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fossil fuel

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fossil fuel

any naturally occurring carbon or hydrocarbon fuel, such as coal, petroleum, peat, and natural gas, formed by the decomposition of prehistoric organisms
Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

fossil fuel

[¦fäs·əl ′fyül]
(geology)
Any hydrocarbon deposit that may be used for fuel; examples are petroleum, coal, and natural gas.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Fossil fuel

Any naturally occurring carbon-containing material which when burned with air (or oxygen) produces (directly) heat or (indirectly) energy. Fossil fuels can be classified according to their respective forms at ambient conditions. Thus, there are solid fuels (coals); liquid fuels (petroleum, heavy oils, bitumens); and gaseous fuels (natural gas, which is usually a mixture of methane, CH4, with lesser amounts of ethane, C2H6, hydrogen sulfide, H2S, and numerous other constituents in small proportions).

One important aspect of the fossil fuels is the heating value of the fuel, which is measured as the amount of heat energy produced by the complete combustion of a unit quantity of the fuel. For solid fuels and usually for liquid fuels the heating value is quoted for mass, whereas for gaseous fuels the heating value is quoted for volume. The heating values are commonly expressed as British thermal units per pound (Btu/lb). In SI units the heating values are quoted in megajoules per kilogram (MJ/kg). For gases, the heating values are expressed as Btu per cubic foot (Btu/ft3) or as megajoules per cubic meter (MJ/m3). The table gives heating values of representative fuels. See Energy sources

Heating values of representative fuels
Fossil fuel Btu/lb Btu/ft3 MJ/k MJ/m3
Natural gas 900 33.5
Petroleum 19,000 44.1
Heavy oil 18,000 41.8
Tar-sand bitumen 17,800 41.3
Coal
Lignite 8,000* 18.6
Subbituminous 10,500* 24.4
Bituminous 15,500* 36.0
Anthracite 15,000* 34.8
*Representative values are given because of the spread of subgroups with various heating values.
McGraw-Hill Concise Encyclopedia of Engineering. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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