Science Unit 6 Lesson 6

Question 1

What is solar energy?

Answer 1

Solar energy is an alternative resource that captures energy from the sun.

Question 2

How do solar cells work?

Answer 2

Using solar cells that convert sunlight directly into electricity, energy is channeled to power objects as small as watches or as large as skyscrapers.

Question 3

Where are photovoltaic, or solar, cells used?

Answer 3

Photovoltaic, or solar, cells can be placed on roofs to capture energy and provide electricity to homes. They can also be placed on large areas of land and used to power large buildings

Question 4

What is wind energy?

Answer 4

Wind energy is an alternative resource that captures the energy of moving air.

Question 5

How does wind energy work?

Answer 5

Wind turbines are used to collect energy from the wind. This energy is then converted to electricity and dispersed to surrounding towns and homes.

Question 6

What solar energy’s benfits enviroment wise?

Answer 6

harnessing solar energy does not produce air pollutants or emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This allows for cleaner production of electricity with minimal effect on the environment.

Question 7

How does solar energy benfit homes?

Answer 7

Because solar cells can be manufactured in a small enough size to fit on the roof of a home, they are very accessible to homeowners hoping to reduce their energy costs.

Question 8

How does solar energy benfit the city?

Answer 8

In addition, cities and businesses utilize solar cells to harness energy to provide electricity to buildings

Question 9

What is one of the downsides of using solar energy?

Sunlight

Answer 9

In some areas, sun exposure is limited, and in others, the intensity of the sun fluctuates greatly. This hinders cities from harnessing enough solar energy to convert into usable electricity.

Question 10

What is one of the downsides of using solar energy?

Land Devotement

Answer 10

The amount of sunlight that actually reaches Earth’s surface is relatively small. A large surface area is needed to collect a useful amount. This means that more land must be devoted to solar cells in order to produce large amounts of electricity.

Question 11

What are one of the downside of solar cells?

Environmental

Answer 11

The production of the solar cells includes some toxic materials and chemicals. Leaks of hazardous fluids used in the cells can be harmful to environment.

Question 12

What is a benefit of wind energy?

Environmental

Answer 12

Wind turbines, which are used to harness wind energy, do not emit carbon dioxide or other harmful greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. They provide a clean way to harness energy with little environmental impact or effect on human health.

Question 13

What is a benefit of wind energy?

Economically

Answer 13

the cost to harness wind energy is decreasing due to technological advances. This, along with government incentives, makes wind energy a viable option for companies to invest in.

Question 14

What is one of the downsides of wind turbines?

Noise

Answer 14

noise pollution that wind turbines produce. Many people do not want to live in general proximity to wind farms because of the noise of the turbines.

Question 15

What is on downside of wind turbines?

Land usage

Answer 15

these large farms can take up a vast amount of landscape and valuable property with very little profit. For this reason, locations for wind farms are limited and usually far away from the towns they are built to serve. This makes transfer of the electricity into towns and cities a challenge

Question 16

What is biomass?

Answer 16

A renewable resource that comes from plant and animal material.

Question 17

How is the energy from biomass extracted?

Answer 17

Through direct burning or by converting the biomass to liquid biofuels, which are then burned.

Question 18

What are some examples of biomass?

Answer 18

• wood
• crops
• garbage
• animal waste

Question 19

What are some benefits of burning wood biomass?

Answer 19

• Industries that process wood, such as the paper and wood product industries, use waste wood to generate steam and electricity. These industries account for 62% of the biomass energy used in the manufacturing sector.
• The use of biomass energy reduces reliance on other fossil fuels
  and reduces energy costs.
• In addition, wood is used to provide heating in many homes throughout the United States. Fireplaces and wood-burning appliances utilize wood to produce heat
• About 12.5 million U.S. households, or roughly 11% of all homes, rely
  on the burning of wood to provide energy, primarily for space heating.

Question 20

How are biomasses helpful in landfills?

Answer 20

Biomass in landfills provides another alternative source of fuel. When biomass in landfills is burned, it produces a gas called biogas, which is comprised mostly of methane and carbon dioxide. Once the biogas has been treated to remove the carbon dioxide, the methane can be used as an alternative fuel source.

Question 21

How can burning biomass in landfills be bad for the environment?
(Biogas)

Answer 21

Biogas is also produced naturally in landfills. The methane component is flammable, and a high methane content can be harmful to people and the environment. Landfills work to control the emission of these gases during the burning of biomass.

Question 22

What are some limitations of using biomass energy?

Answer 22

Biomass produces carbon dioxide, which can be harmful to the environment. As a result, extra care must be taken to properly burn and control biomass.

Question 23

What is hydroelectric energy?

Answer 23

Hydroelectric energy is energy gathered from moving water.

Question 24

What are used to harness the energy from moving water?

Answer 24

Dams

Question 25

The energy collected by dams can produce enough electricity to meet the needs of __ to ___% of our nation’s population.

Answer 25

8; 12

Question 26

How can dams negatively affect wildlife?

Answer 26

The dams created to gather the energy can obstruct fish migration and change water temperatures and river flow. Plants and animals in the waterways can be negatively affected by this. Their habitats can be disrupted, which impacts their population. Efforts to mitigate and lessen these impacts are part of dam management plans.

Question 27

How can changes in the water cycle affect hyroectric energy?

Answer 27

Because hydroelectric energy relies heavily on the water cycle, changes in weather patterns can pose a challenge for harnessing its energy. If the amount of water in rivers, lakes, and oceans fluctuates, it impacts the production level of the dam. Weather patterns, such as drought, can have a huge impact on the ability of dams to harness energy and produce enough electricity for viable use.