Obtaining Hydrocarbons

Question 1

Environmental impacts of obtaining Hydrocarbons

Answer 1

Negative
- large producer of CO2 increasing effects of global warming
- Extraction of crude oil damages the natural environment through creating large cavities underground possibly causing collapses and poses risks of oil spills which damages marine life
- products made form crude oil are non biodegradable (plastic bags) and aren’t sustainable
- Crude oil isn’t a sustainable source of fuel as it takes longer to replenish than remove

Question 2

Economic impacts of obtaining hydrocarbons

Answer 2

Positive
- reliable source of energy
- enables long haul of transportation as its an efficient energy producer (crude oil/ Petroleum)
- lead to the development of plastics and IT computing which helped the development of humanity
- development of advanced drugs and pharmaceuticals
- supply of jobs in the mining industry and manufacturing industry

Question 3

Sociocultural impact of obtaining hydrocarbons

Answer 3

Positive
- improved quality of life through the development of advanced drugs and pharmaceuticals
- Efficient and cheap form of electricity and heating
- hydrocarbons can be transformed into alcohols, polyesters which has changed the lifestyle of individuals

negative
- studies show link to exposure to hydrocarbons as a health risk
- increasing cost associated with landfill

Question 4

What are fuels from organic sources

Answer 4

Fossil fuels e.g. oil, gas and coal
- unsustainable
- crude oil/ petroleum

Question 5

What are Biofuels

Answer 5

• fuel derived from renewable plant sources
  Types
• Biogas
• Bio disel
• Bio ethanol (made from fermentation of glucose) C6H12O6)

Question 6

Advantages to bioethanol

Answer 6

• Bioethanol is produced from renewable resources while petrol is produced from non renewable crude oil. Thus ethanol is a sustainable fuel which may be continually produced while petrol is unsustainable.
• If green energy is used to produce bioethanol the CO2 released during combustion may be removed by plants during photosynthesis, resulting in a carbon neutral process
• Ethanol produces less particles which can be responsible for significant lung disease. reducing airborne pollutants also has the benefit of reducing the cost of health care in a community.
• Ethanol is biodegradable, thus spill s pose less of an environmental threat than spills of non biodegradable petrol which can cause long term contamination of soil and water bodies

Question 7

Disadvantages of bioethanol

Answer 7

• Increased demand for ethanol to replace petrol may cause crops to be grown to produce for fuel instead of food = food shortage or increased food prices (also increased use of fertilizer which bad for environment)
• Use of water to produce more crops to produce bioethanol can put pressure on local water resources. (water scarcity)
• Significant amount of energy required for farming and distillation processes. if fossil fuels are used as the source of this energy then the process will not be carbon neutral and contribute to global warming
• Bioethanol is less energy efficient than petrol hence more is required to be produced increasing the impact on the environment and costs

Question 8

compare fossil fuel and bio fuel - renewability

Answer 8

fossil fuel = No
Bioethanol = Yes

Question 9

compare fossil fuel and bio fuel - CO2 emissions

Answer 9

Fossil fuel = yes
bioethanol - indirectly through harvesting, transpiration ect

Question 10

compare fossil fuel and bio fuel - efficiency

Answer 10

fossil fuel = very energy efficient, requires not a lot to produce large amount of energy 48kJ/g
bioethanol = not very fuel efficient 30kJ/g, requires a lot more than fossil fuels, hence produces more CO2

Question 11

compare fossil fuel and bio fuel - industry suitability

Answer 11

fossil fuels - petrol (octane) is widely used and available
bioethanol - not set up yet for 100% ethanol, doesn’t work in cars and trains