Topic > Fossil fuels: the world's primary energy source

Currently, in everyday life, fossil fuels represent the world's primary energy source. It forms over millions of years from organic materials (remains of dead animals and plants) and is mainly used to power vehicles and generate electricity. Types of fossil fuels include coal, oil, and natural gas. Although they play an important role in our lives, fossil fuels are non-renewable resources that, when used, also damage the surrounding environment. Fossil fuels are burned to produce thermal energy. However, burning it also releases carbon dioxide along with other greenhouse gases that trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere, causing global warming. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, as shown in Figure 1, burning fossil fuels contributed to the majority of US greenhouse gas emissions in 2015 (77%). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The solution to this problem is to use another type of fuel that can become an alternative to fossil fuels that do not harm the surrounding environment, such as bioethanol. This fuel can replace the use of fossil fuels to power road transport vehicles. Bioethanol is made entirely from organic products, so it is a renewable energy source. It is produced by the fermentation of plants that contain sugar and starch, such as corn, wheat, sugar cane, etc. The bioethanol production process is very long. Based on the image in Figure 2, the bioethanol production steps consist of milling, saccharification, fermentation and dehydration. (In this case corn is used). The first phase is grinding, also called grinding. During milling, a hammer or roller mill (shown in figure 2) is used to grind. As the rotor spins, the corn is pounded against the wall, causing larger particles to break down into smaller ones. In this case, grinding helps break down the hard outer coating of the corn kernel. After it is broken down, it is mixed with heated water to form a slurry. When the water temperature is above 60°C, the water interacts with the starch granules to form a vicious suspension. Next, a process called liquefaction is performed as hydrolysis which reduces the badness. Hydrolysis is where water reacts with sugar to break down sugar and form glucose. It has the function of breaking longer starch chains into smaller ones. The next step is saccharification. It is a process of further hydrolysis carried out by adding enzymes, such as glucoamylase. During this process, the optimal condition is at 4.5 pH and with a temperature between 55-65°C. Then, the solution is ready to ferment into ethanol and go through a process called fermentation. During fermentation, yeast is added to the solution, transforming the sucrose sugars into fructose and glucose. The yeast commonly used is Saccharomyces cerevisiae (single-celled fungus). The exact time required for this reaction process is 2-3 days (at 30-32°C). The chemical equation for this chemical process is C6H12O6? 2C2H6OH + 2CO2. Please note: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Finally, the last step in bioethanol production is distillation. Distillation is a process in which components are separated using heat and is possible thanks to.