Chapter 8: Energy Resources

Nonrenewable energy

An energy source with a finite supply, primarily the fossil fuels and nuclear fuels.

Renewable energy

In energy management, an energy source that is either potentially renewable or nondepletable.

CFL (compact fluorescent) light

use one-fourth as much energy to provide the same amount of light as incandescent bulbs.

LED (light-emitting diode) light

use one-sixth as much energy as incandescent bulbs.

Biofuels

Liquid fuels created from processed or refined biomass.

Flex-fuel vehicles

A vehicle that runs on either gasoline or ethanol.

Hydroelectricity

Moving water, either falling over a vertical distance or flowing with a river, contains kinetic energy.

Three Gorges Dams

In China, largest dam in the world, has a capacity of 18,000 MW, submerged ancient cultural and archaeological sites as well as large areas of farmland

Siltation

The accumulation of sediments, primarily silt, on the bottom of a reservoir.

Photovoltaic (PV) cells

A system of capturing energy from sun as light, not heat, and converting it directly into electricity

Geothermal energy

Heat energy that comes from the natural radioactive decay of elements deep within Earth.

Wind energy

Energy generated from the kinetic energy of moving air.

Fuel cell

An electrical-chemical device that converts fuel, such as hydrogen, into an electrical current.

Ethanol

Alcohol made by converting starches and sugars from plant material into alcohol and CO2.

fossil fuel

a fuel derived from biological material that became fossilized millions of years ago.

nuclear fuel

fuel derived from radioactive materials that give off energy.

commercial energy source

an energy source that is bought and sold.

subsistence energy sources

energy sources gathered by individuals for their own immediate needs.

turbine

a device with blades that can be turned by water, wind, steam, or exhaust gas from combustion that turns a generator into an electricity-producing plant.

electrical grid

a network of interconnected transmission lines that joins power plants together and links them with end users of electricity.

coal

solid fuel formed primarily from the remains of trees, ferns, and other plant materials preserved 280 million to 360 million years ago.

petroleum

a fossil fuel that occurs in underground deposits, formed from decaying marine organisms.

Hubbert curve

graph representing oil use and projecting both when world oil production will reach a maximum and when we will run out of oil.

peak oil

the point at which half the total known oil supply is used up.

fission

a nuclear reaction in which a neutron strikes a relatively large atomic nucleus, which then splits into two or more parts, releasing additional neutrons and energy in the form of heat.

fuel rod

a cylindrical tube that encloses nuclear fuel within a nuclear reactor.

control rod

a cylindrical device inserted between the fuel rods in a nuclear reactor to absorb excess neutrons and slow or stop the fission reaction.

radioactive waste

nuclear fuel that can no longer produce enough heat to be useful in a power plant but continues to emit radioactivity.

nuclear fusion

a reaction that occurs when lighter nuclei are forced together to produce heavier nuclei.

potential energy

stored energy

kinetic energy

energy of motion

energy efficiency

ratio of amount of work done to total amount of energy introduced into the system

electromagnetic radiation

ultimate source of most energy on the earth

entropy

level of randomness in a system

anthracite

type of coal with the most potential energy

lignite

type of coal with the least potential energy

peat

pre-coal material; low quality energy source

bituminous

type of coal with a medium amount of potential energy

fracking

method of extracting natural gas; controversial because of potential groundwater contamination

distillation

process of separating components from crude oil by heating to different temperatures matching the boiling points of the individual compounds

potentially renewable resources

resources that can be regenerated rapidly as long as they are not consumed more quickly than they can be replenished (biomass)

peak demand

greatest quantity of energy used at any one time

tiered rate system

charging less per kWh as a reward for using lower amounts of electricity

passive solar design

building strategy that uses seasonal changes in the sun's position to reduce energy demand

active solar energy

capturing energy from the sun using technology