Conversion of Energy - Essay Example

Thirdly, fission and fusion reactions possess the capacity turn the energy associated with ordering of subatomic particles into nuclear energy. Fossil fuels pertain to fuels formed out of the organic remains of prehistoric plants and animals that undergo natural process of anaerobic decomposition and these fuels are chiefly comprised in coal, gas, and oil. It normally takes nearly 700 million years for decaying plant and animal matters to be fossilized upon exposure to extreme levels of heat and pressure into usable fossil fuels which are mostly rich in carbon with coal, natural gas, and petroleum by composition.

Being a non-renewable source of energy, fossil fuels may be volatile or non-volatile as materials ranging from those of minimal C to H ratios as methane gas and liquid petroleum to materials with heavier carbon content than hydrogen as in the case of anthracite coal. In modern times, fossil fuels are confronted with the perils of continuous depletion at a rate that alarmingly exceeds that of their production which implies that renewable substitutes with equivalent advantages ought to be discovered and settled at for corrective resolution.

Besides being a flexible non-renewable energy source, based on their structure, depositional environment, and thermal reactions, fossil fuels draw a potential attraction due to the fact that most of world’s reserves of oil and natural gas come from deformed rocks whereas a great quantity of coal may be derived from sedimentary rock layers that do not undergo deformation. Sediments are readily found everywhere on which are comprised marine organic matter filled with oil and gas in high proportions to make opulent fossil fuel amounts.

Because of low oxygen concentration on environments in which massive deposits are preserved and coal forms that gather toward bogs and swamps, fossil fuels can be acquired with much convenience. Under natural circumstances, fossil fuels are made beyond human intervention since thermal processes may occur spontaneously after decomposing organics goes through preservation to become fossil fuels at a later time. Aside from fossil fuels, biofuels like the ones based on algae are a renewable alternative fuel used in producing electricity.

Besides the renewably drawn energy derived through biomass, geothermal energy, hydroelectric energy, wind, and solar powers, good fuel alternatives are present as well in bioalcohols, non-fossil methane and natural gas, ammonia, and vegetable oil. These safer options create possibilities of reducing air pollution since less hazardous substances are involved during the crucial stages of extraction and emission processes. This way, state investments may be allocated for concerns other than for setting up regulations.

In particular, heat derived from the earth by means of a natural geologic process has been widely attributed to ‘geothermal energy’ (with Greek words geo meaning earth and therm for heat) and is treated as a remarkable alternative to fossil fuels or other non-renewable ene