Fossil carbon content

Almost carbon (C) in waste is oxidized into C02 through combustion process. A small amount is converted into carbon monoxide (CO), but this is often ignored. According to IPCC 2006, only fossil C02 is accounted as GHG emission source, while C02 which is formed from C bio is considered neutral and not added to total GHGs emission. However, amount of C02 bio was still calculated for reference purpose. C02 emission in RDF utilization process (burning process) is calculated based on fossil carbon content of waste fractions by the following formula ... 

Burning of any hydrocarbon (fossil fuel) or, for that matter, any organic material converts its carbon content to carbon dioxide and its hydrogen to water. Because power plants and other industries emit large amounts of carbon dioxide, they contribute to the so-called greenhouse warming effect on our planet, which causes significant en-... 

The content of the material in a carbon reservoir is a measure of that reservoir s direct or indirect exchange rate with the atmosphere, although variations in solar also create variations in atmospheric content activity (Stuiver and Quay, 1980, 1981). Geologically important reservoirs (i.e., carbonate rocks and fossil carbon) contain no radiocarbon because the turnover times of these reservoirs are much longer than the isotope s half-life. The distribution of is used in studies of ocean circulation, soil sciences, and studies of the terrestrial biosphere. 

There is talk about carbon tax and cap-and-trade schemes. Essentially, a carbon tax is a tax on the carbon content of fuels—effectively a tax on the C02 emissions from burning fossil fuels. Thus, carbon tax is shorthand for carbon dioxide tax or C02 tax. 

Fourth, the rate of increase of carbon in the atmosphere and the distribution of carbon isotopes and other biogeochemical tracers are consistent with scientific understanding of the sources and sinks of carbon from fossil fuels, land, and the oceans. For example, while the concentration of CO2 has increased over the period 1850-2000, the content of the CO2 has decreased. The decrease is what would be expected if the CO2 added to the system were fossil carbon depleted in through radioactive decay. 

Example 15.4. Are Human Activities Changing the O2 and CO2 Content of the Atmosphere So far we have burned 2 x lO mol of fossil carbon. To what extent could this cumulative combustion affect the atmospheric contents of O2 and CO2 ... 

Using the model, the uptake of fossil fuel C02 can be estimated by integrating forward in time from an assumed pre-industrial steady-state value, while adding to the model s atmosphere the estimated year-by-year release of C02 from fossil-fuel burning. At each time step, the fluxes of carbon between the various boxes are calculated and the carbon contents and concentration profiles changed accordingly. From such models it is calculated that about 35% of anthropogenic C02 is absorbed by the oceans. 

As for nuclear energy, timely transition and appropriate breeder setup will be necessary before the middle of century. As for fossil fuels, from the supply/demand situation in the market, share of heavier (more carbon content, like oil sands, coal) fuels will increase for the future. 

Table 4.13 Estimated amounts of fossil carbon in the crust (after Kempe 1979 Tissot Welte 1984 Ward 1984 Kvenvolden 1998 Falkowski et al. 2000).Approximate conversions to carbon basis assume densities of 0.8 tnT3 for conventional oils, 0.9tm 3 for heavy oils, 0.65 kgnT3 for gas, and corresponding C contents of 85, 80 and 75% coal content of 80% C (dmmf) 10% ash and 5% moisture...

---