BBE 2201 Final Study Guide
Biodiesel: In the US about ____________% of cars and light duty trucks are powered with diesel fuel.
2%
Home Electrical Efficiency: My new neighbor is leaving his outside lights on ALL NIGHT LONG. I am not sure why, but I have to talk with her about it. If the two bulbs are old incandescent bulbs using 100 watts each, and are left on for 10 hours per night, how many kWh/day (kilowatt hours per day) are being used?
2.0 kWh/day
Intro to Biomass: Calculate the EROI for a hypothetical fuel that requires 2000 units of energy inputs which gets 5000 units of energy output when used.
2.5 The EROI calculation for this problem is as follows: 5000/2000 = 2.5 Remember the higher the EROI the better.
Intro to Biomass: Biomass energy represents about 43% of the renewable energy used in the US. This 43% is made up of biomass waste, biofuels, and wood. Biofuels makes up about:
20%
Intro to Biomass: Biomass energy makes up about 7% of global energy and what percent of US energy?
4%
Ethanol Introduction: In the US we are producing about 15-16 billion gallons of ethanol from corn grain. About how much ethanol are we producing from cellulose?
5 Million gallons
Home Electrical Efficiency: Lighting in homes is responsible for approximately what % of the home's electric use?
5-7%
Biodiesel: Put a check next to all of the raw materials that were listed in the lecture that can be converted into biodiesel.
Algae Canola Soybean Sunflower Corn
Biodiesel: Which of the following are true regarding biodiesel economics?
Biodiesel is given subsidies and tax credits to make biodiesel more competitive with petroleum diesel Biodiesel prices are mostly driven by soybean prices
Wind Energy: What is the first off-shore wind turbine in the US?
Block Island Wind Farm
Carbon Cycle: Work is ongoing on ways to improve carbon sequestration as part of agricultural practices. What is meant by the term "carbon sequestration?"
Capturing of atmospheric carbon by plants, soils, and oceans.
Transportation Efficiency: What are some ways to reduce your individual VMT?
Carpool or take the Bus Don't drive if you don't have to
How Green? Which biofuel volume mandate changed the most between RFS1 and RFS2?
Cellulosic ethanol
Natural Gas: Natural gas wells are always enclosed in a casing. This casing is sealed with:
Cement Cementing well casings is a very technical operation. The cement is a standard portland cement - like what is used in roads and buildings, but it has some additives to give it the right properties for sealing the wells.
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: Video Quiz From the main video lecture, we know that the industrial sector uses approximately 32% of all US energy. More specifically, 62% of this energy is used in "core production and manufacturing" processes. What are some of these processes? (Check all that apply.)
Compressed air Motors Pumps Steam systems or boilers Fans
Transportation Efficiency: Much of the lesson covered the roles that conservation, efficiency, and low carbon fuels play in reducing petroleum use and greenhouse gases from the transportation sector. Match the term with the definition.
Conservation Fewer Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) Efficiency More Miles out of a gallon of gas Low Carbon Fuels Use energy sources that emit lower GHGs (Full LCA)
Solar Energy: Match the following solar energy terms from the lecture:
Converts solar energy directly to electricty Solar energy that involves no moving parts and has been utilized since ancient times Generates heat for hot air or water for heating systems Converts DC to AC power Determining placement of a solar collector by gathering data related to angles
Intro to Biomass: In 2040 it is projected we could harvest about 1200 million tons of biomass. Most of this would be in the form of:
Crops grown specifically for energy
Solar Economics & Policy: The cost of solar installations is _______________.
Decreasing
Biodiesel: True or False. The refining process can be adjusted to make different products. (For instance if we needed more gasoline and less distillate we could just adjust the refining process to make more gasoline.)
False
Biogas: True or False: Co-digestion is the process of mixing inorganic and organic waste streams into the digester.
False
Geothermal and Hydrogen: True or False, the "Risk" associated with geothermal is that there can be significant environmental damages to the areas where geothermal plants are located.
False
Geothermal and Hydrogen: True or False: The process of hydrogen production is really easy and does not require energy inputs.
False
How Green? D-codes refer only to the % reduction of GHG emissions.
False
How Green? True or False: Ethanol production in the US has required significant land use changes.
False
How Green? True or False? The LCA does not include emissions from burning ethanol in vehicles.
False
Hydroelectricity: True or False. Most wave energy systems that have been developed have been very successful.
False
Hydroelectricity: True or False: Hydropower is gaining popularity around the world. Installed capacity worldwide is estimated to double by the year 2030.
False
Hydroelectricity: True or False? Since wave and tidal energy can only be used near the ocean, these technologies don't have the potential to supply a significant portion of our energy needs.
False
Waste to Energy: True or False? Waste to energy facilities result in lower greenhouse gases per kWh of electricity than any other electricity option available.
False
Wind Economies and Policies: Carbon-free energy by Xcel's definition does not include nuclear energy in the mix. True or False?
False
Wind Energy: True or False? Energy storage (e.g. batteries) is being used on most wind installations.
False
Woody Biomass: True or False: In the US, we have lost forest acres over the past 50 years.
False
Home Electrical Efficiency: True or False: The "Energy Star" program is mandatory - requiring appliances to meet an efficiency standard.
False *Energy Star program is voluntary*
Intro to Biomass: The US Department of Energy (2016 Billion Ton Report) suggests we are currently using about 365 million dry tons per year of biomass. What is currently the largest source of the biomass?
Forest Resources
LCA: According to the resources provided, the purpose of an LCA is to provide ___________________.
Information to assess the environmental impact of a product or service
Petroleum: Which of the following are characteristics of Bitumen (also known as 'tar sands')? Select all that apply.
Is the type of oil found in Alberta, Canada. Viscous, sticky black crude oil. Requires special refining Bitumen is difficult to move around because of its viscous qualities. It must be heated or diluted to get it to flow (which takes energy), and not all refineries can upgrade or process bitumen.
Geothermal and Hydrogen: When geothermal systems are used for cooling, they release more GHG's than traditional cooling systems.
It depends on source of electricity
Geothermal and Hydrogen: All the types of geothermal to electricity systems use steam to drive a turbine. The difference is how this steam is generated and how the fluid is used. What are some unique parts about the dry steam system? Select all that apply.
It is most common type of system It uses steam directly from the ground
Woody Biomass: Why are wood to energy systems considered renewable yet fossil fuels are not? Both sources of energy originate from the sun and carbon captured from the atmosphere.
It is the short time period between carbon capture and release.
Natural Gas: Natural gas is fairly prevalent in the US. Yet, natural gas is generally concentrated in a few select areas of the country.Select the region that is NOT near any natural gas deposits.
Minnesota Literally nothing when we talk about Fossil fuel in the state of Minnesota
Petroleum: Why does the price of crude oil change over time?
More oil pipelines are built Because consumption of oil changes Because extraction of alternatives unconventional oils becomes easier
Petroleum: When will we (the global population) run out of petroleum? (The answer preferred by David.)
Most likely never
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: Which specific type of commonly used industrial equipment was responsible for nearly 3/4 of the electricity use or demand in a plant?
Motors
Natural Gas: Which of the following are examples of environmental issues with the production of Natural Gas?
Natural Gas has been observed to contaminate water during the fracking process Methane leaks are often undetected because it is colorless and odorless.
