Conservation of Energy

What types of energy can you think of?

Solar

Kinetic

Electric

Chemical

Sound

Plus many others

Energy Resources

What is it?

A recourse that provides energy to bring about movement or change

How is it classified?

Renewable: ones that can be reused in one human lifetime

Non-renewable – one that can only be used once in a human lifetime

Some History

1500000 BCE– only food and sun were energy

1000000 – 500000 BCE – fire is added for heat and light

5000 BCE – animals used to help farming

4000 – 2500 BCE – wind energy harnessed for sailing

200BCE – 200CE – wood used on large scale for heat and metal work

500 – 900 CE – wind used for windmills to grind grain and pump water

1698 – 1900 CE – coal burned for steam power

1859 – first gas powered engine

1945 – ZEEP nuclear reactor in Canada built

Non-renewable

What do they have in common

Oil

Coal

Natural Gas

We Call TheseFossil Fuels

Coal

Made from peat buried below sediments and large pressure

ON, BC, SK, NB, and AB all have coal deposits

2 types of mining

Underground

Strip mining

Oil

We burn lots of this…..duh

How is it made?

Microscopic organisms from ancient oceans

Process is similar to coal

Takes millions of years

Found in sedimentary rock

In AB we have the tar sands

Are there dangers???

Natural Gas

Formed with both oil and coal deposits

It is trapped above the oil pockets underground

Large deposits under the Arctic Permafrost and deep ocean

Canada is a large producer of Natural Gas

Uses and dangers?

Heard of hydraulic fracturing? Good/Bad

How is power created?

In all 3 previous examples the energy source is burned

The fires are placed under water vessels which create steam

The steam is pushed through turbines that spin

The spinning drives a shaft with magnets through a large tube of wire

Uranium/Nuclear Energy

Consists mainly of uranium-238 (an isotope) and about 0.7% uranium-235 (the actual fuel)

The U-235 is split in the reactor and under goes fission to create huge amounts of power

When one atom splits it causes others to split following that

Canada’s nuclear reactor (CANDU) – 18 in Canada and 20 in other countries

Pros and Cons???

Pros

Low pollution and GHG produced

Small amount of source leads to large amount of energy

We have the expertise in reactor technology

Cons

Disposal of waste rods is not solved

Plant accidents can release radioactive materials

Public concerns about safety

Costly to build and maintain

Renewable Energy

Solar Energy

Passive Collection

Transforms solar into thermal with no special devices

Windows let the heat in bit not back out

Materials absorb heat and radiate it out as thermal

Active Collection

Concentrates solar energy

Collectors placed on roof or ground for heating

Mainly used for water heaters, pools, and homes

Photovoltaic Cells

Use solar energy to generate current in a circuit

Made of silicon crystals that convert 10 – 20% of the solar energy into electrical energy

Low efficiency and high cost in the past, but its getting better

Starting to see PV powerplants

Solar Pros and Cons

Renewable and abundant

Minimal environmental impact

Availability limited to season, climate and altitude

Requires energy storage or use of other sources when there is no sun

Making them uses lots of energy and polluting chemicals

Wind

Fastest growing source of alternative energy in the world

2012 – Ontario generated more electricity using wind than coal for the first time

Where do you think wind is the most successful?

Pros and Cons

It is renewable

Environmental impact is low

Wind farms located in areas to not disturb people

Land used can be used for other reasons

Wind is intermittent and variable in speed

Kill birds and bats

Opposition due to appearance, reduced property values, and noise

Hydro

Geothermal

Energy from the Earth’s interior

US is a large producer of geothermal

Canada is creating its first geothermal power plant in BC

Its environmentally friendly, reliable, and unlimited

Releases dangerous gases and radioactive radon

Biomass Energy

The burning of non-fossil fuels

Wood, vegetation, plant oils and organic wastes from landfills

Change chemical energy to thermal

Used in great quantities in poorer countries

Economical and renewable fuel

Example – ethanol, biodiesel

Tidal Energy

Uses the ocean’s waves to turn a turbine

Only used in 40 places around the world

Bay of Fundy

Requires the tides vary by at least 5m to be cost effective

Renewable and reliable, generates little pollution

Limited in locations, ecosystem disturbance is a problem