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Geography > Carbon > Flashcards

Carbon Flashcards

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1
Q

What is carbon found in?

A
  • Diamonds and Graphite
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2
Q

What are the 4 biggest stores of carbon?

A
  • Atmosphere = as CO2 and Methane
  • Hydrosphere = as C)2 dissolved in water
  • Lithosphere = as carbonates in limestone + fossil fuel in rocks
  • Biosphere = in Living + dead organisms
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3
Q

What is a flux?

A
  • The way water moves between stores
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4
Q

How to calculate carbon flux?

A

Carbon in - Carbon out

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5
Q

What is the Biosphere?

A
  • Regions of the surface
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6
Q

What is Photosynthesis?

A
  • Green plants king sunlight to synthesise nutrients from CO2 and water
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7
Q

What is Decomposition?

A
  • Process of rotting/ decay
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8
Q

What is a Primary Producer?

A
  • Create food through photosynthesis
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9
Q

What is an Ecosystem?

A
  • Biological community of interacting organisms
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10
Q

What is Respiration?

A
  • Production of energy -> Intake oxygen, release CO2
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11
Q

What are Consumers?

A
  • Something that feeds on other organisms in the food chain
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12
Q

What is Sequestration?

A
  • Removal + Storage of carbon from atmosphere in carbon sinks
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13
Q

What is the Biogeochemical Carbon Cycle?

A
  • Biogeochemical is the recycling of all living and geological components of biosphere
  • Photosynthesis helps autotrophs produce carbohydrates
  • Animals eat other organisms to produce ATP
  • Carbon dioxide generated as a waste product in animals
  • Animal waste is decomposed into soil and nutrients are removed to use for energy
  • Carbon cycle works similarly in aquatic ecosystems
  • Biogeochemical cycle helps maintain dynamic equilibrium in the atmosphere/ biosphere
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14
Q

Define Carbon Balance?

A
  • The balance of carbon, regulated by plant productivity, microbial activity, geology, erosion, climate and water movement in soil
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15
Q

How is biological carbon transferred to and stored in carbon?

A
  • Mainly decomposition -> Forms Humus -> Humus soil are 60% carbon
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16
Q

Which ecosystems have the fastest and slowest carbon fluxes?

A
  • Fastest = Tropical Rainforest -> hot climate
  • Slowest = Tundra -> Cold = slow decomposition
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17
Q

Why is deforestation likely to upset the carbon cycle?

A
  • Releases carbon into atmosphere + less trees for photosynthesis carbon storage
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18
Q

What are the 3 main Carbon Cycle pumps operating in the ocean?

A
  • Biological Pump
  • Carbonate Pump
  • Physical Pump (Involves Thermohaline Circulation)
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19
Q

How does the Biological Pump work?

A
  • CO2 dissolves in surface ocean.
  • Phytoplankton near surface photosynthesise and sequester dissolved CO2 to produce glucose for energy + Cellulose for growth.
  • Zooplankton then consume Phytoplankton and then in turn are eaten transferring carbon along food chain.
  • Consumers respire CO2 which is released back into ocean and subsequently the atmosphere
  • Meanwhile, zooplankton make faecal pellets from digested phytoplankton.
  • Faecal pellets aggregate + sink.
  • 100-1000m other zooplankton feed on faecal pellets + release CO2 as they respire.
  • Faecal pellets accumulate on sea floor trapping 2 billion tonnes of CO2 annually in sediment deposit
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20
Q

How does the Carbon Pump work?

A
  • Marine organisms utilise calcium carbonate to make hard outer shells.
  • When organisms die, many shells dissolve adding carbon asa solution to deep ocean currents.
  • Some shells do not dissolve, but slowly accumulate on sea floor.
  • This stores carbon in limestone sediments such as those at the white cliffs of dover
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21
Q

How does the Physical Pump work?

A
  • Thermohaline circulation redistributes carbon in polar and tropical regions.
  • Begins in Polar regions where water becomes very cold.
  • Accumulation of sea ice means salt concentrations also increase.
  • Combo of cold + salty water means it becomes dense and sinks.
  • Creates a deep ocean conveyor of cold nutrient and carbon rich water toward the tropics.
  • In tropical regions, water warms, becoming less dense + rises to produce rising limbs of thermohaline circulation system.
  • Warm ocean currents then travel northwards + southwards again toward the poles.
  • As they travel toward poles, warm surface water becomes depleted of nutrients + carbon and will be enriched again as they travel through conveyor belt to the deeper ocean
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22
Q

How does the Geological Carbon Cycle work?

A
  • Primarily driven by movement of the earths tectonic plates + subsequent weathering and erosion which releases carbon from rock
  • Weathered calcium and bicarbonate washed into sea and used by microfauna to form shells
  • When microfauna die, carbon often returned to a rock store in lithosphere via sedimentation and burial or organic + inorganic carbon compounds
  • CO2 also released to atmosphere via a number of ways
    -> E.g ‘pulses’ in organic activity such as eruptions
  • Average 10-100 million tonnes of carbon move through this slow carbon cycle annually
23
Q

What factors can affect the transient nature of phytoplankton blooms + Biological pumps?