Energy Policy: When electricity was first invented, it was really expensive ($4.00/kWh). It is much cheaper than that now (about 0.10 per kWh). Lower energy prices are good for everyone as consumers pay less for their direct electricity use and businesses spend less on electricity so can charge less for the products we purchase. These low electricity costs are due in part to an interesting partnership between electric utilities and the government to generate and supply electricity to consumers. This partnership is referred to as.
Regulated Monopoly
Petroleum: The US is the top producer of Crude Oil. Who is the second largest?
Russia
Nuclear Energy: What would you say is the main topic addressed in the video "Is Nuclear Power Good and Bad"?
Safety, fear, and related public perception
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: Many LCA's focus on GHG emissions. ______________ emissions addresses direct energy use
Scope 1
Climate Science: Which absorbs the least energy?
Snow
Solar Energy: From the lecture, select all of the following statements that are TRUE.
Solar energy is a renewable source of energy. With some solar energy systems, the energy collected is stored temporarily as heat to be converted to electricity later. Solar PV systems are very scalable (can be large or small).
Solar Energy: From the lecture, which type of solar system converts solar energy directly to electricity?
Solar photovoltaic (PV)
Biodiesel: The biggest input cost to soybean based biodiesel is ________________ .
Soybean Oil
Home Electrical Efficiency: David mentioned that the average home uses approximately 25 - 30 kWh each day. Match the approximate percent electric energy usage to where it is used in the home. Check out the intro to the course lesson, this is not information is not in the video.
Space Cooling ~16% Water heating ~12% Space heating ~16% Refrigerators and freezers ~7% All other appliances ~39%
Algae: Where does algae get its energy from?
Sun
Hydroelectricity: Many argue that we should be taking advantage of hydropower in a larger way than just the 7% of our total energy profile. Indicate below by answering yes or no to those statements that represent the benefits of using hydroelectric power.
Take advantage of the power of moving water. Yes We can convert kinetic energy to electrical energy using turbines. Yes Hydropower does not require the use of fossil fuels. Yes Many rivers have existing dams that could be converted to generate hydropower. Yes Hydropower creates more greenhouse gases that conventional fossil fuels. No
Hydroelectricity: Which of the following is true regarding the Brazilian government's hydropower projects?
The Belo Monte Dam complex will displace thousands of people
Introduction to Energy: The Btu (British Thermal Unit) is a unit of measurement for energy in a similar way that the inch is a unit of measurement for length.How is a Btu defined?
The amount of energy it takes to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water, 1 degree Fahrenheit
Climate Science: Water vapor is the most prevalent greenhouse gas because it also absorbs infrared radiation. However, water vapor acts as both positive and negative feedback as it relates to climate change. How does water vapor contribute to positive feedback?
Warming of the ocean results in more water vapor. This water vapor traps more heat, which increases global temperatures.
Ethanol Introduction: Between 2001 and 2012 the efficiency of ethanol production has improved. What are the percent increases for the following?
Water Use 46% less Energy used in production 33% less Amount of ethanol per bushel of corn 7% more
Wind Economies and Policies: We know that technology improvements and incentives (such as tax credits) have driven down the cost of renewable energy to be competitive with fossil fuels. From the graph in the presentation, what is currently the cheapest energy source in the Upper Midwest that Xcel Energy can deliver?
Wind
Wind Energy: Why are windmills built so high? Select the most appropriate response.
Wind speeds are faster at higher elevations.
Climate Science: So if the past concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was about 280 ppm and the current concentration is about 410 ppm. What % increase in concentration is this from the past concentration of 280 ppm?
~46% A 46% increase. Calculation- 410-280 = 130 (this is the change). The original concentration was 280 ppm so the % change is: (130/280) x 100 = 46%
Intro to Biomass: Why are plants compared to a battery?
They store energy in a chemical form. They are 'charged' by the sun.
Algae: Algae can produce more lipids (oil and fat) than corn and soybeans on a dry matter basis.
True
Biodiesel: In general, biodiesel has an emission reduction of 50% or more for all feedstocks. True or False?
True
Biogas: True or False: Anaerobic digesters can function as a batch system or as a continuous system.
True
Ethanol Introduction: True or False: Brazil uses sugarcane to produce ethanol.
True
Geothermal and Hydrogen: True or False. A binary cycle geothermal system uses a heat exchanger and two different fluids.
True
Intro to Biomass: Plants both produce and consume carbon dioxide.
True
Nuclear Energy: True or False: In the fission process, mass is converted to energy.
True
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: The auditors doing the Schmidt home energy audit used thermal cameras to check for air leakage. They hooked up an exhaust fan to the front door and then took thermal images (thermal pictures) that showed the warm and cool spots in the home. True or False: The cool areas showed up as the color "blue/purple" on the thermal imaging.
True
Woody Biomass: True or False: Most of the energy produced today from wood to energy systems is related to the industries that produce wood residuals (pulp and paper, lumber mills, etc.)
True
Solar Energy: Solar thermal systems are typically used to heat _____________.
Either Air or Water
Solar Economics & Policy: Minnesota has a Renewable Energy Portfolio that mandates 25% renewable by 2025. What is the goal for generating electricity from solar by 2030?
10%
Waste to Energy: How many WTE facilities currently exist in the state of Minnesota?
12
Introduction to Energy: About what percent of US energy comes from fossil fuels?
80%
Algae: What is the first step in dewatering of the algae?
Chemical Flocculation
LCA: Emily and Katie had a discussion with Dr. Schmidt in the beginning of the lecture video about negative environmental effects that were indirectly caused from the three hand drying options. Select the options below that were mentioned in the lecture video.
Cloth towels require water/electricity to wash Paper towel waste Electricity from the hand dryer
Nuclear Energy: According to the video, under normal operating conditions, which type of facility exposes people to more nuclear radiation?
Coal
Petroleum: Which fossil fuel is responsible for the most global CO2 emissions?
Coal
Biodiesel: Which do we use more of in the US--ethanol or biodiesel?
Ethanol
Natural Gas: We've known for some time that natural gas reserves existed in shale gas, but weren't able to economically extract it. What new drilling technique mentioned in the lecture has made extracting shale gas feasible? Select one.
Horizontal drilling with hydraulic fracturing
Algae: Which production method is better for reducing the risk of contamination by other algae species?
PBR
Biodiesel: Renewable or green diesel is _______________________. Select all that apply.
a fuel with nearly identical properties to petroleum diesel.
LCA: Your best friend "Goldie" tells you that using paper towels to dry your hands is always more environmentally friendly than using a cloth towel, how would you respond knowing what you know about LCA's?
"Hey Goldie, I am proud of you for considering how green different things are, however, deciding what is most environmentally friendly is not black and white and while one may seem immediately better we'd need to consider the LCA of both products before making a decision."
Solar Energy: As a rule of thumb in Minnesota we get about 1600 kWh per year out of a 1 kW Panel. We also pay about $0.13 per kWh for electricity. If I install a 12.5 kW system, what is the annual value of this electricity? Math Hint: Use your math tutorial to calculate kWh/year. Then convert to $/year.
