Natural gas and crude oil are commonly needed fossil fuels to manufacture insulation, wires, and computers used in all methods of generating electricity. This is because components of natural gas and oil are essential feedstocks for creating plastics, which are used for insulation and many computer parts.
Fossil fuels are also required for the vast amount of energy needed throughout the manufacturing process.
Insulation
Many of the polymer plastics used for insulation, like polyethylene (PE), cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), are made from feedstocks derived from fossil fuels. Natural gas liquids, primarily ethane, are heated in cracker plants to produce ethylene, which is then used to create polyethylene for electrical wires and cables. Crude oil fractions, particularly naphtha, are also used to make ethylene and other petrochemical feedstocks for different types of plastics.
Wind turbines and solar panels only generate electricity, so where is the transition away from fossil fuels?
Wires
While wires themselves are made of copper, a high conductor of electricity, the fossil fuel industry is deeply connected to their production process. Insulation: The manufacturing of the insulating plastics for wires and cables depends on feedstock from natural gas and oil. Energy: The mining, refining, and manufacturing of copper wires is an energy-intensive process that relies heavily on fossil fuels.
Computers
The production of computers and the electronics they contain is one of the most fossil fuel-intensive manufacturing processes per unit of weight. Components: Plastics derived from fossil fuels are used in many parts of a computer, including the casing, circuit boards, and connectors. Energy consumption: The energy required to mine, refine, and manufacture all the different components of a computer comes largely from fossil fuels. One 2004 study found that producing a single desktop computer required ten times its weight in fossil fuels.
Fertilizers
Conventional nitrogen fertilizers are made using fossil fuels, primarily natural gas, in a process that turns atmospheric nitrogen and fossil-fuel-derived hydrogen into ammonia. This energy-intensive process, called the Haber-Bosch process, is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. While phosphorus and potassium fertilizers are made from mined minerals, most agricultural production is reliant on synthetic fertilizers derived from fossil fuels.
Read the rest of this piece at America Out Loud.
Ronald Stein is an engineer, senior policy advisor on energy literacy for the Heartland Institute and CFACT, and co-author of the Pulitzer Prize nominated book "Clean Energy Exploitations."
Photo: courtesy America Out Loud.
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