19th Century Fossil Fuels

1 What is coal? Coal is a substance we consider today a fossil fuel, created from all the dead plants millions of years ago. Coal is formed from prehistoric plants that when they die are not able to release the energy they built up from photosynthesis Typically the plants had fallen into large swamps and bogs, and then over time the dead plants lying on the bottom of the swamps and bogs were slowly covered with other dead plants and sediment build-up. Once buried the plants were subjected to high amounts of pressure and temperatures, which over long periods of time it becomes peat then eventually creates coal. We refer to coal as a “fossil fuel” today because it is created from prehistoric plants and the coal we have today has been millions of years since it was in plant form. Today we coal is still being created we just don’t fully recognize it because how long the process actually takes.

The use of coal which is most common today started in the 700’s CE and it is the use of coal as an energy source. Though not officially used as a heat source until the 1100’s CE, many methods of burning it for protective smoke were used. While the use of coal for heat was cheaper than wood, the side effects of it shortly began to show. As the mass used of coal came to be, the price of it rose sharply as up to ½ of lower class family wages were used only for the minimal amount of coal needed to survive harsh cold months. London also grew dependent on coal and many signs were showing just why this statement was true. The coal smoke smudged the city and thick black clouds could be seen from miles away surrounding London. These plus other negative effects of coal explains how the misuse of coal led to more negative occurrences than positive and beneficial use it gave.

Since coal pollutes the air and gives off a lot of carbon dioxide, many European nations switched to natural gas or nuclear power to produce electricity.

The fossil fuels contain high percentage of carbon and include coal, oil, and natural gas, are the major source of energy that power our modern society. Fossil fuel range from low carbon to hydrogen ratio like methane, to liquid petroleum, to almost pure carbon like coal. Petroleum, such as natural gas and crude oil, contains a mix of hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbon deposits underneath the earth surface, such as oil and natural gas, is search by petroleum geologist and geophysics, called hydrocarbon exploration and oil exploration.

Coal, crude oil, and natural gas are all considered fossil fuels because they were formed from the buried remains of plants and animals that lived millions of years ago.

Coal was used for just about everything. It was used for the iron and steel industry, for steam powered transportation, and, of course, for home heating in coal furnaces and in stoves. It was seemingly the major fuel for industry. Coal was increasingly abundant in the mountains from West Virginia to Alabama. The production of coal rose from five million tons to fifty million tons in the twenty five years between 1875 and1900.

Currently fossil fuels are the world’s primary energy source. The fossil fuels include coal, petroleum, and natural gases. Fossil fuels are organic materials formed from decayed plants and animals that due to heat and pressure from hundreds of

Coal: A Human History was written by Barbara Freese to focus on the history of coal and how mankind has used it as part of their lifestyle. Ever since the times when early nomads used the slash-and-burn method, coal has been around acting as jewelry for the Romans and as fuel for peasants and the noble class in Britain. Coal was in such high demand that many inventions were utilized for the convenience of retrieving it from intolerable conditions such as vacuums and the construction of more efficient underground tunnels. The book gives insight of how this small stone has been so vital to humans that they were able to adapt to the ways coal best functions.

Coal usage started growth in early 1800s when first coal mines started operating. Coal produce more heat per pound, being much more portable fuel. It passed

After the industrial era when steam engines were invented, people invested more and more into energy production. The 1900s were a golden age for energy, so much so that small power plants doubled in size every 10 years, growing bigger and bigger. Electricity at that time was quickly adopted by people across the world, becoming a big part of our lives. However, people back then heavily rely more on other sources of energy production compared to what we use today. People in the early 1900s didn't have renewable energy or didn't rely on it at all. During this time, coal was the number 1# method for generating electricity because so many people relied on it rather than other renewables and fossil fuels. In terms of what electricity was used for at that time, people really only used

The idea of burning coal, is not a new one, nor is it recent that coal has been chosen as a fuel source since the 1700’s in England as it burned hotter and cleaner than anything else at the time, which caused it to find its way into steam

In the 1700s, the English found coal could produce a fuel that burned hotter and cleaner than charcoal. However, it was overwhelming for energy to run the new technology invented during the industrial revolution that gave real opportunities for coal to fill its first role as a dominant worldwide supply of energy. The industrial revolution played a big role in expanding the use of coal. The industrial revolution spread to the United States. Steam Boats and other steam-powered things used coal to fuel their boilers. Coal

The formation of the other two fossil fuels (crude oil and natural gas) took millions of years just like coal. Oil and gas come from the remains of small animals and plants. Long ago, when the animals and plants died, they sank to the bottom of the sea. The dead matter formed a large mass, which over time was covered by layers of sand, silt, and mud. As the weight of the sediment increased, the mass became more and more compressed. Then, the heat and pressure of the Earth eventually turned the mass into oil and gas. If the heat applied during the formation was low, then more oil was produced than gas. If the temperature was

This paper will discuss the three main fossil fuels which are oil, coal, and natural gas. This research shows how the fossil fuels are formed, where they could be found, and explain how they were formed over millions of years. This paper will show the numerous advantages of fossil fuels compared to the disadvantages and how they are hurting the Earth. Fossils fuels are critical to the function of everyday life. The world would be a different if fossil fuels and their uses were not to of use.

Fossil fuels are essential to life on earth as we know it today. Our world would certainly be much different if it weren’t for such seemingly simple things such as coal, oil, and natural gas. These basic elements of life on earth may not seem like a major concern to some people until we put into perspective how they have shaped our world today. Civilizations have been built, economies have risen and crumbled, and even wars have been fought over these precious fossil fuels. However, these fossil fuels serve us in ways we may never truly appreciate, as long as we use them as recklessly as we do now. The major entity about fossil fuels is concerning their longevity and permanence in our world, and we all know, they will be around forever.