NON RENEWABLE ENERGY

oil natural gas

coal

nuclear

Fig. 16-2, p. 357

Oil and natural gas Floating oil drilling platform Oil storage Coal

Contour strip mining Oil drilling

platform on legs

Geothermal energy

Hot water storage Oil well

Pipeline Geothermal power plant

Gas well Valves Mined coal

Pump Area strip mining Drilling

tower

Pipeline

Impervious rock Underground coal mine Natural gas Water

Oil Water is heated and brought up as dry

steam or wet steam Water

Coal seam Hot rock Water

penetrates down through

the rock Magma

Electrical Power Production:

Michael Faraday 1831

TURBINE

Outside

Inside

TURBINE GENERATOR

OIL •  Crude oil (petroleum) is a thick liquid

containing hydrocarbons that we extract from underground deposits and separate into products such as gasoline, heating oil and asphalt. – Only 35-50% can be economically recovered

from a deposit. – As prices rise, about 10-25% more can be

recovered from expensive secondary extraction techniques.

•  This lowers the net energy yield.

OIL •  Refining crude oil:

– Based on boiling points, components are removed at various layers in a giant distillation column.

– The most volatile components with the lowest boiling points are removed at the top.

Figure 16-5

•  “OTHER” ITEMS •  chemicals, fertilizer,

plastic, synthetic fibers, rubber and even such everyday products such as petroleum jelly, ink, crayons, bubble gum, dishwashing liquids and deodorant

OIL

•  OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) has more than 3/4 of the world’s proven oil reserves and most of the world’s unproven reserves.

•  After global production peaks and begins a slow decline, oil prices will rise and could threaten the economies of countries that have not shifted to new energy alternatives.

•  Algeria •  Angola •  Ecuador •  Iran*

l  Iraq* l Kuwait* l  Libya l Nigeria

l Qatar l Saudi Arabia* l  United Arab Emirates l Venezuela*

*Founding members

How Long Will the Oil Party Last?

•  We have a few options: – Look for more oil. – Develop technology to produce it more

efficiently – Use or waste less oil. – Use something else.

Figure 16-1

•  Estimates range from about 75 years to 200 years.

OIL Pros and Cons

Pros •  High net energy yield •  Easily transported

long distances •  Low land use

Cons •  Burning oil for

transportation accounts for 43% of global CO2 emissions.

•  Subsidized oil discourages R&D for new energy sources

NATURAL GAS •  Natural gas, consisting mostly of methane,

is often found above reservoirs of crude oil. – When a natural gas-field is tapped, gasses

are liquefied and removed as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

NATURAL GAS

•  Russia and Iran have almost half of the world’s reserves of conventional gas, and global reserves are predicted to last 62-125 years.

•  Natural gas is versatile and relatively clean-burning fuel, (produces 30% less CO2 than oil when burned).

Sources of Natural Gas

•  Natural gas fields •  Associated with oil distillation •  Coal beds •  Coal beds and bubbles of methane

trapped in ice crystals deep under the arctic permafrost and beneath deep-ocean sediments are unconventional sources of natural gas.

Biogas

•  gas produced by the biological breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen.

•  Primarily comprised of methane and carbon dioxide

Biogas

•  One cow can produce enough manure in one day to generate three kilowatt hours of electricity; only 2.4 kilowatt hours of electricity are needed to power a single one hundred watt light bulb for one day.

•  Nitrous dioxide and methane (major global warmers) are converted to CO2 and H2.

Harvesting Methane from Cattle?

Landfill Recovery

•  Landfills are a major source of anthropogenic methane emissions.

•  Landfill methane is produced when organic materials are decomposed by bacteria under anaerobic conditions.

COAL

•  Coal is a solid fossil fuel that is formed in several stages as the buried remains of land plants that lived 300-400 million years ago.

Figure 16-12

Types of Coal

•  Smooth/shiny •  Most abundant

form of coal •  2-3 times the

heating value of lignite

•  45-86% carbon

•  Highest quality •  Deep black •  Metallic/glossy •  ~1% of coal •  86-97% carbon

•  Lowest quality •  Crumbly •  High moisture

content •  ~20% of coal •  25-35% carbon

BITUMINOUS LIGNITE ANTHRICITE

Fig. 16-13, p. 369

Waste heat

Coal bunker Turbine Cooling tower

transfers waste heat to

atmosphere Generator

Cooling loop

Stack Pulverizing mill

Condenser Filter

Boiler

Toxic ash disposal

Wet Scrubber

COAL

•  Coal reserves in the United States, Russia, and China could last hundreds to over a thousand years. – The U.S. has 27% of the world’s proven coal

reserves, followed by Russia (17%), and China (13%).

