APES 12&13

If an incandescent lightbulb used for lighting has an efficiency rating of 5 percent, then for every 1.00 joule of electrical energy consumed by the bulb, which of the following is produced?

0.05 joules of light energy

A home uses ten 100-watt lightbulbs for five hours per day. Approximately how many kilowatt-hours of electrical energy are consumed in one year by using the lightbulbs?

1,825

The half-life of radon gas is approximately four days. Four weeks after the introduction of radon into a sealed room, the fraction of the original amount remaining is closest to

1/128

In 1997 the World Resources Institute estimated the world's proven oil reserves to be 1,000 billion barrels and the ultimately recoverable reserves to be 2,000 billion barrels. The table below shows the world consumption of oil from 1986 to 1997. What was the approximate percent increase in consumption from 1986 to 1997 ?

20%

Burning one gallon of gasoline in a car releases approximately 20 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere. One person drives 60,000 miles in a car that averages 30 miles per gallon (mpg), while another person drives 60,000 miles in a car that averages 20 mpg. Over the course of the 60,000 miles, how many fewer pounds of CO2 are released by the 30 mpg car than by the 20 mpg car?

20,000

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster led to the release of massive radiation, specifically iodine-131 and cesium-137, which has been connected to a variety of environmental problems in the 30 years following the disaster. A soil sample near Chernobyl was found to contain 187kBq/m2 of cesium-137. If the half-life of cesium-137 is approximately 30 years, how much cesium-137 will remain in the sample after 90 years?

23.38kBq/m2

A sample of radioactive waste has a half-life of 10 years and an activity level of 2 curies. After how many years will the activity level of this sample be 0.25 curie?

30 years

How many BTUs were consumed in the United States in 2017 by consumers that used petroleum as a fuel source?

36 quadrillion BTUs

After 200 million years, only 1/16 of the original amount of a particular radioactive waste will remain. The half-life of this radioactive waste is how many million years?

50

Uranium-235 has a half-life of 710 million years. If it is determined that a certain amount of stored U-235 will be considered safe only when its radioactivity has dropped to 0.10 percent of the original level, approximately how much time must the U-235 be stored securely to be safe?

7.1 x 10^9 years

Which of the structures in the diagram is the site where the nuclear power plant accidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl occurred?

A

Which of the following is the best example of cogeneration?

A coal-fired power plant captures waste heat and uses it to heat adjacent buildings.

Which of the following describes an environment where large amounts of oil could form millions of years in the future?

A river delta in a forested region

Which of the following demonstrate(s) the use of passive solar energy?

A south-facing room with stone walls and floors AND A solar oven

Which of the following best explains the process of electricity generation in a hydrogen fuel cell?

At the anode, hydrogen is oxidized and electrons flow in a circuit to the cathode. At the cathode, oxygen reacts with the hydrogen to produce water. Water and heat are by-products of the reaction.

Directions: The following questions(s) refer to the locations indicated on the diagram below. This region has been the largest petroleum exporter for the past four decades.

B

The source whose use is a direct cause of deforestation:

Biomass

Which of the following best describes the energy resource used most often for heating and cooking in less developed countries?

Biomass is the predominant fuel source because it is easily obtained locally.

Which of the following is the most successful solution to the problem of fish mortality caused by dams?

Building fish ladders around the dam

Which of the following describes an environmental problem that can result from the combustion of fossil fuels to generate electricity?

Carbon dioxide is a product of the combustion fossil fuels, and it can lead to global climate change when released into the atmosphere.

Which fuel is most likely the least expensive fuel to produce?

Coal

Which of the following energy sources is responsible for the largest fraction of electricity generation in the United States?

Coal

Which three sources supply the majority of commercial energy in the world today?

Coal, oil, and natural gas

In an apartment building, exhaust from a gas-powered electrical generator is captured to produce hot water to heat a swimming pool. Which of the following is illustrated by this process?

Cogeneration

Which of the following is the most valid inference regarding electricity production, based on the graph above?

Electricity production from coal began to decrease in 2008 because of the increasing use of natural gas and renewable energy.

The diagram shows a power plant designed to generate electricity for a nearby city. Based on the diagram, which processes would provide the energy used to generate electricity at the power plant?

Fission in radioactive fuel

Which of the following consequences of water impoundment for hydroelectric energy production is most likely to release greenhouse gases?

