What are Fossil Fuels?

Fossil fuels, also known as mineral fuels, are a mixture of hydrocarbons or hydrocarbon derivatives. They include natural resources such as coal, oil, and natural gas. They are formed by the decomposition of dead organic matter and plants underground. ^[1] is Nonrenewable resources.

Fossil fuels refer to non-renewable fuel resources such as coal, oil, and natural gas buried underground and under the ocean. The fossil fuels are divided into coal, petroleum, and

Entering the pace of global modernization in the 20th century

Since fossil fuels are the main part of the world's primary energy, their quantities in terms of mining and combustion are very large, so their impact on the environment is also of concern.

The most typical impact of the mining process on the environment is coal mining, which includes damage to land, damage to villages, and impact on water resources. According to incomplete statistics, so far, an average of 0.2 hectares of farmland has been collapsed for every 10,000 tons of coal mined, and an average of 20,000 hectares have been collapsed each year. China's buildings have more than 4.8 billion tons of coal, of which villages account for 2/3. In addition, the combustion of coal produces sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide that pollute the environment.

In the plain areas of Shandong, Hebei, Henan, Anhui and Jiangsu, there are 1,100 coal-pressed villages with more than one million inhabitants. Water pollution caused by mining

During the combustion process, carbon in fossil fuels is converted into carbon dioxide and enters the atmosphere, increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As a greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide has the functions of heat absorption and heat insulation. As a result of its increase in the atmosphere, an invisible glass cover is formed, so that the heat radiated from the sun to the earth cannot be dissipated to the outer space. As a result, the surface of the earth becomes warmer, aggravating the greenhouse effect. Since the Industrial Revolution, although the productivity of human society has greatly increased due to the use of fossil fuels, it has caused a series of serious problems such as global warming, and it has gradually attracted the attention of countries around the world.

Fossil fuels are also called fossil fuels and fossil fuels. It refers to a class of flammable minerals formed by the remains of animals and plants of different geological ages in buried strata undergoing long-term changes in geological conditions, as well as the effects of temperature, pressure and microorganisms. All fossil fuels are composed of hydrocarbons, so carbon dioxide is released during combustion. The main sources of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions are fossil fuel burning for energy production and transportation. Due to the huge scale of fossil fuel mining and utilization, the impact on the environment is also of concern.

Fossil fuels can be divided into gaseous fuels (such as natural gas), liquid fuels (such as petroleum), and solid fuels (such as coal, oil shale, oil sands, etc.). Among them, coal, oil, and natural gas are the most widely used, and they are also the main source of carbon dioxide. Coal is a mixture. The organic elements are mainly carbon, followed by hydrogen, as well as oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur. Due to the rich carbon content, the combustion of coal emits a large amount of carbon dioxide. For example, according to calculations by relevant units, China s coal fuel emissions account for more than 80% of the carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels and more than half of China s total greenhouse gas emissions, which fully illustrates the significant role of coal combustion in greenhouse gas and carbon dioxide emissions.

Petroleum, also called crude oil, is a hydrocarbon formed by the accumulation of microbial debris in water under the influence of high pressure. Petroleum is a flammable, viscous liquid that often coexists with natural gas. It is a very complex mixture. After refining petroleum, gasoline, kerosene, diesel and heavy oil can be obtained. The properties of its petroleum vary depending on the origin, and the density, viscosity, and freezing point vary widely. For example, the freezing point can be as high as 30 ° C and some as low as -66 ° C. The main element in petroleum is carbon, which accounts for 83% to 87%, resulting in large-scale emissions of carbon dioxide. In addition, petroleum also contains 11% to 14% hydrogen, as well as a small amount of sulfur (0.06% to 8%), nitrogen (0.02% to 1.7%), oxygen (0.08% to 1.8%), and trace metal elements (nickel, Vanadium, iron, copper), etc.

Many oil extraction companies are using a technology that injects carbon dioxide into reservoirs to increase oil recovery. This technology uses pumped pressure to store the collected carbon dioxide in abandoned oil and gas fields, deep underground salt water and coal seams. When carbon dioxide is mixed with crude oil, the viscosity of the crude oil weakens and it can flow to the ground more easily. This not only reduces carbon dioxide emissions, but also increases oil production.

Natural gas, in a broad sense, refers to the general term for naturally occurring gases buried in the formation. But generally speaking, natural gas refers only to flammable gases (gaseous fossil fuels) and gas that coexist with petroleum (commonly referred to as oil field associated gas) stored in deeper formations. The main component of natural gas is methane. In addition, according to different geological conditions. Some gas fields also contain helium. Compared to coal and oil, natural gas is a clean, environmentally friendly, high-quality energy source. Natural gas produces 60% less carbon dioxide when burned.

The use of natural gas as fuel can reduce the amount of coal and oil, thus greatly improving environmental pollution. In addition, because natural gas contains almost no sulfur, dust, and other harmful substances, it can reduce sulfur dioxide and dust emissions by nearly 100% and nitrogen oxides emissions by 50%, which helps reduce acid rain formation and soothes the global greenhouse effect. Natural gas is also one of the safer gases. It does not contain carbon monoxide and is lighter than air. Once leaked, it will spread upward immediately, and it is not easy to accumulate to form explosive gases. It has high safety.