Unit 2 Energy Flashcards
Types of energy
Renewable, nonrenewable, inexhaustible
Fossil fuels
produced from plant and animal remains under high heat and pressure for millions to billions of years
Types of fossil fuels
coal, gas, petroleum
pollution chemical effects
releases CO2, SO2 (coal), methane, and nitrogen oxides
Energy conservation-
saving energy by not using it
energy efficiency
making energy do more for us
energy waste
2nd law of thermodynamics
energy production
most of the time, energy production involves making turbines turn
other energy concerns about reserves and energy transport
oil VERY low, coal will last longer
Energy transport
moving an energy source to processing and then to where it is needed
anthracite
fewest impurities, most dense, highest energy
bituminous
contains tar-like bitumen (tar sands), softer coal, more impurities
lignite
softest coal, made of compressed peat, undecayed organic matter, low heat content
main coal pollutants
SO2, Hg, PM
Steps in forming Canadian tar sands
- Boreal forest clear-cut, rivers/wetlands drained
- Overburden (peat/clay) removed
- Huge machines mine the sand and deliver it to an upgrading plant
- Sand mixed with hot water to extract bitumen
- Further refinement to flow to refinery
tar sand
thick oil called bitumen that is mixed with sand, clay, and water
cons of tar sands
5x more greenhouse gases, high water requirement, tailings, loss of energy (heat)
pros of tar sands
large potential supply, efficiently distributed
oil- dispersion
using chemicals to break apart the oil and separate
oil- booms
floating barriers used to contain an oil spill
oil- skimming
trapping the oil that is resting on the surface
oil- burning
using fire to burn off the oil sitting on the surface
oil- fractional distillation
separating crude oil using distillation to form various compounds
natural gas
mixture of gases of which 50-90% is methane