Chapter 12: Nonrenewable Energy Sources

Capacity factors of most thermal power plants?Nuclear and coal power plants?Power plants with renewable energy? When starting a power plant, how long can it take for coal or nuclear plants to reach full capacity? Since they take so long to start, what do many companies prefer to do? As demands for electicity change throughout the day, what plants are used?

-0.9 or greater -0.9 or greater -0.25 -hours or a day -leave them on all of the time -plants more easily powered up (hydro)

Typical concentration of U-235 in uranium ore? What else is present? Therefore, what must be done to uranium ore when it is mined so that it can be used as fuel? What percentage U-235 does suitable nuclear fuel contain? Why is nuclear energy considered to be clean?

-1% or more -U-238 -chemically enriched in U-235 -3% or greater -nuclear power plants do not produce air pollution during their operation

How much petroleum does US use in a day? What accounts for roughly half of this? Primary use of petroleum? Also raw material for what? Seven countries accounting for half of worldwide oil production?

-3.1 billion liters (816 million gallons) -gasoline -transportation -petrochemicals, like plastics, and lubricants, pharmaceuticals and cleaning solvents -Saudi Arabia, Russia, US, Iran, China, Canada, Iraq

What might newer coal burning plants have efficiencies of? An improvement in gas combustion technology has led to the creation of which type of power plant? How does it work and what efficiencies can it achieve?

-40% -combined cycle natural gas fired powerplant -natural gas is combusted and combustion turns a gas turbine, waste heat boils water, turning a conventional steam turbine -up to 60%

If current global use patterns continue and no significant oil supplies are discovered, when may we run out of conventional oil supplies? Coal? However, what has already begun to alter these predictions? As more people have come to accept that anthropogenic increases in atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations cause global climate change, a large number of researchers have suggested we turn our attention to..?

-50 years -200 years or longer -technological advances, shift to nonfossil fuels, changes in social choices and population patterns -how we might transition from fossil fuels before use causes further problems

Typical powerplant in the US has a capacity of..? What does this mean? However, do most powerplants operate continuously every day of the year? Why might they be shut down? For example, in recent years, why did coal burning power plants in northeastern US operate less than 20% of the time? Therefore, to determine a power plant's output, what is it important to know?

-500 MW -when plant is operating it generates 500 MW continuously (this is how much it puts out in an hour) -no -maintenance, refueling, repairs, demands of users on the grid and electricity production by other power plants on the grid -utilities were voluntarily shutting them down since it is less expensive to use natural gas burning plants and to have the coal plant off line -the amount of time it operates in a year (capacity factor)

In 2015, what was the total world energy consumption? Per person? Three largest energy sources? What is peat? However, is energy use equally distributed throughout the world? Explain.

-570 EJ -75 GJ per person -oil, coal, natural gas -precursor to coal, sometimes combined with coal for reporting processes, mostly in developing world -no, 20% of population uses 50% of energy

Half life of uranium 235? units that can be used to measure radiation? Spent fuel rods pose a threat to humans for how many half lives? Where are fuel rods supposed to be initially stored? An alternative to this? Where does all of the material eventually need to be transported?

-704 million years -becquerel (Bq) and curies -10 or more -in the nuclear power plant in pools of water at least 6m (20 ft) deep -lead lined containers on land -permanent radioactive waste disposal facility

What is natural gas composed of?How is it extracted? What is natural gas used for? Compressed natural gas?

-80-95% methane, and 5-20% ethane, propane, and butane -in association with petroleum, and only recently by itself -electricity generation and industrial processes, manufacture nitrogen fertilizer, and in homes as efficient fuel for heating, cooking, operating dryers and water heaters -fuel for vehicles, but is not accessible in all parts of US since transported by pipeline, so unlikely to become fuel source for cars

What can be done to remedy the diminishing petroleum reserves and continue to provide liquid fuel to the world? When was this used? Is it expensive? Environmental effects of liquified coal? Because there is so much coal in the US, what does CTL have potential to eliminate?

