Advantages and Disadvantages of Natural Gas

Natural gas is nothing but a mixture of different gases (about 80% of methane gas, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, etc.) naturally found in the atmosphere. Methane is an immensely powerful greenhouse gas and about 20 times more vigorous than carbon dioxide.Do you want to learn Advantages and Disadvantages of Natural Gas in detail?

It has the lowest percentage of hydrocarbons, deodorized substances. Natural gas is colorless and odorless. It is not used in pure form as it is a fossil fuel. After refining into pure methane, natural gas is transported; it is processed and converted into cleaner fuel for consumption.

Many other by-products are extracted while processing natural gas, such as propane, ethane, butane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, etc., which are further used as the raw material.  Natural gas is mainly used as fuel for generating electricity, warmth, and for industrial use also.  Have an eye to get the basic know-how of natural gas.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Natural Gas

Advantages of Natural Gas:

Natural gas is also known as fossil gas. Its usage is majorly in household items, automobile fueling, and the chemical industry. Here some benefits of methane gas are given. Cast a look at the usage of natural gas discussed below.

Feasibility: At first, natural gas is a fossil fuel. It can easily be transported. Known as an endless resource, it is the most important fuel item. It provides warmth for cooking and heating. Typically, the natural gas is sent overland through an extensive network of pipelines.

Adaptability: Natural gas is one of the cleanest burning fossil fuels available, making it a relatively good fuel source compared to other fossil fuels, like heating oil, etc. It is versatile due to minimum waste product after burning. It can also be transported as Liquid Natural Gas (LNG). Normally LNG is used in vehicles in the form of gasoline.

Save and Store: It can save your money because it is less expensive. Natural gas prices are a function of market supply and demand, as an increase in natural gas supply generally results in lower natural gas prices and vice versa. The natural gas industry is flourishing day by day. It’s safe and easier to store as compared to other energy fuels.

Safety: Natural gas can be difficult to harness. It is considered the safest and cleanest fossil fuel for domestic and industrial uses. It emits 60%-90% less smog-producing pollutants.  

Consistency: It is extremely reliable than other fossil fuels. The primary use of natural gas is to generate electrical power. The fuels power stations that provide electricity for homes and business comes from natural gas resources. It is also used as fuel in many industrial processes that produce materials and goods ranging from glass items to clothing. It is also an important item in products such as paints and plastics.

Future Possibilities: Natural gas consumption is growing, as gas companies are looking at ways to make transporting liquid gas cheaper and reliable, with hopes of reaching new markets without the need for building expensive pipelines. Researchers are working on extracting the potentially vast amounts of natural gas reserves trapped underneath the ocean in gas hydrates. You can save and store natural gas for future use.

Environmental benefits: It produces less overall pollution. It is an environment-friendly gas because it burns cleaner than other fossil fuels. Gas produces less soot and pollution.

Fuel Producer: Natural gas is a major source of energy. Ammonia for fertilizer can also be produced by using natural gas. And other fuels can be produced by burning natural gas instantly.

Disadvantages of Natural Gas:

Usage of natural gas is widespread, but the demerits of the fuel should not be overlooked. The disadvantages of natural gas are mentioned in the description.

Highly flammable: Natural gas is highly flammable, which means leaks can result in explosions. It catches fire very easily.

Greenhouse gas outflow: Though natural gas is environmental- friendly, it still poses a threat to the environment. The biggest con of natural gas is that it releases carbon dioxide, which is bad for our atmosphere. Consistently introduction of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere will lead to climate change and also global warming.

Non- Renewable fuel: Natural gas a non-renewable resource with finite use and availability like all other fossil fuels. You cannot store it effectively because it comes from decomposed plants and animals buried deep under Earth’s surface for millions of years. As natural gas formation takes a lot of years, so we call it non-renewable fuel. If it is gone, then you cannot produce it on your own.

Health threatening: It is dangerous in case of careless use. Natural gas must be handled carefully as it is a combustible material. High levels of exposure to natural gas can cause gas poisoning, which will result in serious health issues such as fatigue, suffocation, memory loss problems, loss of concentration, nausea, headaches. If the gas mixes the air in a confined space, then it may cause death by suffocation. It also affects the lungs creating breathing problems. 

Expensive pipelines: It requires an expensive infrastructure. Pipeline cost needs a significant amount of money to hold the natural gas in use. Hence it costs a lot to manage the pipeline system from production units to consuming units.

 Storage Issues: As you know, natural gas is easier to store and transport than other fossil fuels. But it has one big storage disadvantage. Its volume is more than four times as big as patrols. That’s why natural gas storage is much expensive since more storage space is required. That’s why we should use solar and wind, which are already less expensive than the most efficient type of natural gas.

Conclusion:

In the end, we can conclude that natural gas is the most important energy source in the world right now. There are many advantages of using natural gas, but it also has some disadvantages. If you wanted a cheap, reliable energy source, then natural gas will be perfect to use. But for the long-term usage of any energy source that will never run out, there are still better alternatives. Please view the details of natural gas, its merits, and demerits described above.

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