Non-Renewable Energy SJCHS

Energy Nonrenewable energy: Fuels that take 100’s or 1000’s of years to be replaced Usually are mined or extracted from the Earth’s crust

Fossil Fuels Fossil fuels: Fuels made from the remains of living organisms Hydrocarbons: Long chains of hydrogen (H) and carbon (C) bonded together; stores chemical energy 85% of world’s energy comes from burning fossil fuels

Yellowstone Oil Spill

Fossil Fuels Oil: Fuel with 5 or more carbons in hydrocarbon chain

Fossil Fuels Extracting Oil 1.Locate oil reserves 2.Drill well (depth: 1500 m) 3.Extract and refine

Fossil Fuels Refine oil: Separate the oil by size of hydrocarbon chain 6-12 C: Petrol and diesel 15 C: Jet fuel Many C: Engine oil, wax, tar

Fossil Fuels Oil Pros: Easy to transport, can be made into different fuel types Cons: Becoming expensive to find and extract, produces CO 2, pollution

Fossil Fuels Natural Gas: Fuel with 4 or few carbons in hydrocarbon chain; a gas at room temperature and pressure Can be extracted in a similar way to oil (deeper wells)

Fossil Fuels Natural Gas Pros: Less CO 2 than oil, large US supply Cons: Can be expensive to find and extract, transportation problems, pollution

Fossil Fuels Hydrofracking 1.Drill a well (depth of 3000 m) 2.Pump water, sand, and chemicals into shale rock 3.Shale rock cracks releasing natural gas; sand holds open cracks

Fossil Fuels Pros: Get natural gas that was unobtainable, creates jobs Cons: Uses large amounts of water, possible ground water contamination, earthquakes, and health risks

Fracking Health Questions

Fossil Fuels Coal: Combustible rock Remains of plants buried in swamps Most of world energy needs comes from coal Pros: 500 yr supply, can be refined into many fuels, many uses Cons: Very high CO 2, Emits soot, causes acid rain, pollution

Fossil Fuels Surface mines: Coal bed near surface 1.Remove overburden (land/plants above coal bed) 2.Remove coal 3.Restore area (doesn’t always occur) Pros: Large amount of coal Con: Destroy environment

Fossil Fuels Subsurface mines: Coal bed far under surface 1.Build elevator/ ventilation shafts to depths of 300 m 2.Remove sections of coal either with machines or human power Pros: Low environmental impact Con: Less Coal, Health problems, Cave-ins

Nuclear Fission Nuclear power: Certain elements (Uranium U or Plutonium Pu) will spontaneously decay producing energy/heat 1.Create fuel rods of U or Pu 2.Fuel rods heat water, producing steam 3.Powers turbines which create electricity

Nuclear Pros: Large supply, small amount of U or Pu needed, low pollution Cons: Expensive, problems with disposing used fuel rods, only used to make electricity, extreme environmental problems in case of accident, terrorist target

US Nuclear Power Policy

Nuclear Fusion Nuclear power: Under high temperatures and pressures, hydrogen can be turned into helium, releasing large amounts of energy/heat; powers the sun

Nuclear Pros: Little pollution, fuel is not dangerous, cannot have a “nuclear meltdown”, produces a high amount of energy Cons: Currently only in research stage, very expensive

Nuclear Fusion Power using Lasers