1. Nonrenewable Energy Resources
Chapter 12
Nonrenewable Energy Resources

2. All Energy Use Has Consequences
Oil :
Jan Oil well explosion and rupture - off coast of Santa Barbara, CA
1989 – Exxon Valdez (was largest until 2010) in Prince William Sound, Alaska
2005 – explosion at BP oil refinery (TX)
April 2010 – BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in Gulf of Mexico
Combustion of fossil fuels (gasoline, jet fuel, diesel) emit pollutions  environmental harm
Coal:
April explosion at Upper Big Branch Mine (West Virginia)  coal mine
Coal miners develop black lung disease and other respiratory ailments
Natural Gas:
Considered to be the “clean” fossil fuel
Extraction difficult
So what’s the problem? - we are depended on fossil fuels for energy supply

3. Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill April 20, 2010
Aka: BP oil spill
Oil flowed unabated for 89 days
Cause: explosion on platform
Methane gas explosion
Efforts by multiple ships to douse the flames were unsuccessful
Burned for approximately 36 hours
Why problem?
July 15, 2010: the leak was stopped  capped the gushing wellhead
Estimated 206 million gallons of crude oil released

4. Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
September 19, 2010: the relief well process was successfully completed
November 2010: 4,200 square miles of the Gulf were re-closed to shrimping after tar balls found in shrimpers' nets
January 2011: oil spill commissioner reported that problems still exist
February 2011 : researchers found tar on the bottom of the seafloor did not seem to be degrading
July 9, 2011: roughly 491 miles of coastline in LA, MS, AL and FL remained contaminated
January 2011 :the White House oil spill commission released its final report on the causes of the oil spill.
September 2011: U.S. government published its final investigative report on the accident.

5. Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Extensive damage to:
marine and wildlife habitats
Gulf's fishing and tourism industries
To remove oil/protect beaches, wetlands, estuaries:
skimmer ships
floating containment booms
anchored barriers
sand-filled barricades along shorelines
dispersants

7. Nonrenewable Energy Nonrenewable energy resources – 2 categories:
Fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas)
Combustion - burn the fuels
Nuclear fuels
Radioactive materials
Units of energy
J – joule
EJ (exajoule) = 1 x 109 gigajoules
Quad – not used in US
1 quad = EF
Btu – British thermal unit
1 Btu = 1  J

8. Worldwide Patterns of Energy Use
Each country uses energy at different rates
Uses different energy resources
2008 – total world energy was about 495 EJ

9. Energy Use Energy not distributed equally around world WHY?
Terminology
Commercial energy sources- those that are bought and sold, such as coal, oil and natural gas
Subsistence energy sources- those gathered by individuals for their own use such as wood, charcoal and animal waste

10. Patterns of Energy Use in US
Many changes since 1850s – due to political, economical, and environmental factors
Main energy sources (in order) – oil, coal, natural gas
Energy use varies regionally and seasonally

11. Process of Energy Use Energy efficiency, includes:
Efficiency of the process of obtaining the fuel
Efficiency of process that coverts it to work that is needed
Many opportunities for energy loss  reduces energy efficiency
EROEI (energy return on energy investment)
EROEI = Energy obtained from fuel Energy invested to get fuel

12. Efficiency and Transportation
~30% of energy in US is used for transportation
Transportation – movement of people and goods
Public transportation more efficient than car
Transportation efficiency – does not take into account convenience, comfort or style
Overall fuel efficiency of US personal vehicle fleet – has improved

13. Electricity Generation
Primary source of energy – coal, oil, natural gas
Secondary source of energy – electricity

14. Energy Efficiency
Most coal burning power plants are about 35% efficient
Combined cycle natural gas-fired power plant
~60% efficient
Capacity – maximum electrical output
Capacity factor – the fraction of the time a plant can operate in a year

15. Cogeneration Using a fuel to generate electricity and to produce heat
Aka – combined heat and power
Improves the efficiency to as high as 90%

16. Fossil fuels provide most of the world’s energy…
Fossil fuels – coal, oil and natural gas
Come from deposits of organic matter formed million years ago
In anaerobic environment (lack of O2)
Fossil fuels are carbon sinks

17. Coal
A solid fuel formed primarily from the remains of trees, ferns, and other plant materials
Preserved million years ago
Ideal fuel for power plants and industry
Four types of coal ranked from lesser to greater age, exposure to pressure, and energy content:
Lignite – softest coal
Subbituminous coal
Bituminous coal – most common type
Anthracite – highest grade of coal
Peat – precursor to coal
Composed of partly decomposed organic matter (including mosses)
Largest coal reserves – United States, Russia, China, and India.

