Chapter 8 - Energy

Plutonium fission

Plutonium fission

________ provides ⅓ of total energy produced in a typical nuclear power plant.

Moderator

________- reduces the speed of fast neutrons, allowing a sustainable chain reaction.

Coolant

________- Removes heat and produces steam to generate electricity.

Anaerobic digestion

________ is a collection of processes by which microorganisms break down biodegradable material, in the absence of oxygen, to produce methane gas which can be burned to produce energy.

Automobiles

________ that are propelled by only an electric motor and by using electrical energy stored in batteries.

Biological material

________ derived from living, or recently living organisms that can be burned to create steam that is used to generate electricity.

radiant energy

Consists of collecting and harnessing ________ from the sun to provide heat and /or electricity.

Asia

________ is the fastest growing region in the world for installation of PV systems.

Control Rods

________- Move in and out of the core to absorb neutrons.

Phantom Loads

________- Refers to the energy that an appliance or an electric device consumes when it is not actually turned on.

hydraulic fracturing

With ________, chemicals are mixed with large quantities of water and sand and injected into wells at an extremely high pressure to create fractures in a rock that allow oil and natural gas to escape and flow out of the well.

Hydroelectric Power

Dams are built to trap water, which in turn is then released and channeled through turbines that generate electricity.

Nuclear Fusion

Can occur when extremely high temperatures are used to force nuclei of isotopes of lightweight atoms to fuse together, which causes large amounts of energy to be released.

23 million

There are about ________ vehicles worldwide that use CNG as their fuel.

Oil

________ took over in the mid 20th century, when natural gas usage rose quickly.

BTU

________- Amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water by 1 fahrenheit.

Core

________- Contains up to 50000 fuel rods.

Horsepower

________- 1 ________ is 746 watts of power.

primary mode of transportation

In the US, private cars are the ________.

Coal

________ and oil were the primary sources of energy from the late 19th century to the early 21st century.

Nuclear

________- Stored in the nuclei of atoms.

Hybrid Electric Vehicles

________ (HEV)- Able to run on rechargeable batteries or gasoline power.

hydrogen fuel cells

The ________ operate similar to a battery.

Turbines

________ can be ground in clusters called wind farms.

oil shale

If the ________ is heated in the absence of air, the kerogen converts to oil.

Wood

________ was the primary source of energy until the mid to late 1800s.

Vehicles

Plug in ________ (PEV)- run on rechargeable batteries and have a finite distance they can travel.

Tidal Energy

The natural movement of tides and waves spins turbines that generate electricity.

synthetic fuel

A(n) ________ is any fuel produced from coal, natural gas, or biomass through chemical conversion.

Transportation needs

________ are a major factor for petroleum consumption in the US.

Photovoltaic systems

________ are gaining momentum on a worldwide scale.

Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards

The ________ are regulations in the US that are designed to improve the average fuel economy of cars and light trucks produced for sale in the US.

decomposition of deeply

Produced by the ________ buried organic material under high temperature and pressure for millions of years.

Kilowatt hour

________- unit of energy equal to 1000 watt hours or 3.6 mega joules.

Energy crisis

________ can be brought on by a failure of world markets to adjust prices in response to shortages.

current energy

In the US, most of the ________ demand comes from nonrenewable energy sources.

Thermal Energy Heat

________ is the internal energy in substances.

Energy

________ can not be created or destroyed.

Coal

________ became dominant in the late 19th century.

Energy

________ can not be recycled to a higher quality.

Power

________ is the amount of work done per time

Kilowatt

1000 watts

megawatt

1 million watts

First Law

Energy cannot be created or destroyed

Second Law

When energy is converted from one form to another, a less useful form results. Energy cannot be recycled to a higher quality.

Nonrenewable Energy Resources

A resource of economic value that cannot be replaced by natural means on a level equal to its consumption.

Lignite

Lowest heat content

Bituminous

________ - High sulfur content, 50% of the US coal reserve.

Anthracite

________ - High heat content, low sulfur content.

Nuclear Fission

Process where an atom splits into two or smaller nuclei along with by-product particles - produces heat that can either produce steam to power generators, or cause a meltdown.

Core

_______ - Contains up to 50000 fuel rods. Each fuel rod is stacked with many fuel pellets, each pellet has the energy equivalent of 1 ton of coal.

Biomass

Biological material derived from living, or recently living organisms that can be burned to create steam that is used to generate electricity.

Biofuel

Fuel that is produced from living organisms.

Geothermal

Steam contained underground that can be used to drive turbines to generate electricity.

Solar Energy

Consists of collecting and harnessing radiant energy from the sun to provide heat and/or electricity.

Wind Energy

Turbine blades used to power generators that produce electricity.

Energy Star

_________ is a joint program of the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Energy. It is designed to protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices.