Deck 11: Fossil Fuels

Question 1

Combustion of which of these fossil fuels is/are linked to global warming?

A) oil
B) natural gas
C) coal
D) methane
E) All of these

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Which fossil fuel reserves will most likely last the longest?

A) oil
B) natural gas
C) coal
D) peat
E) uranium

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Scrubbers in smoke stacks remove large amounts of what major air pollutant?

A) carbon dioxide
B) sulfur oxides
C) nitric acid
D) sodium oxides
E) mercury

Answer 3

B

Question 4

The world's coal reserves could last for possibly another:

A) 20 years
B) 50 years
C) 100 years
D) 200 years
E) 500 years

Question 5

How has the burning of fossil fuels affected the global carbon cycle?

A) Less carbon is stored underground
B) Carbon is stored underground for longer periods of time
C) The amount of carbon taken up by plants has decreased
D) The total amount of carbon on earth has increased
E) The carbon cycle has slowed down

Question 6

What is the current state of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology for use in coal power plants?

A) CCS technology is ready to be implemented on a large scale
B) CCS technology is not yet ready for testing in power plants
C) CCS technology is being tested on a very small scale
D) CCS technology has been tested many times and was found to be inadequate for meeting current capture and storage needs
E) The theory of CCS technology is established, but an adequate design of a CCS mechanism has not been developed

Question 7

Today the world's main energy source is

A) coal
B) hydroelectric
C) natural gas
D) nuclear
E) oil

Question 8

Lignite coal:

A) is the most common grade of coal
B) causes the least amount of air pollution of any type of coal
C) is very soft and has a relatively low heat value
D) is very hard and burns cleanly
E) has the lowest sulfur content of any type of coal

Question 9

Which of these fossil fuels is composed primarily of methane?

A) oil
B) natural gas
C) coal
D) tar sands
E) lignite

Question 10

Bituminous coal:

A) is the most common grade of coal
B) causes the least amount of air pollution of any type of coal
C) is very soft and burns at high temperatures
D) is very hard and burns cleanly
E) has the lowest sulfur content of any type of coal

Question 11

Anthracite coal

A) causes the most air pollution
B) has the highest sulfur content
C) is very hard and burns cleanly
D) is the most abundant grade of coal
E) is very soft and burns at high temperatures

Question 12

The type of fossil fuel made from the remains of ancient plants that lived millions of years ago is

A) peat
B) coal
C) oil
D) natural gas
E) synfuel

Question 13

The legislation that has regulated mining activities in the United States since 1977 is the:

A) Wilderness Act
B) Clean Water Act
C) Endangered Species Act
D) Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
E) Soil Conservation Service Act

Question 14

Based on the figure below, which region of the world has the third-largest oil deposits?

A) North America
B) Africa
C) Asia and Oceania
D) East Europe and former U.S.S.R.
E) South and Central America

Question 15

Which of the following statements regarding fossil fuel formation is NOT true?

A) The sun is the ultimate source of the energy they contain
B) They are formed at a much slower rate than they are currently being consumed
C) They are formed in an oxygen-rich environment
D) They are composed of the remnants of ancient organisms
E) They require millions of years to form

Question 16

What does the term "Peak Oil" refer to?

A) the time period during which the rate of oil use is highest
B) the point in time at which the maximum amount of oil is being pumped from underground
C) an environmentally friendly synthetic oil with much lower greenhouse gas emissions than conventional oil
D) the time period during which oil refineries operate at their highest capacity
E) the time period during which international economies based on petroleum products arose

Question 17

Tar sands, oil shales, and gas hydrates are examples of

A) fossil fuels
B) synfuels
C) evaporates
D) petrochemicals
E) strata

Question 18

Which fossil fuel is most abundant in North America?

A) oil
B) natural gas
C) uranium
D) coal
E) peat

Question 19

The concern about global warming is directly related to increased levels of what chemical in the atmosphere?

A) mercury
B) carbon dioxide
C) sulfur oxide
D) nitrogen oxide
E) chlorofluorocarbon

Question 20

Which of these fossil fuels was/were formed from the remains of ancient microscopic algae and aquatic organisms?

A) oil
B) natural gas
C) gas hydrates
D) methane
E) all of these

Question 21

A mixture of hydrocarbons contained in oil shale is referred to as:

A) overburden
B) bitumen
C) kerogen
D) gas hydrate
E) anhtracite

Question 22

Gas or methane hydrates in the arctic tundra show increasing promise as a limited energy supply for which two of these countries?

A) United States and Iceland
B) Greenland and Finland
C) Germany and Ireland
D) Russia and Canada
E) Belgium and Holland

Question 23

Ice-encrusted energy reserves contained deep underground in porous rock are known as:

A) overburden
B) bitumen
C) kerogens
D) gas hydrates
E) anhtracite

Question 24

All of the following statements are true about surface mining except

A) It accounts for 60% of the coal mined in the United States
B) It is also known as strip mining
C) It is generally safer for miners than other coal mining processes
D) It is a less expensive mining process than subsurface mining
E) It is the most hazardous type of mining for workers

Question 25

A thick, asphalt-like oil that permeates tar sands is:

A) overburden
B) bitumen
C) kerogen
D) gas hydrate
E) anhtracite

Question 26

Initially the Clean Air Act of 1990 required ___ of the nation's dirtiest coal burning plants to cut down on emissions

A) 50
B) 71
C) 111
D) 2300
E) 200

Question 27

Which of these statements about coal is false?

