EHSC 3060 Energy
Proven-in place oil reserves
Those that are profitable to extract with current technologies
Why do we have a higher energy demand per capita now than we did 50 years ago?
We have more technology. We also have newer technology that draws electricity even when it is off, and we have more cars on the road that require electricity such as electric cars
Is fracking controversial?
Yes the fluid can be hazardous to human health and may expose humans with its migration to underground water supplies
Does coal contribute to acid rain?
Yes, it is the largest single source of acid rain and SO2 and NO2 are the greatest offenders with SO2 being worse
What percentage of fossil fuels we used is made up of oil?
26%
What percentage of energy consumption is used by transportation?
26.1%
What percentage of the proven in place oil reserves are located in the US?
3%
What percentage of energy consumption is used by industrial?
32.4%
An increases population size leads to a __________ demand in energy
Higher
What type of rock is formed as a result of cooling magma?
Igneous rock
What is earth's core mostly made of?
Iron
What is nickel used for?
Nickel-cadmium batteries, stainless steel, and coins
What is an example of sedimentary rock?
Sandstone and tuff
World's largest dam
Three Gorges Dam, China
What is the unit for power?
Watts
Who has most of the world's natural gas? (40.8%)
The Middle East
Characteristics of mountaintop mining
- Completely remove the top of the mountain and push the rubble and tailings off the side of the mountain - Mostly found in eastern Kentucky, virginia, and eastern Tennessee - Increases metals and minerals in waters, abolishes some small streams, destroys habitats - GA restricts the amount of open pit mining
What are some drawbacks to hydropower?
- Human displacement - Ecosystem destruction - Large-scale flooding if the dam fails - Sedimentation build up - Herbicide contamination - Evaporative losses - Nutrient flow retardation
What three main categories is energy use divide into?
- Industry - Residential and commercial building use - Transportation
Characteristics of Heap-Leach extraction
- Mining extractions are placed on top of clay or cement pads and heated and the leachate is collected - Not as common - Cyanide solution sprayed over heat
What are some of the environmental consequences of mining?
- Occupational hazards - Groundwater contamination - Aquatic ecosystem destruction and pollution
Characteristics of photovoltaic energy
- Photovoltaic cells capture solar energy and convert it directly to electric current by separating electrons from parent atoms and accelerating them across a one-way electrostatic barrier to generate work rather than creating steam or heat - Current price per watt is about 28c whereas GA power traditional power is about 5c
Geothermal energy
- Reliable source - Predictable power output - Small land footprint - High initial costs
1977 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
- Required restoration of strip-mined land back to at least prime farmland - 50% of US coal is strip mined - Adds about $5,000 to the cost of recovered products
Characteristics of placer mining
- Valuable resources, often gold and platinum from alluvial deposits - Really strong pressure washing solution sprayed over collections - Streams and rivers have their bottom layers removed, disrupting their ecosystem
Characteristics of open pit mining
- Very expensive - Terraces for roads to get down into the pit - Once the pit is abandoned, water fills it and can contaminate our drinking water from toxic metal exposure - When the metals in the ground are exposed to oxygen, they can leech toxins into the atmosphere or ground water - Pit is often dug below the water table, so water must be pumped out initially
Characteristics of tunnel mining
- When ore is located deep enough to where the waste rock on top cannot be removed - More expensive than open pit mini g - Extremely dangerous place for workers because of exposure to particulate matter, methane gas, and risk of getting trapped or tunnel collapse
Wave Energy
- Zero emissions - Reliable - Can disrupt aquatic life
How much percentage of U235 is found naturally?
1%
What percentage of energy consumption is used by residential?
22.4%
What percentage of fossil fuels we used is made up of natural gas?
24%
How much energy loss occurs when moving electricity across wires, no matter how well insulated?
10%
What percent of the US domestic energy budget is consumed by water heating?
15%
What percentage of energy consumption is used by commercial?
18%
How much of the energy in coal can be lost during thermal conversion in traditional coal-fired plants
2/3
What percentage of fossil fuels we used is made up of coal?
37%
Mining for bauxite to produce aluminum instead of using recycled aluminum from beverage containers uses how much more energy?
3x as much energy
What percentage of the world population uses firewood and charcoal as primary energy source
40%
What percentage of the worldwide annual wood harvest is used as fuel?
50%
What percentage of wood fuel is harvested in developing countries?
85%
What percentage of global energy comes from fossil fuels?
87%
What percentage of oil is used for transportation?
90%
Using dung to generate methane
A manure slurry is created and a burner tip creates a flame. A collection bag is used to collect dung from the slurry that does not go to creating the gas that lights the flame
Calories
A unit for work. The amount of energy needed to heat 1g of water by 1 degree centigrade
When was Pangea?
