Which of the following fuels are formed by degradation of biomass?
Which of the following fuels are formed by degradation of biomass?
The correct options are
B Biogas
D Coal and Petroleum
Petroleum and natural gas are
formed by the anaerobic decomposition of remains of organisms including
phytoplankton and zooplankton that settled to the sea (or lake) bottom in large
quantities under anoxic conditions, millions of years ago. Over geological
time, this organic matter, mixed with mud, got buried under heavy layers of
sediment. The resulting high levels of heat and pressure caused the organic
matter to chemically alter, first into a waxy material known as kerogen which
is found in oil shales, and then with more heat into liquid and gaseous
hydrocarbons in a process known as catagenesis. Despite these heat driven
transformations (which may increase the energy density compared to typical
organic matter), the embedded energy is still photosynthetic in origin.
There is a wide range of
organic, or hydrocarbon, compounds in any given fuel mixture. The specific
mixture of hydrocarbons gives a fuel its characteristic properties, such as
boiling point, melting point, density, viscosity, etc. Some fuels like natural
gas, for instance, contain only very low boiling, gaseous components. Others
such as gasoline or diesel contain much higher boiling components.
B Biogas
D Coal and Petroleum
Petroleum and natural gas are formed by the anaerobic decomposition of remains of organisms including phytoplankton and zooplankton that settled to the sea (or lake) bottom in large quantities under anoxic conditions, millions of years ago. Over geological time, this organic matter, mixed with mud, got buried under heavy layers of sediment. The resulting high levels of heat and pressure caused the organic matter to chemically alter, first into a waxy material known as kerogen which is found in oil shales, and then with more heat into liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons in a process known as catagenesis. Despite these heat driven transformations (which may increase the energy density compared to typical organic matter), the embedded energy is still photosynthetic in origin.
There is a wide range of organic, or hydrocarbon, compounds in any given fuel mixture. The specific mixture of hydrocarbons gives a fuel its characteristic properties, such as boiling point, melting point, density, viscosity, etc. Some fuels like natural gas, for instance, contain only very low boiling, gaseous components. Others such as gasoline or diesel contain much higher boiling components.
