What Is a Fossil Fuel?

Question

Can anyone tell what a fossil fuel is and how it can prevent air pollution?

Answer 1

Fossil Fuels are fuels that are produced from the remains of organic plants and include, oil, coal, peat, and gasoline,  Because of how they were created that tend to be very high in carbon and thereby typically give of high carbon emissions which are associated with global warming.  Some fossil fuels are also high the amount of particulates that they emit into the air.  Therefore various types of systems have been developed to remove these byproducts from the exhaust.  The problem is then that we still have to deal with what to do with what we remove.  The fly ash from factory stack scrubbers is very high high is certain types of  elements and can not be disposed of in typical landfills

Answer 2

Fossil fuels or mineral fuels are fossil source fuels, that is, hydrocarbons found within the top layer of the earth’s crust.

They range from very volatile materials with low carbon:hydrogen ratios like methane, to liquid petroleum to nonvolatile materials composed of almost pure carbon, like anthracite coal. Methane can be found in hydrocarbon fields, alone, associated with oil, or in the form of methane clathrates. It is generally accepted that they formed from the fossilized remains of dead plants and animals[1] by exposure to heat and pressure in the Earth's crust over hundreds of millions of years.[2] This is known as the biogenic theory and was first introduced by Mikhail Lomonosov in 1757. There is an opposing theory that the more volatile hydrocarbons, especially natural gas, are formed by abiogenic processes, that is no living material was involved in their formation.

It was estimated by the Energy Information Administration that in 2005 86% of primary energy production in the world came from burning fossil fuels. With the remaining Non-fossil being hydro 6.3%, nuclear 6.0%, and other (geothermal, solar, wind, and wood and waste) 0.9 percent[3]

Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources because they take millions of years to form and reserves are being depleted much faster than new ones are being formed. Concern about fossil fuel supplies is one of the causes of regional and global conflicts. The production and use of fossil fuels raise environmental concerns. A global movement toward the generation of renewable energy is therefore under way to help meet increased energy needs.

The burning of fossil fuels produces around 21.3 billion tonnes (= 21.3 gigatons) of carbon dioxide per year, but it is estimated that natural processes can only absorb about half of that amount so there is a net increase of 11.6 billion tonnes of atmospheric carbon dioxide per year(one tonne of atmospheric carbon is equivalent to 44/12 or 3.7 tonnes of carbon dioxide).[4] Carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gases that enhances radiative forcing and contributes to global warming causing the average surface temperature of the Earth to rise in response which climate scientists agree will cause major adverse effects, including on biodiversity and, over time, cause sea level rise.

Answer 3

coal, oil, and natural gas are fossil fuels.

they're called fossil fuels because they were created from plant and animal matter that lived millions of years ago, and decayed in such a manner that the carbon and hydrogen were left un-oxidized, which we now use to burn to produce / liberate the energy that's available.

that energy was created originally by photosynthesis, so in essence, they're solar energy that was stored underground for millions of years.

their primary ingredients are carbon and hydrogen.

however, typically they contain sulfur, nitrogen, and other elements.

until global warming became a recognized problem, SO2, NO, etc were the most important "pollutants" that came from burning them.

there has been an effort to reduce emissions of SO2 and NO because they cause smog, etc., that has been largely successful in the US.  China, for example, has not made this effort, and the air in industrial centers there is very polluted.

of coal, oil, and natural gas,  gas is naturally the cleanest, followed by oil, with coal being the most "dirty".

however, various deposits of all three contain varying levels of pollutants.

when politicians talk about "clean coal" during global warming discussions, you know they're lying.  CO2 is the problem.  CO2 is not a consideration in reducing pollution.

Answer 4

Fossil fuels are carbonaceous compounds (coal, petroleum, natural gas) caused by earlier life forms which have been buried and decayed.  These can't be replaced at an economically useful rate, so eventually the supplies will fall and prices will rise.  The use of fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide and other substances into the air, which are in some cases properly considered to be a problem.  Hence, the push toward use of renewable energy sources such as wind power, photovoltaic panels, and hydro power -- all of which are non-polluting in operation, but may involve capital costs large enough that their installation and use is not profitable.