APES Ch 12- Nonrenewable Energy Resources Flashcards

Vocab from Friedland and Relyea

661648678	fossil fuels	energy derived from biological material that became fossilized millions of years ago. The three main ones are coal, oil and natural gas
661648679	nuclear fuels	derived from radioactive materials that give off energy
661648680	commercial energy sources	An energy source that is bought and sold
661648681	subsistence energy sources	Energy sources gathered by individuals for their own immediate needs
661648682	energy return on investment	(energy obtained from the fuel)/ (energy invested to obtain fuel)
661648683	energy carrier	something that can move and deliver energy in a convernient and usable form to end users
661648684	turbine	a large device that resembles a fan or jet engine
661648685	electrical grid	A network of interconnected transmission lines that joins power plants together and links them with end users of electricity
661648686	combined cycle	A power plant that uses both exhaust gases and steam turbines to generate electricity for increased efficiency
661648687	capacity	maximum electrical output
661648688	capacity factor	the fraction of the time a plant is operating
661648689	cogeneration	the use of a fuel to generate electricity and produce heat
661648690	coal	a solid fuel formed primarily from the remains of trees, ferns, and other plant material that were preserved 280+millions years ago [4 types include lignite, subbituminous, bituminous, and anthracite] It is found in USA, Russia, China, and INdia. Biggest producers are China, USA, India and Australia
661648691	petroleum	a fluid mixture of hydrocarbons, water and sulfer that occurs underground in deposits. Easy to transport
661648692	crude oil	liquid petroleum that is removed from the ground
661648693	Exxon Valdez	an oil tanker accident in 1989 on the coast of Alaska
661648694	natural gas	component of petroleum that exists in a gaseous state and is 80%-95% methane an 5-20% ethane, propane and butane. It is hard/dangerous to transport but is very cheap.
661648695	oil sands	slow flowing visous depostits of bitumen mixed with sand, water, and clay.
661648696	bitumen	tar or pitch, formed when a petroleum deposit is not capped with a nonporous rock and can be extracted when is rises higher by suface mining
661648697	energy intensity	energy per use per unit of gross domestic product
661648698	hubbert curve	a bell shaped curve representing oil use
661648699	peak oil	the point where half of the supply of oil has been used up
661648700	fission	a nuclear reaction in which a massive nucleus splits into smaller nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy
661648701	fuel rods	uranium-235 rods that undergo fission in a nuclear reactor
661648702	control rods	neutron-absorbing rods that help control the reaction by limiting the number of free neutrons
661648703	meltdown	severe overheating of the core of a nuclear reactor resulting in the core melting and radiation escaping
661648704	radioactive waste	Particles from a nuclear reaction that emit radiation; contact with such particles may be harmful or lethal to people and must therefore be safely stored for thousands of years. After 10 halflifes, they are usually safe
661648705	nuclear fusion	a nuclear reaction in which nuclei combine to form more massive nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy
661648706	halflife	the time required for one half of the atoms of a radioisotope to emit radiation an decay products
661648707	nonrenewable energy source	An energy source with a finite supply, primarily the fossil fuels and nuclear fuels.
661648708	CTL (Coal to Liquid)	The process of converting solid coal into liquid fuel.
661648709	Curie	A unit of measure for radiation. 1 curie = 37 billion decays per second
661648710	Becquerel (Bq)	Unit that measures the rate at which a sample of radioactive material decays. 1 Bq = decay of 1 atom or nucleus per second.
661648711	hydraulic fracturing	the process of creating fissures, or fractures, in underground formations by pumping water, sand, and other additives under high pressure into the formations to allow natural gas and oil to flow. this process has allowed the oil and gas industry to open many new oil and gas fields in shale rock, expanding supplies of those fuels.
661648712	BTU	British Thermal Unit, the amount of energy required to raise one pound of water by one degree fahrenheit.
661648713	nuclear fusion	a nuclear reaction in which nuclei combine to form more massive nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy
661648714	nuclear radiation	the particles that are released from the nucleus during radioactive decay