Consuming Energy Resources Flashcards
What are the three types of energy and how can they be defined?
Renewable
- This energy source can be used over and over, since there isn’t a limit to the supply of materials or force- e.g solar power
Non-renewable
- Once used, this energy source can’t be reused, so the amount of fuel is limited- e.g coal, oil & gas
Recyclable
- Energy is provided from sources that can be recycled, so even though the amount of fuel is limited, more can be grown or made- e.g biofuels
What are fossil fuels and their pros & cons?
- Fuels that take thousands of years to form underground from dead vegetation and animals, such as coal, oil and gas
PROS:
- cheap to mine
- in high demand as they’re a reliable source of energy
CONS:
- Release pollutants which contribute to global warming
- Non-renewable, so limited supply of coal
What is nuclear energy and its pros & cons?
- Using uranium through nuclear fission to produce energy
PROS:
- very reliable source of energy
CONS:
- Risk of radiation poisoning if uncontrolled
- Any waste must be sealed in concrete or glass and left underground for hundreds of years
- When a power station is finished energy production, its expensive to decommission
What is solar power and its pros & cons?
- Panels that convert the sun’s energy into electricity
PROS:
- Costs are decreasing rapidly
- Large potential in desert areas
CONS:
- Not very efficient yet
- Effectiveness dependent on climate, time of year and day
What is wind power and its pros & cons?
- Wind drives large turbines and generators that produce energy
PROS:
- Low running costs
- Can be used year round
- Plenty of suitable sites
CONS:
- Bird life can be affected
- Weather dependent
What is wave power and its pros & cons?
- Waves force a turbine to rotate and produce energy
PROS:
- Produce most electricity during winter when demand is highest
- Pioneer projects are commencing across the globe
CONS:
- Very expensive and a ‘perfect’ solution is yet to be created
- Needs to survive storms
What is tidal power and its pros & cons?
- Incoming tides drive turbines in a similar way to hydropower
PROS:
- Has significant potential
- Reliable source of energy once installed
CONS:
- Very expensive
- Few schemes currently operating in the world
- Impact on marine life
What is Hydroelectric power/ HEP and its pros & cons?
- Water from a reservoir pushes turbines built within a dam as it escapes downstream
PROS:
- Dams built for reservoirs can also generate electricity, improving clean water and energy supplies
CONS:
- Large dams are expensive to build
- Disrupts fish migration along the river
What is biofuel and its pros & cons?
- Vegetation and food waste can be burned for fuel
PROS:
- Cheap and easy to find
- Biofuel is a renewable alternative to oil, which doesn’t require car engines to be modified
CONS:
- Vegetation must be found sustainably, so land shouldn’t be cleared for biofuels
What is geothermal energy and its pros & cons?
- Water is pumped beneath the ground to hot areas, and the steam from the water drives turbines to produce electricity
PROS:
- Low maintenance cost
CONS:
- High installation cost
- Risk of earthquakes
What are some inequalities between countries relating to electricity?
- The richest, most developed countries consume more energy than poorer, less developed countries
- Not all countries have a source of energy- such as Chad, which has no fossil fuels and few bodies of water
- Fossil fuels tend to be cheaper and easier to source than renewable sources
What is energy surplus?
- When the energy supply exceeds demand
What is energy deficit?
- When energy supply is less than demand
What countries have an energy surplus and why?
Russia
- Large natural gas and oil fields
- Many nuclear plants
Middle East
(Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait)
- These countries have 100 billion barrels of oil to be extracted
What countries have an energy deficit and why?
Western Europe
- The Uk largely used up its supply of coal during the mining era
Asia
- Rapidly growing population means rapid demand outweighs supply
What does energy security also depend on?
- Ownership of power stations and mines within a country, as sometimes a country can be too poor or lacking in technology to exploit its own energy sources
What can TNCS help a country to do, and whats an example of this happening?
- Shell (a Dutch owned company) has subsidiaries in Nigeria and accounts for over 21% of Nigeria’s oil production
What are the benefits of nuclear energy?
