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GEO1005 > Fossil fuels > Flashcards

Fossil fuels Flashcards

1
Q

How long does a nation’s reserves last?

A

It depends upon how much the nation extracts, uses and exports

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2
Q

Which country possesses the most coal?

A

The US

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3
Q

Where is most of the world’s crude oil supply?

A

675 is in the Middle East

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4
Q

What was modern civilisation built on?

A

Oil, coal and natural gas

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5
Q

What used to be the dominant supply of energy?

A

Biomass

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6
Q

Who uses more energy?

A

People in developed regions consume far more energy than those in developing nations

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7
Q

How do developing regions use their energy?

A

It is divided between transportation, industry and other uses

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8
Q

What do developing nations use energy for?

A

Subsistence activities such as agriculture, food preparation and home heating

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9
Q

What source of energy do developing nations use?

A

Manual or animal energy instead of fossil fuels

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10
Q

Where does drilling take place?

A

On land and in the seafloor on the continental shelves

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11
Q

How much gas comes from offshore drilling?

A

255 of the world’s natural gas comes from offshore drilling

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12
Q

What are the two types of platforms used for offshore drilling?

A

Platforms are either strong fixed platforms or floating platforms

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13
Q

How can hurricanes affect offshore oil drilling?

A

They can devastate drilling platforms and prices rise accordingly

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14
Q

What is the world’s most abundant fossil fuel?

A

Coal

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15
Q

When did commercial coal mining begin?

A

In the 1700s

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16
Q

When was coal first used to generate electricity?

A

1800s

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17
Q

What is the fastest growing fossil fuel in use today?

A

Natural gas

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18
Q

For what percentage of global energy consumption does natural gas account for?

A

25% of global commercial energy consumption

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19
Q

What are the 3 forms of gas?

A

Natural gas
Biogenic gas
Thermogenic gas

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20
Q

Where does 40% of the world’s natural gas supply come from?

A

Russia and Kazakhstan

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21
Q

What are 8 advantages of natural gas?

A

Ample supplies of 125-200 years
High net energy yield
Low cost (with huge subsidies)
Less air pollution than other fossil fuels
Lower CO2 emissions than other fossil fuels
Moderate environmental impact
Easily transported by pipeline
Good fuel for fuel cells and gas turbines

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22
Q

What are 5 disadvantages of natural gas?

A

Releases CO2 when burned
Leaks of methane
Shipped across ocean as highly explosive liquid natural gas
Sometimes burned off and wasted at well because of low price
More recently in the UK fracking has been accused of groundwater contamination and earthquakes but this is heavily contested

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23
Q

What is tar?

A

Solid forms of oil

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24
Q

When did the modern extraction and use of oil begin?

A

1850s

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25
Q

What was oil first bottled and sold as?

A

Healing aid however, it is carcinogenic

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26
Q

What was ‘rock oil’?

A

It was used in lamps and as a lubricant

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27
Q

How much of the world’s oil is consumed by the US?

A

25%

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28
Q

What happens during exploratory drilling?

A

Small, deep holes to determine whether extraction is economical

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29
Q

What does oil do when under pressure do?

A

It often rises to the surface

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30
Q

What happens during primary extraction?

A

Initial drilling and pumping of available oil

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31
Q

What happens during secondary extraction?

A

Solvents, water or steam are used to remove additional oil

32
Q

What is an issue with secondary extraction?

A

It is expensive

33
Q

Why can it be economical to re-open a well?

A

If prices rise

34
Q

What is meant by proven recoverable reserve?

A

The amount of oil (or any other fossil fuel) that is technically and economically feasible to recover under current conditions

35
Q

When will we face an oil shortage?

A

When production declines and demand increases

36
Q

When does production decline?

A

It declines once reserves are depleted half-way

37
Q

When will an the oil crisis begin?

A

Within the next several years

38
Q

What is Hubbert’s peak?

A

This predicted that the US oil production would peak around 1970
His prediction was accurate as US production continues to fall

39
Q

How much oil have we used?

A

Estimated 1.1 trillion barrels of oil

40
Q

What is the R/P ratio?

