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81 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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active collection |
the use of devices such as solar panels to collect, focus, transport or store solar energy |
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anthracite |
the cleanest burning coal, almost pure carbon |
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barrels |
the unit used to describe the volume of fossil fuels |
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bituminous
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the second purest form of coal |
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crude oil |
the form petroleum takes when in the ground |
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energy |
the capacity to do work |
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fission |
a nuclear reaction in which an atomic nucleus (esp a heavy nucleus such as an isotope of uranium) splits into fragments, usually two fragments of comparable mass, releasing from 100 million to several hundred million electron volts of energy |
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fossil fuel |
a hydrocarbon deposits such as petroleum, coal, or natural gas, derived from living matter, of a previous geologic time and used for fuel. |
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first law of thermodynamics |
energy can neither be created nor destroyed - it can only be transferred and transformed |
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fly ash |
a waste product produced by the burning of coal |
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half-life |
the amount of time it takes for half a radioactive sample to disappear |
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Hubbart Peak/peak oil |
an influential theory that concerns the long term rate of conventional oil and other fossil fuel extraction and depletion. It predicts that future world oil production will soon reach a peak, then rapidly decline. |
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hydroelectric power |
power generated using water |
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kinetic energy |
the energy of motion |
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lignite |
the least pure coal |
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nuclear fusion |
the process of fusing two nuclei |
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overburden |
the rocks and earth that are removed when strip mining for a commerically valuable mineral resource |
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passive solar energy collection |
the use of building materials, building placement and design to passively collect solar energy that can be used to keep a building warm or cool |
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petroleum |
oil, a hydrocarbon that forms as sediments are buried and pressurized |
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photovoltaic cell (also called PV Cell) |
a semicondructor device that converts the energy of sunlight into electric energy |
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potential energy |
energy at rest or stored energy |
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proven reserve |
an estimate of the amount of fossil fuel that can be obtained from a reserve |
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radiant energy |
sunlight |
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scrubbers |
devices containing alkaline substances that precipitate out much of the sulfur dioxide from industrial plants' air effluent |
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second law of thermodynamics |
the entropy (disorder) of the universe is increasing. One corollary: the concept that in most energy transformations a significant amount of energy is lost to the universe as heat. |
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strip mining |
involves the removal of the earth's surface all the way down to the level of the mineral seam |
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subbituminous |
third purest form of coal |
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underground mining |
involves the sinking of shafts to reach underground deposits. In this type of mining, a network of tunnels are dug or blasted and humans enter the tunnels in order to manually retrieve the coal. |
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wind farm |
a group of modern turbines |
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acid precipitation |
acid rain, acid hail, acid snow, all of which occur as a result of pollution in the atmosphere |
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acute effect |
the effect caused by a short-term exposure to a high level of toxin |
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catalytic converter |
a platinum coated device that oxidizes most of the VOCs and some of the CO that would otherwise be emitted in exhaust, converting them to CO2 |
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closed loop recycling |
when materials such as plastic or aluminum are used to rebuild the same product. An example of this is the use of the aluminum from aluminum cans to produce more aluminum cans |
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composting |
a process that allows the organic material in solid waste to be decomposed and reintroduced to the soil, often as fertilizer. |
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building related illness |
when the signs and symptoms of an illness can be attributed to a specific infectious organism that resides in the building. |
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chronic effect |
an effect that results from long term exposure to low levels of toxin |
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deep well injection |
drilling a hole in the ground that is below the water able to hold waste |
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disease |
occurs when infection causes a change in the state of health |
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dose response analysis |
a process in which an organism is exposed to a toxin at different concentrations, and the dosage that causes the death of the organism is recorded |
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dose response curve |
the result of graphing a dose response analysis |
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ED-50 |
the point at which 50% of the test organisms show a negative effect from a toxin |
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global warming |
