Energy and CO2 Output of Common Fuels
The table below includes entries for popular substances already used for their energy, or being discussed for such use.
The second column shows the energy content in kilojoules per unit of mass in kilograms, useful in understanding the energy needed to ship the fuel, which takes away from its net energy contribution.
The third column in the table lists the energy content per liter of volume, which is useful for understanding the space needed for storing the fuel.
The final two columns deal with the carbon footprint of the fuel. The fourth column contains the proportion of CO2 released when the fuel is converted for energy, with respect to its starting mass, and the fifth column lists the energy produced per kilogram of CO2 produced. As a guideline, a higher number in this column is better for the environment. But these numbers do not account for other green house gases released during burning, production, storage, or shipping. For example, methane may have hidden environmental costs that are not reflected in the table.
| Fuel Type | Specific Energy Density (MJ/kg) |
Volumetric Energy Density (MJ/L) |
CO2 Gas made from Fuel Used (kg/kg) |
Energy per CO2 (MJ/kg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solid Fuels | ||||
| Bagasse (Cane Stalks) | 9.6 | ~+40%(C6H10O5)n+15%(C26H42O21)n+15%(C9H10O2)n1.30 | 7.41 | |
| Chaff (Seed Casings) | 14.6 | |||
| Animal Dung/Manure | 10- 15 | |||
| Dried plants (C6H10O5)n | 10 – 16 | 1.6 - 16.64 | IF50%(C6H10O5)n+25%(C26H42O21)n+25%(C10H12O3)n1.84 | 5.44-8.70 |
| Wood fuel (C6H10O5)n | 16 – 21 | 2.56 - 21.84 | IF45%(C6H10O5)n+25%(C26H42O21)n+30%(C10H12O3)n1.88 | 8.51-11.17 |
| Charcoal | 30 | 85-98% Carbon+VOC+Ash 3.63 | 8.27 | |
| Liquid Fuels | ||||
| Pyrolysis oil | 17.5 | 21.35 | (Assumption Of Fuel: Carbon Content = 23% w/w) 0.84 | 20.77 |
| Methanol (CH3-OH) | 19.9 – 22.7 | 15.9 | 1.37 | 14.49-16.53 |
| Ethanol (CH3-CH2-OH) | 23.4 – 26.8 | 18.4 - 21.2 | 1.91 | 12.25-14.03 |
| EcaleneTM | 28.4 | 22.7 | 75%C2H6O+9%C3H8O+7%C4H10O+5%C5H12O+4%Hx 2.03 | 14.02 |
| Butanol(CH3-(CH2)3-OH) | 36 | 29.2 | 2.37 | 15.16 |
| Fat | 37.656 | 31.68 | ||
| Biodiesel | 37.8 | 33.3 – 35.7 | ~2.85 | ~13.26 |
| Sunflower oil (C18H32O2) | 39.49 | 33.18 | (12%(C16H32O2)+16%(C18H34O2)+71%(LA)+1%(ALA))2.81 | 14.04 |
| Castor oil (C18H34O3) | 39.5 | 33.21 | (1%PA+1%SA+89.5%ROA+3%OA+4.2%LA+0.3%ALA)2.67 | 14.80 |
| Olive oil (C18H34O2) | 39.25 - 39.82 | 33 - 33.48 | (15%(C16H32O2)+75%(C18H34O2)+9%(LA)+1%(ALA))2.80 | 14.03 |
| Gaseous Fuels | ||||
| Methane (CH4) | 55 – 55.7 | (Liquified) 23.0 – 23.3 | (Methane leak exerts 23 × greenhouse effect of CO2) 2.74 | 20.05-20.30 |
| Hydrogen (H2) | 120 – 142 | (Liquified) 8.5 – 10.1 | (Hydrogen leak slightly catalyzes ozone depletion) 0.0 | |
| Fossil Fuels (comparison) | ||||
| Coal | 29.3 – 33.5 | 39.85 - 74.43 | (Not Counting:CO, NOx, Sulfates & Particulates) ~3.59 | ~8.16-9.33 |
| Crude Oil | 41.868 | 28 – 31.4 | (Not Counting:CO,NOx,Sulfates & Particulates) ~3.4 | ~12.31 |
| Gasoline | 45 – 48.3 | 32 – 34.8 | (Not Counting:CO,NOx,Sulfates & Particulates) ~3.30 | ~13.64-14.64 |
| Diesel | 48.1 | 40.3 | (Not Counting:CO,NOx,Sulfates & Particulates) ~3.4 | ~14.15 |
| Natural Gas | 38 – 50 | (Liquified) 25.5 – 28.7 | (Ethane, Propane & Butane N/C:CO,NOx & Sulfates) ~3.00 | ~12.67-16.67 |
| Ethane (CH3-CH3) | 51.9 | (Liquified) ~24.0 | 2.93 | 17.71 |
| Nuclear fuels (comparison) | ||||
