Physics : Conservation of Energy Flashcards

1
Q

What are energy stores?

A

Different ways to store energy

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2
Q

What is the kinetic energy store?

A

Anything moving has energy in it’s kinetic store

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3
Q

What is the gravitational potential energy store?

A

anything in a gravitational field (i.e. anything that can fall)

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3
Q

If an object is raised above the Earth’s surface, what store is the energy in?

A

It will have energy in its gravitational potential store

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3
Q

What is the thermal energy store?

A

any object has a thermal energy store - the hotter the object gets, the more energy it has in its store

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3
Q

What is the elastic potential energy store?

A

anything stretched, like springs, rubber bands, etc.

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4
Q

What is the electrostatic energy store?

A

e.g. two charges that attract or repel each other

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4
Q

What is the magnetic energy store?

A

e.g. two magnets that attract or repel each other

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4
Q

What is the equation to calculate kinetic energy?

A

Kinetic energy (J) = 0.5 x
mass (kg) x (speed)^2 (m/s)^2
KE = 0.5 x m x v^2

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4
Q

What is the conservation of energy?

A

Energy can be stored , transferred between stores and dissipated - but it can never be created or destroyed. The total energy of a closed system has no net change

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4
Q

What is the nuclear energy store?

A

atomic nuclei release energy from this store in nuclear reactions

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4
Q

What is the chemical energy store?

A

anything that can release energy by a chemical reaction e.g. food, fuels

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5
Q

If an object is moving what store is its energy in?

A

It will have energy in its kinetic energy store

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5
Q

What is the equation to calculate the change in gravitational potential energy?

A

Change in gravitational potential energy = mass x gravity x change in height
GPE = m x g x h

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6
Q

What are the 4 energy transfers?

A

Mechanically, electrically, by heating and by radiation

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7
Q

When is energy only useful?

A

Energy is only useful when it is transferred from one store to a useful store

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7
Q

How can energy be transferred electrically?

A

A charge doing work, e.g. charges moving round a circuit

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7
Q

How can energy be transferred mechanically?

A

A force acting on an object, e.g. pushing, stretching, squashing

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7
Q

How can energy be transferred by heating?

A

Energy transferred from a hotter object to a colder object, e.g. heating a pan on a hob

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8
Q

What equation is used to find the total energy output?

A

total output energy = useful energy output + wasted energy

8
Q

How can energy be transferred by radiation?

A

Energy transferred by waves, e.g. energy from the Sun reaching Earth by light

9
Q

What can be used to reduce the wasted energy transfer due to friction?

A

A lubricant can be used to prevent friction by allowing the surfaces to move smoothly

9
Q

How do you calculate the efficiency of an energy transfer?

A

Efficiency = useful transferred (J) / total energy input (J)

9
Q

What can be used to reduce the wasted energy transfer due to heating?

A

By insulating a wall or leaving an air gap, it reduces the conduction and so slows the rate of energy transfer preventing heat energy from moving

9
Q

What are disadvantages of fossil and nuclear fuels?

A

Nuclear power plants are costly to build and safely decommission
Fossil fuels are slowly running out
Burning fossil fuels causes environmental problems, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere and coal and oil produce sulfur dioxide when burnt, contributing to acid rain
Oil spillages can happen causing a threat to mammals and aquatic animals
Nuclear waste is dangerous and difficult to dispose of, there is always a risk of another catastrophe like Fukushima or Chernobyl

9
Q

How do Sankey diagrams work?

A

The wasted energy splits off vertically downwards and the thickness of the bars shows how much energy is in the stores

9
Q

What are advantages of fossil and nuclear fuels?

A

They are reliable - there is plenty of them to meet current demands so they can respond to demand quickly
The cost to extract fossil fuel is low and the power plants are quite cheap to build and run

9
Q

What are some examples of non-renewable energy resources?

A

Fossil fuels and nuclear fuel

9
Q

What are some example of renewable energy?

A

Bio-fuels, wind, solar (the sun), hydro-electric, tides

10
Q

What does renewable mean?

A

The energy sources never run out

11
Q

What are the disadvantages of renewable energy sources?

A

Most of these do damage to the environment, however in less nasty ways than non-renewables
They don’t provide as much energy
Some are unreliable as they depend on the weather

12
Q

What are bio-fuels made of?

A

Plant products or animal dung

13
Q

Do they come in one form?

A

They can be solid, liquid or gas

14
Q

What do they do?

A

They can be burnt to produce electricity or run cars

15
Q

What are the disadvantages of bio-fuels?

A

Supposedly carbon neutral, however that only works if the plants are grown at the same rate as burning
Cannot respond to immediate energy demands
Expensive to refine and store
Large areas of forest are cleared to grow, but habitats have been lost

16
Q

What are the advantages of bio-fuel?

A

Crops take a short-time to grow
Different crops can be grown all-year round

17
Q

How does wind generate power?

A

Wind turbines have generators inside them, wind rotates the blades turning the generator and produce electricity

18
Q

What are the advantages of wind power?

A

There is no pollution produced
Running costs are minimal

19
Q

What are the disadvantages of wind power?

A

Initial costs are quite high
Lots are needed to generate enough power, so can spoil the view (?!) and can be noisy
Only work when windy so are weather dependant
Struggle to respond to high demand

20
Q

How does solar power generate electricity?

A

Solar cells are made from materials that use energy transferred by light to create an electric current

21
Q

What are the advantages of solar power?

A

Often in remote places
No pollution produced
No running costs

22
Q

What are the disadvantages of solar power?

A

Initial costs are high
Generates electricity on a small scale
Can’t increase production to fit demand overnight

23
Q

How does hydro-electricity generate electricity?

A

Water is collected in a valley with a dam, the water is let out to turn the turbines, powering the generator, producing electricity

24
Q

What are the advantages of hydro-electricity?

A

Immediately respond to increased demand
Minimal running costs

25
Q

What are the disadvantages of hydro-electricity?

A

Big impact on environment - huge loss of habitat, due to flooding of valley
Initial costs are high

26
Q

How do tidal barrages generate electricity?

A

Water travels from the estuary to turn turbines, powering the generator, producing electricity

27
Q

What are the advantages of tidal barrages?

A

No pollution produced
Quite reliable
No fuel costs
Minimal running costs

28
Q

What are the disadvantages of tidal barrages?

A

Affects boat access, spoil views, alter habitats
Height of tides varies
Doesn’t work if the water is the same level either side
Initial costs are quite high

29
Q

What limits the use of renewables?

A

Reliability
Money