Egee 101 practice questions
Where does coal come from?
Swamps buried millions of years ago
If you have a glass of ice water and the ice melts, what happens to the water level in your glass ?
The water level stays the same
Is biomass renewable?
There is no right answer
Tar sands require additional processes to separate bitumen and sand before the refining process.
True
Wind is caused by the uneven heating of the earth's atmosphere. Warmer air rises and cooler air moves in
True
Which coal rank has the highest heating value?
anthracite
At $58/bbl, what is the price of oil per MMBTU?
$10
If a 5 MW PV farm costs $50 million in Arizona 9300 sunny days per year), how much would it cost in Pennsylvania (150 sunny days per year)
$100 million
At $52 /ton, what is the price of coal per MMBTU?
$2
At $3 /MCF, what is the price of natural gas per MMBTU
$3
At $3/MCF, what is the price of natural gas at MMBTU
$3
A power plant consumes 100 MJ of energy, of which only 24 MJ are wasted heat. What is the efficiency?
0.76
What energy growth rate per year would increase world energy use by 400% 92 doubling periods) in 80 years?
1.7% per year
Penn state natural gas plant produces 7 MW of power. If it runs at 70% efficiency and has 7 MW Power Out, what is the rate of energy input?
10 MW
A PV farm is 20% efficient and requires 20 acres of land. How much land would it require if it were 40% efficient?
10 acres
It took 100 KJ of coal to produce the 15 KJ of useful energy in your home. What is the total efficiency?
15%
What percentage of US drivers would have to purchase electric vehicles to make another oil crash?
16%
If a 5 MW PV farm is 40% efficient in Arizona (300 sunny days per year), how efficient is it in Pennsylvania (150 sunny days per year)
20%
What is the ash yield if the weight of the ash remaining is 25 grams and weight of the pre-combustion sample is 100 grams?
25%
Kevin wants to use less fodder fuel by purchasing an electric vehicle. EV's are currently about 50% efficient. Gasoline engines are about 25% efficient. What is better for Kevin's wallet and for the environment?
25% overall efficient use of gasoline
What is the uranium concentration in a nuclear fuel rod?
3-4%
Through a combination of fertility rate and decreased poverty levels, a population's energy use is growing exponentially 1% per year. How many years until the energy use doubles?
69.3 years
How much has sea level risen since 1900?
8 inches
Penn state natural gas plant produces 7 MW of power. What if Penn State could successfully reuse 1/3rd of the remaining rejected heat... what is the new process efficiency?
80%
How much of the transportation sector is fueled by petroleum?
92%
What has more potential energy?
A cubic mile of water (a lake) behind a 300 ft tall dam
Panels that heat up air or water to transfer to your home's forced air heating and water heater are called
Active solar heating
The radioactive decay that emits two protons and two neutrons is called
Alpha decay
Which one of these is the main ingredient in natural gas?
CH4
Kevin wants to use less fossil fuel by purchasing an electric vehicle. EV's are currently about 50% efficient. The power in Kevin's neighborhood comes from a coal-fired power plant. When Kevin plugs his EV in at night, what is powering his car?
Coal
The hot coffee heats the mug which heats my hands which are holding the mug, what method of heat transfer is it?
Conduction
Most of the bioethanol produced in United States comes from
Corn
Which of the following has the highest methane content?
Dry gas
The US produces most of its bioethenaol from sugarcane
False
Traditional methods are used to extract conventional oil
False
How does oil reside in the ground?
In porous rocks, like water in a sponge
What does methane smell like?
It is odorless the smell is an additive
Can geothermal power plants replace coal, gas, or nuclear for electricity generation?
It would work in a few places, but not enough to take over a large share
Layers of silicon that transmit electrons when bombarded by photons (sunlight) is called
Photovoltaic cells
A hydroelectric facility that cycles water back through to the reservoir after it has been released is called what type of hydroelectric dam?
Pumped storage
Which series goes from least energetic to most?
Radio< infrared< ultraviolet< x-rays
Is natural gas a regional commodity with regional prices or a worldwide commodity with one worldwide price?
Regional commodity
If landlocked ice melts and enters ocean waters, what happens to global sea levels?
Sea level rises
Approximately how many people do you think die in coal mines each year in the US?
Tens
There are 100 tons of coal and 10 consumers who each want 10 tons. If an additional consumer enters the market and wants 10 tons of coal, what happens to the price of coal?
The price of coal goes up
At $260/ ton, what is the price of coal per MMBTU
$10
At $3/MCF, what is the price of natural gas per MMBTU?
$3
After a uranium based fuel rod has spent 3 years in a reactor, how much of its uranium has been used?
