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Books > Earth & environment > Earth sciences
Coal and Coalbed Gas: Future Directions and Opportunities, Second
Edition introduces the latest in coal geology research and the
engineering of gas extraction. Importantly, the second edition
examines how, over the last 10 years, research has both changed
focus and where it is conducted. This shift essentially depicts "a
tale of two worlds"—one half (Western Europe, North America)
moving away from coal and coalbed gas research and production
towards cleaner energy resources, and the other half
(Asia–Pacific region, Eastern Europe, South America) increasing
both research and usage of coal. These changes are marked by a
precipitous fall in coalbed gas production in North America;
however, at the same time there has been a significant rise in coal
and coalbed gas production in Australia, China, and India. The
driver for higher production and its associated research is a quest
for affordable energy and economic security that a large resource
base brings to any country like Australia’s first large-scale
coalbed gas to liquid natural gas projects supplying the demand for
cleaner burning LNG to the Asian-Pacific region. Since the last
edition of this book, global climate change policies have more
forcibly emphasized the impact of methane from coal mines and
placed these emissions equal to, or even more harmful than, CO2
emissions from fossil fuels in general. Governmental policies have
prioritized capture, use, and storage of CO2, burning coal in new
highly efficient low emission power plants, and gas pre-drainage of
coal mines. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) countries and China are also introducing new
research into alternative, non-fuel uses for coal, such as carbon
fibers, nanocarbons, graphene, soil amendments, and as an
unconventional ore for critical elements. New to this edition: Each
chapter is substantially changed from the 1st edition including
expanded and new literature citations and reviews, important new
data and information, new features and materials, as well as
re-organized and re-designed themes. Importantly, three new
chapters cover global coal endowment and gas
potential, groundwater systems related to coalbed gas
production and biogenic gas generation as well as the changing
landscape of coal and coalbed gas influenced by global climate
change and net-zero carbon greenhouse gas emissions. FOREWORD When
I reviewed the first edition of this book, my initial thought was,
"Do we need another book on coal geology?" and then I read it and
realised, "Yes, we need this book" and my students downloaded
copies as soon as it was available. So now we come to 2023, and a
lot has happened in the past decade. For a different reason we
might ask if we still need this book, or even coal geoscientists
and engineers, as the world aims for rapid decarbonisation of the
energy sector and a reduction of coal as a feedstock for industrial
resources, like steel manufacture. Natural gas is earmarked as a
transition fuel to enable the shift to renewables. In some basins,
the source of that gas is directly from coalbed gas production or
from conventional reservoirs that were charged by coal and
terrestrial organic source rocks. Although the transition is
escalating, there are projections that coal will remain part of our
future, even after 2050, and can also provide alternative non-fuel
resources (e.g., critical elements and carbon-based nanomaterials).
Between now and then, we’d best ensure that we extract and
utilise coal and coalbed gas as efficiently and safely as possible,
that we mitigate any environmental and social impact of the
process, and that we improve our certainty of predicting the
behaviour of the material and material impacts. To do this we need
to understand coal as a material and the inherent variability of
its quality and behaviour as a source rock and host of coalbed gas.
One can change the technologies but not the geological ground
conditions or coal character of the targeted resource. The authors
have taken on this ambitious endeavour during their careers and
have attempted to capture their knowledge gained from first-hand
experience in countries around the world and comprehensive review
of published material, within this book. At least three generations
of knowledge are drawn upon here. Tim Moore was a student of both
Romeo Flores and his supervisor John Ferm, who was the "Warrior of
Gentleness" when it came to coal research, teaching, and
supervision. This book also reflects the broad and
multidisciplinary aspects of coal geology and coal science and
provides the tenets for one to understand different disciplines and
how they interact to form an integrated view of the
resource—technically, economically, and politically. Each chapter
takes the reader through different concepts, first setting the
scene by examining the status of coal and coalbed gas in a
carbon-conscious world, then looking at the science behind coal as
a source of gas and as a reservoir- in its own right. Further
reading leads to learning about geological settings and the
processes through time that led to present-day endowments around
the globe and this theme continues throughout the book with
detailed examples from different countries. Personally, I like the
emphasis on the depositional environments that lead to peat
accumulation and preservation—it’s all about the
ingredients—which leads nicely into the world of coal macerals
and minerals, and why they matter. Coalification and its role in
changing the chemistry and material properties of coal is covered
from a reservoir perspective, as is the role of biogenic processes.
