Fossil Oil

fossil fuel  Fossil Oil fossil fuel

Fossil Fuels are of great importance because they can be burned (Oxidized to carbon dioxide and water), producing significant amounts of energy per unit mass. The use of coal as a fuel predates recorded history. Coal was used to run furnaces for the melting of metal ore. Semi–solid hydrocarbons from seeps were also burned in ancient times, but these materials were mostly used for waterproofing and embalming.


Natural gas, once flared–off as an unneeded byproduct of petroleum production, is now considered a very valuable resource. Natural gas deposits are also the main source of the element helium.

Heavy crude oil, which is much more viscous than conventional crude oil, and tar sands, where Bitumen is found mixed with sand and clay, began to become more important as sources of fossil fuel as of the early 2000s. Oil shale and similar materials are sedimentary rocks containing Kerogen, a complex mixture of high–molecular weight organic compounds, which yield synthetic crude oil when heated (pyrolyzed). These materials had yet to be fully exploited commercially. With additional processing, they can be employed in lieu of other already established fossil fuel deposits. More recently, there has been disinvestment from exploitation of such resources due to their high carbon cost, relative to more easily processed reserves.
