Unit 4 - Topic 8 Flashcards

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1
Q

Thermo-electric generating plants

A

Plants that burn fossil fuels to produce electricity

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2
Q

Non-renewable resources

A

Fuels that r consumed faster than they can be replaced by nature

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3
Q

Renewable resources

A

Energy sources that can be continually replaced

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4
Q

Biomass

A

Solid material form living things

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5
Q

How thermo-electric generator works

A

Heat from burning coal produces steam
High-pressure steam flows through pipes into turbine
Spinning turbine turns generator which produces energy
Steam leaves turbine, cools, condenses, and recycles through turbine

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6
Q

Turbogenerators

A

Use exhaust gases form burning fossil fuels or spin turbine coupled with electric generator
No steam, condenser, cooling tower required

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7
Q

GWh equals

A

3.6 x 10^12 J

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8
Q

Environmental effects of coal

A

Open pit mining disturbs soil and vegetation
Tailings(waste materials) produced by underground mines which accumulate near mine
Water becomes acidified and contaminated

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9
Q

Gases which r result of fossil fuels

A

Sulfur dioxide SO^2

Carbon dioxide CO^2

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10
Q

Electrostatic precipitators

A

Remove most of solid particles but can’t remove contaminating gases

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11
Q

Scrubbers

A

Anti pollution systems which remove SO^2
Spray water solution through gases
Most of gas and pollutants react with chemicals and r removed

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12
Q

CO^2 cons

A

Greenhouse gas

Too much contributes to global warming

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13
Q

Greenhouse gas

A

Help delay escape of heat from Earth’s atmosphere

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14
Q

Global warming

A

Ride in average temperatures on Earth

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15
Q

Natural gas vs coal

A

Burns much cleaner
More ppl turning to use now
Expensive
Attractive alternative

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16
Q

Landfill gas

A

Can be used as fuel for thermo-electric plants

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17
Q

Hydro-electric plants

A

Use water pressure to generate electric energy

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18
Q

Internal working of hydro-electric

A

Large dams cause water level to rise high above power plant in dam
As water depth increase, water pressure becomes very large
Penstock directs water into turbine
High-pressure water turns turbines which turn electric generators
Energy of water stored in reservoir turned into electric energy
High-voltage power lines carry electricity over to cities, towns, farms

19
Q

Penstock

A

Channel which direct water from bottom of reservoir to turbine

20
Q

Hydro-electric plants pros

A

No smokestacks
Nor radioactive materials used
Appear clean

21
Q

Hydro-electric plant cons

A

Flood many acres of valuable land
Ppl and industries displaced
Vegetation decays
Some fish species die while other forms of life like algae take over

22
Q

Thermonuclear electric generation

A

Using energy released in nuclear fission to generate electricity

23
Q

Nuclear fission

A

Process where uranium split into smaller atoms, releasing energy

24
Q

Nuclear fission diagram explanation

A

Fission reactions produce a lot of energy
Energy carried away from reactor core by coolant
Pipes carry coolant through water which produces steam
Steam turns turbine which turns generator
Steam leaving turbine cooled, condensed, recycled
Waste heat released into environment

25
Q

Fission pros and cons

A

Don’t release soot, gases causing acid rain, or greenhouse gases
Spent reactor fuel highly radioactive for thousands of yrs
Can damage living tissues
Reactors become slightly radioactive after yrs of use
(Difficult and expensive to decommission)

26
Q

Nuclear fusion

A

Joins very small atoms to form larger atom

Huge amounts of energy released

27
Q

Problem w/ fusion

A

Scientists produced controlled reactions experimentally, but only for secs
Developing tech for fusion i expensive and extremely difficult

28
Q

Thermal pollution

A

When warm water returned directly to lake or river from which it is taken
Increase water temp

29
Q

Thermal pollution problem

A

Organisms adapted to one temp won’t thrive in another

Organisms not usually found there will begin to replace original species

30
Q

How ppl reducing thermal pollution

A

Large generating plants have cooling ponds or towers

Waste water returns to temp of surrounding before released

31
Q

Cogeneration systems

A

Produce electricity and salons supply thermal energy, such as hot water or steam
Can be used for industrial or commercial heating

32
Q

Cogeneration plant pros

A

Reduce amount of energy wasted
Reduce dependence of large industrial power users on AB power grid
Reduced demand makes it easier to meet electricity needs of rest of provinces consumers

33
Q

Distribution of electric power problems

A

Insulating chemicals called PCBs persist, bioconcentrate, and can cause health problems if released when aging transformers replaced

34
Q

Windmills

A

Wind energy used to turn wind turbines which
charge storage batteries
pump water into reservoir for generating hydro-electric energy
split molecules into hydrogen and oxygen gas for fuel for fuel cells

35
Q

Alternative energy sources pro

A

Environmentally friendly (“Green Energy”)

36
Q

Windmills cons

A

Need windspeed exceeding 11 km/h

37
Q

Solar energy cons

A

Need sunlight
Don’t operate on cloudy days
Solar cells are expensive and fragile
15 % efficient

38
Q

Solar Energy

A

Solar cells can produce electric energy
Or
Sunlight can be used to heat liquid which flows back to generating station where boils to steam and drives steam turbine and electric generator

39
Q

Solar Energy backup

A

Include storage batteries to supply electricity at night or in cloudy conditions
Batteries recharged in sunny conditions

40
Q

Ocean tides

A

As water trapped in basin flows out, water pressure turns turbine blades turning electric generator

41
Q

Ocean tides cons

A

Only few shorelines around world have sufficiently high tides and appropriate shape for trapping tidal waters

42
Q

Geothermal energy

A

Ground water flows down from surface and absorbs thermal energy and rises as hot springs and geysers
Steam produced. An be used to rate turbines and turn electric generators
Condensed steam pumped underground to reduce pollution

43
Q

Geothermal cons

A

Only certain places have proper geological characteristics to use
Iceland is one country ideally suited for