Sylvie Willis
Fossil fuels are non-renewable energy sources that have been widely used for centuries and are derived from ancient fossilized organic matter. Conventional fossil fuels include coal, natural gas, and crude oil, which are extracted using well-established production methods. However, with growing environmental concerns and the finite nature of these resources, there is a need to explore non-conventional fossil fuel sources. Non-conventional fossil fuels refer to energy sources that require innovative technologies for extraction, such as hydraulic fracturing, and include unconventional resources like shale gas, tight gas, and oil shale. These sources are being increasingly utilized due to the extensive use of conventional resources, and new technologies are constantly emerging to make extraction more economically viable.
Characteristics of non-conventional fossil fuel sources:
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Type | Gaseous fossil fuels, biofuels, and other renewable fuels |
| Examples | Propane, natural gas, methane, ammonia, biodiesel, bioalcohol, refuse-derived fuel, biohydrogen, vegetable oil, biomass sources, biogas, shale oil, shale gas, tight gas |
| Energy Source Types | Require innovative technologies like hydraulic fracturing to extract |
| Production Methods | More costly than conventional methods |
| Environmental Impact | Lower emissions than conventional fossil fuels |
| Sustainability | Not naturally replenished within a human timescale |
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What You'll Learn
- Biofuels: biodiesel, bioalcohol, biohydrogen, vegetable oil, etc
- Renewable natural gas or biogas: methane-based gas from landfills, sewage, and animal/agri-waste
- Shale oil: produced by thermal decomposition of kerogen
- Oil shale: sedimentary rock with organic compounds, heated to generate petroleum-like liquids
- Synthetic fuels: e.g. synthetic methane, synthetic natural gas, synthetic crude oil
Biofuels: biodiesel, bioalcohol, biohydrogen, vegetable oil, etc
Biofuels are renewable sources of energy that are derived from biological materials. They are considered alternative or non-conventional fuels as they are not derived from fossil fuels such as crude oil, coal, or natural gas. Biofuels are an attractive alternative to fossil fuels as they help reduce carbon emissions and pollution.
Biodiesel is a type of biofuel that can be manufactured from vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled cooking grease. It can be used in diesel vehicles as a substitute for fossil fuels. Vegetable oil, in particular, is a well-known alternative fuel.
Bioalcohol, also known as ethanol, is another biofuel that is widely used. It is made from corn and other plant materials. Methanol, propanol, and butanol are also types of bioalcohol.
Biohydrogen is another example of a biofuel. It is derived from biological materials and is considered a renewable fuel.
The use of biofuels is advantageous as they are renewable and help reduce carbon emissions. However, it is important to note that vast amounts of arable land and freshwater would be needed to completely replace fossil fuel usage with biofuels. Additionally, new technologies are constantly being introduced to make the extraction of biofuels more economical. For example, biogas, a methane-based gas derived from landfills, sewage, and animal/agricultural waste, can be used as a transportation fuel.
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Renewable natural gas or biogas: methane-based gas from landfills, sewage, and animal/agri-waste
Renewable natural gas (RNG) or biogas is a methane-based gas that can be used as a transportation fuel. It is produced from landfills, sewage, and animal/agri-waste. The use of RNG as a fuel source has several benefits, including reducing emissions and improving efficiency.
RNG is created through the decomposition of organic matter under anaerobic conditions, which produces biogas. This biogas is then treated to remove impurities such as water vapor, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide, resulting in a methane content of at least 90%. The upgraded biogas, or RNG, can be used in place of conventional natural gas and has a higher market value due to its renewable nature.
In the United States, landfill gas collection accounts for nearly 90% of biogas production. However, there is also growing interest in producing biogas from agricultural waste, as it can help reduce methane emissions from livestock farms. The state of California has provided incentives for creating and using RNG, including grants for projects that reduce methane emissions.
RNG can be used for various applications, including thermal applications, electricity generation, bio-plastic feedstock, and vehicle fuel. It can be injected into natural gas pipelines and used as a substitute for conventional natural gas, powering vehicles worldwide.
The use of RNG as a transportation fuel can generate Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) and Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) credits, which can be sold. This monetisation aspect further incentivises the utilisation of RNG as a clean and renewable fuel source.
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Shale oil: produced by thermal decomposition of kerogen
Shale oil is a synthetic unconventional oil produced from oil shale, a sedimentary rock embedded with kerogen, a complex mixture of organic chemical compounds. Kerogen is solid, insoluble organic matter composed of dead plants, algae, and other microorganisms that have been compressed and heated by geological processes. Oil shales are classified as marine, lacustrine, or terrestrial, depending on their organic content.
The process of extracting shale oil from oil shale is called pyrolysis, which involves heating the shale in the absence of oxygen to temperatures between 450°C and 500°C. At these temperatures, the kerogen decomposes into gas, condensable oil, and a solid residue called char, which can also be used as fuel. This process of thermal decomposition, or pyrolysis, breaks down the kerogen into lower-molecular-weight products, with the extent of thermal maturation controlling the nature of the product. Lower thermal maturities yield mainly bitumen or oil, while higher thermal maturities yield gas.
