APES unit 6-Energy (ch 16 crash course)

nonrenewable energy resources

those that cannot be replenished

what are the primary nonrenewable energy resources

fossil fuels and nuclear power

what is the most common way of generating electricity in power plants?

some type of fuel is used to produce heat to boil water ==> steam ==> turbine is turned ==> electromagnet spins ==> current of electrons is produced (electricity)

what is the difference between fossil fuel generated electricity/heat and heat that comes from a nuclear power plant?

regular power plant: fossil fuels burned to make heat

vs.

nuclear power plant: breaking apart of atomic nuclei produces heat

the majority of commercial energy is provided by what three fossil fuels?

coal, oil, and natural gas

fossil fuels

made from compressed carbon left behind by organisms that lived millions of years ago

what kind of rock does coal come from

sedimentary rock

what are sedimentary rocks made from?

the remains of the trees and other plants of ancient forests

coal is relatively _____ and ______

abundant and inexpensive

MEDCs?

more economically developed country

LEDCs?

less economically developed country

what is coal primarily used for in the US and other MEDCs?

to generate electricity and to heat homes

how is coal formed?

overtime, heat and pressure increase the moisture content of compressed plant material decreases, a process that leads to the eventual formation of coal

classes of coal in order from age and purity?

pete==> lignite ==> bituminous ==> anthracite

(PLBA)

pete

rich in carbon

lignite

used primarily for electricity generation in power plants

bituminous

used to generate electricity, but it can also be converted back to coke (which is necessary for steel making)

anthracite

this is the purest form of coal and it is also the cleanest burning coal due to low levels of sulfur/nitrogen; it is also the most expensive; used for home heating

how is coal extracted?

commonly mined in open pit mines or strip mines (often resulting in mountaintop removal), although there are underground coal mining operations too

what is a major source of air pollution?

burning coal

what are some pollutants that are released into the atmosphere as a result of burning coal to produce electricity?

CO2, particulate matter (can lead to asthma/bronchitis), SO2, NO2, other toxins (carbon monoxide, arsenic, lead, cadmium, mercury)m

what is concentrated within waste ash (what is left over after the burning of coal) and what can happen if these 2 things are not disposed of properly?

uranium, thorium ==> if waste ash is not properly disposed it can leach into the environment (including groundwater)

clean coal technology: wet scrubbers?

installed in smokestacks to reduce emissions of sulfur

clean coal technology: electrostatic generators?

use static electricity to capture particulate matter

clean coal technology: low NO2 burners?

control the levels of O2 in the coal fire to reduce nitrogen emissions

clean coal technology: combustion method-limestone fluidized combustion?

greatly reduces SO2 and NO2 emissions while also increasing the efficiency of the heat transfer; this generates more energy per unit of coal

more than 50% of the world's coal reserves are located in what 3 countries?

china, US, and Russia

at current consumption rates in how many years will the world's coal reserves be depleted?

150 years

how is crude oil in its natural state and how is oil formed from this?

thick sticky liquid that is formed from the remains of oceanic organisms that lived millions of years ago overtime, these remains were heated and compressed to form oil

what are some common fuels that are refined from crude oil?

gasoline, diesel fuel, propane, and jet fuel

how are fuels separated out?

in a distillation process called fractioning

fractioning?

the fuels settle out based on density and boiling point into different chambers where they can then be collected and further treated to create useful fuels

what are some things made from the by products of the refining process?

nylon, plastics, asphalt, polystyrene, DDT, and even crayons

where is oil found?

in underground deposits in sites that were at one time along the ocean floor

how is oil extracted?

deep wells are drilled and pumps are used to bring it to the surface

how are oil wells accessed?

by building huge platforms at ocean sites, or the wells may be on land

where is most of the world's oil located?

the middle east

what other three places in the world have oil reserves?

south america, north america, and russia

where are most of the oil reserves located in the US(7 places)?

texas, Louisiana, California, the gulf of mexico, north dakota, and alaska

at the current rate of use the world's oil reserves are expected to reach economic depletion within how many years and this continues to increase by using what?

oil reserves will deplete within the next 50 years ; this continues to increase because of automobile use

what countries may cause the next increased use of oil consumption?

china and india

how is natural gas formed?

natural gas is formed from the heated and compressed remains of ancient organisms

where is natural gas found when is it found with oil?

when natural gas is found with oil, it is found with deeper oil deposits

where is natural gas found when it is found alone?

it is often located more than 2 miles below the earth's surface

what does natural gas contain?

mainly methane, but it contains small amounts of: propane, ethane, and butane

natural gas is the ____ burning fossil fuel

cleanest

what are some pollutants that natural gas releases?

SO2, NO2, and CO2

natural gas leeks are composed of what? and why is this a bad thing

pure methane and pure methane is bad bc it is a very aggressive greenhouse gas that is 20 times stronger than CO2

nuclear energy?

the energy released by breaking apart the nucleus of an atom

what is the most common element used to generate nuclear energy?

uranium, specifically U-235

why are nuclear power plants so complex?

bc the nuclear reaction used to generate electricity is so powerful and potentially dangerous ==> makes nuclear energy the most expensive ways of generating electricity

nuclear energy increases the amount of radiation, so humans and other organisms could experience the physical effect of this which is called _____ ______

radiation sickness

one of the major concerns of nuclear energy is ____ _____

nuclear waste

what happens with nuclear waste in the US

it is stored at the plant it is generated

what are some other ways to store/dispose of nuclear waste?

bury the waste in a special concrete container, store it in large pools of water to keep it cool, or place it in specially designed underground containment facilities

half life

the time it takes for half of the atoms in a sample to decay to a more stable form

half life formula

major malfunction/nuclear meltdown

the process of breaking down uranium atoms releases huge amounts of energy ==> uranium is very dangerous

what precautions have nuclear power plants taken to avoid the slim chance of a meltdown?

extensive systems for cooling

nuclear power plant accident: three mile island penn. (1979)

first nuclear partial meltdown, no one died, but lead to new precautions and awareness

nuclear power plant accident: chernobyl, russia )1986)

total meltdown, 4000 deaths

nuclear power plant accident: fukushima, japan (2011)

EQ lead to a full meltdown ==> more time needs to pass by so we can see the full effect of the meltdown

nuclear power is good bc it has ___ emissions

no emissions

_____ is essential for nuclear power plants to be used as a ____ agent

water, cooling agent

thermcal pollution can occur if water from a nuclear power plant is ____ released into the environment without cooling; and this _____ temp water may be harmful to organisms living in the body of water

directly, high