10%
Kevin wants to use less fossil fuel by purchasing an electric vehicle. EV's are currently about 50% efficient. The grid is about 20% efficient and Kevin's EV is about 50% efficient. What is the total efficiency of this process?
10%
a power plant converts 100 KJ of coal into 30 KJ of electrical energy. What is the efficiency?
30%
In 2019 the U.S. used 100.2 quads of energy out of which 67.5 quads were rejected energy. What is the US energy efficiency
32%
The grand coulee dam in 2009 produced 22.6 TWh, compared to a maximum 59.64684 TWh. What percentage of its capacity is used?
38%
How many ranks of coal are there?
4
A PV farm is 20% efficient and requires 20 acres of land. How much land would it require if it were 10% efficient
40 acres
What is the current concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere?
420ppm
How long will natural gas last globally?
50 years
How long will oil last?
50 years
What is the weight percent of fixed carbon if moisture = 3 wt. %, volatile matter = 37wt. %, and ash 10 at. %?
50%
Your home converts 30 KJ of electrical energy into 15 KJ of useful energy (heat,electric) and 15 KJ of wasted energy. What is your home's efficiency?
50%
How long will natural gas last in the US?
50-100 years
What is the theoretical maximum annual output (in TWh) of the grand Coulee dam- rated at 6,809 Megawatts
59.64684 TWh
If Penn states power generation is 70% efficient and campus efficiency (dorms, labs, lecture halls) is raised from 50% to 90%, what is the new process efficiency?
63%
What has more kinetic energy?
A car moving at 120 mph across the bonneville salt flats
Which has more nuclear energy?
An atomic bomb in a silo in North Dakota
Which has more chemical energy?
An oil tanker moored at a terminal
What transformation occurs in a lawn mower?
Chemical to kinetic/ mechanical
What transformation occurs in a computer?
Electrical to light/sound
What is the largest use for carbon dioxide emissions we are capturing today?
Enhanced oil recovery
Nuclear, wind, solar, and hydropower are all renewable forms of energy
False
Approximately how much CO2 has been emitted into the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels?
Half a trillion tons
Which is not an underground mining method?
High wall mining
The wind doesn't always blow. This consideration is called
Intermittency
Which energy conversion do you think wind turbines take advantage of?
Kinetic to mechanical to electric
Which coal rank has the lowest carbon content?
Lignite
The wind doesn't always blow close to electricity markets, this consideration is called
Location
Which are the properties of good crude oil
Low viscosity, low density
Where does oil and gas come from?
Marine life preserved at the bottom of deep lakes
Which is the cleanest burning fossil fuel (least carbon dioxide)?
Natural gas
Is the US currently a net importer or net exporter of natural gas?
Net exporter
Is solar energy unpredictable?
No
Can hydropower replace coal for US electric generation?
No, exploiting all available sites would move hydro from a 6% to perhaps a 10%
Can wind power replace coal for US electric generation?
No, exploiting all available sites would move wind from 2% to perhaps 20%
Kevin lives next to a coal fired power plant. He wants to be greener, so he buys an electric vehicle, which he charges with his home's electricity. Is Kevin helping the environment?
No, the process efficiency and carbonized power grid make Kevin's EV dirtier than an IC (internal combustion vehicle)
Do you think there is more oil to be found?
No, we've pretty much found it all
Was the Chernobyl incident a nuclear explosion?
No. It was a steam powered explosion that destroyed the containment structures and spread nuclear materials over a wide area
Which energy sources typically don't fluctuate during power generation?
Nuclear and hydro
What transformation occurs in the sun?
Nuclear to radiation
Installing radiant flooring, insulating windows, and curtains is called
Passive solar heating
Which is not a surface mining method?
Slope mining
Reflecting sunlight off of mirrors to create concentrated heat for generating steam to rotate a turbine is called
Solar thermal energy conversion
If wind produces more electricity than is demanded, the excess goes unused. This is called
Storage
The safe concentration of methane in drinking water is 28pp,. If you double the concentration of methane in your drinking water, what happens?
The methane concentration goes from 28ppm to 56ppm, same for 28 mg/L to 56 mg/L, drinking water is toxic and will make you sick, you can start lighting water on fire
There are 100 tons of coal and 10 consumers who each want 10 tons. If a consumer leaves the market, what happens to the price of coal?
The price of coal goes down
We don't know when the wind will blow. This consideration is called
Unpredictability
What is the hottest planet in our solar system?
Venus
Which is a property of crude oil?
Very low sulphur
What are the main concerns with nuclear power?
Weapons proliferation, waste disposal, catastrophic accidents
What happens if a utility cannot supply enough electricity to meet a surge in demand
Whole blocks of the grid lose power
Does solar energy have a storage problem?
Yes
Is solar energy intermittent
Yes
Which sector uses the most of petroleum?
transportation