| Uranium-235 (235U) | 77,000,000 | (Pure)1,470,700,000 | 0.0 | ~55 - ~90 |
| Nuclear fusion (2H-3H) | 300,000,000 | (Liquified)53,414,377.6 | (Sea-Bed Hydrogen-Isotope Mining-Method Dependent) 0.0 | |
| Fuel Cell Energy Storage (comparison) | ||||
| Direct-Methanol | 4.5466 | 3.6 | ~1.37 | ~3.31 |
| Proton-Exchange (R&D) | up to 5.68 | up to 4.5 | (IFF Fuel is recycled) 0.0 | |
| Sodium Hydride (R&D) | up to 11.13 | up to 10.24 | (Bladder for Sodium Oxide Recycling) 0.0 | |
| Battery Energy Storage (comparison) | ||||
| Lead-acid battery | 0.108 | ~0.1 | (200-600 Deep-Cycle Tolerance) 0.0 | |
| Nickel-iron battery | 0.0487 - 0.1127 | 0.0658 - 0.1772 | (<40y Life)(2k-3k Cycle Tolerance IF no Memory effect) 0.0 | |
| Nickel-cadmium battery | 0.162 - 0.288 | ~0.24 | (1k-1.5k Cycle Tolerance IF no Memory effect) 0.0 | |
| Nickel metal hydride | 0.22 - 0.324 | 0.36 | (300-500 Cycle Tolerance IF no Memory effect) 0.0 | |
| Super iron battery | 0.33 | (1.5 * NiMH) 0.54 | (~300 Deep-Cycle Tolerance) 0.0 | |
| Zinc-air battery | 0.396 - 0.72 | 0.5924 - 0.8442 | (Recyclable by Smelting & Remixing, not Recharging) 0.0 | |
| Lithium ion battery | 0.54 - 0.72 | 0.9 - 1.9 | (3-5 y Life) (500-1k Deep-Cycle Tolerance) 0.0 | |
| Lithium-Ion-Polymer | 0.65 - 0.87 | (1.2 * Li-Ion)1.08 - 2.28 | (3-5 y Life) (300-500 Deep-Cycle Tolerance) 0.0 | |
| Lithium iron phosphate battery | ||||
| DURACELL Zinc-Air | 1.0584 - 1.5912 | 5.148 - 6.3216 | (1-3 y Shelf-life) (Recyclable not Rechargeable) 0.0 | |
| Aluminium battery | 1.8 - 4.788 | 7.56 | (10-30 y Life) (3k+ Deep-Cycle Tolerance) 0.0 | |
| PolyPlusBC Li-Aircell | 3.6 - 32.4 | 3.6 - 17.64 | (May be Rechargeable)(Might leak sulfates) 0.0 | |
Read more about this topic: Energy Content Of Biofuel
Famous quotes containing the words energy and, energy, output and/or common:
“Since the beginning of time, three-quarters of the mental energy and of the lies inspired by vanity have been expended for their inferiors by people who are only abased by such expenditure. And Swann, who was easygoing and unaffected with a duchess, trembled at the thought of being scorned and put on airs when he was with a housemaid.”
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922)
“There are no accidents, only nature throwing her weight around. Even the bomb merely releases energy that nature has put there. Nuclear war would be just a spark in the grandeur of space. Nor can radiation “alter” nature: she will absorb it all. After the bomb, nature will pick up the cards we have spilled, shuffle them, and begin her game again.”
—Camille Paglia (b. 1947)
“Lizzie Borden took an axe
And gave her mother forty whacks;
When she saw what she had done,
She gave her father forty-one.”
—Anonymous. Late 19th century ballad.
The quatrain refers to the famous case of Lizzie Borden, tried for the murder of her father and stepmother on Aug. 4, 1892, in Fall River, Massachusetts. Though she was found innocent, there were many who contested the verdict, occasioning a prodigious output of articles and books, including, most recently, Frank Spiering’s Lizzie (1985)
“Education is the point at which we decide whether we love our children enough not to expel them from our world and leave them to their own devices, not to strike from their hands their chance of undertaking something new—but to prepare them in advance for the task of renewing a common world.”
—Hannah Arendt (20th century)