APES Unit 6 Vocab

fossil fuel

Coal, oil, natural gas, and other fuels that are ancient remains of plants and animals.

nonrenewable energy source

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

nuclear fuel

an energy source that results from splitting atoms

energy carrier

something that can move and deliver energy in a convenient, usable form to end users

turbine

A device with blades that can be turned by water, wind, steam, or exhaust gas from combustion that turns a generator in 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

combined cycle

A power plant that uses both exhaust gases and steam turbines to generate electricity

capacity

The maximum electrical output (Typical power plant \= 12,000 MWh in one day (500 mega-watts an hour))

capacity factor

the fraction of the time a plant operates in a year

cogeneration

using waste heat to make electricity

coal

A fossil fuel that forms underground from partially decomposed plant material

petroleum

liquid fossil fuel; oil

crude oil

unrefined petroleum

tar sands

sand or sandstone naturally impregnated with petroleum

bitumen

A degraded petroleum that forms when petroleum migrates to the surface of Earth and is modified by bacteria.

CTL (coal to liquid)

The process of converting solid coal into liquid fuel

energy intensity

The energy use per unit of gross domestic product

hubbert curve

A bell-shaped curve 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

fuel rod

a uranium rod that undergoes fission in a nuclear reactor

control rod

a cadmium rod used in a nuclear reactor to absorb neutrons from fission reactions

radioactive waste

Materials from a nuclear reaction that emit radiation; contact with such particles may be harmful or lethal to people; therefore, the materials must be safely stored for thousands of years

becquerel (bq)

Unit that measures the rate at which a sample of radioactive material decays

curie

unit of radioactivity

nuclear fission

a nuclear reaction in which a heavy nucleus splits spontaneously or on impact with another particle, with the release of energy.

energy conservation

The practice of reducing energy use

tiered rate system

A billing system used by some electric companies in which customers pay higher rates as their use goes up

peak demand

The greatest quantity of energy used at any one time

passive solar design

Construction designed to take advantage of solar radiation without active technology

thermal mass

the ability of a material to absorb and store heat energy

potentially renewable

an energy source that can be regenerated indefinitely as long as it is not overharvested

nondepletable/renewable

An energy source that cannot be used up

biofuel

Fuel from organic sources

modern carbon

Carbon in biomass that was recently in the atmosphere

fossil carbon

carbon found in fossil fuels which has been buried for millions of years and, when reintroduced into the cycle, increases global C02 concentrations

carbon neutral

making no net release of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, especially through offsetting emissions by planting trees.

net removal

The process of removing more that is replace by growth, typically used when referring to carbon.

ethanol

a biofuel derived from corn

biodiesel

A diesel substitute produced by extracting and chemically altering oil from plants

flex fuel vehicle

A vehicle that runs on either gasoline or a gasoline/ethanol mixture

hydroelectricity

electricity generated by the kinetic energy of moving water

run of the river

Hydroelectricity generation in which water is retained behind a low dam or no dam

water impoundment

storing water in a reservoir behind a dam

tidal energy

Energy that comes from the movement of water driven by the gravitational pull of the Moon.

siltation

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

active solar energy

energy captured from sunlight with advanced technologies

photovoltaic solar cell

A system of capturing energy from sunlight and converting it directly into electricity

wind energy

The energy captured by transforming the motion of air into electrical energy using a turbine

wind turbine

A turbine that converts wind energy into electricity

geothermal energy

Energy derived from the heat in the interior of the earth

ground source heat pump

A technology that transfers heat from the ground to a building

fuel cell

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

electrolysis

A process by which an electric current breaks chemical bonds.

smart grid

an efficient, self-regulating electricity distribution network that accepts any source of electricity and distributes it automatically to end users