$2600/year The Math: 12.5 kW panel x 1600 kWh per year / 1 kW panel = 20,000 kWh per year Calculating the price is: 20,000 kWh/year x $0.13/kWh = $2600per year Also, if the cost for a solar PV system is $2.50 per watt installed, the cost of a 12.5 kW system is $31,250. This means a simple payback of 12 years! ($31,250/$2600/yr). Most investors would like to see a payback in 3-5 years.
Natural Gas: According to the graph in the briefing, the current wholesale price (Aug 2021) for natural gas is about __________.
$4.00 per MMBtu The average price of natural gas is around $2-4 per MMBtu.
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: Video Quiz The Nordic Ware representative, mentioned how they conduct regular annual maintenance on their compressed air system. If they hear an audible "hiss," this means they lose money. How much money is estimated to be lost if a hiss can be heard?
$700/year
Home Electrical Efficiency: A 10 Watt light bulb is left on 12 hours. How much energy did it use?
0.12 kWh
Home Electrical Efficiency: The TV is considered a constant power device. When it is on it always is using 70 Watts of power. When it is OFF it is using 3 watts of power. If the TV is on 5 hours each day. How much energy is it using in a day? (Calculate on and off to get a total)
0.41 kWh/day Calculations: On: 70 Watts x 5 hours/day= 350 Wh/day Off: 3 Watts x (24-8) hours/day = 57 Wh/day 350 Wh/day + 57 Wh/day = 407 Wh/day or 0.41 kWh/da
Solar Economics & Policy: What % of the federal budget is spent on ALL energy subsidies (according to the briefing paper)? Many will argue that renewable energy is getting way too much in government subsidy. This is an argument for another day, but something to keep in mind is the total dollar amount of subsidies going to energy development and production.
0.6%
Climate Science: Solar output is in an 11 year cycle. Solar energy getting to the earth's atmosphere is about 1360 Watts/m2. This energy varies by about _________________ Watts/m2 depending on the phase of the solar cycle.
1-2 Watts/m2
Intro to Biomass: Plants (biomass) requires energy to grow. Sunlight (photons) provides the energy. On average, what percentage of the energy received by plants from sunlight is converted to chemical energy?
1-2%
Introduction to Energy: Approximately what percent of the world population does not have access to electricity?
13%
Solar Energy: Solar panel efficiency is calculated as the rated output of the panel (Watts) divided by the total solar energy hitting the earth for that same area of panel. The solar energy from the sun is about 1000 W/m2. If a 200 watt panel has an area of 1.5 square meters, what is the efficiency of this panel? (Math hint: calculate the watts per square meter output of the panel and divide by the total energy available . . . and then, of course, multiply by 100 to get it into %)
13.3% The math: 200 watts / 1.5 m2 = 133 Watts/m2 Then: (133 Watts/square meter from panel) / (1000 Watts/square meter from sun) x 100 = 13.3%
Climate Science: The graph below was not presented in the lesson but is a dramatic representation in the rising global temperatures. This graphic compares the monthly temperatures for 2020 and the ten warmest years on record. Pretty crazy that these top ten warmest years on record all happened in the past 15 years. From the graph, which year had the lowest global temperatures?
2009
Waste to Energy: Minnesota currently has 12 waste-to-energy facilities, as was mentioned in the lecture. What percent of Minnesota's 5.7 million tons of total waste each year do these 12 facilities process?
21%
How Green? The use of E10 (corn starch based ethanol) results in an a GHG reduction of about ___________ per MMBtu compared to 100% gasoline.
3%
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: Video Quiz According to the video lecture, the U.S industrial sector accounts for about ____ % of total US energy consumption.
31-32%
Petroleum: The Briefing paper explained that a barrel of crude oil is 42 gallons. On average this barrel of crude oil has an energy content of 5.8 MMBtu or 5,800,000 Btu. During the refining process this 42 gallons of crude oil expands (like rising bread) to how many gallons of refined petroleum product?
45 *42 gallons of oil expands to 45 gallons of oil.*
LCA: In the example given for milk production, about ______ percent of the emissions were from the consumer phase. This is a math problem. What is the total and then what is the amount from the consumer phase?
5 About 5% of the total. That would be 1.7 Tg divided by 35 Tg x 100 which is about 4.8% or approximately 5%.
Wind Economies and Policies: To achieve GHG reduction goals, replacing coal and gas means greater investment in renewables. Energy storage is a key component of that strategy. Xcel Energy is predicting that they will need storage of _________________.
5 GW of 17 hr storage
Wind Energy: A wind turbine is rated at 3.6 MW. If it runs at maximum capacity for 15 hours and then shuts down for the rest of the day due to lack of wind, how much energy did it generate? *When we talk about electricity generation we talk about the generation capacity in units of Power (watts, kilowatts, or megawatts). If we run the generator (e.g. wind turbine) for some period of time we get the energy output. It is simply multiplying 'Power' x 'time' (e.g. kilowatts x hours) and results in an energy value of kWh (kilowatt-hours). NOTE: this is NOT kilowatts per hour or kW/hr!!*
54 MWh The Math: 3.6 MW x 15 hours = 54 MWh
Hydroelectricity: In the DOE videoLinks to an external site. (part of the briefing) they said that there were ________________ dams in the US, but only 3% of them are currently used for hydroelectric. I find that interesting. The dams are being used to hold water for irrigation and maybe had been hydro dams in the past. Some of these hold potential for future hydroelectric generation.
80,000
Transportation Efficiency: Background: A gasoline powered vehicle getting 30 mpg is using energy at a rate of about 4166 BTU/mile What is the energy used per mile (BTU/mile) for an electric vehicle getting 4.0 miles/kWh?For purposes of this lesson we will use the direct conversion of 3,412 BTU/kWh. (Note: In this problem we are not considering the energy used to generate the electricity.)
853 BTU/mile Since we want energy on the top we will start like this: 1 kWh/4.0 miles x 3412 BTU/1 kWh = 853 BTU/mile
Geothermal and Hydrogen: About _______ % of electric generated in Nevada comes from geothermal energy.
9.5%
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: There are a number of barriers to the implementation of energy efficiency technologies and practices in commercial and industrial facilities. A 2015 DOE study organized the barriers into three categories: economic/financial, regulatory, and informational. Indicate which category the following examples fall into.
A company chooses to develop a new product that will produce a profit vs spend that money on reducing energy costs. Economic/Financial A company finds that changing their current ventilation system in the building will require a big permitting effort. Regulatory Planning for future energy costs is really difficult. Economic/Financial The person in charge of energy at the factory also manages safety and several other aspects. It's hard for them to find time to learn about energy efficiency. Informational There is no clear way to find out where the company gets its energy from and how much they use. Informational
Energy Policy: We learned about different incentives as a policy tool to promote adoption of behaviors and practices.
A company gets to reduce their taxes by 30% of the value of their clean energy investment. Tax Credit The government provides money to a homeowner for investing in energy efficiency. Grants or Rebated The government allows a company to borrow money at 0% interest to pay for a new high efficiency furnace. Loans
Climate Science: Rank the following surfaces based on their albedo from 1(most reflective) to 4 (least reflective).
