TOPIC:FOSSIL FUELS

AIM:THE IMPACT OF COAL ON THE ENVIRONMENT

FOCUS: USA

GEOAGRAPHY PRESENTATION

INTRODUCTION TO COAL WHAT IS COAL? Coal from the English

word ‘col’ meaning a fossilised carbon is a is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams.

The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure. Coal is composed primarily of carbon along with variable quantities of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.

FORMATION A fossil fuel, coal

forms when dead plant matter is converted into peat, which in turn is converted into lignite, then sub-bituminous coal, then bituminous coal, and lastly anthracite. This involves biological and geological processes that take place over a long period.

COAL MINING Surface Mining is used

to produce most of the coal in the U.S. because it is less expensive than underground mining. Surface mining can be used when the coal is buried less than 200 feet underground. In surface mining, giant machines remove the top-soil and layers of rock to expose large beds of coal. Once the mining is finished, the dirt and rock are returned to the pit, the topsoil is replaced, and the area is replanted. The land can then be used for croplands, wildlife habitats, recreation, or offices or stores.(Alppachian mountains)

Underground Mining, sometimes called deep mining, is used when the coal is buried several hundred feet below the surface. Some underground mines are 1,000 feet deep. To remove coal in these underground mines, miners ride elevators down deep mine shafts where they run machines that dig out the coal.(west Virginia)

 

COAL PRO

CESSING

After coal comes out of the ground, it typically goes on a conveyor belt to a preparation plant that is located at the mining site. The plant cleans and processes coal to remove dirt, rock, ash, sulfur, and other unwanted materials, increasing the heating value of the coal.

A coal preparation plant (CPP) is a facility that washes coal of soil and rock, preparing it for transport to market. A CPP may also be called a coal handling and preparation plant (CHPP), prep plant, tipple, or wash plant.

A. COAL HANDLING- handling of bulky pieces of coal

B. STOCKPILES-machinery dumping coal into piles

C. STACKING-feeding the conveyorD.  RECLAIMING-reclaiming coal from stock

pilesE. SAMPLING-a routine sampling is taken at

a set frequency over a period of time or shipment

F. WASHABILITY-the amount of physical breakage required to separate material of diff densities

G. CRUSHING-reducing size of coal for easy transport

H. SCREENING-group particle size into ranges of grades

I. GRAVITY SEPARATION-make use of diff relative densities of coal and reject material

J. DEWATERING PRODUCT COAL-water is removed to reduce mass and run-off

K. THICKENERS-used to dewater slurries of either tailings or product

L. CONTROL AND INSTRUMENTATION-measurement of flow, density levels, ash and moisture

Coal processing plant in Kentucky, USA

TRANSPO

RTATION

OF CO

AL

Coal Transportation

The way that coal is transported to where it will be used depends on the distance to be covered. Coal is generally transported by conveyor or truck over short distances. Trains and barges are used for longer distances within domestic markets, or alternatively coal can be mixed with water to form a coal slurry and transported through a pipeline.

Coal transport in India Transport to

thermal plant in China

Ohio river, Louisville

ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE ELECTRICITY Of all known sources

of energy, coal is the most important source supplying more than 55% of heat and energy in the world. Not only coal is a source of energy and heat but also it is the source of valuable products, viz., gases, tar, oils, pitch, coke, ammonia; fertilizers, synthetic dyes and numerous drugs. Nowadays, steam is used to produce electric power, which is then transmitted to the factory by means of wires

Coal is also a key component of important industrial processes such as steel and cement manufacturing - both of which are central to building the essential infrastructure of growing economies.

From focus usa

IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT : AIR

Air quality reduced due to emission from vehicles, generators and equipment. Also from coal dust blowing from mining sites could cause respiratory problems ( coal dust causes black lung disease)

Greenhouse gas emissions like CO2 and the potent methane(released during mining) that could also result in ocean acidification.(coal fires burn for decades)

Radiation exposure (low levels of uranium and thorium and other radioactive isotopes)

Mercury emissions in form of methyl mercury which is a potent toxic compound to wildlife

NOISE POLLUTIONUnderground coal fire, mountains of Colorado

Brandon shores power plant, Maryland

IN WATER: There is damage to water quality due to: Acid mine drainage into water bodies Soil erosion and run-off deposition Weathering causing leeching and oxidation Pesticides intoxicating water bodies Discharge of waste such as mercury, arsenic

and nickel into storage ponds which could then leak into groundwater flows

Excavation, extraction and withdrawal of water affecting ground water flows and surface run-off

Waste piles and ash deposited in rivers producing sediment, unfit for use even years later

Colorado mountains stream

ON THE LAND open pit mines are difficult to close and

its sometimes impossible to reclaim land

Ecological sources (habitats) are affected due to noise, run-off, acid mine drainage, mortality of biota, exposure to contaminants, interference with niche and behavioral activities

Vandalism of paleontological and cultural sites due to land clearance and excavation

Possible hazards like earthquakes and landslides triggered due to blasts and excavation which alter drainage patterns and increases run-off and erosion

Open cut mining in the Bowen basin

Stock piles at the hay point coal terminal

BY: DAISY SO

WAH

FORM

5W

I hope that we have come to realise without a doubt that fossil fuel s and not only coal are endangering the world and mankind as a whole. To curb any further destruction, cleaner and safer sources of energy must be established, ones that cause less damage to the environment..

THE END

Short Video Of Impacts Of Coal In The USA