-CTL -World War II for German Military and other countries since then -yes -same drawbacks in exploitation of oil sands, total greenhouse emissions are twice that from conventional oil, impacts of coal mining can be severe -US dependence on foreign oil (but overall is not promising as a new resource)

Country with the greatest total energy consumption? Greatest per capita? Lowest annual? How do people in developed and developing countries vary in the types of fuel that they use? Two types of energy sources?

-China -US -Tanzania -developed and urban areas of developing use coal, oil, and natural gas either directly or for electricity; developing use fuels like wood, charcoal, and animal waste -commercial and subsistence

Where is nuclear energy used widely? How much of energy in US is from nuclear? Why did it become politically and monetarily expensive to build nuclear power plants in the US by the 1980s? There has been about the same amount of nuclear powerplants in the US for the past 2 decades, but why are some individuals wanting to build more? What processes for attaining nuclear fuel cause pollution? Two other large environmental concerns?

-France (70% of electricity), UK, Spain, China, Canada, Ukraine, South Korea, etc. -20% -public protests, legal battles, and delays increased cost of construction, many of which occurred because of concerns for proper radioactive waste disposal and fear that the waste could fall into hands of individuals seeking it to build a nuclear weapon -low CO2 emissions, only about 10% of process for equivalent amount of energy from coal -possibility of accidents and disposal of radioactive waste

Two accidents contributing to the global protests against nuclear energy in 1980s-90s? Most recent nuclear power plant accident?

-Three Mile Island Accident in Pennsylvania - Chernobyl, Ukraine -Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant accident

What is the energy return on energy investment (EROEI)? Equation? When deciding between two energy sources for a given job, what should be taken into consideration? Good example of this?

-amount of energy we get out of an energy source for every unit of energy expended on production -EROEI=(energy obtained from fuel)/(energy invested to obtain fuel) -overall system efficiency -home hot water heaters

Fossil fuels provide most energy used in developed or developing countries? Where do the vast majority of fossil fuels we use today come from? How are fossil fuels formed?

-both -deposits of organic matter that formed 50 million to 350 million years ago -in an anaerobic environment, detritus builds up quickly and decomposers cannot break it all down; as material is buried under succeeding layers of sediment and exposed to heat and pressure, organic compounds are transformed into high energy soil, liquid, and gaseous components that are easily combusted

Who is cogeneration used by?How high can efficiency for cogeneration be? How many power plants in the US have a generation capacity of 1 MW or greater? Largest component of electricity generation in the US? What other sources account for 84% of electricity?

-certain steam power plants for attaining higher efficiencies -up to 90% -7,000 -natural gas -coal (30), nuclear energy (20), tiny bit of petroleum

How do electric hot water heaters generate heat? What occurs to any heat energy that is "lost"? Efficiency of this process? How do natural gas water heaters generate heat? How efficient? However, what else do you need to consider? Other considerations effecting the efficiency of the water heater?

-contain a resistance coil generating heat in tank of water -heat is transferred to surrounding water, which increases in temp, captured by tank -99% -transfers energy to water with a flame below tank, waste heat and by products of combustion warm surrounding environment and tank of water and are vented outside (60%) -the fuel each uses (using fossil fuels for electricity is about 35% efficient, while natural gas is about 60%) -sources available in your area, hot water heater pump (new technologies)

What other variables do transportation efficiency calculations not take into account? What other materialistic concerns do individuals in developing countries have about their transportation? List the categories of cars in order from least fuel efficiency to most. How can self driving cars allow fuel efficiency gains to continue?

-convenience, comfort, style -prefer independence of own vehicle, strong feelings about what type of vehicle is most desirable with light trucks (SUVs, minivans, pick ups) accounting for 1/2 of car sales and hybrid cars only 3% -Light trucks (20 mpg), small cars with standard internal combustion (45 mpg), hybrid passenger cars (50), electric/ plug in hybrid cars -decrease fuel efficiency due to self driving technology, but less navigational errors and fuel efficiency programming may overcome this

Advantages of petroleum? What is its ideal application? Because it is a fossil fuel, what does it release when burned? How much less CO2 than coal does it produce?

