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It is always intriguing to know that mankind has been on earth for millions and millions of years now. Our blue planet is also itself is around 4.54 billion years old. Having said that, some of its resources like coal, petroleum, and natural gas are formed after millions of years of a natural process, which is further extracted from the earth by mankind for our personal usage and application. In this blog, we will be talking and learning about Coal and Petroleum Class 8 Notes and important questions and answers related to the NCERT class 8 chapter.
Types of Natural Resources
Before digging deeper into the meaning and usage of coal and petroleum, let us first try to understand the meaning of natural resources in this blog on Coal and Petroleum class 8 notes. Natural resources are classified as resources derived from nature, according to Chapter 8 of Coal and Petroleum Class 8. As per the chapter of Coal and Petroleum Class 8, there are 2 types of natural resources that are present namely:
- Inexhaustible Natural Resources
- Exhaustible Natural Resources
Inexhaustible VS Exhaustible Natural Resources
Let us take this blog on Coal and Petroleum class 8 notes one step further by understanding the different types of natural resources that we have mentioned above. According to the chapter of Coal and Petroleum Class 8 Science, inexhaustible natural resources are those that are abundant in nature and will not be exhausted even after extensive use. Sunlight, water, wind, and other natural phenomena are examples. On the other hand, exhaustible natural resources are those that are found in small amounts in nature and would be exhausted if used continuously. Forests, coal, natural gas, and other resources are examples.
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What are Fossil Fuels
Now it is time to understand some of the different types of exhaustible natural resources which are collectively known as fossil fuels. As per the chapter of Coal and Petroleum class 8, coal, petroleum, and other non-renewable natural resources are made from the dead remains of living organisms. Fossil fuels are the name for these types of energy that mankind uses. The different types of fossil fuels are as follows:
- Coal
- Petroleum
- Natural gas
Coal
There were trees and dense forests on the planet 300 million years ago. These trees were buried in the soil as a result of natural disasters such as floods. Over time, layers of soil were deposited on top of them, compressing them. They were converted to coal, which is hard like stone substance that is black in colour due to the high pressure and temperature over this buried forest. Since ancient times, coal has been used as a heat source to cook food, to create steam to run trains and other engines, and in thermal power plants to generate electricity, among other things.
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The By-Products of Coal
Some of the products that are obtained through or from coal are mentioned below in the table.
| Products of Coal | Description | Application |
| Coke | It has a hard, brittle texture and a dark tint. It is carbon in its purest form. | Its use and application can be seen in steel production, metal extraction, and so on. |
| Coal Tar | It’s a thick, black liquid with a foul odour. It’s made up of about 200 different compounds or substances. | Coal tar by-products are used to make synthetic dyes, medicines, explosives, and perfumes, among other things. Coal tar is also used to make naphthalene balls, which are used to repel moths and other insects. |
| Coal Gas | Most of you are probably unaware that coal gas is generated when coal is processed to produce coke. For the first time, coal gas was used for street lighting in London in 1810, and in New York during 1820. It is now used as a heat source rather than a light source. | Coal gas is primarily used as a source of energy in a variety of industries. |
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Concept of Carbonisation
Let us now understand a very interesting topic of carbonisation in our blog on Coal and Petroleum class 8 notes. As per the chapter of Coal and Petroleum class 8, carbonisation is the method of turning dead plants or vegetation into coal. It has been discovered that coal is primarily fluorescent which, when burned in the air atmosphere, emits carbon dioxide gas.
Petroleum
After understanding in detail what is coal, the princess of carbonisation and knowing about the different by-products of coal and its application, let us take our roller coaster ride of this blog on coal and petroleum class 8 notes to our next stop which is petroleum. Do you know that in the past, the oceans were home to a wide variety of species? When these species died, their corpses settled at the bottom of the sea, gradually being covered by layers of sand and clay. The absence of air, temperature, and pressure transformed them into petroleum after millions and millions of years. Petroleum is a foul-smelling dark oily liquid. Petroleum gas, petrol, gasoline, lubricating oil, paraffin wax, and other constituents are all derived from petroleum.
Refining of Petroleum
In a petroleum refinery, the method of extracting the different constituents of petroleum is called refining. The process of the refining of petroleum can be explained via the help of the following picture or diagram shown below.
Petroleum Conservation Research Association suggests several fuel-saving initiatives and some of them are listed below:
- Maintain a steady and average speed in your car.
- Make sure the tyre pressure is right.
- Maintain the condition of your car at all times.
- When not in service, switching off the vehicle’s engines.
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By-Products of Petroleum
In our blog on Coal and Petroleum class 8 notes, we will also be telling you the different components or by-products of petroleum along with its uses.
| Constituents of petroleum | Uses |
| Kerosene | Used as fuel in stoves, lamps and more. |
| Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) | Used a common fuel for home and industries as well. |
| Petrol | Used as fuel for automobiles and as a solvent for dry cleaning as well. |
| Bitumen | Used in the making of paints, etc. |
| Lubricating Oil | For lubrication |
| Paraffin Wax | Used in ointments, candles, etc. |
| Diesel | Used for heavy motor vehicles and generators as fuel. |
Natural Gas
In this blog on Coal and Petroleum class 8 notes, our last destination in the list of exhaustible natural resources is of natural gas. Natural gas is another important fossil fuel that can be easily transported via pipes as it is available in the form of gas. Natural gas can be found in the parts of Tripura, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and the Krishna Godavari delta in our region.
