Fossil Fuels For Energy Production Research Articles

Impacts on the marine environment from direct and indirect ocean storage of CO 2

The potential effects of CO 2 emissions from fossil fuel energy production, large industries and changes in land use on climate change is an area of research requiring and receiving massive global efforts. Possible impacts of climate change and variability on marine life have received some attention, mainly regarding changes in living conditions via changes in water temperature, wind and waves and other physical climate related forcing of the marine environment. There is also a chemical forcing of the marine environment caused by CO 2 emissions to the atmosphere penetrating into the oceans. The perturbation of the marine environment through such indirect, i.e. via the atmosphere, storage of CO 2 in the oceans may be estimated based on known and predicted atmospheric CO 2 levels. Capture of CO 2 from the flue gas of power plants and large industries followed by storage directly in the oceans may be a necessary component of a greenhouse gas mitigation strategy for the next century in order to achieve a stabilization of atmospheric CO 2 levels. Direct storage of CO 2 in the oceans may impose, at least locally, a stronger perturbation of the marine environment than indirect storage via the atmosphere. Storage of waste CO 2 in aquifers below the seabed may also affect the marine environment if CO 2 leaks out in the water column above. In view of the perturbations of the marine environment that are already ongoing as a consequence of CO 2 emissions to the atmosphere and which will accelerate in the business-as-usual scenario as well as in scenarios including realistic CO 2 removal options, there is a need to clarify the resilience of marine ecosystems to increased CO 2. This paper discusses the large perturbations that are expected in various scenarios. One hypothesis is that direct ocean storage if performed in the most environment-friendly way may be acceptable, while continued emissions to the atmosphere and invasion across the air-sea-interface could lead not only to climate change but could also be harmful to marine food webs and ecosystem functions. Some experimental approaches that may be taken in order to contribute to a wider knowledge base for CO 2 policies are briefly described.

Role of energy production in the control of greenhouse gas emissions from waste management

Greenhouse impacts of alternative municipal waste management chains are assessed. The considered alternative chains consisted of landfilling, landfill gas recovery and flaring or energy production, biological treatment and incineration of wastes. The most favourable options to limit the greenhouse impact due to waste management are those that minimize the methane emissions to the atmosphere and those that reduce the greenhouse impact even further by replacing fossil fuels in energy production.

Fossil fuels

The recovery, handling and combustion of fossil fuels is damaging the environment. This damage may ultimately cause many plant and animal species to become extinct. If we continue to increase our use of fossil fuels for energy production, humanity may ultimately become one of the species that perish. This is an overwhelming reason to stop the use of fossil fuels as our main energy source. If long-range survival is deemed inadequate to make profound near-term changes in the energy infrastructure, then a second powerful justification comes from the need to conserve the unique substances in fossil fuels for future higher-value use as chemical feed-stocks. These two drives, one to stop using fossil fuels because they cause damage, and the second to save the fossil materials for higher-value use, constitute a powerful motivation to terminate the burning of fossil fuels. We must find new sources of energy. It is shown here that a large part of current environmental damage is a direct result of the use of fossil fuels as our main energy source,and that the materials found in fossil fuels are much more valuable as chemical feedstocks, from which high value products are made.

The Biogeochemical Cycling of Sulfur and Nitrogen in the Remote Atmosphere

According to current concepts, the composition of the atmosphere is largely determined by dynamic processes. The atmosphere represents a geochemical reservoir through which the elements are cycled by an exchange of matter with the oceans and with terrestrial surface waters and soils. Much of the exchange is mediated by biological processes, so that the biosphere is an important source of atmospheric constituents. A typical atmospheric cycle of an element such as sulfur or nitrogen begins with its release into the air as a volatile compound, usually in chemically reduced form. Thereafter the compound undergoes transport and chemical transformation within the atmosphere, but eventually the element is returned to the earth's surface by precipitation scavenging and dry deposition. The natural cycles of atmospheric sulfur and nitrogen are now massively perturbed by an additional emission of huge quantities of SO2 and NOx associated with the combustion of fossil fuels for energy production. It is thus necessary to study the unperturbed atmosphere in more detail in order to assess the impact of anthropogenic emissions upon remote atmospheric regions.

Aerosols: Anthropogenic and Natural Sources and Transport

The chemical and physical characteristics of the atmospheric aerosol were examined at the conference held from January 8–12, 1979, in New York City. The conference was designed to focus on recent advances in the areas of: 1) the urban aerosol, 2) source apportionment, 3) the urban plume, 4) natural aerosols, and 5) synoptic and long-range transport. Individual sessions were conducted on each topic. A final session included presentations and discussion on the future problems associated with fossil fuel combustion. Each session is summarized with important points from individual presentations included. The long-range transport of atmospheric particles was addressed in many contexts and at times is a dominant factor in explaining rural and urban concentration patterns. As in the past, however, the excursion of pollutant concentrations in the vicinity of sources must be scrutinized with respect to seasonal emissions and changes in emission regulations for various source types. The effect of the use of various fossil fuels for energy production was reviewed in the context of aerosol emissions.