national and global energy resources

• The main energy resources available for use on Earth include:

  fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas)

  nuclear fuel

  bio-fuel

  wind

  hydroelectricity

  geothermal

  the tides

  the Sun

  water waves
• A renewable energy resource is one that


  is being (or can be) replenished as it is used.
• The uses of energy resources include:

  transport, electricity generation and heating.
• Non renewable energy sources 


  Fossil fuels (oil coal and gas) and nuclear fuel
• renewable energy sources

  biofuel

  wind

  hydroelectricity

  geothermal

  tidal

  solar

  water waves
• Non-renewable energy is used more for large-scale energy supplies due to the large energy output per kilogram of fuel – renewable resources cannot provide such a large amount of energy as easily.
• Renewable energy has become more important due to the finite lifetime of fossil fuels, and so their development has become more important.
• Renewable energy is not always the most reliable as:

  o Solar doesn’t work in bad weather or night

  o Wind is only intermittent.
• Environmental impact

  extraction of energy: Fossil fuels involve destroying landscapes, Wind turbines can be considered an eyesore

  uses of energy sources: Fossil fuels release harmful emissions, Solar, wind directly create electricity with no emissions
• Patterns and trends of energy use

  
  

  • During industrial revolution, fossil fuels became an important source of energy as it was easy to mine, and provided a lot of energy
  • Only recently has renewable energy become more suitable
  • technology has had to develop a lot since industrial revolution to be able to harness such energy sources efficiently
  • It is easier to use energy resources due to increasing pressure to cope with the public’s increasing power demands but harder to solve environmental issues due to political, social, ethical and economic considerations.
• fossil fuels energy source

  chemical
• nuclear fuels energy store

  nuclear
• biofuel energy store

  chemical
• wind energy store

  kineti
• hydroelectricity energy store

  gravitational potential
• geothermal energy store

  internal (thermal)
• tides energy store

  kinetic
• sun energy store

  nuclear
• water waves energy store

  kinetic
• Power stations that use fossil fuels or nuclear fuel are very reliable sources of energy.
• The fuel for nuclear power stations is relatively cheap, but the power stations themselves are expensive to build. 
• Environmental impact of fossil fuels

  releases carbon dioxide and causes global warming
• nuclear fuels environmental impact

  radioactive waste, needs to be disposed of safely
• biofuel environmental impact

  carbon neutral, so low impact
• wind environmental impact

  takes up large areas that could be used for farming, some people say windmills spoil view
• hydroelectricity environmental impact

  local habitats are affected by the large areas that need to be flooded to build dams
• tides environmental impact 


  tidal barrages can block sewage which needs to go out to sea
• Renewable resources have no fuel costs, but the equipment used is expensive to build.