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Renewable energy
resource that is restored faster than it is consumed
Nonrenewable energy
resource that is consumed faster than restored
Fossil fuels
-Combustible deposits in earth's crust, composed of the remnants (fossils) of prehistoric organisms that existed millions or years ago.
-Coal, oil (Petroleum), and natural gas are three types or fossil fuels.
-Are hydrocarbons that consist of hydrogen and carbon molecules bonded together
Burning of fossil fuels
1. Fuel source provides heat
2. Water functions as moderator to capture heat
3. Water heats up enough to be converted to steam
4. Steam used to rotate a steam turbine
5. Steam turbine connected to generator causes generator to spin producing electricity
6. Condensate water from the environment used to cool steam back into liquid water
Coal
-A black, combustible solid composed mainly of carbon, water, and trace elements found in Earth's crust; formed from ancient plants that lived millions of years ago.
Process of coal formation
comes from dead organisms on land(trees from the carboniferous era)
Subsurface mining
-The extraction or mineral and energy resources from deep underground deposits
Strip mining
-A method of surface mining in which trenches are dug to scrape the coal from the ground and excess soil is deposited in a parallel spoil bank (another trench)
Peat
from any dead organic material
Lignite
from any dead organic material that is older and exposed to more heat
Bituminous
from any dead organic material that is older and exposed to even more heat
Anthracite
very dark, lots or carbon
Natural gas
-A mixture of energy-rich gaseous hydrocarbons (primarily methane) that occurs often with oil deposits, in Earth's crust.
Process of natural gas formation
- main constituent of natural gas is CH4(methane)
- fastest growing fossil fuel
- no oxygen must be present
Hydraulic fracturing
the use of water and chemicals to release natural gas and oil trapped between soil layers
Oil
-A thick, yellow to black, flammable hydrocarbon mixture found in Earth's crust; formed from the remains of ancient microscopic aquatic organisms
Fractional distillation
separating chemical compounds by their boiling point by heating them to a temperature at which one or more fractions of the compound will vaporize
Oil extraction
1. Once an oil reserve is discovered oil companies perform exploratory drilling
2. Primary extraction
3. Secondary extraction
4. Crude oil is refined by fractional distillation
Peak oil
-Also known as "Hubbert's Peak", after the U.S. geologist who first developed the concept; it is the point at which global oil production has reached a maximum rate
Other uses of oil
- plastics
- cosmetics
-clothes
- electronics
- kitchen appliance
- detergens
- nonstick coating on pots and pans
- tires
Oil sands(tar sands)
soil containing large amounts of oil
Oil shale
extracting the oil source rock and then melt it. not easily extracted, expensive to extract
Environmental impacts of fossil fuels
1. Cause pollution:
2. Drive climate change
3. Acid drainage from coal(all) mining/acid mine runoff):
4. Infrastructure of oil drilling: ecosystems/biomes are destroyed when building pipelines and machines that support drilling
leakage of pipeline: point source pollution
Oil supply and demand
as supply goes up and demand goes down the cost goes down
Carbon tax
tax on companies/corporations based on how much carbon they produce
Ways to conserve energy
1. strengthen the laws on fuel efficiency standards on automobiles
2. incentives for reducing energy consumption or switching to renewable resources
How can an individual reduce their own energy consumption?
- turn off light/TV/computer/heater/AC when leaving a room
- ride a bicycle to destination
- use public transportation(mass transit)
- use energy star complaint appliances
- use LED of fluorescent(CFL) lightbulbs
- unplug appliances when not in use
Nuclear fission description
1. split uranium by sending in an extra neutron
2. the splitting releases energy in the form of heat
3. heat is trapped in water which converts to steam
Nuclear fusion
-The joining of two lightweight atomic nuclei into a single, heavier nucleus, accompanied by the release of a large amount of energy
Three Mile Island
- 1979 in Pennsylvania
- worst nuclear power plant incident in the U.S
- caused by a combination of mechanical failure and human error
- fuel began to melt releasing radiation into the atmosphere
- one of the reactors was forced to shutdown permanently
- created a fear of nuclear energy
Chernobyl
- 1986 in the Ukraine (former Soviet Union)
- worst nuclear power plant incident in the world
- caused by a combination of poor reactor design, human - - error, and turned off safety systems
- the nuclear reactor melted down and exploded sending -- tons of radioactive particles into the atmosphere
Dilemmas of nuclear fission power
1. high cost
2. if mishandled can be dangerous
3. radioactive waste disposal
Radioactive waste disposal
life span is 1,000's of years. disposal is in the ground
Biomass
-Plant material, including undigested fiber in animal waste, used as fuel
Benefits of biomass
1. can be renewable
2. can be carbon neutral
- carbon input = carbon output
3. Sources of energy are from crops
- Examples: corn, switch grass
Drawbacks of biomass
1. Use of fertilizers which can runoff
- refer to earlier notes
2. Irrigation of crops causes soil to wash away(erosion)
- thus they can't farm anymore
3. Requires use of fossil fuels for farming machines
- produces pollution
Benefits of hydroelectricity
1. no air pollution
2. no greenhouse gases
3. can be renewable
4. store freshwater with reservoir
5. recreation
Drawbacks of hydroelectricity
1. expensive
2. the reservoir destroys ecosystems
3. the dam restricts river flow upstream and downstream
