Energy & Industry / Energy

Wood, Charcoal & Coal

The switch from wood to coal (coke, 1709) delivers heat on an industrial scale.

Wood and charcoal limited metal smelting and cities; in England coal burning grew from the 13th century as forests became scarce. In 1709 Abraham Darby at Coalbrookdale smelted iron with coke instead of charcoal. Coal became the fuel of the Industrial Revolution and is still the largest single source of energy-related CO2.