Disadvantages
of Natural Gas
1. Toxic and Flammable: Leaks of natural gas are tremendously dangerous. Such leaks
may cause explosions or fire. When inhaled, the gas is highly toxic. The main
danger is that it is odorless and leaks cannot be detected unless some odorant
has been added to the gas. It is for this reason that LPG (residentially used
gas) is suffused with odorants, that in the event of a leak, detection is easy
and appropriate actions can be taken. In the case of an underground leak, we
are helpless as odorant becomes weaker and the gas leak goes undetected.
2. Damage to Environment: Burning of natural gas also releases carbon dioxide, carbon
monoxide and other carbon compounds which are greenhouse gases that cause global warming and climate change. Even though
it is cleaner than oil or coal as far as its by products are concerned, leakage
of natural gas can be have serious consequences as methane is more toxic than
carbon dioxide.
3. Complex Processing: For use as fuel, except for methane, all other constituents
of natural gas have to be extracted. Processing results in many byproducts:
hydrocarbons (propane, ethane etc.), sulfur, water, helium, nitrogen, and
carbon dioxide.
4. Non-Renewable: Like all fossil fuels, natural gas
though found in abundance is non-renewable and hence likely to be exhausted at
some point of time. It is not a long term solution to our energy problems.
5. Expensive Installation: The infrastructure for natural gas production and
distribution is fairly expensive. This includes separate plumbing systems and
specialized tanks.
6. Inefficiency in Transportation: Natural gas when used as a fuel in vehicles provides less
mileage than gasoline.
In spite of disadvantages, the
entire process of producing, transporting and making use of natural gas
provides an energy efficiency which is best among all fossil fuels. It proves
to be less harmful to environment when it comes to pollution. It may not last
forever but as of today it is the most popular energy source.
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