ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT

Introduction/Basics of Energy and Environment

Current and Future Energy Requirements
Sustainable Development

Non-Renewable Energy Sources

Coal, Oil (Petroleum) and Natural Gas
Nuclear Energy
Environmental Aspects

Renewable Energy Sources

Biofuel, Geothermal, Hydropower, Solar, Wind
Environmental Aspects
 Coal, Oil (Petroleum) and Natural Gas
Fossil Fuels
(Solid, Liquid and Gaseous)

World’s Primary
Energy Source
(80%)

Concerns that supplies will ‘run out’ in the short-to-medium term

have probably been exaggerated, thanks to the continued
discovery of new reserves and the application of increasingly
advanced exploration technologies.
(Non-renewable, but important atleast for next few decades)
http://www.slideshare.net/WWFITALIA/2052-5-aprile-2013-
scenari-globali-per-i-prossimi-quarantanni
http://www.2052.info/
 Coal, Oil (Petroleum) and Natural Gas

http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=17551
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
What is Coal?
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock
usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds.
What is Combustion?
The process of combustion is a chemical reaction between
oxygen, normally from surrounding air, and the constituent
elements of fuel – mainly carbon and hydrogen.

The reaction leads to the release of energy in the form of heat,

which is carried away initially by the combustion products.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal
 Solid Fuels - Types
Wood as fuel?

Useful energy is less – just 8%

http://www.fao.org/docrep/s4550e/s4550e09.htm
 Solid Fuels - Types
Wood
Still used extensively in countries, where there are extensive
forests, and where other fuels are not cheap or readily available.

Freshly cut wood contains 25 – 50% water.

Normally used in air dried condition with 10 – 15% moisture.

The combustible part of wood is mostly lignin and cellulose, which

are organic compounds of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/nov/27/wood-fires-fuel-climate-change
http://www.fao.org/docrep/s4550e/s4550e09.htm
Solid Fuels - Types
Wood
 Solid Fuels - Types
Wood
Carbonisation:
The carbonisation of wood is characterised by several
temperature regimes:

http://www.fao.org/docrep/x5555e/x5555e03.htm
http://www.fao.org/docrep/s4550e/s4550e09.htm
 Solid Fuels - Types
Wood
The carbonisation of wood is characterised by several
temperature regimes:
1. All loosely bound water evaporates between 100oC and 170oC.
2. Gases containing CO, CO2 and condensable vapours evolve
between 170oC to 270oC.
3. An exothermic step starts at 270oC-280oC, which can be
detected by the spontaneous generation of heat and the
increase in temperature.

Without any outside source of heat, the temperature continues to

rise slowly until it reaches 400oC to 450oC.
A final temperature of 600oC in practice is achieved by supplying
external heat.

http://www.fao.org/docrep/s4550e/s4550e09.htm
 Solid Fuels - Types
Charcoal
Charcoal is the solid product left after the carbonisation
(incomplete combustion) of wood.
The resulting soft, brittle, lightweight, black, porous material
resembles coal.

Useful energy is more ~ 28% - higher than wood

Burns quickly
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charcoal
https://www.uky.edu/KGS/coal/coalkinds.htm
 Solid Fuels - Types
Peat
Peat is a naturally-occurring solid fuel consisting of partly
decomposed plant material that has accumulated in situ under
marshy (boggy/ waterlogged) conditions.

http://www.peatexport.lv/block_peat.htm
http://blogs.law.columbia.edu/climatechange/2015/11/02/irish-high-court-peat-fired-power-plants-environmental-review-must-account-for-
impacts-of-peat-extraction/
 Solid Fuels - Types
Peat
Peat bogs grow at slow, but measurable rates.

Peat accumulates in an active swamp at the rate of about 3m in

2500 years.

Very large water content. Only 10% or less solid matter.

The air drying operation requires 40-50 days.

Peat is not regarded as coal. It is the first stage in the conversion

of vegetable matter into coal.
 Solid Fuels - Types
Peat
Large deposits are found in Russia, Germany, Poland, Finland,
USA, Sweden, Norway, Ireland, Canada, etc.

In Ireland, peat is the principal fuel.

The only true peat in India is in the swamps of the Nilgiri Hills in
southern India.

Peat-like material occurs on the two sides if the Hooghly river

and around Kolkata.
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Types of Coal
The 4 main types of coal are:
1. Lignite Brown Coal
Low-Rank Coals
2. Sub-bituminous Black Lignite
3. Bituminous
Hard Coals / Upper Coals / Black Coals
4. Anthracite

http://cirisenergy.com/?wm_custom_post=enterprise
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Types of Coal

https://www.uky.edu/KGS/coal/coalkinds.htm
 Where does this energy come from in Coal?
All living plants store solar energy through a process known as
photosynthesis.
When plants die, this energy is usually released as the plants
decay.
Under conditions favourable to coal formation, the decaying
process is interrupted, preventing the release of the stored solar
energy. The energy is locked into the coal.

https://www.worldcoal.org/coal/what-coal
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Types of Coal

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article45218.html
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Calorific Value
Heat of Combustion/ Heating Value/ Energy Value
This is the basic property of fuels, indicating the quantity of
heat evolved by their complete combustion.
It may be expressed as:
Energy/mole of fuel, kJ/mole, Btu/lb-mol
Energy/mass of fuel, kJ/kg, Btu/lb
Energy/volume of fuel, kJ/m3, Btu/ft3
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Ash and Mineral Matter
Coal contains inorganic mineral substances, which are converted
into ash by chemical reactions during the combustion of coal.
Depending upon the nature of the source, the mineral matter in
coal is called inherent and extraneous.
The inorganic material of the original vegetable substances is
responsible for inherent mineral matter.
The extraneous mineral matter is due to:
1. The substances which got associated with the decaying of
vegetable material during its conversion to coal.
2. Rocks and dirt getting mixed up during mining and handling
of coal.
 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Ash and Mineral Matter
Extraneous mineral matter can be removed, but inherent mineral
matter cannot be removed by any mechanical means.

Indian coals suffer from the disadvantage of high mineral matter.

The mineral matter does not contribute to the calorific value of

coal. On the contrary, it creates many difficulties in the efficient
utilisation of coal.

High ash leads to large heat losses and carbon losses and creates
problems such as boiler deposits and clinkering.

High ash is therefore undesirable and harmful.

 Solid Fuels (Coal)
Ash and Mineral Matter
The coal ash may be used for extracting valuable rare elements.

Enormous quantities of fly ash are produced from coal-based

thermal power stations all over the world.

Fly ash is useful in the production of cement, concrete, bricks,

filling material and lightweight aggregates.
Blackboard Material

Numerical Problems