-convenient to transport and use, energy dense, cleaner burning than coal -mobile combustion engines like for cars, planes, trucks -CO2 -15% less

Regardless of what fuel is used, how do all thermal power plants work? Basic view of how a coal fired electricity generation plant works? How is electricity transported? What can occur once it is on the grid? After steam passes through turbine, it is condensed into water; what is done with this water?

-convert potential energy of fuel into electricity -fuel is delivered to a boiler and is burned; energy is transferred into water, which becomes steam; kinetic energy in a steam is used to turn a turbine, which produces power by the shaft in the center of the turbine turning on the generator, which makes electricity -generated electricity is transported down the electrical grid -distributed to consumers of electricity where it is converted into different types of energy for everyday usage -cooled in a cooling tower or discharged into nearby body of water

Has coal production increased or decreased in the US in recent years? The majority of coal is burned in the US; how much is left behind as ash? Where are deposits of this ash stored? Can accidents be caused by the storage of ash? What percent carbon is coal? When it is burned, what occurs?

-decreased -3-20% -near coal burning power plants -yes -60-80% -most carbon is converted into CO2 and energy is released; coal produces more CO2 per unit of energy released than either oil or natural gas and contributes to the increasing atmospheric concentration of CO2

Factors to consider for what type of energy is used for a particular application? Example explaining the energy to mass ratio? Another important factor in the best form of energy to use for certain applications? What is the problem with gasoline compared with other energy sources like natural gas or hydroelectricity?

-ease with which fuel can be transported -for transport, liquid energy sources (gasoline, diesel) that are relatively compact are best, so that you can travel a farther distance than you could with wood -how quickly the energy source combusts/provides energy (gasoline and diesel provide energy quickly and can be shut off quickly) -large amounts of air pollution per joule of energy released, must be refined greatly (chemically processed)

Negative effects of fracking?How has estimating the amount of escaped natural gas from extraction and transportation process of fracking become controversial? What are current estimates?

-effects and names of chemicals used are unknown, large quantities of water that can become contaminated and disposed of are used, groundwater contamination from drilling wells -large uncertainties in natural gas extraction process, measurement difficulties, industry secrecy -2 to 9%

What does energy efficiency refer to? What is energy quality? What does the second law of thermodynamics state? In addition, what is involved in every fuel we use?

-efficiency of process used to obtain fuel and turn fuel into work -measure of the ease in which stored energy can be converted into work -when energy is transformed, its ability to do work diminishes because some energy is lost during each conversion -expenditure of energy involved in obtaining the fuel

Why is coal used to generate electricity and in industrial processes? How are coal reserves exploited? Does coal need to be refined/is it easy to handle/expensive? How can it be transported to power plants and factories? IS coal easy or difficult to use?

-energy dense and plentiful -surface mining -little technological demands, low costs, needs little refining, easy to handle -train, barge, truck -Easy!

Why do about 1/2 of US homes use natural gas for heating? Advantages of natural gas? What is used in some places where natural gas pipelines are not present?

-extensive natural gas pipeline system in many parts of US -fewer impurities, emits few sulfur dioxide and other pollutants, only emits 60% as much CO2 as coal, cleanest of fossil fuels, very convenient and desirable -LPG is used, though is slightly less convenient

Examples of opportunities for energy loss in the extraction and use of energy? Efficiency of converting coal into electricity? How could the efficiency of this process be lower? Most direct way to account for energy required to produce a fuel or energy source?

-extraction, transportation, processing, disposal/transport of waste, etc -35% -including energy to extract coal and energy to build coal extraction machinery, construct power plant, and remove and dispose of waste from power plant -calculating the energy return on energy investment

Why must nuclear waste be stored in special highly secure locations? Three types of radioactive waste produced by the use of nuclear fuels? Who regulates disposal of all three types? Type with the greatest environmental impact?

-extremely dangerous to living organisms -high level waste in the form of used fuel rods; low level waste in the form of contaminated clothing, tools, rags, etc used in routine plant maintenance; uranium mine tailings -government -high level radioactive waste

How is petroleum formed? Where are deposits of petroleum found? Petroleum is less dense than rock, so what does it do over time? What does natural gas associated with it do? How is petroleum extracted? What must be done after extraction?

