Natural Gas
Natural gas is usually found in association with coal and oil and is often a byproduct of oil production.
Natural gas is a mixture of gases but its primary constituent is methane.
Other flammable gases including ethane, propane and butane are extracted prior to sale along with contaminants such as sulfur and carbon dioxide.
The United States has the fourth largest reserves of natural gas in the world, estimated at 238,000 trillion cubic feet.
The US is surpassed in this regard by: Russia, 1,680,000; Iran, 992,000 and Qatar, 892,000.
Natural gas has the advantage of being cleaner burning than petroleum and much cleaner burning than coal.
It is also fairly easy to store and transport.
Because of its ease of use, it is widely used for heating and for generation of electricity, with a much more limited use as a transportation fuel.
While the burning of natural gas is preferable to coal, it still emits large quantities of greenhouse gases and should be phased out as quickly as possible.
Blogs
|