These have produced some of the enormous gas resources we exploit
today and could also provide a future circular economy for
neo-biogenic gas. The role of groundwater in this past and
potentially future endeavour is presented, along with possible
adverse effects where there is unexpected communication with
regional and local aquifers and surface assets that detract from
environmental and social licence. In addition to describing the
geology and engineering technologies required to explore for,
access, and utilise these resources, the book also provides
insights into geostatistical and economic modelling for reserves
estimation and challenges as reservoirs become more geologically
and politically complex for extraction and alternatively, for
injection and carbon sequestration. The final chapters revisit and
integrate concepts presented in the book in order to examine global
gas production and the geographic shifts in production and research
that have occurred over the past decade(s). The also show how
government and the market play a role, and project future trends.
The authors provide discussion points for the outlook of coal as a
fuel feedstock in a carbon-constrained world and the ongoing search
for options and alternative non-fuel uses of coal while
highlighting the important role that coal and coalbed gas still
play during the transition period and beyond. There is much to
learn from this book, which is based on decades of observing and
interpreting patterns and trends in coal and coal-bearing basins.
There is a growing trend towards using machine learning and
artificial intelligence to find patterns in data and provide
solutions. I’d suggest that domain intelligence, such as that
provided in this book, is critical to supervising this process and
is required for understanding and validating the outputs upon which
many decisions are made and will continue to be made in the future.
So yes, we need this book and I invite you to read, learn, and form
your own ideas. If you find any gaps—write about them. Joan S.
Esterle Emeritus Professor Vale Chair of Coal Geosciences The
University of Queensland, AustraliaMay 2023
Immerse yourself in this beautiful, absorbing guide to the marine world.
Earth owes its identity as the blue planet to the vast oceans of water
that cover almost 70 per cent of its surface. Home to an abundance of
marine life and vital in regulating Earth’s climate, the oceans are
also the backdrop to daring exploits of seafaring and to colourful
mythological tales. Combining arresting photography, rich
illustrations, and engaging, expertly written text, The Ocean Book
showcases the animals and plants, physical geography, and captivating
human stories of the world’s oceans.
Whether you’re interested in blue whales, penguins, coral reefs,
whirlpools, or the golden age of pirates, this is the perfect
exploration of the ocean realm.
The authors, as geologists, were endowed with the fortune of
working in Geomatics technology comprising Remote Sensing, GIS,
GPS, etc. with a focused vision to bring out the Quaternary
geological history of different parts of Indian Peninsular, the
senior author during the last four decades and the co-authors
during the last one and half decades. As geomorphology, one of the
major branch of geology, not only dealing with external landscape
architecture of the planet earth but also bears the records on the
Quaternary tectonics, riverine, coastal, aeolian, glacial, volcanic
and other geomorphic processes of the Quaternary period, the
authors were stimulated to carry out studies on the riverine life
histories, shoreline changes and offshore land building phenomena,
the recent earth movements from the geomorphic anomalies, Holocene
tectonics and their control over Quaternary deltas, etc. Besides
unfurling the geological history of the Quaternary period,
geomorphology has been deeply studied by the authors with the focus
on mapping and mitigation of natural disasters like
seismotectonics, landslides, response of coastal geomorphology to
tsunami surges, floods, etc.
