Notesale: Turn your study into money

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Fossil fuels

What are fossil fuels?
Fossil fuels, also known as hydrocarbons, are the fossilised remnants of plants and animals that died
millions of years ago that were buried underneath the ground
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The three major forms of fossil fuels are coal, oil and gas
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It is extracted from the earth by mining, either through
surface mining or via deep underground coal shafts
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Gas, also known by its more formal name natural gas, consists
mostly of methane and is removed from subterranean rock formations (it can also be found dissolved in
other fuel sources such as crude oil) with the aid of a well/pump
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Aside from this, the three separate fossil fuels are also used in different ways
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Coal can be used as a heat
source to power homes and factories (especially in 3rd world countries where poor-quality coal is
relatively cheap), or to produce coke for making steel
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Fossil fuels can be
burnt anywhere, but typically it is done in power stations for maximum efficiency
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This is how electricity is produced
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A major issue, however, is since there is only a limited
amount of fossil fuel resources, they will eventually become exhausted and they cannot be replenished
for millions of years, so alternative sources must be made available
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This is one of the biggest issues of the 21st century, since life without them would be
unimaginable; we depend on them for our technology and our modern-day comforts and necessities,
surprisingly since this process has only taken root in the last 50 years or so, and this shows that the
discovery of electricity is probably one of the biggest innovations in human history
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Below is a pie chart [1]
(Figure 1) showing the production of energy worldwide for the use of electricity (as of 2011)
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76%

14%
41%
Coal
Natural Gas
Hydroelectricity
Nuclear

16%

Oil
Other renewables
21%

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The pie chart shows that the amount of oil used for electricity production is low, considering it is a fossil
fuel and in comparison to the other two (coal and natural gas)
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If one was to look at the global energy production in 2011, it
would show a much more stereotypical image (Figure 2) [1]

Global energy production in 2011
5% 1
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The use of oil for energy is a much vaster concept because oil has many
uses (transportation being the main one)
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Energy is more important than electricity as it covers more aspects of everyday
activities (it also encompasses electricity itself)
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Of the three fossil fuels, coal is expected to last the longest as it has the biggest
remaining reserves, which means it is cheaper than the other fuel sources
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The use of fossil fuels creates environmental problems
2
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The only concern is that the energy supply
is not always reliable and may not provide enough energy
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