an intensification of the greenhouse effect due to the increased presence of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere |
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gray smog aka industrial smog |
smoke resulting from emissions from industry and other sources of gas |
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hazardous waste |
any waste that poses a danger to human health. It must be dealt with in a different way from other types of waste. |
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Heat islands |
urban areas that heat up more quickly and retain heat better than non-urban areas |
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high level radioactive waste |
radioactive wastes that produce high levels of ionizing radiation |
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infection |
the result of a pathogen invading a body |
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LD-50 |
the point at which 50% of the test organisms die from a toxin |
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leachate |
the liquid that percolates to the bottom of the landfill |
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low level radioactive waste |
radioactive wastes that produce low levels of ionizing radiation |
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noise pollution |
any noise that causes stress or has the potential to damage human health |
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non point source pollution |
pollution that does not have a specific point of release |
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open loop recycling |
where materials are reused to form new product |
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ozone holes |
the thinning of the ozone layer over Antarctica and to some extent over the Arctic |
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pathogens |
bacteria, virus or other microorganisms that can cause disease |
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photochemical smog |
usually formed on hot sunny days when NOX compounds, VOCs and ozone combine to form smog with a brownish hue |
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point source pollution |
a specific location from which pollution is released |
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poison |
any substance that has LD-50 or 50 milligrams or less per kilogram of body weight |
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physical treatment |
in a sewage treatment plant, the initial filtration that is done to remove debris such as stones, sticks, rags, toys, and other objects that were flushed down the toilet |
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primary pollutants |
pollutants that are released directly in to the lower atmosphere |
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primary treatment |
when physically treated sewage water is passed into a settlement tank where suspended solids settle out as sludge, chemically treated polymers may be added to help the suspended solids separate and settle out |
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risk assessment |
calculating risk or the degree of likelihood that a person will become ill upon exposure to a toxin or pathogen |
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risk management |
using strategies to reduce the amount of risk, the degree of likelihood that a person will become ill upon expose to a toxin or pathogen |
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secondary pollutants |
pollutants that are formed by the combination of primary pollutants in the atmosphere |
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secondary treatment |
the biological treatment of waste waste in order to continue to remove biodegradable waste |
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sick building syndrome |
a condition in which the majority of a building's occupants experience certain symptoms that vary with the amount of time spent in the building without being able to identify a specified cause or illness |
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sludge |
the solids that remain after the secondary treatment of sewage |
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sludge processor |
a tank filled with aerobic bacteria that is used to treat sewage |
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solid waste |
can consist of hazardous waste, industrial solid waste, or municipal waste. Many types of solid waste provide a threat to human health and the environment |
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stationary sources |
non-moving sources of pollution such as factories |
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superfund program |
a program funded by the federal government and a trust that's funded by a tax on chemicals. identifies pollutants and cleans up hazardous waste sites. |
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threshhold dose |
the dosage level of a toxin at which a negative effect occurs |
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toxicity |
the degree to which a substance is biologically harmful |
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toxin |
an y substance that is inhaled, ingested or absorbed at dosages sufficient to damage a living organism |
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tropospheric ozone |
ozone that exists in the troposphere |
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US Noise Control act |
gave the EPA power to est emissions standards for major sources of noise including transportation, machinery and construction. |
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vector |
the carrier organism through which pathogens can attack, such as a tick. |
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waste water |
any water that has been used by humans. this includes human sewage, water drained from showers, tubs, sinks, dishwashers, washing machines, water from industrial processes and stormwater runoff |
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waste to energy program (WTE) |
when the energy released from waste incineration is used generate electricity |
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green tax |
a fiscal policy that lowers taxes on income including wages and profits, and raises taxes on consumption, particularly the unsustainable consumption of nonrenewable resources. |
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market permits |
when companies are allowed to buy permits that allow them a certain amount of discharge of substances into certain environmental outlets. If they can reduce their amount of discharge they are allowed to sell their remaining portion of their permit to another company. |
