Natural Gas

Natural gas: Composition and Origin

Natural Gas nowadays is one of the most important sources of energy but very few of us know much about it. We tend to confuse it with the gas that is filled in our vehicles or the gas that is used as fuel in barbeque but then natural gas is different from the other fossil fuels that can be found. It is not only very useful but also safe and clean. It consists of ethane, propane, pentane and butane, which are removed in the process of refinement. Natural Gas also consists of some amount of nitrogen, helium, hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide. Being a gas, it is shapeless besides being odorless and colorless and as stated earlier it is cleaner than other fossil fuels in regards to the emissions that it produces.

Natural gas is found in underground reservoirs, mostly near oilfields and coal mines as coal bed methane. When the places where natural gas can be found are identified, the soil above is drilled to obtain natural Gas. Once obtained it is refined of the impurities like other gases, water, and dirt to get the pure form of the fuel. In the process of refinement other gases, which are obtained by the application of supercritical pressure and temperature conditions, like butane and propane, are sold separately.

Formation of Natural Gas

Natural Gas like other fossil fuels are found underneath the earth surface and are formed of the organic remains of plants and dead animals which due to extreme pressure and temperature in the earth’s crust transform into oil and natural gas. The process is something like this where in due to extreme temperature and pressure, the carbon bonds in these organic elements and break and are rearranged. In the higher levels of the earth’s crust the probability of finding oil is more than gas but as and how one goes deep down the crust, the probability of gas is more than oil. In fact the compression and high temperature underground converts organic matter into thermogenic methane.

The other method by which Natural gas can be formed is when microorganisms work upon organic matter and help in its decomposition which results in to the formation of methane, which in this case is called biogenic methane. There are special microorganisms called Methanogens that convert organic matter into particles of methane and are mostly found in area where there is lack of oxygen. These microorganisms work upon the organic matter and transform them into methane, thus forming natural gas.

Uses of Natural Gas

• Natural gas is used for domestic purposes such as cooking, and natural gas powered ovens, driers and heaters. As technology is improving they are also being used in the central heating and cooling systems. It can also be used to get electricity with the help of cells.
• Natural Gas is also used as fuel for vehicles as they supply the required power and also are cleaner and better for the environment.
• Natural Gas can also be used for manufacturing fertilizers especially ammonia.