A completely black surface 4 Water 3 Snow 1 Green Grass 2 a surface with higher albedo (a number closer to 1) is more reflective than a surface with a lower albedo (a number closer to 0). For example, a surface with an albedo of 0.99 is much more reflective than a surface with an albedo of 0.05. This means darker surfaces absorb more energy (water absorbs more energy than ice or snow)
Solar Economics & Policy: One of the arguments against solar is that it is non-dispatchable. That means that we don't have control over the output sometimes (e.g. clouds, solar eclipses, nighttime, etc.). What actions were mentioned in the briefing that are being used to help keep the grid stable? Check all that apply.
A larger and smarter grid system Energy Storage Demand Control Over development of wind and solar
Energy Policy: Some general understanding of the federal budget is useful as it puts energy spending in perspective. What % of the total federal budget is spent on energy and environment?
About 1%
Carbon Cycle: The deep ocean stores a significant amount of carbon. In fact, it stores about ______ times more carbon than the atmosphere.
About 50 The ocean is a very important sink for carbon and has helped to manage the excess in carbon dioxide concentrations. The ocean has 40-50 times more carbon than the atmosphere. 37,000 Gt/ 800 Gt) = 46 times more.
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: Video Quiz Representatives from Nordic Ware and Embossing Plus addressed a number of technologies and areas where they reduced energy use. Indicate which technologies and areas they defined as improving energy efficiency (by choosing yes or no).
Air circulation fans Yes Compressed air Yes Lighting Yes Motors with variable speed drive Yes Heating and ventilation Yes Occupancy sensors No Pumps No Process heat (such as reusing heat for processing some of their products) No
Carbon Cycle: Match the word to the definition (as noted in the Carbon Cycle lesson materials).
Algae and other plants play this role in the Carbon Cycle. (Carbon Sink ) Describes how carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of Earth. ( TheCarbon Cycle ) Describes the amount of carbon dioxide, or equivalent greenhouse gas, caused by a person, organization, event or product. (Carbon Footprint ) Carbon created by human activity ( Anthropogenic Carbon )
Algae: Algae require the same inputs as other photosynthetic plants. Algae farmers must control nutrients, sunlight, and carbon dioxide and other environmental factors. What did the briefing say about carbon dioxide?
Algae can use higher concentrations than are in the atmosphere.
Ethanol Introduction: DDGS are a co-product from the ethanol fermentation process--basically the leftovers that the yeast does not eat. What are the DDGS used for?
Animal feed
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: The home energy audit at David's house resulted in a number of energy cutting improvements that he could work on. Indicate whether these improvements were recommended by the auditor by indicating yes or no.
Appliances No Attic Insulation Yes Insulation around windows Yes Insulation around electrical outlets Yes Hot water heater No Recessed Lights Yes
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: Cooling loads are those sources of heat in the house that impact the cooling system. What are some examples of heat sources in the home? Check all that apply.
Appliances and devices that generate heat People and animals Solar radiation
Energy Policy: In the summary section of the briefing paper, we learned about how much energy was saved by different policies or programs. Of all the energy programs and policies reviewed, which one saved the most amount of energy for this time period?
CAFE Standards
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: _______________ is a leading driver for companies investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy (especially food and agricultural companies), and is generally incorporated into overall corporate sustainability planning.
Carbon reduction
Nuclear Energy: We really liked this video as it gives a pretty fair perspective on nuclear. However, as with anything, things are changing. In the video produced in 2016 they suggest at just 11 seconds in to the video that coal represented 39% of our electricity supply, nuclear was 19%, and hydropower was 6%. We need you to know how fast these numbers are changing. According to EIA energy explainedLinks to an external site., what are the % contributions of each of these sources to our electric supply?
Coal 22% Nuclear 19% Hydropower 6.3%
Home Electrical Efficiency: Schmidt mentioned the term "phantom or vampire power" in his lecture. He really does not like that term as it indicates that we don't know what is using power. Instead he uses the term "Always On" because after this class we are smarter and should know what is using the electricity in our home. There are no phantom power users. A good indicator of something using power even when turned off are electronics that have an "instant-on" feature. Computers and TV's are a good example of this. Electronics chargers (e.g. cell phone, laptop) are typically not using power unless they are charging something. (OK--older charging systems may use some power, but most of the newer chargers are using about 0.1 watts when they are not charging something.) Question: Indicate below which items likely use phantom power and which likely do not.
Coffee makers with no clock or preheat feature Likely does NOT use phantom power Hair Dryers Likely does NOT use phantom power Curling Irons Likely does NOT use phantom power Kitchen Light Likely does NOT use phantom power Television (with Instant on feature) Uses phantom power Xbox or PS3 Uses phantom power Microwave with a clock Uses phantom power
Coal and Electricity: Thermal electrical systems that use steam to turn a turbine are inherently inefficient because 60-70% of the energy is wasted or lost as heat. What technology is used to improve the energy efficiency of these systems.
Combined heat and power
Solar Economics & Policy: The Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) refers to _________.
Comparing costs of electricity from different fuel sources, taking into account the full cost of building and operating an energy generating plant over a certain life and duty cycle.
LCA: Life Cycle Assessments are generally considered to be a ________________ analysis, going through all stages of the life cycle of a product.
Cradle to Grave A LCA where a 'Cradle to Grave' analysis, measure from production or extraction to final disposal.
Climate Science: What factors need to be considered when calculating the earth's energy balance?
Distance from the sun to the earth. Absorption, reflection, and re-readiation of the sun's energy Energy output from the sun
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: What are some of the practices that can be put into place to conserve energy related to hot water?
Don't run the dishwasher until it is full of dishes. Take shorter showers.
Carbon Cycle: Match the activity to the type of emissions.
Driving a car to the store ( Direct ) Turning up the thermostat in your home ( Direct ) Manufacturing an Iphone ( Indirect ) Building a road ( Indirect )
Hydroelectricity: Countries like Albania and Paraguay get 100% of their power from hydropower. Most countries have a mix of electric power resources. Can you think of the main reason 100% hydro power might be risky?
Drought as a result of climate change could reduce dam output
Waste to Energy: Which of the following is the correct definition of embedded energy?
Embedded energy is the energy that is used when manufacturing a specific product
Hydroelectricity: With all its benefits, there are also downsides to building hydroelectric plants. Indicate you understand the downsides by answering "yes" to the statements below that are true.
Emits methane. Yes Negatively impacts biodiversity. Yes Displaces local people. Yes Floods large tracts of land. Yes Damming rivers destroys habitats (both aquatic and land habitats). Yes Dams require so much labor and person-hours to operate they are difficult to operate economically. No
LCA: Which of the following groups was NOT specifically listed as a potential user of LCAs?
Environmental activists
How Green? Match the fuels to the RFS2 Fuel categories
Ethanol from corn starch Coventional Biofuel D6 Wood residues Cellulosic Biofuels D3 Soybean Oil Biomass-Based Diesel D4 Sugarcane Advanced Biofuel D5
LCA: Life cycle assessments (LCA) can analyze a wide range of environmental and health impacts. Which of these are impacts that could be evaluated with an LCA?
Eutrophication potential Yes Ozone destruction Yes Ocean Acidification Potential Yes Human Health Yes Climate Change Potential Yes Almost any environmental impact can be evaluated with an LCA. The most popular is climate change. The problem is getting the data.
Transportation Efficiency: According to the lecture, which one of the following is NOT TRUE regarding the 2016 CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency) Standards?
