Name : M.P.P.Y.

Pathirathna
Index Number: EGT19485

Fossil Fuels
Human life became more comfortable due to this fossil fuel invention. Fossil fuel is a main
source of energy. It is an energy-containing hydrocarbon compound. The Fossils are the remains
of creatures that lived a long time ago which means fossil fuel includes organic matter buried
beneath layers of rocks.
The energy in fossil fuels originally came from the Sun. Plants use the energy in sunlight to
make their food with the help of photosynthesis. Due to this process, energy is stored in plants as
chemical energy. That energy passes to the animals as food. After dying plants and animals,
significant energy remains in those dead organic materials. Microorganisms degrade those
organic materials. This reaction can be known as a decay reaction. Most of the decay reactions
that stored organic matter goes through are aided by enzymes found in aerobic bacterias. As a
result, insoluble solid material is made known as ‘kerogen’. Kerogen formation continues to a
depth of around 1000 m. Then kerogen is buried deep inside the earth’s crust, experiencing high
pressure and high-temperature conditions that allow it to transform slowly into fossil fuels.
(Schobert, 2013, 103) It may take millions of years.

Mainly, There are three types of fossil fuels available as coal, oil and natural gas. Moreover, oil
shale, bituminous sand also can be obtained as fossil fuels. But current production of those fuels
is very low. (FARRUKH, 2014)
Coal is a black shiny rock that contains a lot of energy in it. Approximately, one ton of coal
contains 20,681,000 Btu of energy. (Casper, 2010, 22) The coal type, rank, and grade may vary
due to the differences in plant materials, coalification degree, range of impurities, respectively.
There are several types of coal available such as ignite, subbituminous, bituminous, anthracite.
Oil (or crude oil) is a complex, liquid mixture primarily composed of hydrocarbons, but also
includes oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur compounds. Petroleum has a significantly more consistent
elemental makeup than coal.
Oil has become a key energy source today. Oil is concentrated in some areas of the earth where
there are high spots like geologic rock domes under the layer of caprock. After crude oil has been
pumped to the earth surface, it should be refined. After refining fuel gas, petroleum gas (LPG),
gasoline, jet fuel, kerosene, diesel, lubricants, bunker oil, can be produced.
Natural gas is a hydrocarbon, but it is relatively cleaner than oil and coal. Similarly, It is a
product of ancient plants and animals that were trapped in bogs and swamps underwater without
the presence of oxygen. These deposits were buried and trapped during geologic time. Natural
gas is trapped beneath a layer of impermeable rock in porous rock formations like sandstone.
Considering coal production, It is an important product for many industrial, electrical power
generation and other energy requirements. In Sri Lanka, a significant percentage of electrical
power is generated by the Norochcholai power plant by using coal. Initially, we needed to mine
coal. There are two basic mining methods in the world: surface mining and underground mining.
Approximately, surface mining is used for 40% of the coal production. If coal is near the earth
surface, miners can dig it up with machines. The surface mining method has three ordered steps:
overburden removal, coal seam removal & reclamation. Initially, the surface should be drilled
and fractured with explosives under overburden. Then disposal areas should be removed. After
removing overburden, the exposed coal seam should be dug out and carried or conveyed to the
surface. Next, coal is conveyed to a coal preparation plant or area where coal is used with the
help of railroads or overland trucks. Reclamation is the third step which is dumping
overburdened rock into a hole, pit, or hollow and recovering the rock with topsoil that was
extracted and stockpiled before the overburden removal. To complete the reclamation process,
vegetation is restored in the topsoil.
Underground mining is needed when coal seams are found deep underground. 60% of coal
production depends on underground mining. Slopes are vertical shafts and tunnels driven at an
angle to the seam underground level when coal seams lie fully below the ground surface to get to
the seam through the overburdened rock.
The process of coal preparation begins with the crushing and screening of newly mined coal,
which removes some non-coal particles. Washing is the process of separating non-coal elements
from coal. Then it is cleaned using different physical, mechanical as well as chemical processes
such as comminution, sizing, concentration, dewatering, briquetting.

Consider the oil production process, it also has several steps. Firstly, the rig site should be
prepared at the desired area and the surface should be drilled to access oil. After cementing,
testing and well completion, fracking should be done to unlock the oil and gas that has been
trapped in the rock. Here, the fracking liquid is pumped under high pressure. Then oil & natural
gas start to flow up from the well. When crude oil is first brought to the surface, it may contain a
mixture of natural gas and other impurities. Natural gas can be separated at the well site. (The
Seven Steps of Oil and Natural Gas Extraction, n.d.) Crude oil should go for the oil distillation
process. it seeks to separate the crude oil's constituent hydrocarbons into broad groups such as
petrol, diesel, kerosene, etc.

Many negative environmental impacts have been caused by fossil fuels such as air pollution,
water pollution, global warming. After burning fossil fuels, harmful gases like sulfur dioxide and
carbon monoxide can be released into the atmosphere. Acid rain can be produced when sulfur
dioxide from untreated coal smoke reacts with other components. Fuel spillage can pollute the
ocean. Although, the major problem of fossil fuels is global warming. When we burn fossil fuel,
it reacts with oxygen and produces carbon dioxide gas that acts as a greenhouse gas. Due to the
higher usage of fossil fuels, a higher amount of carbon dioxide is being emitted into the
atmosphere daily. It is leading to a dramatic increment in global temperatures in recent decades.
Due to global warming, glaciers are melting. Hence the sea level will be raised. Therefore it is
our responsibility to reduce the usage of fossil fuels and use alternatives.

Fossil fuel is one of the most important primary energy sources in Sri Lanka. But Sri Lanka is an
import-dependent petroleum consumer. Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is managing gasoline
fossil fuels imports, storage, transportation, wholesale and trade activities in Sri Lanka.
Moreover, Lanka Indian Oil Company is engaging in fossil fuel imports and retail distributions.
(SRI LANKA'S PETROLEUM INDUSTRY: Policy, Organization and Challenges Dr RHS
Samaratunga1, n.d.). Litro and LAUGFS.companies are importing LPG gas for Sri Lankan
industrial and household requirements. Lanka coal company (Pvt) Limited is importing coal for
power generation requirements in the Lakvijaya power plant. A new oil and gas exploration is
happening at Mannar Basin and the Cauvery Basin by Petroleum Resource Development
Secretariat.

References
Casper, J. K. (2010). Fossil Fuels and Pollution: The Future of Air Quality. Facts On File,
Incorporated.
FARRUKH, S. (2014, July 10). PPT - WEATHERING AND FOSSILS-III PowerPoint
Presentation, free download - ID:1563029. SlideServe. Retrieved January 5, 2022, from
https://www.slideserve.com/gyala/weathering-and-fossils-iii
Schobert, H. (2013). Chemistry of Fossil Fuels and Biofuels. Cambridge University Press.
The seven steps of oil and natural gas extraction. (n.d.). Coloradans for Responsible Energy
Development. Retrieved January 7, 2022, from
https://www.cred.org/seven-steps-of-oil-and-natural-gas-extraction/
SRI LANKA'S PETROLEUM INDUSTRY: Policy, Organization and Challenges Dr RHS
Samaratunga1. (n.d.). Sri Lanka Journal of Development Administration. Retrieved January 7,
2022, from https://sljda.sljol.info/articles/10.4038/sljda.v4i0.7102/galley/5491/download/