L11- A Load Of Hot Air

Question 1

What are the benefits of Solar energy ?

Answer 1

— creates hundreds of thousands of jobs
— does not require much maintenance once the solar panels are installed and are working at their maximum efficiency
— no noise is created by the solar panels

Question 2

What are the costs of Solar Energy?

Answer 2

— large Solar farms can take up vast areas of land which could of been used for growing crops
— manufacturing photovoltaic panels can be harmful to the environment as they are made of silicon and other toxic metals such as mercury, lead and cadmium
— Desert habitats are fragile and are easily damaged when making the solar farms in these areas

Question 3

What are the advantages of Wind energy?

Answer 3

— It does not pollute or emit greenhouse gases
— Large Offshore wind farms produce a generating capacity of hundreds of megawatts of electricity
— Offshore wind energy is one of the cheapest of the renewable resources

Question 4

What are the costs of Wind energy?

Answer 4

— Many locals think that wind turbines often ruin landscape views
— They require expensive transmission lines to use the power being produced as the wind farms are places offshore and far away from where the source is actually needed
— Turbine blades kill between 214,000 and 368,000 birds annually in North America alone

Question 5

What are the benefits of Hydro-electric Power?

Answer 5

— It is a reliable source as there are not many fluctuations within the amount of hydro electric energy being produced
— It means that Dams and reservoirs are built which results in conserving water supplies
— HEP power plants production can easily be altered with changing consumption patterns

Question 6

What are the costs of Hydro- Electric power?

Answer 6

— Very expensive to build
— Many people believe that the HEP power plants ruin natural landscapes
— Displace farmland and villages to make room for the construction of dams and reservoirs
— Production of HEP power plants means there are changes in river flows which impact organisms which rely on the sources of water such as fish

Question 7

What are the benefits of hydrogen fuel?

Answer 7

— Hydrogen fuel uses water so does not need to rely on fuel reserves in a few countries or in ecologically sensitive areas
— It does not pollute or emit greenhouse gases
— It is a very efficient energy source and so can become a large part of a countries energy mix

Question 8

What are the costs of Hydrogen fuel?

Answer 8

— Energy is needed to separate the hydrogen from the water which may mean the usage of fossil fuels which will impact carbon footprints, energy mix and energy security
— It is difficult to store hydrogen safely under pressure and so is a research challenge in products such as the hydrogen fuel cell

Question 9

What are the benefits of biofuels?

Answer 9

— Fewer carbon emissions and toxins are produced when burning biofuels once compared with fossil fuels
— It is becoming a cheaper option than fossil fuels
— The demand for biofuels is increasing and so can be seen as an alternative option to fossil fuels
— Biofuels can be manufactured using crop waste, manure and other by-products that would otherwise be wasted

Question 10

What are the costs of biofuels?

Answer 10

— Large quantities of water are required to grow bio fuel crops which could replace other uses like farmers and homes
— As the demand for biofuels
are increasing land being used for biofuel crops may come from the expense of land used to being used for crops
— There is an increase of deforestation in some countries as the demand for biofuels increases and when there is a shortage of land

Question 11

What are the five main Renewable energy sources?

Answer 11

— Solar Energy 
— Wind Energy 
— Hydro Electric Power
— Biofuels 
— Hydrogen Fuel

Question 12

What is the principle behind the hydrogen cars?

Answer 12

—It uses hydrogen fuel cells
— Electrolysis will separate the hydrogen from the water
— Water will be the only by product

Question 13

What are the lifestyle changes taken into consideration when using the hydrogen car?

Answer 13

— Lower fuel consumption means less tax
— Vehicle license duty removed if carbon dioxide emissions are lower than 100gm/km
— Electric and hybrid cars still have a limited range

Question 14

What is the name of the company to make the first car using the hydrogen fuel cell?

Answer 14

TOYOTA

Question 15

What was the name of the car that Toyota made using the hydrogen fuel cell?

How long can this hydrogen fuel celled car travel before needing to be refuelled?

Answer 15

It was called the Mirai (Japanese for Future)

312 Miles

Question 16

How much subsidy from the government do these ‘Mirai’ cars need and why?

Answer 16

The cars need a 30 000 dollar subsidy from the government as they are very expensive and its cost needs to be kept competitive with petrol-driven cars

Question 17

What is subsidy?

Answer 17

It is the amount of money granted by the government to assist an industry/business to keep the price of a product or service low