Controlled fire has permitted the development of a quite large number of
applications during millennia (heating, cooking, metal forging, electricity generation, transportation, etc.). Slowly, man moved from wood to coal, natural gas, and
finally oil, always using C-based fuels (Scheme 1.1).
1.2.1 A Short History of Coal
Coal was discovered around 3490 bC by Chinese people who soon started to make
a household use of it. Later on, also Greeks and Romans started to use coal for
diverse applications. Curiously, its brightness has suggested the use in jewellery
and pieces of coal were used as pendants in necklaces or cufflinks by Aztecs, the
earliest use of coal in Americas.
Nativity Handcrafted from
Coal (Kentucky, USA)
Still today, coal is used for making personal ornaments. Romans were the first to
discover and extract coal in Britain, where already during the first two centuries
after Christ coal was largely employed for many uses, including forging metals. The
blooming of the Industrial age was possible thanks to coal. At the beginning of
1800, the countries today known as UK and USA were the largest producers and
marketers of coal with 260 and 350 Mt/year, respectively. Since then, coal has been
extracted all over the world where it is distributed with different abundance among
countries. Australia, North America, Asia, Europe, and Africa are rich of coal that
for decades has been the main source of energy.
Biomass
Coal
Gas
Oil
1.5 My
3490 bC
1000-500 bC
600 bC
Scheme 1.1 The use of C-based fuels over the time
1.2 The Fossil-C-Based Energy Frame
3