18. Coal

19. Advantages and Disadvantages of Coal
Energy-dense
Contains impurities (ie. sulfur)
Plentiful
Release impurities into air when burned
Easy to exploit by surface mining
Trace metals like mercury, lead, and arsenic are found in coal
Technological demands are small
Combustion leads to increased levels of sulfur dioxide and other air pollutants into the atmosphere.
Economic costs are low
Ash is left behind
Easy to handle and transport
Carbon is released into the atmosphere which contributes to climate change
Needs little refining

20. Petroleum Mixture of hydrocarbons, water, and sulfur
Remains of ocean-dwelling phytoplankton - died million years ago
Crude oil – liquid petroleum removed from ground
Can be broken down into
US uses petroleum more than any other fuel for:
Gasoline – about ½ of the petroleum we use
Raw materials for…
Most petroleum – Saudi Arabia, Russia, the United States, Iran, China, Canada, and Mexico

21. Petroleum

22. Advantages and Disadvantages of Petroleum
Convenient to transport and use
Releases carbon dioxide into atmosphere
Relatively energy-dense
Possibility of leaks when extracted and transported
Cleaner-burning than coal
Fragile ecosystems
Releases sulfur, mercury, lead, and arsenic into the atmosphere when burned

23. Natural Gas
Natural gas- exists as a component of petroleum in the ground as well as in gaseous deposits separate from petroleum
Original source …
Contains 80 to 95 percent methane and 5 to 20 percent ethane, propane, and butane
Uses in US:
Compressed natural gas – fuel for vehicles
Liquefied petroleum gas – in lieu of natural gas, portable barbecue grills and heaters

24. Advantages and Disadvantages Natural Gas
Cheap fuel source for homes
Contains fewer impurities  emits almost no sulfur dioxide or particulates
Unburned methane escapes into the atmosphere
Emits only 60% as much carbon dioxide as coal
Exploration of natural gas has the potential of contaminating groundwater

25. Other Fossil Fuels: Oil Sands
Not readily available
Oil sands- slow-flowing, viscous deposits of bitumen mixed with sand, water, and clay
Bitumen (tar or pitch)- a degraded type of petroleum that forms when a petroleum migrates close to the surface (lack of nonporous rock cap), where bacteria metabolize some of the light hydrocarbons and others evaporate
Benefits- extends petroleum supply
Negative environmental impacts-

26. Other Fossil Fuels: Liquefied Coal
CTL – coal-to-liquid
Converts soil coal to liquid fuel
Technology has been around for decades
Benefits:
Downsides:

27. Fossil fuels are a finite resource
Energy intensity – energy use per unit of gross domestic product
Energy used more efficiently but
More people
More energy used

28. The Hubbert Curve
Hubbert curve- a graph that shows the point at which world oil production would reach a maximum and the point at which we would run out of oil
Peak oil – point at which ½ of total known oil supply is used up
*1969 – Hubbert predicted 80% of world’s oil would be used up in ~60 years

29. The Future of Fossil Fuel Use
How long will our fossil fuels last? - If current global use continues, we will run out of:
Conventional oil
Natural gas
Coal supplies
Some factors influencing use of fossil fuels:
More concern about global warming
Rising costs of fossil fuels

30. Nuclear Energy Fuel- Uranium…
Another conventional, nonrenewable fuel that does not significantly add to greenhouse gases in atmosphere.
Nuclear Energy Fuel- Uranium…

31. Nuclear Energy
Fission- a nuclear reaction in which a neutron strikes a relatively large atomic nucleus, which then splits into two or more parts
Chain reaction
Releases an immense amount of heat
Fuel – U-235 common
Byproducts – radioactive waste

32. Nuclear Reactors

33. Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy
No air pollution is produced
Possibility of accidents
Countries can limit their need for imported oil
Disposal of the radioactive waste

34. Fukushima, Japan 6 reactors affected
Loss of power = reactors overheated
Full meltdown of 3 reactors
Attempt to use seawater  ruined reactors
Other concerns:
Water levels in fuel rod pools decreased
Total radioactivity released was ~1/10 of Chernobyl
Most at risk – workers
Recommendations for infants?

36. Since… Pale grass blue butterflies 2 months after (sample 144)
~12% of butterflies affected
6 months after (sample 258)
~28% of butterflies affected

37. Radioactive Waste
Radioactive waste – nuclear fuel that can no longer produce enough heat to be useful in a power plant but continues to emit radioactivity
3 types:
High-level radioactive waste
Low-level radioactive waste
Uranium mine tailings

38. Radioactive Waste Measuring Radiation
Units:
Becquerel (Bq)
1 Bq = the decay of one atom per second
Curie
1 curie =37 billion decays per second

39. Radioactive Wastes
Spent fuel rods remain threat for 10 or more ½ lives  long term storage is important
All spent fuel rods must be stored at the plant
Long term solution to waste
Possibilities
Above ground mausoleums
Arctic ice sheets
Beneath ocean floor
Send to space
Standards for LTS:
So what was thought up… Yucca Mountain burial

40. Radioactive Waste Yucca Mountain, NV
1978 – started looking at location
Lots of protest/ controversy
2006 –considered safe storage location
Few years late  cancelled

41. Stuff to add from old textbook: Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plants
Licensed to operate for 40 years
Several have received 20-year extensions
Power plants cannot be abandoned when they are shut down
Three solutions
Storage
Entombment
Decommissioning (dismantling)

42. Fusion
Nuclear fusion- occurs when lighter nuclei are forced together to produce heavier nuclei
Heat is released
Most promising reaction
Promising, unlimited source of energy in the future
Input – hydrogen
Problem – creating fusion requires reactor can heat material to 10x the temperature of the Sun’s core
Promising technique

43. Look at Table 12.2 in your book!