2. What are Fossil Fuels?
Fossil Fuels are fuels formed by natural resources, these fuels are
formed in the Earth over millions of years from decayed organisms
and produce carbon dioxide when burnt.
3. What are different types of Fossil Fuels?
There are three types of
Fossil Fuels, which can
all be used for energy;
coal, oil and natural gas.
4. How Coal is formed?
Coal is formed over
millions of years by
decay of land
vegetation. When layers
are compacted and
heated over
time, deposits turned
into coal.
5. Different stages of coal
formation
There are four stages of coal
formation; Lignite, Sub
Bituminous, Bituminous and
Anthracite. Lignite deposits are the
youngest of the coal types and have
undergone the lowest intensity of
heat and pressure. Sub bituminous
coal contains less water and is
therefore harder than lignite.
Bituminous coal is heavily utilized for
energy in power plants and for the
production of steel. Anthracite coal is
known to be the cleanest burning coal
but is one of the rarest, being found
mainly in limited reserves in
Pennsylvania.
6. How is coal used as a fossil fuel?
Coal is usually extracted
in mines. Since the
middle of the 20th
century, coal use has
doubled. Since 1996 its
application is declining
again. Many developing
countries depend on coal
for energy because they
cannot afford oil or
natural gas. China and
India are major users of
coal energy because like
I said they cannot afford
oil or natural gas.
7. How is oil formed?
Oil is a liquid fossil fuel that is
formed from the remains of
marine microorganisms on the
sea floor.
After millions of years the
deposits end up in rock and
sediment where oil is trapped
in small spaces. It can be
extracted by large drilling
platforms
8. How is oils used as a fossil fuel?
Oil is the most widely used
fossil fuel. Crude oil
consists of many different
organic compounds which
are transformed to
products in a refining
process. It is applied in
cars, jets, roads and roofs
and many other.
9. How is natural gas formed?
Natural gas is a gaseous fossil
fuel that is versatile, abundant
and relatively clean compared to
coal and oil. Like oil, it is formed
from the remains of marine
microorganisms. It is a relatively
new type of energy source. Until
1999, more coal was used than
natural gas. Natural gas has now
overtaken coal in developed
countries. However, people are
afraid that like oil, natural gas
supplies will run out.
10. How is natural gas used as a
fossil fuel?
They are usually used
for electricity, to
create
glass, paper, and
steal. Most people
use it to heat their
homes.
11. What are Refineries and why are they important to
the production of Fossil Fuels?
Refineries are
factories that plan to
separate the various
components present
in crude oil and
convert them into
usable products or
feedstock for other
processes.
12. Exon Valdez Oil Spil
The main cause of the spill was the failure of
the third mate to properly maneuver the
vessel because of fatigue and excessive
workload. Over 6,700,00 million gallons of
oil was spilled. Ten years after the spill it is
clear that many fish and wildlife species
injured by the spill have not fully recovered.
It is less clear, however, what role oil plays
in the inability of some populations to
bounce back. Hose spraying seawater were
used to flush oil from shorelines. The
released oil was then trapped with offshore
boom, and removed using
skimmers, vacuum trucks was useful for
thick layers of oil and boom
sorbent, snare, pompoms. For hard to reach
areas, or locations with weathered
oil, heated seawater was used to flush oil
from the shoreline.
13. Deep water horizon Catastrophe
The Deep water Horizon oil spill is
an ongoing massive oil spill
underwater in the Gulf of Mexico
Started on April 20, 2010. The
fire aboard the Deepwater
Horizon reportedly started at
9:45 pm. survivors described
the incident as a sudden
explosion which gave them
less than five minutes to
escape as the alarm went off.
