1. HUMAN FOSSIL FUEL USE Fossil Fuels and Our Carbon Footprint

2. Fossil Fuels Dead dinosaurs and plants rot  “stored sunlight” Takes millions of years to make  NOT renewable Three major fossil fuels:  Coal (solid)  Oil, aka, petroleum (liquid)  Natural gas (gas, can be liquified)

3. Energy from Fossil Fuels Burning FF’s is very exothermic  Produces a lot of heat Coal is used in power plants  Youtube video Petroleum products are good for transportation Nat’l gas is used to heat homes

4. Misc FF’s produce about 75% of our energy!  Cheaply  Change in policy has HUGE economic effects Petroleum is a crucial plastics precursor Natural gas use is on the rise  U.S. independence on foreign petroleum supplies  “Fracking” issues Drilling and mining issues  Pollution  Dangers

5. Relationship to GW FF’s produce heat during combustion CH 4 + O 2  CO 2 + H 2 O  Burning 1 gallon of gasoline  approx. 20 lbs of CO 2 CO 2 is a known greenhouse gas  Greenhouse Effect is not controversial Greenhouse gases may contribute to Climate Change  Aka, Global Warming

6. Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Fossil Fuels Advantages:  Relatively abundant  Inexpensive  Cost-effective/efficient  High energy release through burning fossil fuels Disadvantages  Pollution (global warming contributor?)  Potential for danger (explosions, mining accidents, oil spills)  Environmental effects  Non-renewable

7. Interesting Facts To run a single 100 Watt light bulb 24 hrs/day for a year it takes 325 kg (714 lbs) of coal! 1 L gasoline = 23.5 tons of rotted dinosaur  1 gallon = approx 4 liters

8. Ways to reduce our carbon footprint Reduce, reuse, recycle Use less heat and air conditioning Change light bulbs (replace incandescent bulbs w/compact fluorescent bulbs which use 2/3 less energy, give off less heat, and last 10x longer) Drive less, drive smart – inflate tires, change oil Buy energy efficient products Use less hot water Use the off switch Plant a tree Others!