A) Some types of coal contain a lot of sulfur.
B) Subsurface mining accounts for about 40% of the coal mined in the U.S.
C) Coal powered the steam engine during the Industrial Revolution.
D) Coal produces far less SO2 than natural gas or oil.
E) Coal supplies about 20% of the energy used in the United States.

Question 28

Negative environmental impacts from oil and natural gas production may occur due to:

A) release of particulates into the atmosphere
B) radical changes in the local topography
C) release of acids
D) accidental spills during transport
E) release of toxins

Question 29

Which of the following compounds may be released by the burning of coal without emission controls?

A) carbon dioxide
B) nitrogen oxides
C) mercury
D)sulfurous oxide
E) all of these

Question 30

In fluidized-bed combustion of coal, what is mixed with coal to remove which major air pollutant?

A) sand; nitrogen oxides
B) limestone; carbon dioxide
C) sand; sulfur oxides
D) limestone; sulfur oxides
E) water; sulfur oxides

Question 31

All of these factors are important in the discovery of oil and natural gas deposits except:

A) detection of structural traps
B) association with salt domes
C) association with remains of ancient forests
D) location of the right rock layer
E) identification of core samples containing microfossils

Question 32

Acid mine drainage

A) polluted steams
B) can cause dangerous landslides
C) is caused when sulfuric acid and dangerous dissolved materials wash from coal and metal mines into nearby lakes and streams
D) is produced when rainwater seeps through iron sulfide exposed to mine wastes
E) All of these answers are correct

Question 33

Petrochemicals are used in the production of all of the following except:

A) paints
B) fertilizers
C) medicines
D) synthetic fibers
E) lightweight concrete

Question 34

In areas experiencing acid precipitation, the pH of the rain may be

A) 2.1
B) 5.6
C) 7.0
D) 7.9
E) 11.9

Question 35

One of the most destructive types of surface mining for the land itself

A) is mountaintop removal using a dragline
B) is associated with the increased risk of black-lung disease in miners
C) is regulated by the guidelines of the 1977 Surface Mining and Reclamation Act
D) is most common in the western United States
E) involves replacement of the overburden that is first removed

Question 36

Which of the following fuels produces the greatest quantity of CO2 per unit of heat energy produced?

A) methane
B) natural gas
C) coal
D) oil
E) wood

Question 37

Which of the following is associated with subsurface mining?

A) overburden
B) spoilbank
C) strip mining
D) reduced environmental problems
E) more complete removal of coal

Question 38

Which of the following techniques is used to identify structural traps that might contain oil and natural gas?

A) mining
B) watch plate tectonics
C) satellite imaging
D) drill test holes and obtain rock samples
E) watch plate tectonics and drill test holes and obtain rock samples

Question 39

It is hypothesized that undiscovered large oil deposits are located

A) below ocean basin trenches
B) under the continental shelves
C) in locations where natural gas will not be found
D) in the continental United States
E) in locations where volcanoes are common

Question 40

Natural gas may be used in all of the following except:

A) cogeneration
B) transportation
C) commercial cooling
D) plastics and paints
E) generation of electricity

Question 41

Explain the fundamental misunderstanding about fossil fuels that is embedded in this quote: "If extinction is happening at a greater rate now, why is our supply of fossil fuels decreasing?" (Rep. Steve Pearce - R, New Mexico - at a hearing on the Endangered Species Act, 6/16/05)

Question 42

What are synfuels and why are they not used more extensively if there are concerns about diminishing global reserves of traditional fossil fuels?

Question 43

Which of the following is a potential environmental impact of using synthetic fuels for energy?

A) production of CO2
B) use of large amounts of water
C) use of large amounts of land
D) production of CO2 and use of large amounts of water
E) all of these

Question 44

Explain how the different types of fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) were formed.

Question 45

Describe two characteristics of the arctic tundra that make it fragile, and relate each of these characteristics to damage from human impact related to exploitation of petroleum resources in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Question 46

Discuss the economic and environmental advantages and disadvantages of natural gas as an energy source; address the perspectives of both production and use.

Question 47

Potential uses for calcium sulfate sludge, resulting from acid neutralization, include:

A) wallboard
B) soil conditioner
C) concrete
D) wallboard and soil conditioner
E) all of these

Question 48

Describe the restoration process that is required for the land as a result of surface mining of coal. Explain why this process might be more difficult in some areas because of differences in local climate, the sulfur content of the soil, and the extent of the vegetation and soil removed to mine the coal.

Question 49

All of the following are arguments against oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge EXCEPT:

A) using domestic oil is only a short-term fix to energy problems in the United States
B) it will be financially impractical to restore lands developed for oil extraction
C) there is no nearby infrastructure to facilitate oil drilling
D) documented declines in populations of wolves and bears in nearby areas where drilling has occurred
E) oil extraction in Prudhoe Bay has been declining

Question 50

A synthetic fuel that served as the major fuel for lighting and heating American homes until the 20^th Century is:

A) anthracite
B) bitumen
C) kerogen
D) gas hydrates
E) coal gas

Question 51

Identify the major ways that the burning of coal impacts the environment, and suggest one method for minimizing each type of impact.

Question 52

The process of Coal Liquefaction may be used to produce:

A) a nonalcohol liquid fuel
B) bitumen
C) kerogens
D) gas hydrates
E) anhtracite