4. kill fish as they pass through turbines
Solar energy
energy from the Sun. the Earth receives enough sunlight each day to power human consumption for 25 years
Ways of capturing solar energy
passive solar energy collection, active solar energy collection
Passive solar heating
-A system of putting the sun's energy to use without requiring mechanical devices to distribute the collected heat
Active solar heating
-A system of putting the sun's energy to use in which a series of collectors absorb the solar energy, and pumps or fans distribute the collected heat
Solar Thermal Electric Generation
-a means of producing electricity in which the sun's energy is concentrated by mirrors or lenses to heat a fluid filled pipe or drive a Stirling Engine
Photovoltaics
A method of converting sunlight to electricity using layers of materials that either readily give up or absorb electrons
Active solar water heating
a combination of photovoltaic cells(which produce electricity to heat water) and passive water heating
Benefits of solar energy
- it is renewable
- does not produce any air pollution
- no greenhouse gas emissions
- very inexpensive
- no solid, radioactive waste production
- no water pollution
Drawbacks of solar energy
- inefficient
- requires much space which leads to habitat destruction
- location dependent
Wind
- convert the kinetic energy of the wing into electrical energy
- turbines range from 40 to 100 meters in height
- the taller the better to maximize turbulence
- turbines can be set up singly or in bunches called wind farms
Offshore wind farms
can produce much more electrical power because the wind is about 20% greater over water than land
Benefits to wind energy
- it is renewable
- no air pollution
- no water pollution
- no solid, radioactive waste
- no greenhouse gas emissions
- least expensive form of energy production
Drawbacks to wind energy
- can require much space
- not very efficient
- location dependent
- unreliable due to winds
- not in my backyard people(NIMBY)
Geothermal energy
producing energy using the heat inside the Earth, from magma just underneath the surface
Benefits to geothermal energy
- no air pollution
- can be renewable(depends on the injection temperature of water)
- produces no solid/radioactive waste
- cheap compared to fossil fuels
- no water pollution
Drawbacks to geothermal energy
- does produce small amounts of greenhouse gases from within the interior of the Earth
- not very efficient
- location dependent
Benefits to hydrogen fuel cell energy
- renewable
- no air pollution
- produces no solid waste
- no greenhouse gases
Drawbacks to hydrogen fuel cell energy
- expensive
- not efficient
Energy Efficiency
-Using less energy to accomplish a task, as, for example with new technology
Energy Conservation
-Using less energy, as, for example, by reducing energy use and waste
zero-net-energy buildings
-Buildings that produce as much or more energy than they use
Cogeneration
-The production of two useful forms of energy from the same fuel
Electricity
-the flow of electrons in a wire, is a very versatile form of energy and can be generated from nearly any source
Generator
-A bundle of wires spins with a magnet to generate an electric current
Surface Mining Reclamation Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA)
-An act requiring coal companies to restore areas after mining and allows for inspections and prohibits mining on sensitive areas (National Parks, wildlife refuges, wild and scenic rivers, and sites on the national register of historic places
Acid mine Drainage
-Pollution caused when sulfuric acid and dissolved minerals such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium wash from coal and metal mines into nearby lakes and streams
Mountaintop Removal
-The removal or the entire summit of a mountain to reach a coal seam, is very environmentally destructive and can change the entire land distribution for an area
Fluidized-bed combustion
-A clean-coal technology in which crushed coal is mixed with limestone to neutralize the acidic sulfur compounds produced during combustion.
Major oil spills
-Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
-Exxon Valdez Oil Spill
Oil Pollution Act
-establishes liability for damages to natural resources from a catastrophic oil spill, including a trust fund to pay for cleanup of companies that cannot afford to pay (oil is taxed to provide money for the trust)
Tidal Energy
-A form of renewable energy that relies on the ebb and flow of the tides to generate electricity
Radioactive Decay
-the emission of energetic particles or rays from unstable atomic nuclei; includes positively charged alpha particles, negatively charged beta particles, and high energy, electromagnetic gamma particles
Nuclear Fuel Cycle
-The processes involved in producing the fuel used in nuclear reacts and disposing of radioactive (Nuclear) wastes
Enrichment
-The process by which uranium ore is refined after mining to increase the concentration of fissionable U-235
Nuclear Reactor
-A device that initiates and maintains an controlled nuclear fission chain reaction to produce energy for electricity
Low-level radioactive wastes
-Radioactive solids, liquids, or gases that give off small amounts of ionizing radiation
High-level radioactive wastes
-Radioactive solids, liquids, or gases that give off large amounts or ionizing radiation
Yucca Mountain
-the only candidate for U.S. deep geologic storage of high-level nuclear waste
Fuel Assemblies
-Areas with 150 fuel rods, there are about 150-250 fuel assemblies per nuclear reactor
Fuel Rods
-closed tubes about 4m long containing uranium fuel pellets
Nuclear Waste Policy Act
-Required the first site of nuclear waste storage to be operational by 1998, but was postponed to 2012 and 2017
Second law of thermodynamics
When an energy transformation occurs some energy is lost as heat to the environment
