Rajan Wilcox
Fossil fuels, including coal, oil, and natural gas, are non-renewable resources that have powered economies for over 150 years and currently supply about 80% of the world's energy. They are formed from the carbon-rich remains of prehistoric plants and animals, which have decomposed and been compressed and heated over millions of years. Today, fossil fuels are gathered through coal mining and the drilling of oil and gas wells on land and offshore. As the burning of fossil fuels has been recognized as the main source of greenhouse gas emissions causing global warming and ocean acidification, there is a growing transition towards renewable and sustainable energy sources.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| How fossil fuels are formed | Fossil fuels are formed from the carbon-rich remains of animals and plants, as they decomposed and were compressed and heated underground over millions of years |
| How fossil fuels are gathered | Fossil fuels are gathered through coal mining and the drilling of oil and gas wells on land and offshore |
| How fossil fuels are used | Fossil fuels are burned to produce electricity, or refined and used as fuel for heating or transportation |
| Environmental impact | Burning fossil fuels releases stored carbon and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, causing dramatic changes to Earth's climate. Fossil fuels are also the main source of harmful air pollution |
| Alternatives | Cleaner technologies such as hydropower, biomass, wind, geothermal, solar energy, and nuclear energy can be used to generate electricity without producing carbon emissions |
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What You'll Learn
Drilling for oil and gas
The process of drilling for oil and gas begins with preparing the site by clearing and levelling the land. A drilling rig is then set up to drill a borehole and feed a steel pipe into the well. Drilling mud, a mixture of freshwater, sand and clay, is used to remove debris, control formation pressures, extend the life of drill bits, and manage downhole pressures. The drilling process typically takes about 50-60 days.
After drilling, the completion process involves perforating the steel pipe in the well to connect the well bore to the oil or gas reservoir. This can take 1-5 weeks. Additional recovery techniques such as hydraulic fracturing or "fracking", which involves using pressurised fluids containing sand to increase production volumes, may be applied. Fracking has been commercially used since the 1950s and has become a common technique to improve the flow of oil or gas to the wellbore.
Horizontal drilling, also known as directional drilling, is another technique used to increase production volumes by accessing a larger surface area of the oil and gas zone. This method involves drilling at an angle, enabling drilling in areas where vertical access is difficult, such as offshore or under urban areas.
Oil and gas companies have recently been utilising unconventional extraction techniques and drilling reservoirs, such as shale formations, to improve the return of hydrocarbons to the surface. Shale gas is held in tiny bubbles in the rock and requires advanced technologies to extract.
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Coal mining
Fossil fuels are compound mixtures made of fossilised plant and animal remnants from millions of years ago. The creation of fossil fuels—either oil, natural gas, or coal—from these fossils is determined by the type of fossil, the amount of heat, and the amount of pressure.
Underground mining can be further categorised into techniques such as room and pillar mining, longwall mining, and blast mining. Room and pillar mining involves cutting a network of rooms into the coal seam while leaving behind pillars of coal to support the roof. Blast mining, also known as conventional mining, uses explosives to break up the coal seam, after which the coal is gathered and transported to a central loading area.
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Petroleum production
Fossil fuels are formed from fossilized plant and animal remnants from millions of years ago. The type of fossil, the amount of heat, and the amount of pressure determine whether oil, natural gas, or coal is formed. Petroleum, also known as rock oil, is a fossil fuel that was first drilled for specifically in 1859 by Edwin Laurentine Drake in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Drake's well was drilled close to a known surface seepage of crude oil, and the success of this well prompted further drilling in the same vicinity and similar exploration elsewhere.
Petroleum deposits lie trapped in the pores of natural rock at depths ranging from 150 to 7,600 meters (500 to 25,000 feet) below the ground. The deeper the deposits, the higher the internal pressure, and the greater the quantity of gaseous hydrocarbons present. Petroleum is extracted through the drilling of oil wells on land or offshore.
The crude oil distillation unit (CDU) is the first processing unit in virtually all petroleum refineries. The CDU distills incoming crude oil into various fractions of different boiling ranges, which are then further processed in other refinery processing units. The liquids and vapors separate into petroleum components, called fractions, according to their boiling points. The lightest fractions, including gasoline and liquefied refinery gases, rise to the top of the distillation tower, while medium-weight liquids, including kerosene and distillates, remain in the middle. Heavier liquids, called gas oils, separate lower down, and the heaviest fractions settle at the bottom. After distillation, heavy, lower-value distillation fractions can be processed further into lighter, higher-value products such as gasoline.