-from the remains of ocean photoplankton (microscopic algae) that died 50-150 mya -locations where porous sedimentary rocks are capped by nonporous rocks -migrates upward to highest point in porous rock so it is trapped by nonporous rock -natural gas is less dense so it migrates to highest point in dome, above oil -sometimes it flows out under pressure like water flows from an artesian well, but normally must be drilled and extracted with pumps -transported to petroleum refinery, by pipeline if well is on land, or supertanker if underwater

Why is electricity a form of energy in its own category? Primary sources of electricity? Why is electricity a secondary source of energy? As a second source of energy, electricity is a...? How much of energy consumed in US is used to generate electricity? What percent is available for end uses?

-generated from many different sources including fossil fuels, wind, water, and Sun -coal, oil, natural gas -we obtain it from the conversion of a primary source -energy carrier -40% -13%

What can the radiation emitted by high level radioactive waste do to humans? What can occur at low exposure to high level waste or exposure to low level waste? Sublethal effects of both? What ages of humans are most vulnerable?

-immediate damage to human body like organ failure, radiation sickness, death -damage to DNA, leading to cancer or tumors -effects on the eyes, brain, and immune and reproductive systems -unborn children, children, adolescents

What cannot be done to radioactive waste to dispose of it because it will emit radiation? Therefore, what is the only present solution for its disposal? What must this storage site be like in order to be safe? What specific area has been continually proposed and denied for a permanent nuclear waste storage site?

-incineration, safely destroyed with chemicals, shot into space, dumped into ocean floor, buried in ocean trench -store it safely on Earth indefinitely -waste will not leach into groundwater or escape into environment, far enough from human habitation in case of any accidents and be secure against terrorist attack, must be transported in a way that prevents accidents or terrorist theft -Yucca Mountain, Nevada

What is energy use in the US today a result of? What are the boundaries of this system? Example? Major output of system? Other major output?

-inputs and outputs of an enormous system -political and technological as well as physical -oil inputs enter US energy system from domestic production and other countries -work (end use of energy like in transportation, industrial, etc) -waste (heat, CO2, pollutants)

Why do some argue that nuclear energy is unsustainable? Nuclear FUSION reaction with most promising results for electricity generation? What would this reaction provide for energy on Earth? However, why can it not be attained at this point?

-it generates large amounts of high level radioactive waste that they may never be a place safe enough to store, according to its critics -two hydrogen isotopes fusing into one helium -seemingly unlimited source of energy requiring only hydrogen as input and produces relatively small amounts of radioactive waste -requires a reactor that will heat material to 10 times temperature of core of sun, and this is currently not possible

Basic unit of energy? How many joules in a gigajoule? Exajoule? What is the quad?

-joule -1 billion or 1 x 10^9 (GJ) -1 billion gigajoules (EJ) -unit of energy used by the US government to report energy consumption; 1 quadrillion (1 x 10^15) British thermal units or Btu or 1.055 EJ

How much was US energy consumption in 2016? What is the energy mix like (what specific fuels were used)? How much of its own energy does the US produce (how much is produced domestically or not imported)? Why has percentage of energy imports been decreasing? What sectors use the most energy?

-just over 100 EJ per year -81% fossil fuel, 9% nuclear, 10% renewable -85% -domestic production of natural gas and oil increases -industry, then transportation

What do changes in energy demand generally reflect in a country? What does an increase in demand mean? Example?

-level of industrialization -change in type of fuel used -more people own automobiles, demand for gasoline and diesel fuel increases

Three types of coal? What do they differ by?

-lignite, bituminous, anthracite -age, exposure to pressure, energy content

What does uncombusted carbon dioxide contain? Why is it harmful when it leaks into atmosphere? Natural gas that leaks after extraction is a suspected contributor to what? The process for exploring for natural gas requires what kind of trucks? What process do these relate to that releases natural gas from the host rock?

