EGEE 101 Final Exam

Which is more expensive? $100/ton of coal or $3/MCF of natural gas?

-The COAL is more expensive -100/26 = $3.85/MMBtu -3/1 = $3/MMBtu

A power plant produced 50 MJ of useful energy and 200 MJ of wasted heat. What is the efficiency?

-Useful energy in problem/Total energy in problem -50/250 = 0.20 = 20%

Which size particulates are the most harmful to human health?

0.1 to 2.0 microns

How much did the temperature warm from 1850 to 2007?

0.85 C

After a Uranium based fuel rod has spent 3 years in a reactor, how much of its Uranium has been used?

10%

Approximately how much stronger do climate models predict extreme weather like hurricanes will become by 2100?

10% stronger

The temperature at which nuclear fusion becomes possible

13 million C

What percentage of the world's electricity comes from hydroelectric dams?

20% -remember: only 7% of the US's electricity comes from hydroelectric dams (separate question)

If a solar farm requires 40 acres in Iowa (210 sunny days per year), how much land would it require in Nevada (350 sunny days per year)?

24 acres

At current US reserves, how long will coal last?

283 years

Nuclear fuels rods are _________ Uranium by concentration

3-4%

If H = 3 meters, Q = 3 cubic meters per second, and efficiency is 50%, what is the power output in Watts? Assume 9.81.

44,145 Watts

A proximate analysis shows that a certain lignite coal is 10% moisture, 30% volatiles, and 10% ash. What is the percent fixed carbon?

50%

A power plant produces 50 MJ of useful energy and 100 MJ of wasted heat. What is the efficiency?

50/150 = 0.33 = 33%

At current US reserves, how long will natural gas last?

86 years

Panels that use sunlight to heat up air or water and transfer it to your forced air heating or residential water heater

Active solar heating

Radioactive decay that emits two protons and two neurons

Alpha decay

Which coal rank has the highest heating value?

Anthracite

Which fossil fuel contains ash?

Coal

Which of the fossil fuels are regional commodities with regional prices?

Coal and Natural gas

Nuclear, Wind, Solar, and Hydropower are all renewable forms of energy (TRUE or FALSE)?

FALSE

Weather and climate are the same thing (TRUE or FALSE)?

FALSE

A calorie is defined as the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree celsius (TRUE or FALSE)?

FALSE -Celsius is correct BUT it should be "the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one GRAM of water by one degree Celsius"

A BTU is defined as the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree CELCIUS (TRUE or FALSE)?

FALSE -it is the amount of energy required to raise the temperature by one degree FAHRENHEIT

The challenge associated with wind energy that fluctuates throughout the day

Intermittency

The problem of needing to install large transmission capacity to move electrons from the power generation source to a market

Location problem

Oil and natural gas typically form in what environment?

Marine life preserved at the bottom of deep lakes

What is the main component of natural gas?

Methane

Which fossil fuel is the cleanest burning?

Natural Gas

Which fossil fuel has the highest heating value per pound?

Natural gas

Geothermal power plants are best when located

Near rift zones

Is the US a net importer or exporter of natural gas?

Net Exporter

The process of one larger nucleus dividing into two smaller nuclei

Nuclear Fission

The process of two smaller nuclei combining into one larger nucleus

Nuclear Fusion

Installing radiant flooring, insulating windows, and heavy curtains to absorb the sun's warmth

Passive solar heating

Layers of silicon that directly convert sunlight into an electric current

Photovoltaic cells (PV)

What is energy?

The capacity to do work

What is the main use for petroleum?

Transportation

How long has hydraulic fracturing "fracking" been being performed in the US?

since 1947

A hydropower dam is rated for 1 GW power generation. The annual energy output is 4380 GWH. What percentage of its capacity is used?

50%

What is work?

Force * Displacement

How many ranks of coal are there?

Four

How much carbon dioxide have we emitted into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels since the industrial revolution?

Half a trillion tons

What is the form of energy contained in a dam called?

Potential energy

The challenge associated with wind energy whose power output cannot be forecast in advance

Predictability

What is the largest energy consumer at home?

Space heating

The sun delivers approximately 10,000 times more energy per second to the earth than the whole world's population uses (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

The three main problems with fossil fuels are that they are non-renewable (fixed amount), pollution, and climate change (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

Wind is caused by uneven heating of the earth's surface (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

A technology that extracts energy out of waves

Tidal energy

In the past, decreasing fertility rates were associated with decreasing poverty levels (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

If a solar farm generates 10 MW in Arizona (320 sunny days per year) is moved to Pennsylvania (160 sunny days per year), what is the new power output?

5 MW -320 produces 10 MW -half of that will produce 5 MW -if it isn't this straight forward set up two fractions and cross multiply

If there are 6,500 TCF of proved reserves of natural gas in the world and we are consuming 123 TCF per year, how long until we run out?

52.8 years -6500/123 = 52.8 years

Betz's law dictates that the maximum efficiency that can be achieved with a wind turbine is

59%

What percentage of the US's electricity comes from hydroelectric dams?

7%

Reflecting sunlight off of mirrors to create concentrated heat for generating steam to rotate a turbine to induce an electric current

Solar energy thermal conversion

As pollution increases, energy consumption increases (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

Biomass is essentially carbon neutral (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

Human development (health, nutrition, education, housing) and a high level of energy use are correlated - we rarely see one without the other (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE

The consensus of the scientific community is that deep geologic storage of high-level radioactive waste is a safe long-term conclusion (TRUE or FALSE)?

TRUE