–  In 2005, China and the U.S. accounted for 53% of the global coal consumption.

COAL •  Coal is the most abundant fossil fuel,

producing large amounts of energy •  Has a high environmental impact

– Releases large amounts of CO2 into the troposphere.

– The impurities in coal are primarily: •  Sulfur •  Nitrogen •  Mercury •  Heavy metals •  Particulate matter.

Nuclear Energy

NUCLEAR ENERGY

•  When isotopes of uranium and plutonium undergo controlled nuclear fission, the resulting heat produces steam that spins turbines to generate electricity. – The uranium oxide consists of about 98%

nonfissionable uranium-238 and 2% fissionable uranium-235.

– The concentration of uranium-235 is increased through an enrichment process.

A Nuclear Reactor Is Designed To:

•  Sustain a continuous chain reaction. •  Prevent amplification into a nuclear

explosion. •  Consist of an array of fuel and control

rods. •  Make some material intensely hot.

Fig. 16-16, p. 372

Small amounts of radioactive gases Uranium fuel

input (reactor core)

Control rods Containment shell

Heat exchanger

Steam Turbine Generator

Waste heat Electric power

Hot coolant

Useful energy 25%–30% Hot

water output Pump Pump

Coolant Pump Pump

Moderator Cool water input

Waste heat

Shielding Pressure vessel

Coolant passage

Water Condenser Periodic removal and storage of radioactive wastes and spent fuel assemblies

Periodic removal and storage of radioactive liquid wastes

Water source (river, lake, ocean)

Why use nuclear energy?

Nuclear Power Cleaner Burning

•  Mercury Emissions: 0 •  Carbon Dioxide Emissions: 0 •  Nitrogen Oxide Emissions: 0 •  Sulfur Dioxide Emissions: 0

NUCLEAR ENERGY •  Scientists disagree about the best methods

for long-term storage of high-level radioactive waste: – Bury it deep underground. – Shoot it into space. – Bury it in the Antarctic ice sheet. – Bury it in the deep-ocean floor that is geologically

stable. – Change it into harmless or less harmful isotopes.

Radioactive Decay

Half life = the time for half the amount of a radioactive isotope to decay.

Half-life

•  Molybdenum-99 (half-life = 2.8 days) •  Xenon-133 (half-life = 5.3 days) •  Krypton-85 (half-life = 10.7 years) •  Cesium-137 (half-life = 30.0 years) •  Plutonium-239 (half-life = 24,000 years) •  Uranium -235 (half-life = 703,800,000

years)

International Nuclear Event Scale

•  Ratings 0 – 7 •  Logarithmic scale

– 0 = No safety significance – 3 = Serious incident (not yet an “accident”) – 4 = Accident with local consequences – 7 = Major accident

•  Only Chernobyl and Fukushima have been rated as level 7.

Chernobyl, Russia

•  The world’s worst nuclear power plant accident occurred in 1986 in Ukraine.

•  The disaster was caused by poor reactor design and human error.

•  56 people died from radiation released. –  4,000 – 93,000 more are

expected from cancer and leukemia.

Chernobyl

•  30 km “uninhabitable zone” will remain uninhabitable for ~20,000 years.

•  Animals have a haven although there are mutations within their populations.

•  Poaching becomes more problematic if they sell contaminated products.

Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Disaster

•  March 11, 2011 •  Damage caused by earthquake and

tsunami resulted in failure and release of radioactive materials. Exacerbated by human negligence.

•  3 reactors went into a full meltdown while a fourth reactor was a partial meltdown

•  Contaminated ocean water, air, and land

Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Disaster

•  No immediate deaths caused by radiation (~25,000 deaths from earthquake/tsunami)

•  Released about 17% of radiation released by Chernobyl

•  (Less than Chernobyl due to presence of concrete containment vessels)

Radioactive Isotopes Released

•  Iodine-131 – short-lived biological hazard. Reaches safe levels within ~80 days

•  Cesium-137 and Strontium-90 – long term biological hazard