A

Reserves to production ratio- this is the amount of total remaining reserves divided by the annual rate of production (extraction and processing)

41
Q

How many years of oil do we have left at current levels of production?

A

40

42
Q

How many barrels of oil are produced a year?

A

30 billion barrels a year

43
Q

What will cause us to face an oil crisis?

A

When the rate of production begins to decline

44
Q

How many tons of plastic waste are produced?

A

275 million tones

45
Q

How many tons of plastic goes into the ocean every year?

A

8 million metric tons

46
Q

What are tar sands?

A

These are oil sands with 1-20% bitumen that are a thick form of petroleum and are rich in carbon and poor in hydrogen

47
Q

How are tar sands removed?

A

By strip mining

48
Q

How can tar sands become useful?

A

By using special extraction and refining processes

49
Q

What are tar sands made of?

A

Degraded and chemically-altered crude oil deposits

50
Q

Where can tar sands be found?

A

In Venezuela and Alberta, Canada

51
Q

What is oil shale?

A

This is sedimentary rock filled with kerogen that can be processed to produce liquid petroleum

52
Q

What is kerogen?

A

Organic matter

53
Q

Where can oil shale be found?

A

More than 40% is found in the US, mostly on federally-owned land in the west

54
Q

What has kept investors away from oil shale?

A

Low prices for crude oil due to the OPEC cartel have kept investors away, but as oil prices increase, oil shale will gain interest

55
Q

What are 5 advantages of oil?

A 
Ample supply for 35-85 years
Low cost with huge subsidies
High net energy yield
Easily transported between countries
Infrastructure already in place
56
Q

What are 7 disadvantages of oil?

A

Need to find a substitute within 50 years
Artificially low price encourages waste and discourages search for alternatives
Air pollution when burned
Releases CO2 when burned
Moderate risk of water pollution
Risk of oil spills
Oil shale pollution

57
Q

What is the aim of the policies that the US government have put into place in terms of oil?

A

It wants to reduce dependence on foreign oil as it currently imports 60% of its crude oil. It therefore wants to diversify its supply

58
Q

What policies has the US used to diversify its oil supply?

A

Spreading imports from several countries
Developing its own reserves
Proposed drilling in the Arctic Refuge despite there being much evidence that drilling won’t help
Resuming extraction at currently closed sites
Research into renewable energy sources

59
Q

What is the Strategic Petroleum Reserve?

A

A reserve of stockpiles of oil in caverns under Louisiana for use when world supplied run out

60
Q

How much oil is in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve?

A

One month’s supply

61
Q

Why could economies collapse and become localised?

A

There are potentially momentous economic, social and political consequences.
The ‘long emergency’ from lacking cheap oil to transport goods.

62
Q

What do more optimistic observers say?

A

That we will find alternative energy supplies and focus on conservation

63
Q

Which war restricted global supply?

A

The Gulf War

64
Q

What has caused a global restriction before?

A

OPEC 1973 oil embargo caused an overnight price rise of 70% which caused global panic and skyrocketing prices

65
Q

What has destroyed offshore drilling systems in the past?

A

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

66
Q

What happens to oil prices when oil platforms are destroyed by hurricanes?

A

Oil prices spike

67
Q

Who are oil crises a concern for and why?

A

The politically volatile Middle East has the majority of the oil reserves so US and other western States are concerned

68
Q

How much of the worlds oil reserves does Saudi Arabia own?

A

22%

69
Q

Why are energy richer fuels less popular?

A

The potential doesn’t equal actual use

Following Fukushima, many countries are stepping away from nuclear

70
Q

When was the Paris Climate Agreement?

A

2015

71
Q

How much of the US electricity production do renewables account for?

A

17%

72
Q

What has been financed and by who since the Paris climate agreement?

A

33 global banks have provided $1.9tn to finance coal, oil and gas companies

73
Q

What is expected to happen to US CO2 emissions?

A

They will remain similar to current levels until 2050

74
Q

What will happen to the US’s coal consumption?

A

It will drop and then level off beyond 2100

75
Q

Which continent is now responsible for the majority of coal-fired power generation?

A

Asia

76
Q

What is the life span of Asian coal power plants?

A

12 years

GEO1005 (8 decks)

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