Energy Resources

What are the mains ways in which we use the earths energy resources?

Generating electricity, Heating, and Transportation

Where does most of our energy current come from?

Fossil fuels

What are examples of fossil fuels?

Coal, oil, and natural gas

What are reliable energy resources?

Energy resources that are available all the time, and in sufficient quantities

Why will we run out of non-renewable resources?

They are not replaced as quickly as they are used

Why won’t we run out of renewable resources?

They can be replaced at the same rate they are used

What are examples of non-renewable energy resources?

Fossil fuels and nuclear fission

What are examples of renewable energy resources?

Solar, Tidal, wave, wind, geothermal, biofuel, and hydroelectric

Which renewable energy resources use the movement of water to generate electricity?

Wave, tidal, and hydroelectric

What is biofuel?

Any fuel derived from biomass, which includes plant materials, algae, or animal waste

What does carbon neutral mean?

Refers to a state where a company or country has balanced the carbon dioxide emissions with the amount of carbon dioxide it absorbs

What does environmental impact mean?

Refers to the effects that humans activities have on the environment, such as both positive and negative changes to ecosystems, biodiversity and human health

What is biodiversity?

The variety of all life on earth

What is an ecosystem?

A community of living organisms interacting with their physical environment

What is a fossil fuel?

A natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms

What does geothermal mean?

Produced by the internal heat of the earth

What is hydroelectric?

A form of renewable energy that uses moving water running through a dam which turns a turbine which turns a generator, which generates electricity

What does reliability mean?

The consistency of measurements

What are the main advantages of using coal as an energy resource?

Enough availability to meet the current demand, reliable, can control supply to match demand, and cheap to extract and use

What are the main disadvantages of using coal as an energy resources?

Will eventually run out, releases CO2 which contributes to climate change, releases sulfur dioxide

What is bad about sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere

It causes acid rain

What is climate change?

Climate change is the long-term alternation of temperature and typical weather patterns in a place

What is global warming?

The gradual increase in the average temperature of the earth

What are the main advantages of using nuclear fuel as an energy source?

Lots of energy released from a small mass, reliable, enough fuel available to meet current demand, no polluting gases

What are the main disadvantages of using nuclear fuel as an energy resource?

Waste is dangerous and difficult to deal with, expensive initial set up, expensive to shut down and to run

What are the main advantages of using solar energy

Can be used in remote places, no polluting gases, no waste products, very low running costs

What are the main disadvantages of using solar energy?

Unreliable, cannot control supply, initial set up expensive, cannot be used on a large scale

What are the main advantages of using tidal power?

No polluting gases, no waste products, reliable, can produce large amounts of electricity, low running costs, no fuel costs

What are the main disadvantages of using tidal energy?

Can harm marine habitats, initial set up expensive, cannot increase supply when needed, amount of energy varies on time of month, hazard for boats

What are the main advantages of using wave turbines?

No polluting gases produced, no waste products, low running cost, no fuel costs

What are the main disadvantages of using wave turbines?

Unreliable, dependant on weather, cannot control supply, initial set up expensive, can harm marine habitats, hazard for boats, cannot be used on a large scale

What are the main disadvantages of using wind turbines?

Unreliable, dependant on weather, cannot control supply, take up lots of space, can produce noise pollution

What are the advantages of using geothermal energy?

No polluting gases, no running costs

What are the disadvantages of using geothermal energy?

Initial set up expensive, available in a few locations

What are the main advantages of using biofuels?

Can be carbon neutral, reliable

What are the main disadvantages of biofuels?

Expensive to produce, use land/water that might be needed to grow food

What are the main advantages of using hydroelectric power?

No polluting gases, no waste products, low running costs, no fuel costs, reliable, can be controlled to meet demand

What are the disadvantages of using hydroelectric power?

Initial set up expensive, dams can harm / destroy marine habitats

What is start up time

How long a power station takes to release energy

Why don’t renewable energy resources run out?

They replenish at the same rate they are used

How do fossil fuel power stations generate electricity?

Burning a fossil fuel to heat water, to create steam. This steam turns a turbine, which turns a generator, which generates electricity

Why can’t we use renewable energy resources for all of our energy needs?

Unreliable, not enough energy can be produced