Key Terms
Greenhouse Gases
Gases in the atmosphere that contribute to climate change. Ex: Carbon dioxide
Define Hydroelectricity
Using flowing water to generate electricity
What source of generating energy is still being tested?
Tides
Define Fossil Fuels
A nonrenewable resource found in nature made from plants and organisms from over millions of years ago.
Define Solar
Energy from the sun
Reservoir
The build up of water behind a large dam.
How does a hydroelectric dam work?
Water flows through the dam by going past large turbines. As the turbines spin, they move magnets past wires which creates electricity that can be stored and sent to cities and homes to be used
What two ways can we use tides to generate energy?
One way is putting a turbine on the ocean floor that spins with the tide.
The other option is setting up a system that has barricades/gates that open and close with the tides.
What are THREE examples of fossil fuels?
Coal, natural gas, oil
Solar panels convert ___________energy into ____________ energy
light to electricial
What is the individual cells or sections of a solar panel
Photovoltaic Cell
True or False
The amount of water and speed of water going through the turbine affects the amount of electricity produced.
True
How does a wind turbine generate electricity?
The giant turbine/fan on the outside gets pushed by the wind. The wind then allows for the motion of the wires to move past the magnet which creates electricity.
Which of the fossil fuels is the MOST pollutant?
Coal
A large amount of solar panels in one area is called _____________________
a solar farm
Renewable VS Non-Renewable
Renewable Energy:
Energy that comes from resources that do not get used up after being used or can replenish (come back) in a short period of time
Non-Renewable Energy:
Energy that comes from resources that get used up or take a long period (10+ of millions of years) of time to replenish
Pros and Cons of a large hydroelectric dam
Pros: Can provide electricity for a large area like a city, is a renewable energy source
Cons: Materials to build a large dam creates greenhouse gasses, creates a reservoir behind the dam which causes flooding of land forcing people to leave their houses, flooding also can drown plants, can affect the animals who rely on the river or live near the river
What are the pros and cons of the gate method and the turbine method?
The gate method prevents constant exposure to the harsh salt water so it is able to last longer; however, animals often get caught in the gates.
The turbines don’t affect the animals as much but because it is sitting on the ocean floor, it needs to be replaced more often due to seaweed, salt, and barnacles
How do they use fossil fuels to generate electricity?
Fossil fuels are burned and the heat is used to boil a liquid to create steam. The steam spins a turbine which moves magnets past a wire.
How does generating energy with solar differ from all the other methods in this unit?
Solar energy doesn’t use turbines to create electricity. The sun’s light has a special particle called a photon that can move electrons causing electricity
The other methods convert kinetic energy into electrical energy… the sun converts light energy to electrical energy.
Generator Versus Motor
Generator: A machine that generates/creates electricity. Ex: windmill or dam
Motor: A machine that uses electricity to create motion. Ex: car or washing machine
Pros and Cons of Run-of River Dam
Pros: no creation of a reservoir, can still provide electricity to a bigger community
Cons: less electricity than a large dam, will only work if the river is constantly flowing so may not work during dry seasons
What are the pros and cons of wind energy?
Pros: renewable source, one of the cheapest options, last quite long
Cons: wind is unpredictable and can stop, it also doesn’t always come from the same direction
What are the pros and cons of fossil fuels?
Pros: easy to transport to other areas and easy to store for later
Cons: Horrible for the environment, transporting coal pollutes the land, transporting oil can cause oil spills, burning them produces greenhouses gases leading to climate change
What are the pros and cons of solar energy?
Pros: renewable, can come in all different sizes, can be installed almost anywhere, can be used for decades, can be small and portable, no greenhouse gases are produced
Cons: sun is not consistent in every place like the arctic circle where they have days with no sun at all or really long nights, there are also rainy days as well as areas with lots of trees blocking sunlight, chemicals used in the solar panel can be harmful to the environment.