natural resources Flashcards
natural resources
any natural material that is used by humans, such as water, petroleum, minerals, forests, and animals.
renewable resource
a natural resource that can be replaced at the same rate at which the resource is consumed.
nonrenewable resource
a resource that forms at a rate that is much slower then the rate at which it was consumed.
recycling
the process of the recovering valuable or useful materials from waste or scrap
fossil fuel
a nonrenewable energy resource formed from the remains of organisms that lived long ago
petroleum
a liquid mixture of complex hydrocarbon compounds.
natural gas
a mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons located under the surface of the earth, often near petroleum deposits.
coal
a fossil fuel that forms underground from partially decomposed plant material.
acid precipitation
precipitation, such as rain, sleet, or snow, that contains a high concentration of acids, often because of the pollution of the atmosphere.
smog
photo chemical haze that forms when sunlight acts on the industrial pollutants and burning fuel
nuclear energy
the energy released by a fission of fusion reaction
chemical energy
the energy released when a chemical compound reacts to produce new compounds.
solar energy
the energy received y the earth from the sun in the from of radiation.
wind power
the use of the windmill to drive an electric generator
hydroelectric energy
electrical energy produced by falling water
