Are fossil fuels being overused?

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Seb Williams

¿Are Fossil Fuels Being Over-used?

In this case study I intend to answer the title question in full, using quotes explanations and visual evidence.

Fossil fuels are used for creating energy to supply all homes with electricity, but also other places that need energy/electricity. These include; factories; football stadiums; theatres; office buildings. All of these places have a very high demand for energy. They need it for powering the lights, heating, machinery, photocopiers, fax machines, telephones, kitchens, sound equipment and other appliances.

3Coal, oil and gas are called ‘fossil fuels’ because they are formed from dead, prehistoric animals and plants. They are one of the main sources of energy used in life today, along with nuclear power, solar power, wind power; which most people think is recent although it has been around for about 4,000 years, as the Chinese and Babylonians used it for irrigating crops.

Coal

1Coal provides around 33% of our energy needs and is used in fossil fuel power stations. First of all you burn the fuel (coal) to heat the water to make steam, then the steam turns the turbines and in turn the turbines turn the generators and then electrical power is sent around the country. As you can imagine, the coal needed to create enough heat and in turn, steam, to turn the turbines must be a hefty amount, which would result in an awful lot of sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere, as burning coal produces this gas. Sulphur dioxide* is a harmful gas that contributes to the formation of acid rain.

        Coal has got to be one of the most important items on the Earth, without it, we wouldn’t have had much energy over the many years we have been using it. Although it could be debated that there could have been other sources of energy, such as the sun, although people only realised that this could be used for energy fairly recently. If over all these years we would have been using the Sun as a substitute for fossil fuels then we would have less global warming and more of the non-renewable fossil fuels to use later on. If we would have been using solar power all these years then there would’ve been no where near as many deaths from pollution as there has been. On the other hand, people may argue that we might not have as many new products, electronics, cars, televisions, mobile phones, houses, jobs etc. if we hadn’t been using fossil fuels as we may not have had sufficient energy to manufacture all of these things. Coal has been one of our most important friends since it was introduced, and will, if we keep using it, be for the years it has left.

        Coal power stations produce mass amounts of sulphur dioxide which can contribute to the formation of acid rain. Acid rain, also known as acid precipitation means the deposition of acid in rain, snow, dew or dry particles. 2Acid rain occurs when sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are released into the atmosphere, and undergo chemical transformations and then are absorbed by water droplets in clouds and then fall to the Earth via rain, snow, dry dust, hail or sleet. Acid rain increases the acidity of the soil and affects the chemical balance of lakes and streams. So there you go, burning coal in fossil fuel power stations is harmful to the environment but is also the surest and one of the quickest ways of creating energy. I think that coal is the best option as there has never been an explosion of a fossil fuel power station, but there was a nuclear one at Chernobyl in 1986. Fossil fuels are much more reliable as we have been using them for a long time, although they are not efficient as it is first crushed down to 2 inches, and then the furnace gets supplied with up to 250 tonnes per hour, which is an awful lot of coal.

Coal Conclusion

In the conclusion of coal, I think it is quite clear that it is being overused, as it says around 250 tonnes per hour is needed and they run all year round. There are around 8760 hours in a year, meaning that around 2,000,000 tonnes of coal gets used per year. Phew! If they keep going at that rate, we are going to be out of coal by the time the next decade approaches us. When the people at the power plant burn coal, it emits sulphur dioxide which is a gas that is harmful to the environment as it produces acid rain. I think we have made up our minds up about coal; it IS being overused and IS harmful to the environment. It isn’t a major health hazard as it has been being used for years now and hasn’t caused any sure deaths…yet.

Oil

Next there is OIL, which is also a quick and easy way of creating energy, as it burns so easily. Oil is used in everyday life for fuelling vehicles, although it is first refined into petroleum, you don’t fuel your car with oil, you lubricate your engine with it. There are also some perfumes and insecticides that derive from crude oil. Coal is also a lot easier and cheaper to transport as it can be carried through pipes in the ground. This means that there is no need for transport via roads, motorways, ferry or airline. It wouldn’t seem like you need as much oil to burn as you would coal, but oh boy, you do! There aren’t any power stations run off of oil, it is mainly used for fuel, and obviously for cooking, but not in the pure form, many tests and refining processes are undergone first.

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        Oil is one of the most important fossil fuels in this day and age, as it is used for fuel, and without fuel you couldn’t even transport coal. It is widely distributed, to countries everywhere. The 5 main crude oil producing countries are Saudi Arabia, Russia, United States, Iran and China. However, this is not just ‘oil’ this is crude oil, which is a smelly, yellow-to-black liquid and is usually found in underground areas called reservoirs. Scientists and engineers explore a chosen area by studying rock samples from the earth. Measurements are taken, and, if the site seems promising, drilling ...

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