Nonrenewable Energy Resources

Oil Rules!!! What is crude oil?Petroleum, or crude oil is

a thick, gooey liquid consisting of many combustible hydrocarbons.

• Formed over millions of year from decaying organic materials buried under the seafloor and subjected to extreme temperatures and pressure.

Oil Rules!!! Transportation

How crude oil is transported:• Pipelines• Trucks• Oil Tankers

Oil Rules!!! What is crude oil?Crude oil and natural gas often found together in

deep deposits in pores and cracks.• Found using sophisticated equipment.• Usually only 30-35% is extractable • Higher prices mean more can be extracted.

1 barrel is 42 gallons

Conventional Oil: DisadvantagesRunning out

Low prices encourage waste

Air pollution and Greenhouse gases

Water pollution World Politics and Trade Imbalances

Most is located outside of the US

Conventional Oil: AdvantagesRelatively low cost

High net energy yield

Efficient distribution system

Oil, What Is Left?Most energy expert

believe there are about 1,050 billion barrels left.

Peak Production This Decade

Rising Demand, Dwindling Supply = Higher Prices

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Controversy: Trade-offs

Would create jobs -mostly short-term

Oil resources are uncertain

Harmful environmental impacts

Drilling controversies

The Last True Wilderness: The Arctic National Wildlife Reserve

What is at stake? The pristine boreal forests of Canada-the greatest songbird nursery in our continent

What it would look like if Keystone XL is approved

Carbon Dioxide Emissions Per Unit of Energy

What is natural gas?

Mainly methane CH4

Also• Ethane C2H6

• Propane C3H8

• Butane C4H10

Formed like oil from buried animals and plants millions of years ago.

Where is it found?Deposits usually found above oil deposits.

In past was seen as unwanted waste and burnt off.

U.S. Natural Gas

U.S. supplies should last 55-80 years depending upon demand.

Supplies have been declining for years.

Canada???

How is it used?

• 53% of heat in U.S. homes

• 16% of electricity and growing quickly

• Hot water heaters• Can be used in vehicles

Advantages of Gas

• Cleaner burning than coal or oil.

• Emits far fewer CO2 per energy units

• More efficient energy producer and plants are cheaper to build

Disadvantages of Natural Gas

• Nonrenewable• Releases CO2 when

burned• Wasted when

burned off at oil sites• Methane(another

greenhouse gas) can leak from pipes

What is coal?

Coal is a solid fuel formed in several stages from remains of buried plants and animals.

Consists mostly of carbon and trace amounts of sulfur, mercury and radioactive materials.

Coal Formation and Types

How is coal extracted? Surface Mining:• Area Strip Mining• Contour Strip Mining• Mountaintop Removal

Underground MiningLarge environmental impact from different mining techniques.

How is coal used?

Coal provides 51% of current U.S. electricity. (62% worldwide)

Used to make ¾ of worlds steel.

A typical 1,000 Megawatt power plant uses 8,000 tons of coal every day…1 mile long train worth of coal every day.

How is coal used?

91% of coal in U.S. is used for power production.

Not useful for transportation energy needs.

How long will coal last?

According to USGS…

U.S. reserves could last 300 years at current rate of consumption…or 64 years if consumption grows by 4% a year.

World’s most abundant fossil fuel.

U.S. Energy Projections

Coal Advantages

• Most abundant fossil fuel.

• High “Net Energy”• Relatively inexpensive.• U.S. has plenty of it for

a while.• Power Plants relatively

cheap to build.

Coal Disadvantages

• High environmental impact (air, water, land, acid rain)

• Global Warming, high CO2 emissions

• Toxic Mercury and radioactivity

• Dangerous to mine

Origin of Nuclear Power

• Uranium, a radioactive element mined from the ground

What is nuclear power?

• Nuclear power is an alternative power source that uses the nuclear fission- splitting an atom of uranium to create heat and radioactive waste.

• Heat and lighter atoms are produced.

Advantages of Nuclear Power

• Large Fuel Supply• Little Air Pollution and CO2

emissions• Moderate to low water

and land environmental impact

• Low risk of accidents (multiple safety levels – except in old Soviet reactors)

Disadvantages of Nuclear Power

• High cost of building and operating plants

• Possibility of catastrophic accidents

• No long-term solutions for waste

• Spreads knowledge of nuclear weapon technology

• Terrorist Attacks

Dealing with Nuclear Waste High- and low-level wastes

Terrorist threats

Underground burial

Disposal in space

Burial in ice sheets

Dumping into subduction zones

Burial in ocean mud

Conversion into harmless materials