-methane -a potent greenhouse gas that is 25 times more efficient at absorbing infrared energy than CO2 -steep rise in atmospheric methane concentrations observed in 1990 -thumper trucks -fracking

Environmental consequences of coal related to mining? What impurities does coal contain and how are they released? What does sulfur content range from in coal? What other metals are found in coal? Therefore, what can combustion of coal do?

-mine tailings from surface mining -sulfur (released when coal is burned) -0.4 to 4% with lignite and anthracite having low sulfur contents and bituminous coal much higher -lead, mercury, arsenic -releasing these elements, which can lead to increase of air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and particulates, other compounds are left in ash

Negative environmental effects of oil sands? What occurs in the surface mines created for mining bitumen?

-more energy intensive than conventional petroleum drilling, system efficiency is lower and resulting CO2 release is greater -extraction of bitumen contaminates 2-3 liters of water for each liter of bitumen obtained and many oil sands are located in regions where water is not an abundant resource

Why is energy efficiency in transport particularly important? What fuels does this typically use? Does this contribute to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions? Is public transportation more efficient than individual cars? Ground or air? However, how can these values differ?

-nearly 30% of US energy is for it -vehicles fueled with petroleum, and electricity -yes -yes -air -number of passengers, embodied energy to build each vehicle

Why might the "finite" nature of fossil fuels not matter? What has total energy use in the US been like lately? Important measure of energy use and productivity? What has been happening to it in recent decades in the US?Why has overall energy use in the US leveled off but not decreased?

-new energy sources will be developed, we will find a better fuel source to replace fossil fuels before they are all consumed -total energy use in US has leveled off and energy use per person is decreasing slightly -energy intensity -steadily decreasing (using energy more efficiently) -US population has grown and we are doing more things with energy

How a nuclear reactor works: The containment structure encloses what? What is uranium fuel processed in and where is it placed? Heat from nuclear fission is used to heat water where? Where is this water then transferred and the heat? In the process, the typical thermal generator electricity generation process occurs. This type of reactor is known as?

-nuclear fuel (contained in fuel rods) and steam generator -pellets, which are put in fuel rods (there can be hundreds of bundles of fuel rods in the reactor core in the containment structure) -within containment structure, which circulates in a loop -loop passes close to another loop of later and heat is transferred from one loop to the other -light water reactor

Why are control rods frequently activated in nuclear reactors? What other situations are control rods inserted? Depending on the ore, how many kgs of uranium ore might it take to produce 3 kg of nuclear fuel? How is uranium obtained?

-nuclear fuel rods left uncontrolled can quickly become too hot and melt-an event called a meltdown-or cause a fire, either of which can lead to a nuclear accident -up to 900kg -miners remove large amounts of host rock, extract and concentrate uranium, leave remaining material in tailings piles

How can oil be spilled into the natural environment? In the US, what is debated concerning oil and its effects on species? This debate continues with periodic proposals to allow oil exploration where? What positive and negative effects would this have? How have humans been affected by oil extraction?

-oil extraction and transport; runoff from land and rivers, airplanes, small boats, personal watercraft; etc -trade off between domestic oil expansion and consequences for habitats and species near sites of oil extraction -Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), a 7.7 milllion hectare tract of land in NE Alaska -can yield a lot of oil and natural gas; harm pristine habitat for species and humans -in developing countries, oil fields are adjacent to villages and crude oil covers ground where people walk, oil flaring occurs near houses

Less readily available fossil fuels include? When considering using these energy resources, what is important to determine? How is bitumen formed? How can it be extracted?

-oil sands and liquid coal -energy return on energy investments -petroleum deposit is not capped with nonporous rock, petroleum migrates close to surface where bacteria metabolize some of the light hydrocarbons while others evaporate; mix no longer flows at ambient temps and pressures -surface mining

Why is U-235 ideal for use in a nuclear reactor? What is the chemical reaction for fission of U-235? What other biproducts are a result of fission of U-235?

