coal gasification
Conversion of solid coal to synthetic natural gas (SNG).
Subject:
Chapter 15 - Geologic Resources: Nonrenewable Mineral and Energy Resources
coal
Solid, combustible mixture of organic compounds with 30-98% carbon by weight, mixed with various amounts of water and small amounts of sulfur and nitrogen compounds. It forms in several stages as the remains of plants are subjected to heat and pressure over millions of years.
Subject:
chemosynthesis
Process in which certain organisms (mostly specialized bacteria) extract inorganic compounds from their environment and convert them into organic nutrient compounds without the presence of sunlight. Compare photosynthesis.
Subject:
breeder nuclear fission reactor
Nuclear fission reactor that produces more nuclear fuel than it consumes by converting nonfissionable uranium-238 into fissionable plutonium-239.
Subject:
bitumen
Gooey, black, high-sulfur, heavy oil extracted from tar sand and then upgraded to synthetic fuel oil. See tar sand.
Subject:
area strip mining
Type of surface mining used where the terrain is flat. An earthmover strips away the overburden, and a power shovel digs a cut to remove the mineral deposit. After removal of the mineral, the trench is filled with overburden, and a new cut is made parallel to the previous one. The process is repeated over the entire site. Compare dredging, mountaintop removal, open-pit mining, subsurface mining.
Subject:
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