Types of resources are mainly classified into two major types,which are nothing but The Natural resources and Man made resources. Hello friends, welcome to our site infosarena.com. In this article we have given the information about Types Of Resources, Natural resources and their types like water resources, mineral resources, Energy resources. we also given the information about types of energy resources like Conventional Energy Resources Non-Conventional Energy Resources. So read the full article below for full information.
TYPES OF NATURAL RESOURCES
Table of Contents
Natural resources can be classified into three main types which are Water resources ,Mineral resources and Energy resources. We also further describe all the above resources with their meaning and uses.
WATER RESOURCES
Water resources is the type of natural resources. We know that, the 71% of water is present on Earth’s surface. Out of the total water reserves of the world, about 97.4% is salty water (marine), and only 2.6% is freshwater. Out of the total freshwater, 68.7% is trap in glaciers and ice caps, 30.1% forms groundwater, and the remaining 1.2% is available as surface/another freshwater. Focussing further on freshwater reveals that 69% of freshwater is present as ground ice and permafrost, Lakes contain 20.9%, soil moisture has 3.8% atmosphere has 3.0%, swamps, and marshes contain 2.6% and rest 0.75% is present in living beings and rivers.
The water coming through precipitation (rainfall, snow) if it does not percolate down into the ground or does not return to the atmosphere as evaporation or transpiration loss, assumes the form of streams, Jokes ponds. Wetlands or artificial reservoirs are known as surface water. The surface water is use mainly for irrigation, industrial use, public water supply, navigation, etc.
Water in the rivers comes from precipitation, melting of snow & ice, and groundwater seepage. Lakes and ponds are shallow depressions in the Earth. They suffer from the problem of siltation, which may make them temporary in nature. Lakes and ponds contain more than 100 times the water present in all rivers and streams. The atmosphere contains about 0.001% of the total water on this Earth. It forms a small proportion of the total water available. Atmospheric water stays in the atmosphere for a short duration as it gets distribute with air currents and falls as precipitation to replenish the terrestrial water bodies.
MINERAL RESOURCES
Mineral resources is also type of natural resources. Minerals are inorganic substances naturally occurring in the Earth’s crust Minerals may be classified according to their use in industry as under:
Metallic Minerals Ferrous group (iron, chromite, manganese, and nickel) and non-ferrous group (copper, lead, zinc, tungsten, aluminum, vanadium among others). Non-Metallic Minerals like Mica, steatite, asbestos, and others.
Fertilizer Minerals such as gypsum, rock phosphate, and pyrite. Out of the various metals, those used in maximum quantity are iron and steel (740 million metric tonnes annually) followed by manganese, copper, chromium, aluminum, and nickel.
Minerals are sometimes classified as critical and strategic. Vital minerals are essential for the economy of a nation e.g., iron, aluminum, copper, gold, etc. Strategic minerals are those required for the defense of a country e.g. manganese, cobalt, platinum, chromium, etc.
ENERGY RESOURCES
Energy resources is also the type of natural resources. The Energy consumption of a nation is usually consider as an index of its development as all the developmental activities are directly or indirectly dependent upon energy. The raw form, in which The energy resources that occur in nature are the primary energy resources (coal, petroleum, natural gas, wind, solar). There are then converted into some intermediate form (steam or chemicals), which are finally converted into usable or secondary energy resources (fuels, electricity, etc.).
TYPES OF ENERGY RESOURCES
Based on their source of origin, energy resources are generally classified as conventional and non-conventional sources of energy. However, the demarcation between the two is not so rigid as a non-conventional source of energy today may, in due course of time, become a conventional source of energy.
Conventional Energy Resources
Energy resources that are traditionally in use since long are known as conventional forms e.g., coal, petroleum, natural gas, firewood, hydropower, and even nuclear fission fuels.
Non-Conventional Energy Resources
These include the other resources of energy that are being consider and commercialize for large scale use after the oil crisis. These additional resources are generally renewable, which include solar, wind, geothermal, ocean wave, tidal, biomass, biogas, nuclear fusion energy, etc. In the future, more emphasis will be given to non-conventional sources of energy as they are eco-friendly.
Another categorization of energy resources is based on its durability and regenerating capacity, which classifies it as renewable or non-renewable. These are as follows:
Renewable Resources
Renewable Resources are also type of natural resources. This type of resources are generally those resources which can be regenerate after the use and hence this resource is known as renewable resources. Geothermal energy, tidal energy, wind energy are some common examples of Renewable Resources.