Oil shale resources are commercially exploited in several countries, including Brazil, Australia, Estonia, and China. In 2024, the United States had technically recoverable shale oil resources estimated at 78.2 billion barrels, followed closely by Russia with 74.6 billion barrels. Shale oil and oil-shale gas can be used in place of conventional oil and natural gas, respectively. However, shale oil cannot be directly substituted for all uses of crude oil due to its different composition, and its production and use have raised environmental concerns due to potential pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
The presence of kerogen in oil shale provides a potential solution to the global climate change crisis. Researchers are exploring the possibility of subsurface storage of hydrogen, a clean fuel with storage complications, in kerogen. Additionally, kerogen can be used to produce synthetic oil and gas, which can contribute to the diversification of fuel sources and address the challenges associated with the dominant fuel sources of petroleum and coal.
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Oil shale: sedimentary rock with organic compounds, heated to generate petroleum-like liquids
Oil shale is a type of sedimentary rock that is rich in kerogen, a part of the rock that breaks down and releases hydrocarbons when heated. Hydrocarbons are substances made entirely of hydrogen and carbon, and the most familiar hydrocarbons are petroleum and natural gas. Oil shale is an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen, a solid mixture of organic chemical compounds, from which liquid hydrocarbons can be produced. Oil shale is found all over the world, including China, Israel, and Russia, but the United States has the most shale resources.
Oil shale is a precursor to oil and natural gas. With more pressure and over geological time, kerogen heats up to its "oil window" or "gas window", which is the temperature at which it releases crude oil or natural gas. Oil shale can be burned directly in furnaces as a low-grade fuel for power generation and district heating, or used as a raw material in chemical and construction-materials processing. Heating oil shale to a sufficiently high temperature causes the chemical process of pyrolysis to yield a vapor that, upon cooling, separates into shale oil and combustible oil-shale gas. Shale oil is a substitute for conventional crude oil, but extracting it is more costly than producing conventional crude oil, both financially and environmentally.
Oil shale is formed from sediments laid down in ancient lakes, seas, and small terrestrial bodies of water such as bogs and lagoons. Oil shales deposited in large lake basins, especially those of tectonic origin, are commonly of considerable thickness. The mineral composition of oil shales includes silicon, calcium, aluminum, magnesium, iron, sodium, and potassium found in silicate, carbonate, oxide, and sulfide minerals. The chemical composition of the organic matter is variable, consisting mainly of complex organic molecules containing hydrogen and carbon, as well as certain amounts of the heteroatomic elements oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur.
Oil shale has been mined around the world since the early 20th century, with notable deposits in Estonia and China, but most countries abandoned their projects after World War II due to high processing costs and the availability of cheaper petroleum. Despite these challenges, improved drilling technologies have allowed companies to extract oil from shale formations, creating economic booms in regions like the Bakken formation in North America. Oil produced from oil shales has potential commercial value in some of the same markets served by conventional crude oil, and it can be refined into products such as diesel fuel, gasoline, and liquefied petroleum gas.
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Synthetic fuels: e.g. synthetic methane, synthetic natural gas, synthetic crude oil
Fossil fuels such as natural gas, shale gas, crude oil, coal, shale oil, and oil from shale are non-renewable and unsustainable. To overcome the drawbacks of these conventional fuel sources, researchers are examining the possibility of using non-conventional energy sources as alternatives. Synthetic fuels are one such alternative.
Synthetic methane
Synthetic methane, also known as e-methane, is an electrofuel made from two raw materials: hydrogen, which is produced from water through electrolysis, and carbon dioxide captured from the air or exhaust gases. Although burning synthetic methane still produces carbon dioxide, it is considered closer to carbon-neutral because the gas can be captured and reused to make more synthetic fuel in a closed-loop system. This process is known as "direct air capture" (DAC).
Tokyo Gas, in collaboration with researchers from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Osaka University, is working on replacing natural gas with synthetic methane. They are exploring the Hybrid Sabatier method, which involves water electrolysis and methane formation within a single integrated device. This method has the advantage of enabling the reaction to occur at a lower temperature of around 220°C. Tokyo Gas aims to commercialize this technique by 2030 and fully transition to using green hydrogen in the manufacturing process.
Synthetic natural gas
Synthetic natural gas (SNG), predominantly composed of methane (CH4), can be produced from fossil fuels such as lignite coal and oil shale or from biofuels (bio-SNG). SNG can also be synthesized with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) through partial reverse hydrogenation at high pressure and low temperature. When used in transportation vehicles, SNG serves as a substitute for costly fuels like diesel and petrol. Additionally, bio-SNG has a smaller carbon footprint compared to petroleum products.
Synthetic crude oil
Synthetic crude oil is an intermediate product created when an extra-heavy or unconventional oil source is upgraded into a transportable form. It can be derived from bitumen or extra-heavy oil used in oil sand production. Synthetic crude may also refer to crude-like hydrocarbon mixes, such as manure-derived synthetic crude oil and greencrude. After production, synthetic crude is shipped to oil refineries for further processing into finished products. It can also be mixed with heavy oil to create synbit, a more viscous but less expensive alternative for transporting heavy oil to conventional refineries.
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Frequently asked questions
Non-conventional fossil fuels, also known as alternative fuels, are any materials or substances that can be used as fuels, other than conventional fuels such as fossil fuels (NG, crude oil, coal, etc.) derived from ancient fossilized organic matter.
Examples of non-conventional fossil fuels include biodiesel, bioalcohol, refuse-derived fuel, biohydrogen, vegetable oil, and other biomass sources.
Conventional fossil fuels are non-renewable and have severe effects on the ecosystem and human health. Non-conventional fossil fuels are being explored as alternatives to reduce environmental impact and improve sustainability.
