Fuel

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Fuel is any material that is burned or altered to obtain energy and to heat or to move an object. Fuel releases its energy either through a chemical reaction means, such as combustion, or nuclear means, such as nuclear fission or nuclear fusion. An important property of a useful fuel is that its energy can be stored to be released only when needed, and that the release is controlled in such a way that the energy can be harnessed to produce work. Examples: Methane, Petrol and Oil.

All carbon-based life forms—from microorganisms to animals and humans—depend on and use fuels as their source of energy. Their cells engage in an enzyme-mediated chemical process called metabolism that converts energy from food or light into a form that can be used to sustain life. Additionally, humans employ a variety of techniques to convert one form of energy into another, producing usable energy for purposes that go far beyond the energy needs of a human body. The application of energy released from fuels ranges from heat to cooking and from powering weapons to combustion and generation of electricity.

For more information about Fuel, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.


News tagged with fuel

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plug-in hybrid electric vehicle

Pulling the plug on hybrid myths

Technology / Energy

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (12) | comments 17

(PhysOrg.com) -- Whether you call them myths, urban legends, fables or old wives' tales, there's a lot of misinformation out there about plug-in electric hybrid vehicles. These vehicles, abbreviated PHEVs, ...


Developing 'green' tires that boost mileage and cut carbon dioxide emissions

Space & Earth / Environment

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 0

A new generation of "green" automobile tires that can boost fuel efficiency without sacrificing safety and durability is rolling their way through the research pipeline. The new tires could help add an extra mile or two per ...


Eco-Friendly SUV Gets a Hydrogen Mileage Boost

Eco-Friendly SUV Gets a Hydrogen Mileage Boost (w/ Video)

Technology / Energy

created Nov 17, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 2

(PhysOrg.com) -- Driving hydrogen fueled SUVs for 431 miles per fill-up is no longer a California dream. Researchers from NREL and Toyota recently completed a 331 mile round trip drive between Torrance and ...


Advanced nuclear fuel sets global performance record

Advanced nuclear fuel sets global performance record

Technology / Energy

created Nov 17, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (19) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Idaho National Laboratory scientists have set a new world record with next-generation particle fuel for use in high temperature gas reactors (HTGRs).


Glimpsing a greener future

Glimpsing a greener future: Computer model foresees effects of alternative transportation fuels

Space & Earth / Environment

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity 2.5 / 5 (4) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- It's the year 2060, and 75 percent of drivers in the Greater Los Angeles area have hydrogen fuel cell vehicles that emit only water vapor.


The Future in Two Words: Ionic Liquids

The Future in Two Words: Ionic Liquids

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Nov 13, 2009 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (8) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Ionic liquids are molecular solutions that have a wide range of potential applications, including next-generation solar cells, hydrogen fuel cells and lithium batteries.


Researchers turn algae into high-temperature hydrogen source

Researchers turn algae into high-temperature hydrogen source

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 3.6 / 5 (7) | comments 5

In the quest to make hydrogen as a clean alternative fuel source, researchers have been stymied about how to create usable hydrogen that is clean and sustainable without relying on an intensive, high-energy ...


Energy-saving powder

Energy-saving powder: Converting methane to methanol

Chemistry / Other

created Nov 11, 2009 | popularity 3.2 / 5 (6) | comments 2

It is currently estimated that natural gas resources will be exhausted in 130 years; however, those reserves where extraction is cost-effective will only flow for another 60 years or so.


Hydrogen milestone moves energy independence one step forward

Hydrogen milestone moves energy independence one step forward

Technology / Energy

created Nov 10, 2009 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (12) | comments 7

(PhysOrg.com) -- Big things often come in small packages. That's certainly the case with the potential created by recent successes in hydrogen research at Idaho National Laboratory.


Ionic Liquid's Makeup Measurably Non-Uniform at the Nanoscale

Physics / Condensed Matter

created Nov 10, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Texas Tech University, Queen's University in Belfast, Ireland, the University of Rome and the National Research Council in Italy recently made a discovery about the non-uniform chemical compositions ...


Scientists seek safe carbon dioxide storage for 'greener' power generation (w/ Video)

Space & Earth / Environment

created Nov 09, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced plans to fund research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Engineering on technologies that would help reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the capture ...


Solar power generation around the clock

Solar power generation around the clock

Technology / Energy

created Nov 05, 2009 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (29) | comments 15

(PhysOrg.com) -- A Californian company, SolarReserve, is developing a solar power system that can store seven hours' worth of solar energy by focusing mirrors onto millions of gallons of molten salt, allowing ...


Termites? gut reactions show how to improve renewable fuel, researchers say

Biology / Biotechnology

created Nov 04, 2009 | popularity 2.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Termite damage costs the U.S. more than $1 billion each year, but that same destructive power might help solve one of the nation’s most pressing economic quandaries: sustainable fuel production.


Researchers Create First Synthetic Cellulosome in Yeast

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Oct 29, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of researchers led by University of California, Riverside (UCR) Professor of Chemical Engineering Wilfred Chen has constructed for the first time a synthetic cellulosome in yeast, which is much more ...


Improved adhesive for products like transparent tape could benefit biofuels economy

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Oct 29, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

An adhesive used in products like laminate countertops may also help cement a place for economically viable biofuels, according to a Kansas State University researcher.