CO2 Emission Reduction and Fossil Fuels Carbon

Reductions in carbon intensity, C/E, the carbon emitted per unit of energy generated, reflect the degree to which societies decarbonize their energy sources. The long-term trend has been a shift from coal to oil to natural gas––hydrocarbons with decreasing C/H ratios emitting progressively less CO2 per joule. However, the increasing use of clean low-carbon fuels is not sustainable without somehow disposing of excess carbon because it opposes the trend in the abundance of fossil fuels, with coal resources being the most abundant followed by oil and gas. (more…)

Dependence on Fossil Fuels: The Fossil Fuel Era

The global dependence on fossil fuels developed during the Industrial Revolution, two centuries of economic and social development that transformed the way modern humans work and live. Most historians agree that the Industrial Revolution began in the early 1700s in Great Britain when machinery began to replace manual labor and animal power, and fossil fuels replaced wind, water, and wood as main energy sources. Before this period in history, humans manufactured goods by hand or using very simple machines, and most people worked at their homes, which were typically located in rural areas. (more…)

Alternative Transportation Fuels And Alternative Fuel Vehicles

Alternative Fuel Vehicles
At present, in the United States and worldwide, motor vehicles are fueled almost exclusively by petroleum based gasoline (or reformulated gasoline) and diesel fuels. Since the first oil price shock in 1973, efforts have been made to seek alternative fuels to displace gasoline and diesel fuels and achieve energy and environmental benefits. Some of the alternative fuels that have been researched and used are liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), methanol (MeOH), dimethyl ether (DME), Fischer– Tropsch diesel (FTD), hydrogen (H 2 ), ethanol (EtOH), biodiesel, and electricity. Production processes associated with gasoline, diesel, and each of these alternative fuels differ. (more…)

Bioenergy from Dependent Resources (Forestry, Vegetable Oils, Waste)

Agricultural and forestry residues provide the largest proportion of biomass used for the production of biomas bioenergy. Some estimates suggest that globally available biomass role in the form of recoverable residues represents about 40 Ejyr -1, enough to meet 10% of the total present energy use of 406 Ejyr -1 . However, realizing this potential is limited by factors such as ease and cost of recovery and environmental concerns relating to sustainable land use practices. (more…)

Hydrogen Production Methods : Steam Reforming, Natural Gas, Electrolysis Water, Algae

hydrogen production methods Electrolysis Water
The hydrogen can come from various sources including fossil fuels, wind, solar, biomass, nuclear, solar thermo-chemical reactions, and solar photolysis. (more…)

The Importance of Coal as Source of Energy | Economic Importance of Coal

coal-energy-source
Coal is an important energy source and energy consumption in United States as well as worldwide. It will remain so for many years particularly in many developing countries. Fossil fuels stay as the main energy sources to the U.S. economy, but we can not ignore the importance of coal for decades. Coal production provides the price stability and will continue to be an significant source for electricity generation. Coal utilization is the major source of hydrogen in the coming hydrogen-based energy economy and it will be a crucial source of gas to liquid process of fuels energy.

Coal utilization and the importance of coal as source of energy industry perspective will change over time. (more…)

Sugar to Ethanol Production

sugar-to-ethanol-production
Brazil produced about 18.5 million metric tones (20.4 tons) of processed sugar in the 2001/2002 harvest, with approximately 9.45 million metric tones (10.4 tons) used domestically and the rest exported. Brazilian sugar is mostly derived from sugarcane, a drought-tolerant tropical and subtropical crop containing about 12 to 17% sugars (90% sucrose, 10% glucose) and 68 to 72% moisture. Brazil grew about 272 million metric tones (300 million tons) of sugarcane in the 2001/2002 season, making it second to India in world cane production that year. In 1975, Brazil adopted a Pro-Alcool Program to convert sugar to ethanol to reduce dependence on petroleum imports that were damaging the economy. (more…)