Energy Alternatives to Petroleum

1
Energy Alternatives to Petroleum
2
Why Alternatives?

• Petroleum is nonrenewable
• The amount is finite
• Eventually the accessible petroleum will run out
• The inaccessible petroleum could be too expensive
  to extract

Petroleum field at Moreni, Romania 1920
3
Energy Past and Present

• Biomolecules organic molecules found in plants
  and animals
• Sun is planets primary energy source

• Plants convert sunlight energy into chemical
  energy (carbohydrates/sugars)
• Animals consume carbs/sugars and release some of
  that energy and convert some into other
  biomolecules

4
Historical Energy Use
Tillers International

• Until about 1850 wood, water, wind, and animal
  power provided United States energy needs
• Industrialization and population growth have
  increased the demand for energy
• Primary fuel sources have changed
• (1850 US population 23 million,
• 2005 US pop nearly 300 million)

5
Alternative Fuel and Energy Sources

• What is the future of fossil fuels, particularly
  petroleum?
• Approx 70 of fuel in US is used for
  transportation
• Oil Shale
• Coal Liquefaction
• Renewable Petroleum Replacements
• Other strategies

6
Oil Shale

• Petroleum from tar sands and oil shale rock
• Located west of the Rockies
• Rocks contain kerogen (partially formed oil)
• Problems
• Uses half a barrel of petroleum to produce one
  barrel of shale oil
• Uses enormous quantities of water

7
Coal Liquefaction

• Converting coal to liquid fuel
• Technology has been available for decades
• Problems
• Cost of mining and converting is greater than
  producing the same quantity of fuel from petroleum

A view of the Sasol coal liquefaction plant in
South Africa
8
Renewable Petroleum Replacements

• Certain plants, including some 2000 varieties of
  genus Euphorbia capture and store energy as
  hydrocarbons not carbohydrates

• Biodiesel
• Any source of plant or animal fat can be
  converted to biodiesel
• Currently sold blended with petroleum-based diesel

9
Other Strategies

• Those currently undergoing research include
• Hydropower
• Nuclear fission (splitting of atomcurrent
  nuclear reactors)
• Nuclear fusion (fusing two atomsoccurs in the
  sun)
• Solar
• Wind
• Biomass
• Geothermal
• Energy conservation also can
  reduce need for energy sources

10
Assignment

• Fuel Sources Over the Years p.283-284 1-4
• Biodiesel as a Petroleum Substitute p.288 1-3
• Evaluating Alternate-Fuel Options (based on
  reading Alternate-Fuel Vehicles p.289-293)
  p.293 1-5