Every vehicle, regardless of its type, must meet the standard of 54.5 mpg by 2025.
Biogas: True or False? Producing biogas is limited being used only in warm tropical areas.
False
Coal and Electricity: True or False: Coal in the US makes up about 50% of the total world reserves.
False
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: In the video, David showed some thermal imaging photos. True or False: The photos showed that outlets on outside walls were sealed well.
False
Wind Economies and Policies: True or False: Xcel Energy's service territory in the US puts it at a distinct disadvantage to incorporate renewable energy into its portfolio of energy services
False
Wind Economies and Policies: True or False? A diverse portfolio of strategies will be critical to meeting customer needs and carbon emission reduction goals. Therefore, fossil fuels will play a major role in Xcel's strategy to meet their 2050 carbon reduction goals.
False
Wind Energy: Your arch nemesis "Bucky" the badger says that wind energy isn't a good source of energy because it is very wasteful, is this a true or false statement?
False *85-90% of wind turbines can be recycled*
Coal and Electricity: True or False: Minnesota has vast reserves of coal that it mines and uses to generate electricity.
False *Minnesota has no coal reserves- MN depends on neighboring states coal resources*
Ethanol Introduction: Most of the corn that is grown in the US is used to produce ethanol.
False About 40% of the corn crop is used for ethanol, but remember about 25% of that goes back to the farm to feed animals in the form of DDGS.
Transportation Efficiency: True or False? The Biden administration has significantly increased federal gasoline taxes resulting in the recent increase in gas prices.
False Federal gas taxes have remained constant at about $0.18/gallon since the early 1990's; the Biden Administration has not increased federal gasoline taxes. Crude oil prices (largely set by OPEC nations) and simple supply and demand economics are the driving forces behind gasoline prices.
Transportation Efficiency: Which one of these activities focus on improving fuel efficiency when driving a vehicle?
Fewer quick starts and stops
Nuclear Energy: What is the name of the process that splits Uranium to release energy?
Fission
Solar Energy: Which of the following energy systems ultimately draw energy from the sun?
Fossil Fuel Plants (Biofuel) Wind Turbines
LCA: There are 3 main phases of an LCA analysis. Match the order of the phases of an LCA analysis to the phase description.
Goal and scope definition including system boundaries. Phase 1 Inventory analysis, including quantification of process steps. Phase 2 Impact assessment, including characterization of emissions, impacts, normalization, and weighting. Phase 3
Transportation Efficiency: Recall that there was a discussion transportation efficiency and how it can be measured. If we are concerned about climate change what efficiency measure is most important?
Grams CO2 per mile Each fuel has unique emissions so if we are really concerned about climate - the only option is CO2 per mile (or CO2e per mile).
Waste to Energy: The Hennepin Energy Recovery Center HERC waste-to-energy video indicated that the energy produced is used for a variety of operations. Which of the following is NOT an end use for the energy produced?
Heating a nearby greenhouse
Natural Gas: The wholesale price of natural gas is most commonly referencing a distribution point in Louisiana called:
Henry Hub Henry Hub is a distribution point in Erath, Louisiana that has several pipelines passing through (hence the term "hub"). It is owned by Sabine Pipeline (same group setting up ports and selling LNG).
Geothermal and Hydrogen: Match the following steps of a Deep Geothermal Power Plant as it occurs as described in the briefing.
Hot Water 1 Turbine/Generator 2 Cooling Tower 3 Injection Well 4
Climate Science: Why do climate scientists mainly compare the earth's present climate to earth's climate over the past 800,000 years?
Humans have only existed for the past few hundred thousand years, so variations in climate are only important for humans over this time period.
Woody Biomass: In the Christian tradition many people purchase and decorate small pine trees to help celebrate Christmas (Christmas trees). There is also the option of purchasing and reusing plastic Christmas trees for this purpose. Which of these has the lower carbon footprint?
I don't think we have enough information to answer this question. There are many factors to consider.
Wind Economies and Policies: According to the introduction to the lecture video, approximately 33 states require Integrated Resource Plans (IRPs) to be filed to their Public Utilities Commission every two years. IRPs were started in the 1980s in response to the oil embargo and the high cost to build nuclear power plants. What is the primary purpose of the IRP today? (Select all that apply).
IRPs include a review of existing and new power plants, customer energy use, and energy efficiency. Utilities prepare this plan to take a long-term look at the energy capacity investments needing to be made to serve their customers.
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: Between 1940 and 1980 both total residential energy and energy used for space heating fell. This was because ________.
Improved construction and heating systems became more efficient. Currently we are using less energy to heat our homes and in general using less energy per home than we were in 1940.
Climate Science: What are the TWO primary ways that humans impact the earth's energy balance?
Increased greenhouse gas emissions Land use changes that impact average reflection/absorption
Woody Biomass: Wood biomass can be used in a variety of ways as a source of energy. Some are more common than others. The least likely option is in the fermentation of wood to some liquid fuel (e.g. cellulosic ethanol). Wood to liquid fuels is possible (e.g. pyrolysis), but lots of energy is needed to get the wood into small pieces so it can be processed.
Industrial CHP systems producing heat and electricity Residential heating
Energy Policy: Are government mandates and regulations the most effective form of energy policy to achieve environmental protection?
It depends, sometimes mandates are appropriate, other times not.
Natural Gas: What are some reasons why companies flare natural gas rather than sell it?
It is expensive to clean up the gas before selling. No pipeline to transport it to markets
Algae: What happens when algae is stressed?
It produces other products.
Petroleum: When we think of petroleum products we typically think of gasoline. However, gasoline takes up only a portion of a standard barrel of oil. Match together how much of a barrel of oil (%) plastics, solvents, and other industrial chemicals take up. Reference Figure 6.
Jet Fuel 9.77% Distillate 27.78% Oil 1.11%
Ethanol Introduction: Ethanol is produced from sugar. Which of the following materials can be used to produce this sugar? Select all that apply.
Kernels of Corn Corn Stalks Wood Sugrarcane
Intro to Biomass: The term "biofuel" typically refers to what?
Liquid or gaseous fuels derived from biomass
Natural Gas: Shale gas is having a huge impact on the natural gas industry as a significant new energy source. What are some of the benefits of increased (and cheaper) natural gas production? Check all that apply.
Lower overall energy costs for consumers Cheaper energy influences lower prices for other commodities Lower heating bills for consumers Cleaner Electricity
Biodiesel: A number of biodiesel (FAME- biodiesel) attributes were covered in this lesson. In the statements below, indicate whether these characteristics fit biodiesel vs petroleum diesel.
Lower sulfur emissions Biodiesel Better lubrication properties Biodiesel Higher energy density Petroleum Diesel Higher oxygen content Biodiesel Cold weather problems Biodiesel Higher particulate emissions Petroleum Diesel Lower GHG emissions Biodiesel
Wind Energy: What is an advantage of wind energy from the list below that was NOT mentioned in the briefing document conclusions?
Lowest footprint energy source
Coal and Electricity: Indicate below whether these are attributes of a Smart Grid management system, by indicating "yes" or "no".
Make our electric system more efficient, reliable, and low cost yes Addition of electric storage, such as battery storage Yes Allow grid balancing to meet power needs over a larger geographic area Yes Employ demand side management techniques to level out peak demand Yes
Energy Policy: Which of the following approaches was used in EISA to help improve lighting efficiency?
