Where Fossil Fuels Come From
There are three major forms of fossil fuels:
coal, oil and natural gas. All three were formed many hundreds of
millions of years ago before the time of the dinosaurs – hence the name
fossil fuels. The age they were formed is called the Carboniferous
Period. It was part of the Paleozoic Era. "Carboniferous" gets its name
from carbon, the basic element in coal and other fossil fuels.
The Carboniferous Period occurred from about 360
to 286 million years ago. At the time, the land was covered with swamps
filled with huge trees, ferns and other large leafy plants, similar to
the picture above. The water and seas were filled with algae – the green
stuff that forms on a stagnant pool of water. Algae is actually
millions of very small plants.
Some deposits of coal can be found during the time of the dinosaurs. For example, thin carbon layers can be found during the late Cretaceous Period (65 million years ago) – the time of Tyrannosaurus Rex. But the main deposits of fossil fuels are from the Carboniferous Period. For more about the various geologic eras, go to www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html
As the trees and plants died, they sank to the bottom of the swamps of oceans. They formed layers of a spongy material called peat. Over many hundreds of years, the peat was covered by sand and clay and other minerals, which turned into a type of rock called sedimentary.
More and more rock piled on top of more rock, and it weighed more and more. It began to press down on the peat. The peat was squeezed and squeezed until the water came out of it and it eventually, over millions of years, it turned into coal, oil or petroleum, and natural gas.
The Carboniferous Period occurred from about 360
to 286 million years ago. At the time, the land was covered with swamps
filled with huge trees, ferns and other large leafy plants, similar to
the picture above. The water and seas were filled with algae – the green
stuff that forms on a stagnant pool of water. Algae is actually
millions of very small plants.
Some deposits of coal can be found during the time of the dinosaurs. For example, thin carbon layers can be found during the late Cretaceous Period (65 million years ago) – the time of Tyrannosaurus Rex. But the main deposits of fossil fuels are from the Carboniferous Period. For more about the various geologic eras, go to www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html
As the trees and plants died, they sank to the bottom of the swamps of oceans. They formed layers of a spongy material called peat. Over many hundreds of years, the peat was covered by sand and clay and other minerals, which turned into a type of rock called sedimentary.
More and more rock piled on top of more rock, and it weighed more and more. It began to press down on the peat. The peat was squeezed and squeezed until the water came out of it and it eventually, over millions of years, it turned into coal, oil or petroleum, and natural gas.
Coal
Oil or Petroleum
Refineries
Natural Gas
Saving Fossil Fuels
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