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CNG or Compressed Natural Gas
CNG refers to natural gas that has been processed under high pressure. It pollutes the atmosphere less. Furthermore, since it is easily transported via pipes, it can be used directly in homes and factories for burning and other purposes. Some of the uses and applications of the CNG is listed down below:
- Automobiles use it as a source of fuel.
- It is used as a raw material in the manufacturing and production of a number of chemicals and fertilisers.
- CNG is currently supplied through a vast network of pipelines in Vadodara and some parts of Delhi.
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How to Preserve Limited Natural Resources?
Natural Resources are exhaustible in nature and some resources like fossil fuels take millions of years to form. Thus, there is a growing need to preserve these natural resources for future generations. It is important to understand the value and reduce the burning of fossil fuels which is also a major cause of air pollution to protect our future as well as the environment. Here are some tips on how we can preserve natural resources on a daily basis by the Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) –
- Maintain moderate speed while driving
- Switch off the engine at traffic or stop lights
- Use public transportation
- Maintain the right tyre pressure.
Question and Answers
Here are some questions and answers on Coal and Petroleum Class 8 notes and important NCERT solutions-
Ans. The advantages of using CNG and LPG as fuels are they burn with a smokeless flame and cause less pollution. Another advantage of CNG and LPG is that they do not leave ash on burning and lastly, these fuels are easy to handle and convenient to store.
Ans. Bitumen is the petroleum product used for surfacing roads.
Ans. The process of coal formation is called carbonisation. The dead plants and vegetation due to temperature and high pressure over hundreds of years slowly turned into coal. This slow conversion of dead plants and forests into coal is called the process of carbonisation. The process is called so because coal largely contains carbon.
Ans. Coke is defined as a tough, porous and black substance. As the purest form of carbon, coke is used in many ways. The most popular use of coke is the manufacturing steel and extraction of other essential metals.
Ans. The different constituents of petroleum are petroleum gas in liquid form, petrol, kerosene fuel, diesel fuel. lubricating oil, paraffin wax and bitumen. Each is a valued product and used for different activities such as-
Petroleum in liquid form is used as fuel for houses and industries
Petrol is used as motor fuel, aviation fuel and solvent for dry cleaning
Kerosene is a popular constituent used as fuel for stoves, lamps and for jet aircrafts
Diesel is used for running heavy motor vehicles and electric generators
Lubricating oil is used as lubrication
Paraffin wax is in ointments, candles and vaseline
Bitumen is used for Paints and road surfacing
Ans. Petroleum is a natural resource and was formed from organisms present in the sea. The bodies of these organisms set at the bottom of the sea bed and got covered by thick layers of sand and clay over millions of years. The high temperature and high pressure on the dead organisms led to the formation of petroleum and natural gas. Petroleum is a fuel defined as dark in colour and oily in texture, the fuel contains various constituents and the process of extracting these is called refining.
(a) Fossil fuels can be made in the laboratory. (T/F) False
(b) CNG is more polluting fuel than petrol. (T/F) False
(c) Coke is almost a pure form of carbon. (T/F) True
(d) Coal tar is a mixture of various substances. (T/F) True
(e) Kerosene is not a fossil fuel. (T/F) False
Ans. Fossil fuels are invaluable and exhaustive in nature because it took them millions of years to form. These are limited in nature and cannot be replaced. Natural resources like Coal, Petroleum, Natural Gas are all formed over the span of millions of years but extreme high temperatures and pressure.
(a) Fossil fuels are _____, _____and ____.
(a) Coal, Petroleum, Natural Gas
(b) Process of separation of different constituents from petroleum is called ______.
(b) Refining
(c) Least polluting fuel for vehicles is ________.
(c) CNG
Petroleum is also called Black Gold because when it is drilled from the ground in liquid form it is black in colour and it is called gold because of the impressive economic value the fuel possesses. Petroleum is expensive and thus, priced as much as gold. Thus, it is referred to as Black Gold.
Coal is a fossil fuel and is a hard stone-like substance that is black in colour due to the high pressure and temperature it was buried under. Coal is used as a heat source to cook food, to create steam to run trains and other engines, and in thermal power plants to generate electricity, among other things.
The real source of energy of coal comes from the dead plants that lived hundreds of millions of years ago. Over a span of millions of years, the plants were covered by thick layers of dirt and rock. The pressure and heat created turned the plants into coal.
Explore: Minerals and Power Resources Class 8
So this was the end of our blog on coal and petroleum class 8 notes. We hope that the blog must have proved to be helpful to make you understand this chapter even more and better. For more such amazing and helpful reads, stay tuned with Leverage Edu.
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