Flooding of forests and grasslands

Which of the following best describes an environmental problem associated with hydrologic fracturing, or fracking?

Fracking fluids can escape from the drill hole and contaminate surface water and groundwater.

Which of the following accurately describes a fuel cell vehicle?

Fuel cell vehicles use hydrogen to generate electricity that runs the motor.

Which of the following energy sources is not derived directly or indirectly from solar energy?

Geothermal

This type of energy utilizes heat that is stored beneath Earth's surface to heat water and produce steam.

Geothermal Energy

Which of the following best describes a disadvantage of geothermal energy production?

Geothermal energy implementation in homes and businesses has a high upfront cost, and electricity is needed to operate pumps.

In order to best achieve energy sustainability, humans must consider which of the following strategies?

Improving energy efficiency AND Developing new energy technologies

A developer intends to use passive solar heating in a new construction project in Minnesota in an effort to reduce electricity costs for the property owners. Which of the following should be employed to maximize the benefit of passive solar heating

Install south-facing glazed windows in the home and dark surfaces to cover the walls and floors.

Throughout the world, especially the less-developed countries, burning wood or other biomass for heating or cooking in homes is common. One negative environmental impact of this practice is the production of particulates indoors, which can be a health hazard to humans. Which of the following describes the best strategy for mitigating this potential problem?

Installing effective ventilation systems in dwellings

Which of the following statements regarding petroleum is correct?

It contains natural gas as well as oil. AND It migrates through pore spaces in rocks.

Which of the following is a true statement about passive solar heating?

It is based in part on the principle of the greenhouse effect.

Which of the following metals is considered an energy resource?

Mercury

Many environmentalists consider Egypt's Aswan High Dam on the Nile River to be an ecological disaster. Which of the following is the best evidence to support this viewpoint?

Most of the nutrient-rich silt that the Nile annually deposited downstream is now deposited behind the dam.

Scientists are looking for new locations to generate electricity using geothermal energy. Which of the following locations would be the best choice for a geothermal energy generating plant?

Near tectonic plate boundaries

The source that is not renewable:

Nuclear fission

The source that produces long-lived hazardous wastes:

Nuclear fission

Directions: The following question(s) refer to the graph below showing the percent contribution of major fuel sources that have supplied energy for the United States for the past 150 years. The category labeled "Other" includes nuclear power, hydroelectricity, solar and wind power, and other alternative sources of energy. Nuclear power is a component of the line labeled "Other" in the graph. Why is it impossible for nuclear energy to completely replace oil and gas in the future?

Nuclear power can supply electricity, but it cannot replace other uses of oil and gas.

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster led to the release of massive radiation, specifically iodine-131 and cesium-137, which has been connected to a variety of environmental problems in the 30 years following the disaster. Which of the following best describes the process of electricity generation at a nuclear power plant?

Nuclear power is generated through fission, which releases a large amount of heat. The heat is used to generate steam, which turns a turbine that powers a generator.

Which of the following best describes a benefit of increasing the number of offshore wind farms rather than onshore wind farms?

Offshore winds farms will produce up to three times as much electricity as wind farms on land because of increased wind speeds offshore.

Of the following sources, which supplies the most commercial energy in the world today?

Oil

Which of the following best describes the conditions under which peat is formed?

Partially decayed vegetation is placed under high-pressure, anaerobic, acidic conditions.

In 1969, M. King Hubbert calculated lower and upper estimates for the volume of total world petroleum reserves. Regardless of which estimate was used, he predicted that 80 percent of the total reserves would be used up in approximately 60 years. Which of the following likely explains why his predictions were the same for both estimates?

Per capita energy use will increase with available energy AND Availability and use of petroleum is inversely correlated with cost

Which of the following is true regarding natural gas?

Pipelines are the primary means of transporting natural gas.

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster led to the release of massive radiation, specifically iodine-131 and cesium-137, which has been connected to a variety of environmental problems in the 30 years following the disaster. A meltdown in which of the following structures at a nuclear power plant, such as Chernobyl, would most likely lead to the accidental release of radiation?

Reactor core

Which of the following is a way for the government to encourage efficient energy use?

Requiring higher fuel economy standards for new cars

Based on the data, which of the following policies would most likely make the greatest reduction in the ecological footprint for all of the cities shown in the graph?

Setting higher fuel efficiency standards for vehicles

This type of energy is considered a nonrenewable energy source.

