GEOL107 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2, Atomic Number, Scandium
Document Summary
Fossil fuels continued: natural gas fracking. Rocks and mineral resources: mining, strategic minerals, non-metallic earth and geologic materials. Volatile short-chain hydrocarbons like methane (ch4), ethane (c2h6), propane, and butane (c4h10) Occurs when temperatures too high and oil molecules break apart to form gas. Found in pores of reservoir rocks and can occur floating" above oil (its lighter), or, if temperatures are too high as only gas. Burns cleaner than oil (produces less organic pollutants) Abundant supplies of natural gas (and because its cleaner source of energy than coal) industries and electrical generations plants have switched to burning natural have increased demand yet prices still low. Domestic us unconventional source of natural gas currently being used. Unconventional oil and natural gas does not flow naturally through rock much more difficult to exploit. Unconventional refers to low permeability rock where pores poorly connected, making it difficult for oil and natural gas to move through rock to drilled well.