Primary and Secondary Energy
- Primary energy sources are those that are either found or stored in nature.
- Common primary energy sources are coal, oil, natural gas, and biomass (such as wood).
- Other primary energy sources available include nuclear energy from radioactive substances, thermal stored in earth’s interior, and potential energy due to earth’s gravity.
- The primary energy sources are mostly converted in industrial utilities into secondary energy sources, for example.coal oil or gas converted into steam and electricity.Primary energy can also be used directly.
- Some energy sources have non-energy uses, for example, coal or natural gas can be used as a feed stock in fertilizer plants.
