Natural Gas Amber Fobes IDS 102 Project #1 February 22, 2006

Transcription

1 Natural Gas Amber Fobes IDS 102 Project #1 February 22, 2006

2 Amber Fobes IDS 102 February 21, 2006 Natural Gas Natural Gas Natural Gas is a vital component of the world s supply of energy. Natural Gas is considered one of the cleanest, safest, and most useful of all energy sources in the world. Natural Gas is used for many reasons, and it is not going anywhere. The history of Natural Gas is very interesting. Natural Gas is called a fossil fuel because most scientists believe that Natural Gas was formed from the remains of tiny sea animals and plants that died million years ago.(isa.colorado.edu) When these tiny sea animals and plants died, they sank to the very bottom of the ocean. They were then buried by layers of sand and silt, and over the years they became thousands of feet thick. This caused the energy rich plant and animal remains to create a lot of pressure. Scientists believed that the pressure and the heat of the earth changed the organic mixture into petroleum and natural gas. It then made sponge-like traps of water made up of Natural Gas. Human societies use this energy source for many reasons. Natural Gas is used more in the U.S. than in any other country. It heats fifty-seven percent of U.S. households.(naturalgasfacts) It also cools houses and provides fuel for cooking. If that wasn t enough, it is the primary energy source for products such as plastics, steel, glass,

3 synthetic fabrics, fertilizer, aspirin, automobiles and processed food. The United States produced 18.8 trillion cubic feet of Natural Gas in 2004 alone. In 1994 the United States imported 12 percent of its natural gas from other countries-mostly from Mexico and Canada.( lsa.colorado.edu) According to NaturalGas.org the United States uses 34 percent of the Natural Gas reserves, Europe and Former U.S.S.R uses 42 percent, and Canada uses up 15 percent. Overall the U.S uses the most Natural Gas because we have the resources to obtain it. Natural Gas is used for many reasons. The most important things it is used in the U.S are home heating, water heating, ovens, fireplaces, barbecues, gaslights, and pool heaters. ( Natural Gas makes it hassle free for many every day uses. Most people use this because it is efficient and inexpensive. It is mostly used in households. According to Colorado State everyone in the United States use Natural Gas. Natural gas ranks third in energy use, right after petroleum and coal. Twenty-three percent of the energy we use is natural Gas. Industries are the biggest consumer of Natural Gas. They use it to manufacture goods, as a fertilizer, photographic film, ink, glue, laundry detergent, and even insect repellents. Man0made fibers like nylon could not be made without the chemicals derived from Natural gas. (Colorado) Natural Gas is also being used in vehicles. It can be used in any vehicle with a regular internal combustion engine. After doing research, I did not see a lot of obstacles in Natural Gas. Time.com stated that there's enough oil left in the world to keep those highways jammed well into the 22nd century. Natural Gas is produced by drilling into the Earth s crust where pockets of Natural Gas were trapped hundreds of years ago. There is still a lot of Natural Gas

4 down there. There is no sign of us running out of Natural Gas anytime soon. There are many ways to obtain Natural Gas. Technology has made it very easy to drill it up from the earth s crust. Natural Gas is the third largest used energy source. It is going to get much more popular as the days go by. There is no need to develop this energy source. More households will start to use Natural Gas. The Natural Gas industry has existed in this country for well over 100 years, and it continues to grow. (Natural Gas.org) The push towards cleaner fuels is going to make Natural Gas one of the most commonly used energy sources. It is very safe and efficient. The demand for natural gas is growing. (naturalgasfacts.org) It is estimated that in 2025, natural gas will include more than a 75 percent increase for electrical power generation. In 2004, Americans used 22.3 trillion cubic feet of this gas. (Naturalgasfacts) It also powers nearly 130,000 buses, taxes, delivery trucks and other natural gas powered vehicles. According to the American Gas Association it is projected that there will be more than 11 million natural gas vehicles on the road by (ethanol-gec.org) Natural Gas is the overwhelming choice of professional cooks, and a natural gas grill provides instant heat, and adjustable temperature. (Talgov.com) There are not many drawbacks to this source at all. It is very safe and efficient. A huge advantage of this energy source is that it can be used directly as it is taken out of the ground. You do not have to change it in any way. Other fuels need refining before they are sold to the public and used. It costs less that gasoline. Natural gas leads to reduced engine maintenance and to longer engine life. (ethanol) Natural Gas vehicles burn 80 percent less than conventional vehicles. A disadvantage to using Natural Gas is that it

5 occupies about four times the space of an energy equivalent to gasoline, resulting in added weight and space of fuel storage tanks. If Natural Gas keeps on growing, it is going to cost more money to build more fuel tanks. There is limited availability of refueling stations and natural gas vehicles experience a much shorter driving range between fillups. As you can see, Natural Gas is growing at the minute. It is used very frequently. There are many uses for it. The most useful reason for it is in the household. Natural Gas enhances the cleanliness and price for a home full of Natural Gas appliances. There is also plenty of Natural Gas to go around. We are not going to run out of it any time soon. If the use of Natural Gas continues to grow, this world will be a much safer and cleaner place to live.

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