Mandated the watts per lumen (energy per amount of light produced) for light bulbs
Transportation Efficiency: Which of the following are true regarding the CAFE/SAFE vehicle standards?
Many experts disagree with claims that CAFE standards compromised vehicle safety The 2020 SAFE vehicle standards are less restrictive compared to 2016 CAFE standard in terms of CO2 emissions and vehicle fuel efficiency
Algae: The most common method for extracting oil out of the algae is:
Mechanical pressing and solvent extraction
Energy Policy: Match each form of government spending to the correct spending type.
Medicare and medicaid Mandatory Military spending Discretionary Unemployment Mandatory Education Discretionary
Biogas: Biogas is a mixture of gases. What is the most common gas found in biogas?
Methane
Woody Biomass: Rank the following tree carbon cycles by speed of releasing captured carbon with 1 being the fastest and 3 being the slowest carbon cycle. Assume that the life of lumber 100 or more years.
Natural Death 2 Harvest for Lumber 3 Harvest for Energy 1
Petroleum: Match the following using Figure 2.
Natural gas accounts for what percent of our total energy supply? 32% What % of transportation energy comes from petroleum? 90% What % of transportation energy comes from biofuel/renewables? 5% What % of petroleum is used for transportation? 66% What % of petroleum goes to industrial uses? 26%
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: Which of the following are true regarding natural gas?
Natural gas is a low cost source of energy Natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel
Woody Biomass: In the lecture, David mentioned the need to be aware of the energy balance for wood, as well as for other fuels. Energy balance is essentially "energy in minus energy out" for the entire system. This is also represented by the term EROI (Energy Returned on Energy Investment). Which equation below best represents the net energy balance for wood? (The dashes are minus signs.)
Net Energy = energy in the harvested wood - energy for land prep - energy used for harvest/chipping/transport - energy for drying and mill processing *The net energy available from wood as fuel is represented by: energy content of the harvested wood (minus) energy for land prep (minus) energy used for harvest/chipping/transport (minus) energy for drying and mill processing.*
Waste to Energy: Rank the following materials based on increasing embedded energy in MJ/kg, with (1) being the most energy and (3) being the least energy.
Paper From Trees 2 Wood 3 Aluminum 1
Solar Energy: In the lecture and in the DOE video, Energy 101: Concentrated SolarLinks to an external site., we heard that most concentrated solar power (CSP) systems currently in use concentrate the sun's energy to make steam that is then used to generate electricity. A number of different configurations were talked about to concentrate the sun's energy. Indicate True or False for the technologies below that concentrate solar energy.
Parabolic Troughs True Dishes True Power Towers True Solar Flares False PV Panels False
Carbon Cycle: Which of the following are true regarding global carbon emissions?
Per capita carbon emissions in the United States are more than double China's per capita carbon emissions. The United States, Russia, and Japan are the three leading per capita carbon emitters.
Carbon Cycle: In the US, which of these fossil fuels was responsible for the most CO2 emissions in 2019? (NOTE: NOT global but US emissions)
Petroleum
Algae: Select below the two methods to grow algae.
Photobioreactors Open ponds or raceways
Algae: According to the lecture, many algae companies are producing and marketing co-products such as __________ to offset some of the production costs of producing biofuels, that will help give algae-to-biofuels a competitive edge compared to other fuels. (Check all that apply)
Pigments Nutritional supplements
Carbon Cycle: We learned that anthropogenic (human-caused) emissions have added 9 billion metric tons (gigatons) of carbon to the fast carbon cycle. Of these nine gigatons, two gigatons are taken up by oceans and four are going into the atmosphere. Where are the other three gigatons going?
Plants, soils and other biomass 3 GT is going to plants, soils, and other biomass
How Green? We can't generalize too much about politicians and their support or opposition for ethanol. But if we could, what views would the following types of politicians have?
Politicians representing rural areas . . . Would support ethanol Politicians trying to protect the environment . . . May or may not support ethanol Politicians that don't like government intervention. . . . Would likely not support ethanol
Ethanol Introduction: A by-product of corn ethanol production is distillers grain (commonly referred to as Dried Distillers Grains Solubles or DDGS). This product makes good animal feed primarily because of its high content of __________.
Protein
Solar Economics & Policy: With community solar there are typically three parties or groups involved in the transaction. These are:
Ratepayer, utility, and third party developer
How Green? Which of the following are reasons mentioned in the briefing of why we want to improve biofuels?
Reduce GHG emissions Energy independence
Waste to Energy: Thinking about the solid waste management hierarchy, what method is found at the top of the hierarchy?
Reduce and Reuse
Solar Economics & Policy: In the section titled "What is wrong with solar" there was some discussion about land use. How much area is used by solar panels is part of the issue, but a couple of other negative land use issues were mentioned. They are (select all that apply):
Reduction of property values and reduced tax revenue Visual Impacts Wildlife habitat destruction
Geothermal and Hydrogen: Which of the following are benefits of deep geothermal systems? Select all that apply.
Renewable energy is produced Small footprint Low impact on the environment
Coal and Electricity: A portion of the lecture was spent on the standard generation and distribution of electricity - generation, transmission, and distribution. It is important to learn about our current system's pros and cons because renewable energy must compete and be integrated with this system. Which of the following criteria need to be met to make renewable energy viable?
Renewable energy must be economical. Renewable energy must be reliable. Renewable energy must compete environmentally.
Solar Economics & Policy: Cost of solar is a function of many things. What I think is important is getting as much clean energy on the grid as cheaply as possible. Residential solar is about 3 times more expensive than utility scale solar. From the briefing, what are the 2020 installed costs of residential, commercial, and utility (fixed tilt) scale?
Residential $2.71/watt Commercial $1.72/watt Utility Fixed Tilt Panel $0.94/watt
LCA: We learned that "where you live" has a large part to play in your carbon footprint. What does this refer to?
Some areas of the country have cleaner electricity sources.
Wind Energy: Take a look at this map from the lecture or from this website - DOE Wind Powering America map for Minnesota Wind Potential. (Links to an external site.) What region of the Minnesota map shows the BEST wind conditions for locating wind turbines?
Southwest
Biodiesel: Biodiesel can be derived from a number of raw materials or feedstocks. Match the feedstock with the percent contribution to biodiesel in the US.
Soybean oil 66% Canola oil 11% Animal fat 5% Corn oil 18%
Energy Policy: At the end of the discussion about Minnesota's Renewable Energy Portfolio and the Next Generation Energy Act, we presented a few thoughts regarding the future of state and federal policies. We suggested that _____________.
States may play a more important role in renewable energy than the federal government
How Green? This question refers to Figure 4. Carbon debt refers to the carbon lost from converting land to crop production for biofuels. If you were a policy maker basing your decision on only how quickly your carbon debt could be repaid, indicate the order of priority for the following biofuels and their sources. 1 indicates the best option (shortest number of years to repay carbon debt) and 5 indicates the worst option (highest number of years to repay carbon debt).
