Energy resources

• Energy resources can be used to GENERATE ELECTRICITY, transport & heating.
• The TWO types of ENERGY RESOURCES:

  • non-renewable
  • renewable
• Energy resources:

  • The sun (solar)
  • wind
  • water waves
  • hydroelectricity
  • tides
  • bio-fuel
  • geothermal
  • fossil fuels
  • nuclear
• NON-RENEWABLE RESOURCES:


  Energy resources that will RUN OUT & we have a FINITE amount of.

  • They currently provide the majority of energy in the world.
  • Their use usually results in ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE.

  
• RENEWABLE RESOURCES:


  Resources that are REPLENISHABLE (will not run out).

  • They do NOT produce much energy compared to NON-RENEWABLE resources.
  • They have MINIMAL impact on the environment, however are generally less reliable than NON-RENEWABLE resources.

  
• Non-renewable resources:


  • fossil fuels
  • nuclear fuel

  
• Renewable resources:


  • wind power
  • solar cells
  • geothermal power
  • hydro-electric power
  • wave power
  • tidal barrages
  • bio-fuel

  
• USING ENERGY FOR TRANSPORT:

  NON-RENEWABLE:

  • Vehicles predominantly run on PETROL & DIESEL, from OIL.

  RENEWABLE:

  • Vehicles can use BIO-FUEL or a mix of bio-fuel & petrol or diesel. Electric trains & cars use electricity that can be generated from renewable sources.

  
• USING ENERGY FOR HEATING:

  NON-RENEWABLE:

  • NATURAL GAS, used in BOILERS to warm water to heats homes through RADIATORS.

  RENEWABLE:

  • GEOTHERMAL sources can heat water for use in radiators.
  • SOLAR water heaters use the Sun's energy & heat pumps use heat from the ground or air.

  
• 55%

  
• The UK gov wants to reduce carbon emissions as much as possible.

  • which energy resources need to be used less to achieve this?

  coal and gas

  
• Explain why it is a good idea for the eco-house to have both a wind turbine and solar panels.

  • Sometimes it is not sunny / windy, so there's more chance of electricity being generated at any time.
  • More electricity is generates, which reduces the running costs of the eco-home.

  
• A really large area of land would need to be covered with solar cells, due to the low useful power output of the solar cells.

  
• • The variation in demand is much greater then 1.5 x 10^9 W
  • Demand remains high for longer than 5 hours.

  
• • no sulphur dioxide released
  • doesn't cause acid rain
  • doesn't cause global dimming
  • less carbon dioxide released per kg of fuel burned
  • less global warming, climate change & greenhouse gases
  • no solid water
  • gas mining is less destructive than coal mining

  
• • carbon dioxide & sulphur dioxide released

  Causing:

  • global warming
  • climate change
  • greenhouse effect
  • global dimming
  • acid rain

  
• It shows that the demand for electricity increased between 6:00 & 9:00.

  • Solar power could have met the demand, if there were enough solar panels installed in the UK.

  This is because solar panels generate electricity from light, so power output would increase throughout the morning (between 6am & 9am), as the Sun is rising & shining..

  
• • risk of catastrophic accidents
  • fuel is non-renewable

  waste:

  • is radioactive & toxic
  • needs to be buried
  • remains dangerous for a long time

  
• No carbon dioxide emitted to produce electricity.

  • doesn't cause global warming
  • nuclear power doesn't cause earthquakes
  • more energy released per kg of fuel, compared to shale gas.

  
• minimum distance between wind turbines is at least 500m in all directions.

  
• Nuclear:

  • no green house gases like carbon dioxide released when generating electricity.
  • reliable
  • high energy density
  • power stations already built
  • other power stations being built

  
• Wind:

  • no green house gases like carbon dioxide released when generating electricity.
  • renewable energy resource
  • no fuel cost

  
• Wind power is unreliable, so will be unable to meet demand when wind speed is low or when there's no wind.

  
• Most of the energy in the UK goes on either transport (cars, trains, planes or ships).

  • Primarily relies on petrol & diesel in the case of road vehicles & kerosene for planes.
  • (all are created from oil / fossil fuels)
  • Traditionally trains were powered by coal.
  • Which helped drive the industrial revolution after coal was found in Britain.
  • Now most trains are powered by electricity.
  • More recently, there’s been an increase in the use of biofuels.
  • which are created from renewable sources like plants & an increase in the use of electric cars.

  
• For heating, a source of energy is natural gas.

  • which is burnt to heat water, we then pump this hot water into our radiators.
  • The thermal energy is transferred to the air in our rooms to keep us warm. 
  • Solar water heaters work by using the sun’s energy to heat water.
  • Biofuels can be burned like coal.

  
• • Electricity isn't renewable or non-renewable, it depends on how its made.
  • Biofuel can be mixed with petrol to make it more environmentally friendly.