Lecture 30

Question 1

Non-renewable energy sources include:

Answer 1

hydrocarbons (coal, oil, and natural gas), nuclear fuels

Question 2

non-renewable resources supply well over ___ of the world’s energy

Answer 2

90%

Question 3

renewable energy sources examples:

Answer 3

hydroelectric, solar, wind, wave, alcohol, wood

Question 4

North American versus world use of energy

Answer 4

> 10 metric tonnes of coal versus 2.7 metric tones as the world average

Question 5

Fossil fuels

Answer 5

a class of energy resources that are formed from organic matter that is buried by sedimentary process, and is subsequently altered by heat, pressure, and the activity of microorganisms at depth.

Question 6

Formation of coal

Answer 6

1. Deposition of vegetation (trees, ferns, and other plants) in swamps leads to the formation of peat.
2. Burial must be rapid enough to prevent oxidation and erosion of the material
3. Peat turns into coal as volatiles such as methane, CO2, and water are lost

Question 7

Coal Grades

Answer 7

peat, lignite, sub-bituminous, bituminous, anthracite, graphite

Question 8

Peat use

Answer 8

soil conditioning

Question 9

Sub-bituminous uses

Answer 9

char production

Question 10

thermal electric power generation is made by what types of coal

Answer 10

lignite, sub-bituminous, bituminous

Question 11

Cement production is made by what type of coal

Answer 11

bituminous

Question 12

Anthracite use

Answer 12

metallurgical coke production

Question 13

Coalbed methane

Answer 13

Methane that is released suring the coalification of peat may remain trapped in fractures in the coal stream and is held in place by water that saturates the well stream. Water is pumped from the coal seam allowing methane to rise (due to reduced pressure) to the surface.

Question 14

Formation of oil and gas

Answer 14

Organic matter is trapped in smaller concentrations in other sedimentary rocks, notably in marine environments where phytoplankton settled to the anoxic seafloor which was preserved in black shales.

Question 15

Black shales

Answer 15

have 8% or more of organic matter, which is referred to as kerogen.

Question 16

Kerogen

Answer 16

the organic matter inside of black shales, which matures during burial and mild heating, and gives off liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons, including bitumen and tar, oil, light condensates, and natural gas

Question 17

Petroleum Traps

Answer 17

As oil and gas are less dense, they rise through permeable rock to the surface. Oil and gas get trapped by geologic structures that prevent the escape called petroleum traps.

Question 18

Potential rock sources for petroleum

Answer 18

black shales and reservoir rocks with high porosity (sandstone or limestone)

Question 19

_____ are used to identify structures indicative of structural traps

Answer 19

seismic surveys

Question 20

Hydraulic fracturing

Answer 20

a process that injects mixtures of water and chemicals with a propend (ceramics, sand) into the impermeable rock to fracture it and release oil and gas.

Question 21

Modern hydraulic fracturing is the combination of the following technologies:

Answer 21

horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing

Question 22

Hydraulic fracturing water cycle

Answer 22

water acquisition, chemical mixing, well injection, produced water handling, and wastewater disposal

Question 23

Produced water from hydraulic fracturing problems:

Answer 23

inorganic, organic, subsurface reactions, microorganisms (biofueling), suspended solids, toxicity

Question 24

Tar/oil sands

Answer 24

dense, viscous deposits of asphalt-like oil that cannot be easily pumped. They can be formed in zones where lighter, volatile hydrocarbons have migrated away, leaving heavier material or in areas of lower maturity.

Question 25

Petroleum refining

Answer 25

Crude oil is sent to refining facilities where a variety of hydrocarbons are produced by the process of cracking.

Question 26

Products of petroleum refining

Answer 26

gases, gasoline, heavy oils, lubricants, and tars

Question 27

Crude oil

Answer 27

oil that has risen to the surface

Question 28

cracking process

Answer 28

breaking down of long carbon chains in crude oil

Question 29

Nuclear energy produces ___ of the world’s electricity

Answer 29

14%

Question 30

Ore body types associated with Uranium

Answer 30

1. unconformity related ore deposit

2. roll-front ore deposits

Question 31

unconformity related ore deposit and uranium

Answer 31

convective flow driven by the heat of the basement rocks can drive geofluids from fractures in uranium-containing basement rocks to overlying sedimentary rocks. The drop in temperature and pressure and redox reactions (e.g., with iron and sulfide) leads to the precipitation of uranium minerals such as pitchblende (U3O8) near the unconformity. In addition, depending on the flow regime, fluids containing uranium from the sedimentary rocks can flow into fractures, where uranium is chemically reduced to form insoluble uranium minerals.

Question 32

Roll-front ore deposits and uranium

Answer 32

an oxic, uranium-containing water flows through a sedimentary rock containing reduced minerals, most often pyrite. As water containing the oxidized uranium moves into the reduced zone, the uranium itself is reduced, immobilized, and thereby concentrated, creating a roll-front ore deposit.

Question 33

Nuclear fission

Answer 33

Uranium undergoes slow natural radioactive decay which releases geothermal energy. U235 undergoes radioactive decay, where the nucleus splits and releases neutrons and cause other atoms to undergo fission.

Question 34

Types of renewable sources

Answer 34

solar, hydrogen fuel, wind, biomass (biofuels and biochar), hydroelectric, tidal, and geothermal

Question 35

Local impacts of extraction

Answer 35

• coal mining requires the removal of a lot of rock that causes toxic mine drainage
• petroleum production causes spills and releases sulfur
• contaminating water

Question 36

Photochemical smog

Answer 36

produced by emissions of combustion of fossil fuels and agricultural waste produces smog, which is a combination of ozone, nitrous oxides, and particulate matter.

Question 37

Acid rain and petroleum

Answer 37

The addition of sulfur and nitrogen oxide gases from industrial air pollution can lead to the generation of sulfur, sulfuric, nitric, and nitrous acids that acidify rain to pH 3-5.

Question 38

The acidification of rain is particularly great in areas of:

Answer 38

downwind of industrial regions and large cities