Question
Which of the following fuels has the highest HHV carbon intensity ?
The correct answer is
Bituminous coal
Understanding HHV Carbon Intensity of Fuels
The Higher Heating Value (HHV) carbon intensity quantifies the amount of carbon dioxide ($CO_2$) emitted per unit of energy released when a fuel is completely burned. Fuels with a higher carbon content inherently possess a greater HHV carbon intensity.
Comparing Fuel Carbon Intensity
We assess the HHV carbon intensity for each fuel type:
- Nuclear fuel: Generates energy via nuclear fission, not combustion. Thus, it has virtually zero carbon intensity.
- Natural gas: As a fossil fuel, it releases $CO_2$, but generally less than oil or coal.
- Oil: Another fossil fuel, it has a higher carbon content and thus higher carbon intensity compared to natural gas.
- Bituminous coal: This specific type of coal is characterized by a substantial carbon content, typically higher than that found in oil or natural gas.
Identifying the Fuel with Highest Carbon Intensity
Considering the carbon composition:
- Bituminous coal contains the most carbon per unit of mass among the fossil fuels listed.
- Consequently, its combustion yields the highest emission of $CO_2$ relative to the energy produced, indicating the highest HHV carbon intensity.
Therefore, Bituminous coal stands out as having the highest HHV carbon intensity among the options provided.
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Important Questions from Energy and Environment - Teaching
- Burning of 1 mol of $\text{CH}_4$ liberates 890 kJ of energy and 1 mol of $\text{CO}_2$. Since 1 mol of $\text{CO}_2$ has 12 g of carbon, the higher heating value (HHV) of methane is :
- The air-to-fuel ratio (A/F) for complete combustion in an internal combustion engine is about :
- Consider solar insolation of $400 \text{ W/m}^2$ incident on a single solar cell of area $100 \text{ cm}^2$. If only $15\%$ of the photons cause electron - hole pairs and the average energy of incident photons is $\sim 1 \text{ eV}$, the short circuit current of the cell is :
- In terms of the calorific value, identify the correct sequence :
- At a given location the wind speeds are predominantly in the range $6$ to $6.4 \text{ m/s}$. This location’s wind power class will be termed as :
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