Organic Farming: Global Perspectives and Methods, Second Edition
provides the core definition and concepts of organic farming, also
addressing current challenges and goals. The book provides a
comprehensive resource, from sustainability to influences on the
ecosystem, including the significance of seed, soil, water and weed
management, and other important aspects. In addition, it presents
advancements in the field and insights on the future. This fully
revised and updated edition expands coverage to include important
economic considerations, understanding the influence of
nanotechnology on organic farming, vertical farming, organic
farming and livestock management, as well as the future of organic
farming. Written by a team of global experts to provide current
concepts of organic farming, this resource is valuable for
researchers, graduate students, and post-doctoral fellows from
academia and research institutions.
Geoinformatics for Geosciences: Advanced Geospatial Analysis using
RS, GIS and Soft Computing is a comprehensive guide to the
methodologies and techniques that can be used in Earth observation
data assessments, geospatial analysis, and soft computing in the
geosciences. The book covers a variety of spatiotemporal problems
and topics in the areas of the environment, geohazards, urban
analysis, health, pollution, climate change, resources and
geomorphology, among others. Sections cover environmental and
climate issues, analysis of geomorphological data, hazard and
disaster impacts, natural and human resources, the influence of
environmental conditions, geohazards, climate change,
geomorphological changes, etc., and socioeconomic challenges.
Detailing up-to-date techniques in geoinformatics, this book offers
in-depth, up-to-date methodologies for researchers and academics to
understand how contemporary data can be combined with innovative
techniques and tools in order to address challenges in the
geosciences.
Discovery of Oyu Tolgoi: A Case Study of Mineral and Geological
Exploration provides a detailed account of the exploration for
copper deposits that took place in Mongolia in the mid-1990s, an
exploration that was first started by Magma Copper and then
continued by BHP Billiton World Exploration Inc., and which
subsequently lead to the discovery of Oyu Tolgoi, a major metal
mine. This book commemorates the 20-year anniversary for the global
mining industry, including details on exploration methods, the
tools applied throughout the discovery, and how the applied models
evolved over the course of the execution of the exploration
program. In addition, the book presents how the knowledge of the
team evolved as they further understood the regional geology and
the necessary geological conditions for a significant porphyry
discovery.
Coastal Management: Global Challenges and Innovations focuses on
the resulting problems faced by coastal areas in developing
countries with a goal of helping create updated management and
tactical approaches for researchers, field practitioners, planners
and policymakers. This book gathers, compiles and interprets recent
developments, starting from paleo-coastal climatic conditions, to
current climatic conditions that influence coastal resources.
Chapters included cover almost all aspects of coastal area
management, including sustainability, coastal communities, hazards,
ocean currents and environmental monitoring.
Changing Climate and Resource Use Efficiency in Plants reviews the
efficiencies for resource use by crop plants under different
climatic conditions. This book focuses on the challenges and
potential remediation methods for a variety of resource factors.
Chapters deal with the effects of different climatic conditions on
agriculture, radiation use efficiency under various climatic
conditions, the efficiency of water and its impact on harvest
production under restricted soil moisture conditions, nitrogen and
phosphorus use efficiency, nitrogen use efficiency in different
environmental conditions under the influence of climate change, and
various aspects of improving phosphorus use efficiency. The book
provides guidance for researchers engaged in plant science studies,
particularly Plant/Crop Physiology, Agronomy, Plant Breeding and
Molecular Breeding. In addition, it provides valuable insights for
policymakers, administrators, plant-based companies and
agribusiness companies.
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The Geology of the Country Around Oldham, Including Manchester and Its Suburbs. (Sheet 88 S.W., and the Corresponding Six-inch Maps 88, 89, 96, 97, 104, 105, 111, 112; Lancashire 259, 271) With an Appendix on the Fossils;
(Hardcover)
Edward 1829-1917 Hull, John William 1820-1869 Salter; Created by Museum of Practical Geology (Great Br
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Discovery Miles 7 370
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