APES Unit 6 Vocab Retention

subsistence fuels

Biomass fuel sources that are easily accessible (can be found and gathered by hand); often used in developing countries as a home heating or cooking fuel

Fracking (hydraulic fracturing)

The pumping of water at high pressure to break apart rocks in order to release natural gas

Fracking distillation

the process of refining crude oil in to various usable products

shale gas

A natural gas within tiny openings of shale rock.

tar/oil sands

Energy source that is saturated with thick petroleum, it is dark color and has a strong odor and has been reclassification from a potential reserve to a proven reserve in Canada.

nuclear fission energy

Controlled nuclear chain reaction produces heat, driving steam turbines to produce energy.

Three Mile Island

1979 - A mechanical failure and a human error at this power plant in Pennsylvania combined to permit an escape of radiation over a 16 mile radius.

hydrogen fuel cell

a device that produces electricity by separating hydrogen into protons and electrons

renewable energy

A resource that has a theoretically unlimited supply and is not depleted when used by humans.

Non-renewable energy

Energy that cannot be replaced once it is used or energy that is not being replaced as fast as it is being used.