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
It refers to the electricity produced by using the heat from the interior of the Earth. Where the geothermal gradient is high, high temperatures are found at shallow depths. Groundwater in such areas absorbs heat from the rocks and becomes hot. It is so hot that when it rises to the Earth’s surface, it turns into steam and this steam is use for rotate the turbines for generation of electric power. Two experimental projects have been set-up in India to harness geothermal energy. One is located in the Parvati valley near Manikarn in Himachal Pradesh, and the other is located in the Puga Valley, Ladakh. Prospective areas for such energy lie in the North-West Himalayan ranges, West coast running through Maharashtra and Gujarat, the Narmada-Son valley, and the Damodar valley.
TIDAL ENERGY
Oceanic tides can be used to generate electricity. Floodgate dams are built across inlets. During high tides, water flows into the inlet and gets trapped when the gate is closed. After the tide falls outside the flood gate, the water retained by the floodgate flows back to the sea via a pipe that carries it through a power-generating turbine. Although India has about 6100 km of long coast-line still the possibility of tidal power generation is rather limited. It has favorable sites in the Gulf of Cambay, Gulf of Kutchchh, and the estuary of Hugli with a total estimated potential of 1000 MW.
WIND ENERGY
The wind is an important source of non-conventional energy, which is cheap, pollution-free, environment-friendly, and can be developed away from the sources of conventional energy.
- In India, the generation of electric power through windmills started in 1950.
- Asia’s largest wind farm of 28 MW capacity is located at Lamba in Gujarat.
- Tamil Nadu has the largest installation of wind turbines in the country in the Muppandal Perungudi area near Kanyakumari, with an aggregate capacity of 380 MW. This is one of the largest concentrations of wind farm capacity at a single location anywhere in the world.
- A Centre for Wind Energy Technology (C-Wind) is being set-up in Chennai, along with a Wind Turbine Test Station at Kayathar (Tamil Nadu) with DANIDA assistance.
- The Wind Energy Estates are set-up in the joint sector or in the private sector. One such joint venture has come up in Madhya Pradesh with MP Windfarms Limited in 1995.
- India now ranks as a ‘wind superpower in the world. India aims to produce 20000 MW energy from wind energy by 2020.
Non-Renewable Resources
Non-Renewable Resources are also the type of natural resources. This Resources have accumulated in nature over a long period and cannot be quickly replenished once exhausted e.g. coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear fuels like uranium and thorium.
COAL
The pre-carboniferous vegetation got buried under the soil and due to excessive heat and pressure converted into coal over millions of years. At the present rate of usage, the coal reserves are likely to last for about 200 years. Direct burning of coal releases emissions like smoke, particulate matter, SOX, NOx, CO, and Co, whereas gaseous or liquid fuel cause less pollution.
In terms of fixed carbon, coals are classified into the following categories: Anthracite (> 95% carbon content) As gas coal. It is use for the manufacture of city gas with coke as a by-product. Bituminous (42-83% carbon content) 80% of the world’s coal output. As for cooking coal, it is use in coke ovens for the manufacture of metallurgical coke, with gas as a by-product. Lignite or Brown Coal (38% carbon content) About 15% world’s coal output comes from lignite. Having low heating capacity, it is sometimes use in steel plants.
World’s major coal mining centers are :
USA Appalachian coal region 6 CIS Donetz basin (Ukraine), Kuznetsk basin, Karaganda, China: Shansi, Shensi. Germany: Ruhr basin and Westphalia South Africa Transvaal and natal states.
PETROLEUM
It is a dangerous mixture of oily hydrocarbons with very complex properties. These are some stratified sedimentary rocks in association with natural gas. Three grades of crude oil (according to gasoline yields) are as follows:
- Paraffin Base oil (highest yields)
- Naphthenic Base oil (intermediate yield)
- Asphalt Base oil (lowest yield)
Crude petroleum is a complex mixture of alkane hydrocarbons. Hence, it has to be purified and refined by the process of fractional distillation during which different constituents separate out at different temperatures.
World’s major centers of petroleum products are as follows:
USA Appalachian region, Gulf Coast region, California region. Saudi Arabia Dammam, Ghavar, and Dhahran (oil refinery center at Rasantura) Kuwait Burgan hill (world’s largest reserve). Erstwhile USSR Volga-Ural region, Baku region (Caucasus region). Iraq Kirkuk, Mosul, Basra, Tikrit.
NATURAL GAS
It is mainly compose of methane (95%) with small amounts of propane and ethane. It is a fossil fuel. Natural gas deposits mostly accompany oil deposits because it has been form by decomposing remains of dead animals and plants buried under the Earth. Currently, the number of natural gas deposits in the world are of the order of 80450 gm Cube. Russia has maximum reserves (40%), followed by Iran (14%) and the USA (7%). Natural gas reserves are found in association with all the oil fields in India. Some new gas fields have been found in Tripura, Jaisalmer, off-shore area of Mumbai, and the Krishna-Godavari delta.
This are some common types of resources. You can also check about the advantages and disadvantages of this resources by click here.