About 230-280 million years ago
Promoting renewable energy - Green pricing
Allow utilities to profit from conservation programs and charge premium prices for energy from renewable sources
Who has most of the world's coal? (36%)
Europe and Asia
What happens when U235 is bombarded with neutrons
An extremely unstable form of Uranium is developed, U236, producing a chain reaction
What is sand and gravel used for?
Asphalt and glass
What type of rock is formed from the rapid cooling of magma?
Basalt rock
Why is natural gas so appealing?
Because it produces half as much CO2 emissions as equivalent amounts of coal
Why are fossil fuels called fossil fuels?
Because we are extracting them at a faster rate than they can be formed
What is aluminum used for?
Beverage containers and electronics
BTU
British Thermal Unit. The unit for work and the energy required to heat 1 pound of water tp increase the temperature by 1 degree Fahrenheit
Biomass
Burning switchgrass because it grows back very quickly without much fertilizers
What is platinum used for?
Catalytic converters
What is limestone used for?
Concrete and cement
Who uses more energy on the planet, developed or majority countries?
Developed
What is work?
The application of force through a distance
What is phosphate used for?
Fertilizer
What type of rock is formed from the slow cooling of magma?
Granite rock
What are evaporites used for?
Halites used as a de-icing agent and gypsum used for sheetrock
What is lead used for?
Lead-acid batteries and ammunition
Is the mantle more or less dense than the core?
Less
Fracking
In order to release the natural gas from the shale bed, fracturing fluid is pumped into the shale to create fissures that allow for the release of natural gas
Where is coal mostly found?
In the US and Russia
What does the iron in the mantle do?
It generates a magnetic field that surrounds the earth
What was Pangea?
It was one big super continent with one big global ocean
What are soils used for?
Landscaping and gardening
How do deep ocean ridges form?
Magma seeps upward from the mantle and cools at the side of basins
Promoting renewable energy - Renewable portfolio
Mandate minimum percentage of energy from renewable sources
The lower crust is also called
Mantle
What is an example of metamorphic rock?
Marble
What happens when two pieces of the earth's crust push against each other and continue in an upward motion?
Mountains form
What is the difference between active and passive solar energy?
Passive solar energy is just orienting solar panels to where they collect as much sun as possible to provide energy whereas active solar energy is using a system to collect solar heat to heat a tank of water and provide electricity
Is U238 useful?
No it is useless in the realm of nuclear reactions
Strategic metals
One country has a plethora of these metals and therefore other countries are beholden to them to buy it from them because they need those metals
Why is natural gas the most efficient fuel?
Only 10% if its energy content is loss during shipping and processing (on boats)
What is copper used for?
Plumbing and electronics
What are some pros and cons to wind power?
Pros: - Turns turbines directly - Low operating costs - Creates more jobs than coal - Efficient use of land space - Renewable and clean Cons: - Wind reliability - Noise pollution - Visual pollution - Bird deaths
What are some pros and cons to tidal energy?
Pros: - Zero emissions - Reliable, consistent - High power output Cons: - Limited site availability - Expensive - Negative influences on Marin life forms - Susceptible to seas stoms
What is ore?
Rock rich enough in one type of component to make it profitable enough to mine
Who has most of the world's oil? (23%)
Saudi Arabia
Promoting renewable energy - Distributional surcharges
Small charge levied on all utility customers to help finance research and development
Fly wheels stored energy
Spins extremely fast when you add energy to it and continues ti spin long after energy/solar power stops
What is iron used for?
Steel
One piece of crust goes below the other into the mantle
Subduction
What is sulfur used for?
Sulfuric acid and fertilizers
Earth's frágil crust organized in a series of plates
Tectonic plates
How do deep ocean basins form?
Tectonic plates slowly move across the Earth's surface and move away from one another
What is energy?
The capacity to do work
What percentage of the earth is oxygen in comparison to the amount of earth's curst that is made up of oxygen
The earth is 30% oxygen and the earth's crust is 45% oxygen
What percentage of the earth is iron in comparison to the amount of earth's crust that is made up of iron
The earth is 33% iron and the earth's crust is 6% iron
What is the trend associating GNP and energy usage?
The higher the GNP, the higher the energy consumption
Where does the mantle begin and end?
The mantle begins about 200 km below the surface of the earth and extends 2900 km into the core
Is the outer core solid or liquid and it is hotter or colder than the core?
The outer core is molten, but cooler Tham the core
What is power?
The rate of flow of energy, or the rate at which work is done
What form is most uranium found in?
U238
Pumped hydro storage
Uses a portion of energy to pump water against gravity for later release to turn a turbine
What is cheaper, mining for raw materials or using scrap recycled materials?
Using scrap recycled materials