-one of the more easily fissionable isotopes -1 neutron + U-235 -> Ba-142 (barium)+Kr-91 (Krypton)+ 3 neutrons in motion (kinetic energy) -radioactive waste that remains hazardous for many half lives, heat, other daughter products

What is peat composed of? Starting with peat, what produces successively denser coal? Where are the largest coal reserves? Countries that produce greatest amount of coal?

-partly decomposed organic material, including mosses -increasing time and pressure produce denser coal with more carbon molecules and more energy per kg -US, Russia, China, Australia, India -US, India, China, Australia

How is petroleum different than "oil"? What 3 terms does the US department of energy consider to be equivalent (and will be equivalent in this course)? Petroleum products are ideal for which applications?

-petroleum is a compound that contains many hydrocarbons and can be distilled into oil, kerosene, and gasoline -petroleum, oil, crude oil -its fluid nature makes them suitable for mobile combustion applications, like in vehicles

Once fission occurs in one neutron what can it do to others? What does this give off? In a nuclear power plant, this energy is used to?How does the amount of energy in one gram of U-235 compare to coal?

-promote additional fission reactions, which leads to a chain reaction -immense amount of heat energy -produce steam, like any other thermal power plant -1g of U-235 has 2-3 million times the energy in 1g of coal

Every country in the world uses energy at a different _________ and relies on different _____________. Factors that determine the rate that fossil fuels are used?

-rates, energy sources -resources that are available, affordable, environmental impact

How does energy use vary in the US? Primary fuel for electricity in southeastern and midwestern states? Western and northeastern? What type of areas tend to use less coal since it creates more air pollution? Why do northern areas consume more oil and natural gas during winter? Southern states more electricity in summer?

-regionally and seasonally -coal -nuclear fuels, natural gas, hydroelectric dams -highly populated areas -meet demand for heating; meet demand for air conditioning

A nuclear power plant is designed to harness heat energy from fission to make steam, but what must it be able to do to allow collisions to take place at appropriate speed? To do this, what do nuclear reactors contain? What else do they contain in case the reaction runs out of control?

-slow the fission reaction -moderators (like water) to slow down neutrons so they can effectively trigger the next reactions -control rods

What is done to the natural gas found with petroleum when petroleum is extracted? What compounds can crude oil be further refined into? How are they distinguished? Where does the process take place?

-some gas separates out naturally, gas is burned off to prevent an explosion, some is extracted for use as fuel -tar, asphalt, gasoline, diesel, kerosene -temperature it is boiled (separated by heating petroleum) -oil refinery (large factory like structure

Basic process when using nuclear energy to generate electricity? When does radioactive decay occur? What process do 235U and other radioactive isotopes undergo to be used for nuclear energy?

-steam turns a turbine that turns a generator that generates electricity, and uses Uranium-235 as its fuel source -parent radioactive isotopes emit alpha or beta particles or gamma rays -fission

Oil, like coal, contains which pollutants? Is it possible to have reduced sulfur oil? What is a possibility whenever oil is extracted?What has increased the number of leakage and spillage events and amount of oil lost to land and water?

-sulfur, and trace metals like mercury, lead and arsenic -yes, but it is expensive -oil to leak from wellhead or spilled from pipeline or tanker -commercial oil extraction

What two estimates of total world petroleum reserves did Hubbert use? What did he find? What did he predict? Hubbert predicted that 80% of world's petroleum reserves will be used up in how many years? What do experts believe? Is this true?

-upper and lower estimate -total reserves do not greatly influence how long it will take to use up all oil in reserves -oil extraction and use would increase steadily until peak oil then decrease -the next 60 years -this is accurate; we have already reached peak oil or are quite close to it

Despite the many fuel efficient vehicles available, what do people drive? Why did overall fuel efficiency decline from 1985 to 2005? Decade beyond 2005? Though energy efficiency is an important choice for fuel and technology choices, what is another factor that must be considered?

-vehicles with relatively low fuel efficiencies -people chose light trucks and SUVs over cars -vehicle choice has changed and vehicle efficiency has suffered, EPA requirement for gradual increase in average fuel efficiency of new cars to deliver average of 50mpg by 2025 -type of fuel

What do coal companies do to reduce chemical compounds released into the air? In some cases, what are these compounds not tested for? Accidents related to chemical combustion?

