amounts of top soil, leading to erosion, loss of habitat and
pollution. Underground mining causes acid mine drainage, which
causes heavy metals to dissolve and seep into ground and surface
water. Coal mine workers also face serious health problems,
including black lung, a lung disease from prolonged exposure to
coal dust in mines. On the job hazards include: the mines may cave
in, accumulate poison gases, or suddenly flood all of which can
injure or kill the miners Slide 20 More Environmental Impacts of
Using Coal Burning coal creates ground level ozone, smog and acid
rain. Coal (and fuel oil) combustion emit fly ash particles into
the atmosphere, which contribute to air pollution problems. Burning
coal produces carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and
methane gas, all of which could contribute to global climate
change. Burning Coal is also the greatest producer of airborne
Mercury pollution. hvo.wr.usgs.gov Slide 21 Natural Gas A natural
gas well www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: United States Government
Work Slide 22 Natural gas Formed from the remains of tiny sea
animals and plants that died thousands of years ago. (Same process
that formed petroleum.) The gas became trapped in the rock layers
much like a wet household sponge traps water. Raw natural gas is a
mixture of different gases. Its main ingredient is methane. By
itself, methane is odorless, colorless, and tasteless. As a safety
measure, natural gas companies add a chemical odorant (it smells
like rotten eggs) so escaping gas can be detected. www.seed.slb.com
Slide 23 Processing natural gas After natural gas comes out of the
ground, it goes to a processing plant where it is cleaned of
impurities (water, sulfur, dust) and separated into its various
components Then its compressed and forced through pipelines under
high pressure. Its often cooled to a liquid state before being
transported. LNG liquified natural gas A natural-gas processing
plant www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: A guy with A camera Slide 24
Benefits of using natural gas Cleaner fuel than petroleum or coal
Has the highest energy content of the hydrocarbons used for fuel
Our country has large reserves, mostly in the Gulf of Mexico,
Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Wyoming, Kansas, and
Alaska. Used for making plastics, detergents, drugs But, if we
continue to use natural gas at the same rate as we use it today,
the United States will run out in about 50 years (more can be
recovered for higher cost). Slide 25 Other sources of natural gas
Landfills - Landfill gas is considered a renewable source of
natural gas since it comes from decaying garbage. Landfill gas is
50 percent methane Biomass - a fuel source derived from plant and
animal wastes which generates natural gas There are more than 350
commercial landfill gas recovery operations in the U.S. which
generate electricity on-site, supply industrial gas-fired boilers,
or produce substitute natural gas fuels such as CNG.
www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: Wisconsin Department of Natural
Resources Slide 26 Some landfills are currently capturing the gas
produced by decaying garbage. A well is drilled into the waste mass
in order to install a well. The landfill gas is then pumped to a
gas treatment and processing facility to separate out the methane
from carbon dioxide and other non-methane compounds.
www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: Wisconsin Department of Natural
Resources Slide 27 Study Reveals Huge U.S. Oil Shale Field
WASHINGTON The United States has an oil reserve at least three
times that of Saudi Arabia locked in oil-shale deposits beneath
federal land in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, according to a study
released yesterday. Headline from The Seattle Times, September 1,
2005 As the head of Shell's Unconventional Resources unit, Steve
Mutt, explained that as far back as the native Americans, people
have been trying to exploit this resource, which is essentially
immature petroleum. The Indians called it fire rock and
inexperienced homesteaders tried to use it for their fireplaces
with disastrous consequences. Slide 28 An oil-shale rock burns on
its own once it has been lit by a blowtorch. www.flickr.com by:
asia blues www.flickr.com Slide 29 Oil shale doesnt contain oil or
(usually) shale The organic material is kerogen (not oil), and the
"shale" is usually a relatively hard rock, called marl. Properly
processed, kerogen can be converted into a substance somewhat
similar to petroleum. The kerogen must be heated to a high
temperature. This causes the organic material to be converted into
a liquid. The liquid is then further processed to produce an medium
grade oil which is said to be better than the lowest grade of oil.
Slide 30 Heres the down side. The report also says oil-shale
mining, above-ground processing and disposing of spent shale cause
significant adverse environmental impacts. Shell Oil is working on
a process that would heat the oil shale in place, which could have
less effect on the environment. Slide 31 A new oil shale method
uses in-ground heaters to preheat the oil shale so it is easier to
remove the oil. Instead of strip- mining the rock and then
processing it, this new method superheats huge underground areas
for several years, This method gradually forces the oil out of the
stone and then pumps it to the surface www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com
by: SkyTruth Slide 32 Tar sands (also called oil sands or
bituminous sands) These sands contain clay, water, sand, and
bitumen Bitumen contains 83.2% carbon This can be processed to make
synthetic crude oil or be refined into petroleum products. This may
prove to be a viable alternative to oil imported from the Middle
East. www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: The Co-operative Slide 33
Environmental impacts of using shale or tar sands Takes lots of
energy to remove and process. Uses large amounts of water which is
then polluted by the process. Generate huge amounts of waste that
must be put back somewhere (unless the in-ground heating method is
used). www.flickr.comwww.flickr.com by: coopfs Slide 34
Environmental Impact of Tar Sands Alberta Tar Sands The term tar
sands refers to thick oil called bitumen that is mixed in with
sand, clay, and water. Intensive energy is required to process the
sands into crude oil. Tar Sands oil is the worlds most harmful type
of oil for the atmosphere, emitting high volumes of greenhouse
gases during development, which contribute to global warming, as
well as other pollutants. Tar Sands projects are the largest
contributor to greenhouse gas emissions growth in Canada. By 2015,
the Tar Sands are expected to emit more greenhouse gases than the
nation of Denmark (pop. 5.4 million). Slide 35 Summary of Fossil
Fuels Petroleum Coal Natural Gas Oil Shale Tar Sands How much
longer will we have access to these fuels? How expensive will they
get as demand exceeds supply? What are some alternative energy
sources? Slide 36 Nuclear Energy Produces Electricity Slide 37 Two
ways that nuclear energy can be produced are fusion and fission.
Fusion the combining of atomic nuclei such as in the stars (and
sun!) generates energy http://www.aa.washington.edu Nuclear Energy
Slide 38 Fission the breaking apart of atomic nuclei
hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/nucene/im... Nuclear Energy
Slide 39 Two advantages of nuclear energy: It produces huge amounts
of energy from small amounts of nuclear fuel (uranium and
plutonium). Earth contains enough nuclear fuel to meet all present
and future needs. www.pollutionissues.com Nuclear energy Slide 40
Nuclear Energy Nuclear energy produces wastes in the form of heat
and spent (used) fuel which can remain radioactive for thousands of
years. Disposing of this radioactive spent fuel is a major problem.
One proposed disposal site is Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Slide 41
Nuclear Energy Four reasons why nuclear power is not as widely used
as it could be High cost Peoples fear of exposure to radiation The
threat of a meltdown (nuclear explosion) The fear that nuclear
weapons could be developed using this technology Stable, highly
centralized governmental control is necessary for the safe
operation of nuclear power. www.answers.com Slide 42 Sources
Wikimedia commons Freedigitalphotos.net Flickr.com USGS.gov Uky.edu
aa.washington.edu
