Learn what machines are used to drill for fossil fuels.
Fossil fuels are formed over millions of years as plants and animals die and decompose into the earth. That decomposing matter is covered by water or soil, which over time forms into layers that go deep into the earth. Decomposing organic matter is covered in layers of rock and pressure and heat transform the decomposing matter into hydrocarbons, or fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas), that can be extracted and used as energy to power cars, machines and power plants, which then create energy to power a multitude of electric devices.
Instructions
1. Extract coal, which is formed from the remains of land and swamp plants, by locating coal beds under layers of rock and then accessing those beds through strip mining or deep rock tunneling. Use heavy machines to strip away the top two hundred feet of surface material to access and remove the coal. Operate heavy machines to bore tunnels 200 to 1,000 feet beneath the surface of the earth to access deep coal beds. Use conveyor belts and miners to bring coal back to the surface.
2. Use imaging technology, thumper trucks and compressed air guns to locate geological formations likely to contain oil deep beneath ocean and river sediments. Extract oil, made from decomposing water-dwelling organisms, with large machines called oil rigs. On land, use an oil rig to dig a deep well to access the oil and a pump jack to extract the oil from the well. At sea, use an offshore rig atop a production platform to extract oil in water environments. Employ skilled workers to safely operate the machines and facilitate the extraction and transportation of deposits.
3. Use slimhole drills, hydraulic fracturing, sand fracturing, drilling rigs and offshore platforms to locate and drill for natural gas deposits on land and at sea. Drill a well and use a pump jack or production platform to remove the natural gas deposits, which are often buried near, but deeper than oil deposits.
Tags: coal beds, decomposing matter, energy power, heavy machines, into earth, layers rock, matter covered