Sugarcane ethanol from Brazil's wooded lands. 1 Palm biodiesel from Malaysia's peatland rainforest. 5 Soybean biodiesel from Brazil's grasslands. 2 Soybean biodiesel from Brazil's rainforest. 4 Corn ethanol from abandoned cropland. 3
Coal and Electricity: The United States electric grid consists of three separate electric networks that are not synchronized or connected with each other. What are the names of these networks?
Texas, Eastern, & Western *There is no real power sharing between them*
Carbon Cycle: The information in this lesson did a nice job illustrating carbon sources and sinks. It indicated that about 9 gigatons (Gt) of carbon has been added to the carbon cycle. Photosynthesis absorbs about 3 Gt, the oceans absorb about 2 Gt. The remaining 4 Gt is taken up by _____________________.
The Atmosphere
Climate Science: Which of the following statements are true regarding earth's climate?
The Milankovitch cycles are thought to have contributed to past climate change on cyclical cycles Earth's planetary albedo (the proportion of the sun's energy that is reflected by the earth back to space) is roughly 30%
Biogas: Anaerobic digesters are often located on dairy farms because there is a ready source of organic material for the digester. Which one of the following statements is true in relation to the number of farm biogas digesters that are operating in the U.S.?
There are currently about 250 on-farm biogas digesters operating in the U.S.
Ethanol Introduction: Select all of the following statements that were mentioned in the briefing regarding the future of ethanol.
There is a upcoming technology/industry that will be focused on the buying and selling of CO2 to make ethanol economically viable There is upcoming "2nd" fermentation process of the DDGS to make the grain coating into ethanol Ethanol yield in the future will likely keep increasing and will end up being more efficient/viable
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: What are the two types of heat loss talked about in this lesson?
Transmission losses, making up about 60-80% of total heat loss Air exchanges, leaks, etc, making up 20-40% of total heat loss *Air exchanges and transmission losses make up the largest source of heat loss*
Algae: True or False? Algae are capable of producing industrial chemicals that are suitable to serve as petrochemical equivalents.
True
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: True or False: Integrated building management systems are essentially smart buildings using data and communication mechanisms for greater efficiency, energy savings, and GHG reductions.
True
Climate Science: Absorption of energy by carbon dioxide can be tested in the laboratory. True or False?
True
Coal and Electricity: True or False, The wholesale price of electricity is changing every few minutes?
True
Coal and Electricity: True or False? The electric grid has evolved over time and is a complex system that manages our electricity from point of generation all the way through distribution to the user.
True
Energy Policy: True or False: The Minnesota Next Generation Energy Act set goals for energy efficiency, renewable energy production, and for GHG emission reductions.
True
Ethanol Introduction: True or False? Ethanol blended fuel contains more oxygen, which make the emissions less harmful to the environment (results in more complete combustion).
True
Geothermal and Hydrogen: Both heating and cooling can be done with ground source heat pump systems which is pretty neat. True or False: Geothermal systems are typically more expensive to install than traditional systems.
True
Home Electrical Efficiency: The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 did lots of stuff. One of the items in the Act required lighting to become more efficient. This was phased in between 2012 and 2014. True or False. EISA required lighting to be 25% more efficient.
True
Solar Energy: The DOE Energy 101 video: Concentrated Solar PowerLinks to an external site. you saw in the lecture indicated that CSP systems work great in the sunny Southwest US. True or False: One real advantage to CSP systems is that they can take the heat from the sun and store it temporarily (in molten salt or oil), allowing for electricity generation at night.
True
Solar Energy: True or False? Annual solar insolationLinks to an external site. (irradiance) varies considerably even at locations with the same latitude. If you need to, you can check these maps from NREL on solar photovoltaic resourcesLinks to an external site. in the US. Follow the 35th parallel line as an example. Correct!
True
Waste to Energy: True or False: About 15-16% of total US energy consumption per year goes to growing, processing, transporting, and using food (ie the embedded energy in food).
True
Waste to Energy: True or False? Often a WTE plant includes an integrated Materials Recovery Facility (MRF).
True
Wind Economies and Policies: Significant efforts in a number of sectors toward low carbon electricity will be needed to meet carbon reduction goals. True or False?
True
Wind Economies and Policies: True or False: IRPs can be a useful tool in meeting GHG reduction goals and other environmental needs
True
Wind Economies and Policies: True or False? Xcel Energy's current GHG reductions and future GHG reduction goals are going beyond the Minnesota statewide carbon reduction goals.
True
Wind Energy: The briefing paper had a section on "environmental concerns" and had some comparisons of land use. This section drew on an interesting study that looked at both direct and indirect land use for the different energy sources. True or False: Wind energy requires about 70 acres for every 1 MW of production capacity.
True
Woody Biomass: The Billion Ton Study revealed that wood energy is likely to continue to be part of the US energy mix.
True
Waste to Energy: CHP refers to Combined Heat and Power or the cogeneration of heat and electricity. Steam generators produce electricity, then the waste heat is captured and used to heat and cool buildings. True or False? CHP is typically integrated with WTE facilities.
True *CHP is viable only where there is a need for heat close by. This means cities or factories.*
Carbon Cycle: We can attribute carbon emissions to economic sectors (e.g. industry, transportation). While this is useful, it is not an entirely accurate way to place blame on carbon emissions. True or False. Most carbon emissions can be attributed to consumer behavior (e.g. flying, driving, eating, buying stuff).
True Once the product is bought the consumer is then responsible for how we use the energy.
Carbon Cycle: True or False? As we burn fossil fuels, carbon is released into the atmosphere (some as carbon dioxide), moving this carbon from the slow cycle to the fast carbon cycle.
True The biggest cause of climate change
Petroleum: What country has the most proven reserves?
Venezuela Venezuela at about 302,809 million barrels of oil reserves. This is why we do our best to maintain some sort of diplomacy with Venezuela despite their politics.
Intro to Biomass: What would make land owners grow energy crops rather than food crops?
Very low food prices
Natural Gas: The EPA study (and report) regarding the impact of hydraulic fracturing on water quality and water quantity. Which of the items did they find would increase the risk to water (indicate by selecting true or false)?
Withdrawing fracking water from areas that had low groundwater supplies True Injection of fracking water into wells that were not maintained well True Transporting fracking water in trucks False Spilling fracking water into surface water True Storing wastewater in unlined pits above ground True
Introduction to Energy: Prior to 1900, the primary source of energy was ___________________.
Wood
Wind Economies and Policies: Which utility has the largest community solar garden growth in the US?
Xcel Energy
Energy Policy: Tax credits are an example of an incentive program meant to help push industry or consumers in one direction or another. What is one current tax credit program for purchasers of electric vehicles (EVs)? (Just a reminder: EV is Electric Vehicle. ICE is Internal Combustion Engine)
You get to take $7500 off of taxes you would normally pay.
Solar Economics & Policy: According to EIALinks to an external site., in 2021 the US generated 114 million MWh from utility solar and 49 million MWh from residential. If the total net electricity generation in the US in 2020 was 4100 million MWh, what % of it was from utility and residential solar (combined)?
about 3.9% (114 million MWh + 49 million MWh) / 4,100 million MWh = 0.039 * 100 = 3.9%
Biogas: Biogas is also generated from the organic waste buried in landfills. It is basically the same biological process just not quite as efficient. There are about 560 landfill sites currently collecting and using this biogas. Approximately how many more landfill sites could viably collect biogas in the US? (Hint. This is discussed in the section on landfills.
about 480
Natural Gas: Approximately what percentage of US natural gas currently comes from shale?
about 80% Shale gas production was only about 10% of domestic production back in 2000, so this is a HUGE shift in our domestic energy system. It is now about 80% (78%) of our production.