A
  • Water Temperature
  • Latitude
  • Ocean Currents
  • Availability of Nutrients
  • Availability of Sunlight
  • Hydrography
24
Q

What has led to the increased greenhouse effect?

A
  • Concentrations of several greenhouse gasses increasing by 25% since 1750.
  • Since 1980, 75% of CO2 emissions have come from burning fossil fuels
25
Q

How have humans increased greenhouse gas emissions?

A
  • Burning fossil fuels
  • Jet aircraft engines
  • Fertilisers + Pesticides
  • Cattle farming
  • Solvents + cooling equipment
  • Deforestation
  • Rice farming
  • Sewage farms
26
Q

How does carbon play a role in global temperature?

A
  • CO2 has highest radiative forcing effect = holds on to more heat for longer = more carbon = increased heat allowance = snow/ ice caps melt = increases temps in Northern + Southern areas
27
Q

How do temperatures increase precipitation levels?

A
  • Increased temps = more evaporation
  • More evaporation = more water vapour in atmosphere
  • More water in atmosphere = increased precipitation in areas of low pressure
28
Q

How is carbon important for nutrient and water cycles - and therefore ecosystems?

A
  • Carbon moves through soil and supports micro-organisms
  • Micro-organisms maintain nutrient cycle + breakdown organic matter
  • Provides pore spaces -> helps store water = enhanced plant growth
  • Without carbon, nutrient + water cycles cannot operate properly
29
Q

What is a healthy soil?

A
  • Provides air, water and nutrients to plants and micro-organisms
  • Contains more carbon or organic matter
  • Sequesters carbon
  • Improve resilience to wetter weather
  • Retains moisture -> Regulate soil temp
30
Q

Explain why a balanced carbon cycle is important for sustaining other Earth systems?

A
  • Key role in regulating Earth’s temperature + 15 degrees through GHG
  • Sustains climate by controlling CO2 levels in atmosphere -> affects hydrological cycle
  • Ecosystem development + agriculture depend on carbon cycle
  • Carbon stores + fluxes involve natural processes that have helped regulate carbon cycle
  • System being increasingly altered by anthropogenic actions
31
Q

What is an energy player?

A
  • An individual or organisation with a vested interest in the energy industry
32
Q

What is an energy pathway?

A
  • The route taken by energy from its source to its point of consumption.
  • Route involves different types of transport such as tankers, pipeline and electricity transmission grid
33
Q

What is energy security?

A
  • Ensuring that energy supply meets current and future demand
34
Q

What is energy equity?

A
  • Ensuring accessible and affordable energy for all countries
35
Q

What is green energy?

A
  • Energy developed from clean renewable sources
36
Q

What is environmental sustainability?

A
  • Ensuring efficient use of energy and use of renewable energies to reduce pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions
37
Q

Who are the strongest global energy players?

A
  • Consumers -> Have the ability to control the market
  • OPEC -> Control 8% of world oil
38
Q

What is Fuel?

A
  • Any material that is burned or altered to obtain energy
39
Q

What are Fossil Fuels?

A
  • Hydrocarbons such as coal, oil and gas in the earths crust which are millions of years old. When burnt release heat energy and CO2.
  • Finite
  • Fuels formed from the decaying remains of plants and animals over time
40
Q

What are Non-Renewables?

A
  • Energy sources that can be used or combusted only once and so are finite
41
Q

What are Renewables?

A
  • Energy sources which are effectively limitless due to natural regeneration of the source.
42
Q

What are Recylables?

A
  • Fuels such as nuclear energy, waste and Biomass
43
Q

What are Primary Energy Sources?

A
  • Energy found in their natural state (Such as coal, sunlight and wind)
44
Q

What are Secondary Energy Sources?

A
  • Energy that has been converted into a more useable form, usually electricity
45
Q

What is Energy Dependancy?

A
  • Measured by looking at the level of energy imports as a proportion of energy consumed
  • Higher the imports, higher the dependency
46
Q

What is Energy Intensity?

A
  • A measure of how efficiently a country is using its energy
  • Frequently, in general, HIC’s convert energy to GDP more efficiently and so have a lower measure
47
Q

What is Energy Mix?

A
  • The relative mix of energy resources to a countries energy consumption
48
Q

What is Energy Demand?

A
  • the need or desire for energy
49
Q

What is Energy Consumption?

A
  • The amount of energy used, usually measured in joules or watts per capita
50
Q

What is the Energy Security Index?

A
  • A composite index which seeks to measure a country’s ability to look forward to a reliable and affordable supply of energy
51
Q

What factors may affect per capita energy consumption?

A
  • Technology
  • Economic Development
  • Public Perceptions
  • Climate
  • Environmental Priorities
  • Standard of Living
  • Cost
  • Physical Availability
52
Q

Make a mind map about energy pathways cause I don’t know how to put it in a flashcard

A
  • Yo
53
Q

What would happen if energy pathways were disrupted?

A
  • Rise in cost of energy ‘energy spikes/shocks’
    -> inflation contribution -> if severe -> recession
54
Q

Mind map renewable energy sources

A
  • Wassup

Geography (6 decks)

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