write about coal and petroleum as conventional source of energy
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Answer:
Coal provides many jobs. Unlike other forms of energy (nuclear, natural gas, oil, hydroelectric), coal provides many jobs in removing coal from the earth, transporting it to the utility, burning it, and properly disposing of coal ash. ... Coal can be mined and burned with little environmental impact.
Explanation:
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Explanation:
Coal is defined as having more than 50 percent by weight (or 70 percent by volume) carbonaceous matter produced by the compaction and hardening of altered plant remains—namely, peat deposits. Different varieties of coal arise because of differences in the kinds of plant material (coal type), degree of coalification (coal rank), and range of impurities (coal grade). Although most coals occur in stratified sedimentary deposits, the deposits may later be subjected to elevated temperatures and pressures caused by igneous intrusions or deformation during orogenesis (i.e., processes of mountain building), resulting in the development of anthracite and even graphite. Although the concentration of carbon in Earth’s crust does not exceed 0.1 percent by weight, it is indispensable to life and constitutes humankind’s main source of energy.
History Of The Use Of Coal
In ancient times
The discovery of the use of fire helped to distinguish humans from other animals. Early fuels were primarily wood (and charcoal derived from it), straw, and dried dung. References to the early uses of coal are meagre. Aristotle referred to “bodies which have more of earth than of smoke” and called them “coal-like substances.” (It should be noted that biblical references to coal are to charcoal rather than to the rock coal.) Coal was used commercially by the Chinese long before it was used in Europe. Although no authentic record is available, coal from the Fushun mine in northeastern China may have been employed to smelt copper as early as 1000 BCE. Stones used as fuel were said to have been produced in China during the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE).
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In Europe
Coal cinders found among Roman ruins in England suggest that the Romans were familiar with coal use before 400 CE. The first documented proof that coal was mined in Europe was provided by the monk Reinier of Liège, who wrote (about 1200) of black earth very similar to charcoal used by metalworkers. Many references to coal mining in England and Scotland and on the European continent began to appear in the writings of the 13th century. Coal was, however, used only on a limited scale until the early 18th century, when Abraham Darby of England and others developed methods of using in blast furnaces and forges coke made from coal. Successive metallurgical and engineering developments—most notably the invention of the coal-burning steam engine by James Watt—engendered an almost insatiable demand for coal.
In the New World
Up to the time of the American Revolution, most coal used in the American colonies came from England or Nova Scotia. Wartime shortages and the needs of the munitions manufacturers, however, spurred small American coal-mining operations such as those in Virginia on the James River near Richmond. By the early 1830s mining companies had emerged along the Ohio, Illinois, and Mississippi rivers and in the Appalachian region. As in European countries, the introduction of the steam locomotive gave the American coal industry a tremendous impetus. Continued expansion of industrial activity in the United States and in Europe further promoted the use of coal.
Modern Utilization
Coal as an energy source
Coal is an abundant natural resource that can be used as a source of energy, as a chemical source from which numerous synthetic compounds (e.g., dyes, oils, waxes, pharmaceuticals, and pesticides) can be derived, and in the production of coke for metallurgical processes. Coal is a major source of energy in the production of electrical power using steam generation. In addition, gasification and liquefaction of coal produce gaseous and liquid fuels that can be easily transported (e.g., by pipeline) and conveniently stored in tanks. After the tremendous rise in coal use in the early 2000s, which was primarily driven by the growth of China’s economy, coal use worldwide peaked in 2012. Since then coal use has experienced a steady decline, offset largely by increases in natural gas use.
Conversion
In general, coal can be considered a hydrogen-deficient hydrocarbon with a hydrogen-to-carbon ratio near 0.8, as compared with a liquid hydrocarbons ratio near 2 (for propane, ethane, butane, and other forms of natural gas) and a gaseous hydrocarbons ratio near 4 (for gasoline). For this reason, any process used to convert coal to alternative fuels must add hydrogen (either directly or in the form of water).