Solar Energy

Which of the following is a disadvantage of using nuclear energy as a source of electricity?

Spent fuel rods must be disposed of properly.

Which of the following is the current recommendation of Congress for the permanent storage of high-level radioactive waste in the United States?

Storage deep in the Antarctic ice sheet and burial beneath the ocean floor

Economic benefits of building large dams include which of the following?

Storage of water for agriculture and domestic use AND Production of renewable energy

The source that is converted directly into electrical energy by photovoltaic cells:

Sunlight

Which of the following is most likely to reduce the United States contribution to the increase in concentration of atmospheric CO2?

Switching from cars and trucks to rail for mass transit and freight movement

Which statement best describes the approximate global distribution of coal supplies?

The United States, the former Soviet Union, and China together contain 50% of proven reserves.

The separation of the various components of crude oil in refineries is accomplished primarily by taking advantage of differences in which of the following?

The boiling points of the components

Construction of a solar power plant is proposed for a desert area near a school. A student has hypothesized that the shade cast by the solar panels will increase the mortality of creosote bush, a native desert plant in the area. Before construction begins, what experimental data should the student collect in order to eventually test the hypothesis?

The direct sunlight received by creosote bush in the desert area (in kWh/m2) during a 12-month period

Which of the following statements about geothermal energy is accurate?

The location of geothermal energy sources ranges from short distances below ground to miles below the surface.

Which of the following is a negative consequence associated with photovoltaic solar cells?

The manufacture of photovoltaic solar cells involves toxic metals that can be released into the environment.

Between 1960 and 1970, world oil consumption approximately doubled. Which of the following explanations is consistent with this increase?

The number of cars on the road increased.

Although nuclear energy is considered a cleaner energy source than fossil fuels, some scientists argue this does not support the claim that nuclear energy is renewable. Which of the following claims best supports the argument that nuclear energy is a nonrenewable energy source?

The uranium deposits on Earth are finite.

Which of the following best describes the method of vehicle transport that is the most environmentally sustainable?

The use of a vehicle powered by hydrogen fuel cells because there are no carbon emissions

Which of the following is a drawback to using biofuels, such as ethanol, as a fuel source?

There is high energy investment in producing and processing the crops needed for ethanol production.

Which of the following is considered an advantage of using nuclear power to generate electricity?

There is no CO2 emitted from the nuclear reaction.

Which source of energy is NOT (ultimately) solar-based?

Tides

Which of the following would be most likely to be used as a fuel source for electricity generation in the plant displayed in the diagram?

Uranium-235

Which of the following negative consequences is most often associated with using biomass for energy production?

Using biomass for energy production can result in local deforestation.

Which of the following gases is released from the structure labeled C in the diagram?

Water vapor

Which of the following is a reason why hybrid electric vehicles use less fossil fuel per mile traveled than a typical internal combustion engine vehicle uses?

When the brakes are applied in hybrid electric vehicles, kinetic energy is converted into electric energy to charge the batteries that assist the electric motor.

In a nuclear power plant, control rods are used to

absorb excess neutrons emitted by fuel rods.

The primary sources of renewable energy in the United States are

biomass and hydroelectricity.

A homeowner wants to save money and energy by heating her home using a passive solar design. She could consider

building a green roof.

All of the following substances are derived from petroleum EXCEPT

cellulose

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is the pumping of highly pressurized water with a mixture of sand and chemicals into boreholes to

create cracks within the rock in order to provide pathways for the release of gas and oil

One solution for reducing the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide would be to

decrease the use of fossil fuels

Relative to burning fossil carbon, the use of modern carbon for energy

is more likely to be carbon-neutral.

There are various stages in the formation of coal as heat and pressure are increased and moisture content is decreased. These stages, in order, are

peat, lignite, bituminous, anthracite

In contrast to low-level radioactive waste, most high-level radioactive waste is currently

stored at reactor sites

In 1969, M. King Hubbert published a graph known as the Hubbert curve. This graph shows

the point at which world oil production will reach a maximum and the point at which we will run out of oil.

The fact that global transfer of energy from fuels to electricity is about 35 percent efficient is mostly a consequence of

the second law of thermodynamics.

Compared to a coal-fired power plant that produces the same amount of energy, a nuclear power plant generates more

thermal pollution

Geothermal energy plants are a viable alternative energy source because they

use the heat from Earth's interior to create steam that is used to generate electricity and then can be pumped back into the ground