How Green? Match the volumes of biofuels mandated in 2019.
biomass based diesel 2.1 Billion Gallons advanced biofuels 4.92 Billion Gallons cellulosic biofuel 418 Million Gallons corn Ethanol 15 Billion Gallons
Biogas: Biomethane is a term that is used _____________________.
to describe biogas that is cleaned up and contains only methane
Climate Science: Calculating the Earth's energy balance is really complicated. There are many factors to evaluate. The calculations suggest that the Earth's energy balance is off by about _________________.
~0.6 Watts/m2
Climate Science: What is the average global temperature?
~15˚ degree C (Celsius) Also could be 59˚ F
Coal and Electricity: There is a graph showing a breakdown of global carbon emissions. What % of the total GLOBAL carbon emissions comes from coal?
~40% The World in Data resource indicates that about 40% of the global CO2 emissions come from coal combustion.
Transportation Efficiency: Vehicle efficiency is typically calculated in miles traveled per gallon (mpg). This comparison is good, but difficult to use when comparing to an electric vehicle since there are no "gallons of electricity". Another efficiency measure is energy used per distance traveled, or for our case BTU/mile.Question: Using an energy density for gasoline of 125,000 BTU/gal, what is the average energy use per mile (BTU/mile)? Assume your gasoline-powered vehicle gets 30 MPG (miles/gallon).
~4200 BTU/mile Calculations- Have the energy units on the top and start with: 1 gallon/30 miles x 125,000 Btu/gallon = 4166 BTU/mile
Transportation Efficiency: There has been quite a bit of discussion regarding the causes of fluctuations in the price of gasoline at the pump. According to the figure presented in the lecture, approximately what percent of the price of regular gasoline at the pump in 2020 was attributed to the cost of crude oil? (NOTE: Recall the gas pump visual). Note the difference between the average share 2011-2020 and the 2020 share with the very low crude oil prices.
~45% The cost of refining, marketing, and taxes remains about the same - about $1.20 per gallon, or about 20% of the price of regular gasoline at the pump. That means when the price of gas goes up and down, most of this fluctuation is related to the price of crude oil - like 45 to 70% depending on gas prices.
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: Furnaces have efficiency ratings of AFUE (Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency) of between 90 and 98%. The sizing of furnaces is based on heat output per hour (Btu/hr). What is a typical home furnace heat output?
~50,000 Btu/hr If a furnace output is 50,000 Btu/hr and it runs 10 hours per day, it is using 0.5 MMBtu/day.
Residential Natural Gas Conservation and Efficiency: You take a 10 minute shower every day (365 days per year) You change from a 3.5 gallon per minute shower head to a 2.0 gallon per minute shower head. Each gallon used in the shower requires about 100 Btu of energy to heat. How much energy would you save by making this change? (First, calculate how many gallons are saved per day. Then calculate the gallons per year. Now use the Btu/gallon to calculate the energy saved by using less water.)
~547,500 Btu/yr saved Math Calculation: 1.5 gpm saved for each minute in the shower x 10 minutes per shower is 15 gallons saved per day 15 gallons per day x 365 days = 5475 gallons saved per year 100 Btu/gallon x 5475 gallons/year is 547,500 Btu/year Is this a lot or a little? Remember we use about 100 MMBtu per year for our home. This would be about only about 0.5%, but everything adds up.
Biogas: How is the feedstock broken down into useful biogas and effluent (biofertilizer) in a biogas digester?
Anaerobic bacteria break down the feedstock to biogas and effluent.
Home Electrical Efficiency: The EPA and DOE have a couple of different energy efficiency programs. Match the following:
Blue labels Energy Star Yellow labels Energy Guide Allows comparison of appliances for cost and efficiency Energy Guide Voluntary program for energy efficient consumer products Energy Star Certifies homes for energy efficiency Energy Star
Hydroelectricity: Match the countries with the approximate % of total electric power generated by hydro in that country.
Brazil 66% Canada 60% China 19% Russia 10% Paraguay 100%
Biogas: The briefing talks about the three phases of microbial activity for converting organic material to biogas using anaerobic digestion. Match the step description to the name:
Breaks down complex polymers, such as proteins, fats, and carbs Hydrolysis Sugars, amino acids, and long chain fatty acids are converted to volatile fatty acids Acidogenesis Methane is then formed from the acids produced Methanogenes
Introduction to Energy: The First Law of Thermodynamics is that ____________________________.
Energy is conserved
Woody Biomass: According to the briefing, the value of woody biomass ranges from $10 to $20 per ton.
False
Wind Energy: Most commercial wind turbines are around 1.5 MW, but some are larger. Off-shore wind turbines can be much larger primarily because _____________.
Road transportation limits the size of turbine blades for on-shore wind farms, but this is not a limitation for off-shore farms.
Ethanol Introduction: Which of the following plant materials can be used for the production of ethanol? Select all that apply.
Sugar Cellulose Starch
Home Electrical Efficiency: I checked my coffee maker during the brew cycle with my watt meter. It is using 1000 Watts for 10 minutes when it is brewing and then the warmer is on for 2 hours and uses about 40 watts. I brew one pot of coffee per day. (Note: There is no additional power (phantom) use when it is just plugged in but not brewing or warming.) How much energy does my coffee maker use each day?
0.25 kWh Calculations: Brewing: 1000 Watts x 10 minutes * 1 hour/60 minutes = 166 Wh Warming: 40 Watts x 2 hours = 80 Wh Total = 166 Wh + 80 Wh = 246 Wh or 0.25 kWh
Petroleum: Approximately what time period in years did petroleum surpass coal in consumption in the US?
1950 In the late 40's and early 50s petroleum took over as Number 1 and has stayed there.
Hydroelectricity: Minnesota hydroelectric power generation was about 1.2 GWh in 2018 or about _____% of the total electric generation in the state.
2%
Woody Biomass: Wood makes up about _____________% of our total US energy supply.
2%
Wind Energy: Minnesota electricity generation includes about ____ wind energy.
20%
Geothermal and Hydrogen: The NREL video discussed that the most abundant source of hydrogen on earth is in ____________.
Water
Solar Economics & Policy: Match the energy source to the total system levelized cost of electricity (LCOE without tax credits) for plants entering service in 2026.
Wind Onshore ~$31/MWh Combined Cycle (Natural Gas) ~$34/MWh Geothermal ~$36/MWh Wind Offshore ~$115/MWh Batter Storage ~$120/MWh Utility Scale Solar PV ~$31/MWh
Briefing Industrial and Commercial: The top two industrial sectors that use the most energy are _______________.
chemicals and petroleum/coal
Biogas: The volume of the effluent leaving the digester is about ________________ the amount of organic material entering.
the same as
Coal and Electricity: The SMART GRID is BEST described as:
A system of hardware and software to make the electric grid operate more efficiently.
LCA: Why is the normalization step needed in an LCA?
Normalization helps put the results in perspective in order to compare with other impacts.