- Email this page
- Print this page
- Home
- Article - How Fossil Fuel is Converted into Electricity
How Fossil Fuel is Converted into Electricity
Fossil Fuels are used all around the world as a means for heating, electricity and other means of energy production. They have been used for thousands of years without much thought of how they work or how they were made.
In the United States, many tons of coal is mined every day, and over half of it is used to generate electricity. Coal produces carbons when it is heated. These fuels can only be used once and for that reason, they are called Non Renewable Energy.
Fossil Fuels are the remains of plants and animals that have become as hard as rock, such as coal, and liquid fuel such as oil. For many years gas from oil wells was considered a byproduct of oil, such as natural gas, and only recently in the last century it was never used. Now it is used as another means of Fossil Fuel Energy.
It takes very large power plants that have the means for Converting Energy into Electricity. Some thermal power plants have an intermediate step that uses the heat that is produced from Fossil Fuels to produce steam to run their equipment. This makes all Fossil Fuel power plants very complex in their design, because there are multiple steps in converting Fossil Fuels into Electricity. Thermodynamics' secondary law states that any closed loop cycle can convert only a fraction of the heat that is produced during the combustion process of turning it into mechanical work. The extra heat is referred to as waste heat that has to be released into a much cooler environment. This means that all fuels, no matter what they are, to have to be heated in some type of burner, usually called a boiler. This boiler powers a turbine engine. Then the turbine causes a generator to begin turning and produces electricity using a transformer, which reduces the voltage of the electricity.
Electricity runs through lines usually above ground, however, today many are buried underground as well; carrying this electricity to other transformers and substations, which also reduce the voltage again.
There are some advantages and disadvantages of using Non Renewable Energy. For now, Fossil Fuels are relatively inexpensive for consumers. They are easy to transport from other countries, and they have a straightforward combustion process. However, some of the disadvantages are; they release harmful toxins into the air, which are causing global warming, and in some cases acid rain, which is sometimes so strong that it can dissolve the elements in limestone and marble. The other main concern about using Non Renewable Energy is that the extraction of Fossil Fuels greatly damages the landscape and is endangering animals as well as the plant life and the planet's atmosphere.
With so much Non Renewable energy being used all around the world, it is only a matter of time before they are completely gone. This is another matter that is being studied by scientists and several organizations, and they are beginning to look for other means for creating energy for the world. Energy such as, solar and wind power, as well as hydropower. These energy sources have been around since the world was formed and are a continuous source for renewing our world's energy supply today. The issue now is to make them affordable for worldwide use, and eliminate the world's emissions into the Ozone Layer.
For more information please go to Fossil Fuel.
