AOS 2 unit 4 Flashcards
(28 cards)
Australia’s renewable energy:
- Biogas
- Hydro-energy
- Geothermal energy
- solar
- wind
Australia’s non-renewable energy:
- Petrol
- diesel
- oil
- coal
- gas
Renewable energy source definition:
An energy source that can be replenished naturally within a human timescale
Law of conservation of energy:
- Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred or transformed. Energy can be stored.
Transferred:
Goes from one place to another, but the type of energy stays the same. E.g Chemical energy in plants gets transferred to an animals tissue when its eaten (cellular respiration)
Transformed:
Changes from one source to another E.G Electrical energy→ light energy in a light bulb + heat
Stored:
Food, muscle, battery
Biomass energy is a renewable energy source that comes from organic materials such as:
- Wood
- Agriculturual crops
- Animal waste
- Organic waste from industry or households
Geothermal energy:
A renewable energy source that harnesses heat from within the earth to generate electricity or provide direct heating.
- Earthquakes would happen more
- Where it comes from: Heat stored in rocks, soil, and underground resevoirs of water
- Caused by radioactive decay of elements deep in the earths crust and residual heat from earths formation
Non renewable energy source:
An energy source that exists in finite quantities or is consumed faster than it can be naturally replenished.
Examples: Coal, oil, gas, uranium
Transition energy source:
- Energy source used temporarily to support the shift from high emission sources to low emission or renewable sources.
Examples: Natural gas (commonly used as a lower emission alternative to coal), nuclear energy (in some contexts)
Australias energy mix:
- Australias energy mix: 70-75% fossil fuels, but solar/wind are growing rapidly
- The energy Australia uses has environemntal impacts and affects its sutainability goals
What is energy:
The capacity to perform work, because when energy is transferred from an object or system it can perfrorm useful work. The work done is a measure of the amount of energy transferred.
- Objects have energy either because of their motion or because of their position. Kinetic energy is energy associated with an objects speed (motion) and potential energy is associated with an objects position (for example, height). Potential energy refers to ‘stored’ energy that can be released to perform work.
Heat and temperature:
Heat (thermal energy) plays an important role in nearly all energy transformations. The molecules of all objects are in motion; that is, they have kinetic energy. Temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of the molecules within a material. In solids, such as ice, the molecules vibrate around basically fixed positions.
Chemical energy:
A form of potential energy that arises from the relative positions of atoms and their electrons in the molecules that make up a substance.
Power:
The amount of energy available or used over a given time, so we can see that power is the rate at which energy is being usef or that work is being done.
Producing electricity:
Both renewable and non-renewable sources of energy can be harnessed to produce electricity. Electrocity is produced when fuel or another source of energy is used to drive a generator or turbine. Electricity is the flow of electrons. Electricuty consumption varies across the day. Peak energy times are those hours when electricity is in highest demand.
Fossil fuels:
Include coal, petroleum and natural gas. Fossil fuels formed from dead and decaying organisms trapped below layders of sediments or rocks
Coal:
the formation of coal begins with layers of decaying trees and other vegetation in swamps. The bottom layers become compressed and lose some water. This form is called peat, which can be dried and used as a fuel. Further deposits increase the pressure and heat in the peat and convert it into a soft coal called brown coal (lignite). Over time, brown coal can be transformed into black coal by further deposition of the pressure
Petroleum:
Early civilisations first encounted petroleum as a black tarry substances seeping out of the ground. “Petroleum” simply means oil from the rock, which they put to a variety of uses.
Natural gas:
occurs with oil reserves, and it was originally regarded as a nuisance and burnt off waste. The gas was not used as a fuel because it was difficult to deliver to the user.
Coal seam gas:
Natural gas collects in underground coal seems and bonds to the surface of coal particles is called coal seam gas (CSG).
Nuclear reactions:
Uranium is used in nuclear reactors to produce heat, which is used to generate electricity.
Nuclear fusion:
In a fusion reaction, energy is released when two atoms are forced together. This is the type of reaction that creates the energy given off by the sun.
