Studied by 13 people
Study Guide
Nonrenewable resources
coal, nuclear (uranium), fossil fuels
Renewable resources
wind, water, biomass
What makes something a renewable resource?
Renewable resources replenish as fast as they are used.
Can renewable resources run out temporarily?
Yes for example, if there is a drought in a river, hydroelectric power will not be created because there is no water flow. Or solar energy will not work on a cloudy day or at night.
What are BTU’s
measure of the heat content of fuels/energy sources.
What are Watts
measurement of rate of energy over a unit of time.
What are Therms
measurement of gas used over time.
What are Joules
unit to measure energy
How many Watts are in a Kilowatt
1,000
How many Watts are in a Megawatt
1,000,000
How many Kilowatts are in a Megawatt
1,000
What is peat a precursor to? What conditions are it made in?
Peat is a precursor to coal, which is made of decayed plant materials/organic matter under heat and pressure.
What are the 4 main grades of coal?
Peat, lignite, bituminous, anthracite.
Which is the grade of coal has the highest level of sulfur? Which is the best?
The highest sulfur is lignite. The best is anthracite.
Define and Give an example of cogeneration:
Cogeneration is using leftover steam to produce heat. In an apartment building, exhaust from a gas-powered electrical generator is captured to produce hot water to heat a swimming pool.
Why has coal in powerplants declined while natural gas has increased?
Natural gas is more available to extract and is cheaper to make and get.
Which fuel causes deforestation?
Biomass, because it is made up of living materials, such as trees and shrubs.
Which fossil fuel in the most consumed in the world for total energy? (also for commercial energy?)
Oil
Which fossil fuel is the most consumed for electricity?
Coal/natural gas
How is oil trapped underground? How does porosity and permeability of rock and soil layers trap oil?
Flued mix of hydrocarbons, H2O, and sulfur in underground deposits. Which is less dense that rocks, therefore is migrates closer to the surface.
Which energy sources are not derives directly nor indirectly from the sun?
Geothermal energy, nuclear fuels, tidal energy.
Where are the main coal deposits in the US?
Wyoming, North Dakota, Montana, West Virginia, Pennsylvania.
What is the cleanest fossil fuel to burn?
natural gas
What greenhouse gases are emitted from burning fossil fuels?
carbon dioxide (CO2)
Which fossil fuels primarily is used in transportation?
liquid gas
How is oil extracted with and without fracking?
Fracking uses H2O to expand pockets of shale to enable access to more oil.
Without fracking they pump steam down a vertical well to soak or liquefy the bitumen, which is then pumped to the surface through the same well. This technique is repeated until most of the oil is removed.
What fuel is often next to crude oil and can be harvested as well?
Natural Gas
What is bitumen? Where do we extract it from?
It is made from distillation of crude oil which is made of hydrogen and carbon. It is extracted from oil sands and pitch lakes.
What is kerosene? Where do we extract is from?
Substance made from distillation of petroleum from oil refineries.
What are the risks with offshore drilling for oil?
Oil spills, dangerous working conditions, and explosions.
What are the main problems with drilling for oil on land?
leaching into water sources and destroying habitats.
How does fracking work?
Using water to expand rocks to make oil pockets deeper and more accessible.
What are the environmental impacts of fracking?
Bad soil health, pollution, water damage in aquifers, using lots of water.
Where does fission occur in a nuclear power plant?
Within the reactor vessel
In what part of a nuclear power plant do accidents occur?
during the fission reation
What was the worst nuclear accident? What happened?
Chernobyl was the worse nuclear accident, there was and explosion during a test which released large amounts of radiation.
What happened at Fukushima?
At the nuclear power plant, the power in the area went out. Leading the reactor vessel to begin overheating, every preventative measure failed, in the end every procedures did not follow through and the cite exploded which released radiation.
What are the harmful effects of thermal pollution to ecosystems?
Energy plants use water, the leftover hot water is then pumped into fresh water systems which leads to dissolved oxygen, harmful to fish populations. Along with this, it causes water to heat, the range of tolerance in most freshwater animals is 89-69 degrees F, the heat from the water causes these animals to change migration patterns and become unhealthy—there living situation could become fatal because of this.
Where is nuclear waste currently stored?
The leftover waste from nuclear sited it stored in large radiation blocking containers and is stored there, for over 200,000 years.
What are the environmental benefits of nuclear power?
Nuclear energy produces less emissions that go into the atmosphere than fossil fuels.
Why can’t nuclear power replace fossil fuels in the long term?
Producing power plants is difficult, time consuming, and expensive. It is also not an option for developing countries. They create toxic waste, with radiation that is stored longer than it takes to produce the energy, which is a long term liability.
How do you think you could reduce particle matter in your home?
Do not smoke indoors, burn wood safely, use air purifiers.
Why is biomass used instead of fossil fuels for heating and cooking in developing countries?
Availability, fossil fuels are expensive to extract and are more prominent in certain regions.
What are some drawbacks to ethanol?
Difficult to vaporize → harder to start cars in cold weather. Uses a lot of water and energy to create, the crops used are produced using pesticides.
How do PV cells work? What are they made from?
PV cells capture light from the sun then convert it into energy, they are made of silicon semiconductors.
What are some examples of active solar?
solar H2O heaters, space conditioning, and solar mechanical energy
What are some home design features of passive solar?
Awnings, shutters, trellises, south facing windows.
What are drawbacks to solar power?
Not consistent → based off of unpredictable weather patters, only available in certain areas.
In the northern hemisphere, which directions should PV cells face?
True South
What are the benefits of hydroelectric dams?
It is a renewable energy source that puts less pressure on fossil fuels → reducing pollution. They also provide flood control, irrigation, and clean drinking water.
How do we solve the problem of blocked fish migration?
Fish ladders or fish capture → release
What are the benefits of tidal power?
They are renewable/predictable, produce lots of energy, and create clean energy
What are the drawbacks of tidal power?
There are limited available sites, expensive, and damage marine life.
Where is the worlds largest hydroelectric dams?
The Three Gorges Dam in China
Which country has the highest rate of geothermal? Why?
Iceland because they are on the west Atlantic ridge, which is a divergent tectonic plate.
What are some drawbacks to geothermal?
They can create surface instability and are high cost.
How do fuel cells work?
A catalyst at the anode separates hydrogen in protons and electrons, which take different paths to cathodes. After this electrons travel through external circuits, creating energy.
What are the byproducts of fuel cells?
Water vapor are the only byproducts.
What is the primary way we create hydrogen for fuel cells?
We get the hydrogen by electrically splitting H2O, steam methane reforming.
What are the parts of a windmill? How does it generate electricity?
Some components in a windmill are the foundation, tower, rotor and hub, nacelle, and the generator. The drivetrain is comprised of the rotor, main bearing, main shaft, gearbox, and generator. The drivetrain converts the low-speed, high-torque rotation of the turbine's rotor (blades and hub assembly) into electrical energy.
What is the difference between a vertical and horizontal wind turbine?
Horizontal: spin on an axis parallel to the wind
Vertical: oriented perpendicular to the wind
Why are offshore wind farms more efficient?
the wind is stronger offshore than on land.
What is NIMBY?
Not In My Back Yard; a protest against industrialization and energy sources. Started with protests against windmills.
How can we minimize impacts to birds and bats?
Keeping windmill sites away from migration patters, using a line/mark on one of the wings to create flickering pattern, smaller wings, and sounds to avert birds.
Why aren’t PV cells considered energy conservative?
They are not always efficient and they energy they create in dependent on the amount of light.
What are CAFE standards? Why are they helpful?
They regulate how far a vehicle must travel on one gallon of gas, they make sure the vehicles are working efficiently and are not declining in quality.
What are subsidies?
Grant from the government to assist an industry with keeping prices low and competitive
What are tax breaks?
Governments lessens your total tax liability
What are some features of green building designs that helps with energy conservation?
Well insulated, south facing windows, green roof, solar power.
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