- Reliable source of constant energy since nuclear fission is a constant process
- Uranium fuel is extremely concentrated so only small mining sites are required to fuel the power plant
- The nuclear industry creates many employment opportunities
What are the negative impacts of power stations and energy generators?
- Visually polluting
- Wind turbines and solar panels are especially unattractive as they stick out from natural surroundings
What are the negative impacts of mining?
- Damages landscape and many habitats must be cleared to make room for the mine
- Also space is needed for waste rubble and transport to take coal away
- Open cast mines are especially damaging
What are the negative impacts of oil spills?
- Can be frequent and are toxic to wildlife
- Difficult to contain as oil spreads quickly in water
- Many marine animals can die and sea birds can become unable to fly
What are the human factors that affect energy supply?
- Government policies
- Conflict
- Country development
What are the physical factors that affect energy supply?
- Access to fuels
- Climate
- Geographical location
- Morphology (shape of the land)
What are the economic factors that affect energy supply?
- Costs involved in using an energy source
How do government policies affect energy supply?
- Affects which types of energy can and cant be used
- Germany decided to stop using nuclear power, which put pressure on their other energy supplies
How does conflict affect energy supply?
- It can prevent energy sources from being extracted
- Conflict in Iraq stopped oil production which impacted the price of oil in global markets
How does the development of a country affect energy supply?
- Development affects technology available
- Some energy sources are difficult to extract, or power stations require high tech monitoring
- This means countries with low levels of technology cant use some energy sources, such as nuclear energy
How does a countries ability to access fuels affect their energy supply?
- Not all countries have access to all sources of energy
- Fossil fuels can only be found for specific geology types- either sedimentary rock or natural gas/oil has become trapped in rocks
- Geothermal energy can only be produced near magma plumes, which are only found near tectonic boundaries
How can climate affect energy supply?
- It can impact the efficiency of renewable sources
- Rainy climates are unsuitable for solar panels, as solar energy relies on limited cloud cover
- Not all countries have strong enough wind for wind turbines
How can the geographical location and morphology of a country affect its energy supply?
- For a country to use tidal energy, it has to have coasts, so can’t be landlocked
- Shape of the land (morphology) is important for HEP, as it requires dams to be built in mountainous areas
How can costs affect energy supply?
- Cost could be too great for a country and make electricity generate unaffordable for population
How can cost be added to an energy source?
- Extraction of energy can require specialist equipment or high pressure
- The energy source is dangerous so wages for workers must be higher to compensate for risk
- Transportation of energy sources from mining to processing can require long distances of pipelines or lots of freight ships, which are expensive
What examples of dangerous or risky environments are being exploited for oil?
- Miners have to drill deeper to find coal and oil- this increases the risk of earthquakes, mines collapsing or high-pressure ruptures in the rock which can lead to oil escaping
- Energy sources in hostile environments- there are many reserves of oil in the Middle East, but militant groups occupy some of these areas, so workers are at a high risk of being captured or injured
- Fossil fuel stores in fragile environments such as the Amazon
What is shale gas and how is it extracted?
- Unconventional fossil fuel
- Extracted through fracking
How is fracking done?
- Water, chemicals and sand are pumped into ground to break up shale, access hydrocarbons and force them to the surface
What are the benefits of fracking?
- Shale gas produces half the emissions of coal, so using it would reduce global emissions
- The majority of shale gas is found in the US, which would improve the US’ economy
What are the cons of fracking?
- Fracking faces large environmental opposition because it can trigger minor tremors
- Shale gas is still more expensive to produce than conventional gas#
- Earthquakes of a low magnitude may occur, but they’re not normally strong enough to pose a risk to humans
Why are companies extracting deep water oil?
- Oil supplies are decreasing so companies have to extract it from deeper underwater
What are the advantages of deep water oil?
- Most engines use oil, so its easy to sell, and consumers don’t need to change their vehicle to use it
- Jobs working on oil rigs are high paid, offering locals a good wage
What are the disadvantages of deep water oil?
- More hazardous to extract, so workers are at risk of death and injury
- Risky to extract oil from deeper underground, and can lead to small earthquakes or more frequent oil spills
