ENERGY

Chapter 22
 Importance of Fossil Fuels in the Modern World
Fossil fuels, including coal, oil, and natural gas, have been the
foundation of industrial progress and energy production for over a
century.
These fuels are formed from the remains of ancient organisms and
have unique properties that make them highly efficient energy
sources.
However, their widespread use has led to significant environmental
concerns, particularly about air pollution and global warming.
Despite these challenges, fossil fuels play a critical role in the
modern world, powering economies and providing stability in
energy grids. Coal, oil, and gas are all hydrocarbons, meaning they
comprise only two elements: carbon and hydrogen.
 Importance of Fossil Fuels in the Modern World
• These fuels produce energy, primarily for heating homes, generating
electricity in power plants, and powering engines.
• The bonds between the carbon and hydrogen atoms store energy, and when
these compounds are burned in the presence of oxygen, the stored energy is
released as heat energy.
• However, this process also results in the production of carbon dioxide (CO ).
It is important to 2 note that fossil fuels are non-renewable, meaning their
supply is limited and will eventually run out.
• Fossil fuels were formed from the remains of plants and animals that existed
millions of years ago, hence the name "fossil fuels".
 FORMATION OF HYDROCARBONS
How does coal form?
• Hundreds of millions of years ago, even before the dinosaurs, there were
huge plants and ferns that lived in swamp forests.
• When these plants and ferns died, they decayed and formed layers at the
bottom of the swamps. Water and soil built up on top of these layers, and
over thousands of years, pressure and high temperatures would cause the
decayed plants and ferns to undergo chemical and physical changes, which
pushed out the oxygen from the decaying layers.
• As the plants and ferns continued to decay in the absence of oxygen, they
formed coal. A clear picture of the formation of coal is given below.
Oil and Gas
• Oil and Gas The oil and gas we use today were formed by the decay
of microscopic plants and animals that lived in the ocean millions of
years ago.
• As these plants and animals died, they fell to the bottom of the ocean
and formed layer after layer of sediment covered by sand and mud.
• In some areas where there is little tidal movement, such as lakes or
seas, the plants and animals begin to decay in the absence of oxygen.
Oil and Gas Cont.
• As the layers build up, the weight increases and the sediment is pushed
further down; this increases both the temperature and pressure.
• With all of these factors combined, the decayed plants and animals form oil
and gas deposits.
• In some cases, these deposits rise to the surface and seep out into soil and
water.
• In other cases, the oil and gas deposits are trapped under impermeable
layers of rock, and drilling is necessary .
• Natural gas consists mainly of Methane (CH ) but can also contain 4 other
gases such as Butane and Propane.
 PEAT
• Peat is a very young form of coal, if left for a long period of time, peat will
eventually form coal.
• Peat was formed by the decay of plants and in some cases trees.
• These plants accumulated and decayed over hundreds of thousands of years
in waterlogged areas.
• Peat formed in areas where there was poor drainage.
• When the last ice age ended and ice melted it left behind glacial features such
as eskers and moraines.
• These features are evident in the topography of Ireland, especially the
midlands, and lead to poor drainage of the soil.
• This poor drainage along with continual growth of vegetation, high levels of
rainfall and low levels of oxygen, lead to the formation of peatlands.
• Here some stages of formation of coal from peat.
 Uses of fossil fuels
• Uses of fossil fuels Fossil fuels have a variety of uses.
• Crude oil, also known as "black gold," is used to generate electricity and
as fuel for automobiles and jets.
• It is also used to produce chemicals, plastics, lubricants, tars, wax, and
medicines.
• Coal is another fossil fuel that exists in a solid state.
• It is composed of five elements: sulphur (S) , nitrogen (N), hydrogen (H) ,
carbon (C), and oxygen (O).
• There are three types of coal: anthracite, bituminous, and lignite.
Anthracite is the hardest and has the highest energy content.
 Uses of fossil fuels
• Natural gas is a gaseous fuel mainly composed of methane.
• It is much cleaner than the other two fossil fuels and has several uses in
the industrial sector, such as in steel and glass foundries, aluminium
smelters, and other manufacturing sectors.
• It is also used in air conditioning, cooking appliances, and to heat homes
and establishments.
• Natural gas is also used in transportation, such as in CNG or LNG.
 Properties Of Fossil Fuels
• Fossil fuels are the remains of animal and plant materials that
lived millions of years ago, trapped under layers of rock for eons
and transformed into substances that burn easily, and give off
large amounts of energy.

• Although fossil fuels power much of modern civilization, they

also see use in fertilizers, plastics and many other chemical
compounds.

• Despite their widely different appearances, coal, natural gas and

petroleum oil have several properties.
• Organic Molecules Without exception, fossil fuels contain organic
molecules — rings or chains of atoms consisting primarily of carbon.

• Bituminous coal, natural gas and oil are hydrocarbons, which are
combinations chiefly of hydrogen and carbon.

• Time and pressure transform bituminous coal into anthracite, a rock-like

substance containing mostly carbon
• Mined Substances Because they have been trapped underground for
millions of years, fossil fuels are extracted by various mining operations
such as drilling and digging into the earth.

• Geologists have identified the rock formations that accompany each

type of fuel.
• For example, reservoirs of oil and natural gas can be found under
features called salt domes — natural salt deposits that form a layer on
top of fossil fuel "bubbles."

• Being lighter, the gas floats to the top with the liquid oil lying
underneath.
• Combustible Fossil fuels are combustible, burning in the presence of
oxygen and forming water vapor, carbon dioxide, ash and other
byproducts.

• Their ability to burn comes largely from their carbon content; carbon in
the fuel combines with oxygen in the air, giving off large amounts of
heat.

• Components of fossil fuels, such as gasoline, diesel oil and natural gas
have different flash points, some burning easily and others taking more
energy to ignite.

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 Non-Renewable Fuels:
• A finite supply of coal, oil and gas exists, making them non-renewable
fuels.

• Although modern prospecting technologies help identify new deposits of

fossil fuels, and new methods of extraction make known reserves more
productive, these substances form much more slowly than their rates of
consumption.

• Because civilization depends on abundant, inexpensive energy, the

prospect of running out of fuel spurs interest in renewable sources such
as solar, wind and hydroelectric power.