-wash coal in a variety of organic compounds -toxicity or effect on humans or ecosystems -chemical spills, residual ash from coal combustion

Predominant energy source of the US until 1875? From 1875 to 1900? By 1950? 1970s? What were all of these changes a result of? What are the three primary sources of energy in the US today? Reason for the recent increase in consumption of natural gas and decrease in coal?

-wood -coal -oil and natural gas joined with coal -electricity by nuclear energy as well as hydroelectricity in addition to original three -decline of oil and resurgence of coal -political, economic, and environmental factors -increase in availability of natural gas, mainly due to fracking

Is electricity clean (produce no pollutants) when used? Is this true for all primary materials used to generate it? Transfer of energy from fuel to electricity is how efficient? Is electricity therefore more desirable than other methods to heat a house? What is characteristic of an energy source that is most efficient?

-yes -no, fossil fuels produce pollutants -35% -no, it is convenient but has lower efficiency and produces more pollutants than say, wood or oil -source that entails the fewest conversions from its original form to the end use

Hubbert curve

A bell-shaped curve representing oil use and projecting both when world oil production will reach a maximum and when we will run out of oil

control rod

A cylindrical device inserted between the fuel rods in a nuclear reactor to absorb excess neutrons and slow or stop the fission reaction

fuel rods

A cylindrical tube that encloses nuclear fuel within a nuclear reactor

bitumen

A degraded petroleum that forms when petroleum migrates to the surface of Earth and is modified by bacteria.

turbine

A device with blades that can be turned by water, wind, steam, or exhaust gas from combustion that turns a generator in an electricity-producing plant

fossil fuels

A fuel derived from biological material that became fossilized millions of years ago

electrical grid

A network of interconnected transmission lines that joins power plants together and links them with end users of electricity

fission

A nuclear reaction in which a neutron strikes a relatively large atomic nucleus, which then splits into two or more parts, releasing additional neutrons and energy in the form of heat

combined cycle

A power plant that uses both exhaust gases and steam turbines to generate electricity

nuclear fusion

A reaction that occurs when lighter nuclei are forced together to produce heavier nuclei

Curie

A unit of measure for radiation; 1 curie = 37 billion decays per second.

commercial energy sources

An energy source that is bought and sold

nonrenewable energy source

An energy source with a finite supply, primarily the fossil fuels and nuclear fuels

CTL

Coal to liquid. Process to make solid coal a liquid fuel

subsistence energy sources

Energy sources gathered by individuals for their own immediate needs

nuclear fuel

Fuel derived from radioactive materials that give off energy

capacity

In reference to an electricity-generating plant, the maximum electrical output

crude oil

Liquid petroleum removed from the ground

radioactive waste

Nuclear fuel that can no longer produce enough heat to be useful in a power plant but continues to emit radioactivity

oil sands

Slow-flowing, viscous deposits of bitumen mixed with sand, water, and clay

Coal

Solid fuel formed primarily from the remains of trees, ferns, and other plant materials preserved 280 million to 360 million years ago

energy intensity

The energy use per unit of gross domestic product

capacity factor

The fraction of time a power plant operates in a year

peak oil

The point at which half the total known oil supply is used up (Hubbert curve)

cogeneration

The use of a single fuel to generate electricity and to produce heat. Also known as combined heat and power

Becquerel (Bq)

Unit that measures the rate at which a sample of radioactive material decays; 1 Bq = decay of 1 atom or nucleus per second.

petroleum

a widely used fossil fuel that occurs in underground deposits, composed of a liquid mixture of hydrocarbons, water, and sulfur

What is liquefied petroleum gas? How can it be transported? What is it used for? Percentage of energy natural gas and LPG supply to the US?

similar to natural gas, but in liquid form and is a slightly less dense energy substitute -by train or truck and stored at the point of use in tanks -in place of natural gas and or portable barbecue grills and heaters -29%

energy carrier

something that can move and deliver energy in a convenient, usable form to end users