Refinery technicians carefully combine a variety of streams from the processing units to make gasoline, taking into account octane level, vapor pressure ratings, and other factors. Crude oil must be separated into its individual hydrocarbon-based fuels and lubricants to be used in industry and transportation.
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Natural gas extraction
Natural gas is a fossil fuel that is formed when organic matter, such as plants, animals, and diatoms, decompose and are exposed to intense heat and pressure under the Earth's surface. This process can take millions of years. Natural gas is a non-renewable energy source that is odourless, colourless, flammable, and non-toxic. It is primarily composed of methane (CH4), but also contains other substances such as water, ethane, propane, butane, pentanes, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, water vapour, helium, and nitrogen.
The extraction of natural gas typically involves drilling into the earth and collecting it through pipelines or wells. The drilling process can be vertical or horizontal, depending on the depth and location of the natural gas reserves. Vertical drilling is efficient when natural gas is located close to the surface, while horizontal drilling allows for broader access to drilling sites and can be steered horizontally through natural gas deposits.
Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is another method used to extract natural gas from rock formations. This process involves injecting water, sand, and chemicals into a well at high pressure to create cracks in the rock, allowing natural gas to flow out.
Once natural gas is extracted, it undergoes processing to remove contaminants and purify it for distribution and final use. This includes removing substances such as solids, water, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, mercury, and higher molecular mass hydrocarbons. Some of these contaminants have economic value and can be further processed or sold.
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Fossil fuel refining
Fossil fuels are compound mixtures made of fossilised plant and animal remnants from millions of years ago. The creation of fossil fuels—either oil, natural gas, or coal—from these fossils is determined by the type of fossil, the amount of heat, and the amount of pressure. Fossil fuels are formed through the conversion of organic materials into high-carbon fossil fuels as a result of geological processes that take millions of years. Due to the length of time required for their formation, fossil fuels are considered non-renewable resources.
Crude Oil Refining
Crude oil is a mixture of thousands of different hydrocarbon molecules, including methane, ethane, propane, and butane. The first step in refining crude oil is to separate these molecules through a process called fractional distillation. This involves heating the crude oil to a high temperature and then cooling it gradually, allowing the different hydrocarbons to condense at different temperatures and be collected separately.
The separated hydrocarbons are then processed further to remove impurities and improve their quality. This includes treating them with chemicals or heat to remove sulphur, nitrogen, and other contaminants. The refined hydrocarbons can then be blended to create different types of fuels, such as petrol, diesel, and jet fuel, each with specific properties and standards.
Coal Refining
Coal is refined through a process called coal liquefaction, which involves converting coal into a liquid form that can be used as a fuel. There are two main types of coal liquefaction processes: direct liquefaction and indirect liquefaction. Direct liquefaction involves reacting coal with hydrogen gas under high temperatures and pressures to produce a liquid fuel similar to crude oil. Indirect liquefaction involves first gasifying the coal into a synthetic gas, which is then converted into liquid fuels through chemical processes.
Natural Gas Refining
Natural gas, primarily composed of methane, is often refined to remove impurities and improve its quality for use in heating, electricity generation, and industrial processes. The refining process typically involves removing contaminants such as water vapour, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, and mercury. This is done through a series of treatments, including amine scrubbing, molecular sieves, and cryogenic processing, which separate and remove the impurities from the natural gas stream.
The refined natural gas can then be processed further to separate the methane from other valuable components, such as ethane, propane, and butane, which are known as natural gas liquids (NGLs). These NGLs are used as feedstocks in the petrochemical industry to produce plastics, fertilisers, and other chemical products.
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Frequently asked questions
Fossil fuels are compound mixtures made of fossilized plant and animal remnants from millions of years ago. The creation of fossil fuels—either oil, natural gas, or coal—from these fossils is determined by the type of fossil, the amount of heat, and the amount of pressure.
Fossil fuels are gathered through coal mining and the drilling of oil and gas wells on land and offshore.
Fossil fuels are used as sources of energy. They are burned to produce electricity, or refined to be used as fuel for heating or transportation.
Examples of fossil fuels include coal, oil, and natural gas.
