Non-traditional fossil fuels
Carbon sequestration
Tar sands 175 billion
barrels proven recoverable
reserves.
(US used about 6.3 billion
barrels in 2008)
Significant environmental
impacts?
http://www.ienearth.org/archives/Dec2008_4/images/Oil_sands_open_pit_mining.jpg
Tar sands and ‘heavy oil. Petroleum that has
lost lower molecular weight compounds.
http://randsco.com/_img/blog/0602/tarSandMap.jp
http://willyloman.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/tar-sands-before-after.jpg
http://www.treehugger.com/tar-sands-protest-action-080729.jpg
Environmental concerns include:
water use
local ecosystem impacts
carbon dioxide emissions
http://www.treehugger.com/20090626-hillary-clinton-tar-sands-cartoon.jpg
500 billion barrels of
recoverable
reserves in
the western U.S.
(US used about
6.3 billion barrels
of crude oil in 2008)
www.friendlyinnovators.com/images/oilshale.jpg
http://radio.weblogs.com/0101170
/images/science/shelloilshaleprocess2.jpg
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/blogs/greeninc/oilshaleprod.jpeg
http://www.westernresourceadvocates.org/images/Hap%20cartoon.jpg
Oil shale:
water use in an arid climate
waste rock from retorting
ecosystem disruption – surface mining
carbon dioxide emissions
www.treehugger.com/2008/06/22-week/
Coal bed methane
US has ~ 20 TCF of
proven reserves
US used ~23 TCF
in 2008
http://www.energyjustice.net/naturalgas/cbm/figureI-24.jpg
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/page/trans/figs1.gif
www.energyindustryphotos.com/horizontal_drill.
CBM
water extraction in near-surface
aquifer systems
treatment fluids from horizontal
drilling and hydrofracturing
http://www.deq.state.mt.us/CoalBedMethane/images/P0000430.jpg
http://www.meic.org/images/water-quality/clarren.jpg
www.deq.state.mt.us/CoalBedMethane/photos.asp
Methane clathrate
http://i.treehugger.com/images/2007/10/24/methane%20clathrate-jj-001.jpg
http://www.blog.speculist.com/archives/methanehydrate.jpg
http://www.gns.cri.nz/research/gashydrates/images/methphase.jpg
potential for
significant, uncontrolled
methane emission
hypography.com/.../16398-methane.html
http://chem.ps.uci.edu/~kcjanda/Group/images/4cages.jpg
Underground (in situ) coal gasification
runaway underground fires
technical feasibility
http://www.cleancoalucg.com/gfx/charts/ucg-fig1.jpg
Injection of oxygen and
water. Ignition, production
of ‘syngas’.
https://www.llnl.gov/str/April07/gifs/fire2.jpg
Geological Carbon Sequestration
196.33.85.14/cgs_inter/index.php?option=com_c...
Subsea Carbon Sequestration
http://www.emilylynn.net/index_files/image002.jpg
Carbon dioxide is removed from the
surface oceans naturally by photosynthesis;
some amount of the fixed carbon is
preserved as sediment – perhaps to become
part of the intermediate carbon cycle.
Can this amount be increased by ocean
surface fertilization using iron, etc?
Can carbon dioxide liquid be released into
the deep ocean by direct injection?
http://esd.lbl.gov/CLIMATE/OCEAN/images/991020DOCSsummary-3.gif