Ib Physics Energy, Power And Climate Change

Front 1

Which 2 elements are required for continuous work?

Back 1

A reservoir of energy.
A cycle.

Front 2

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Nuclear energy?

Back 2

Reservoir: Uranium
Positives: Relatively clean, high energy density, safe for operation.
Negatives: High amount of harm if the system fails, requires extensive management of waste products, environment disruption in mining.

Front 3

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Geothermal energy?

Back 3

Reservoir: Excess heat from the Earth's core.
Positives: Renewable source, clean in operation, cheap to operate.
Negatives: Limited geographically to volcanic regions, moderate upfront cost, potential for gasses under the ground to be released.

Front 4

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Solar energy?

Back 4

Reservoir: The sun (thermal reactions)
Positives: Renewable, clean, readily available for consumers, flexible in what it can generate (hot water/power)
Negatives: Expensive to build & Wasteful to manufacture.

Front 5

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Wind energy?

Back 5

Reservoir: The sun
Positives: Renewable, no emissions, tall and skinny therefore the land below can be used for other purposes.
Negatives: Inconsistent power, only effective in areas with high amounts of wind, moderate upfront cost and expensive to maintain, not aesthetically pleasing.

Front 6

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Coal energy?

Back 6

Reservoir: The sun & dead ecosystems.
Positives: High energy density, constant supply, well understand form of energy.
Negatives: Produces C02 emissions, non-renewable, damage to the environment to mine.

Front 7

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Tidal energy?

Back 7

Reservoir: GPE of the moon
Positives: Cheap to run, no emissions, renewable.
Negatives: Large impact on coastal ecosystems, requires large amounts of time and energy to set them up (difficult)

Front 8

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Hydro-electric energy?

Back 8

Reservoir: The sun
Positives: Renewable, cheap to run, vary when you need energy or not.
Negatives: Expensive to setup and maintain, large environmental impact in construction (ecosystems), disrupts people living on the river, requires specific geography.

Front 9

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Wave energy?

Back 9

Reservoir: The sun (air causes waves).
Advantages: Renewable, clean, small impact on environments, built along coastlines.
Disadvantages: Expensive to maintain, experimental source of harnessing energy.

Front 10

What is the 'reservoir', positives and negatives of Biofuels energy?

Back 10

Reservoir: The sun.
Advantages: Renewable, cleans, small environmental impacts, utilizes unused land.
Disadvantages: Generally not available for personal or commercial use. Farmers grow crops for biofuel and not food?

Front 11

Define renewable and non-renewable energy.

Back 11

Renewable sources are ones that we are not using faster we are producing, whereas Non-Renewable sources are used faster than they are produced.

Front 12

Unit for Energy Density?

Back 12

Joules/Kilogram
J/Kg

Front 13

Outline the process of coal being created.

Back 13

1. Ancient plants & animals die.
2. Geological processes push the organic matter under surface of the earth.
3. Heat, Pressure and Bacteria break down the organic molecules and produce oil.

Front 14

What are the 3 main factors that determine the efficiency of a fossil fuel plant?

Back 14

1. Fuel type
2. Load factor
3. Technology in use (design of power plant)

Front 15

Name the two types of coal mining and their pros and cons.

Back 15

Strip Mining: Faster, more efficient, transporting the goods is simple and safe. Yet, it causes massive environmental damage and is ugly.
Tunnelling: Can't see from surface, less hazard to environment. Yet, dangerous and inexpensive in industrialized countries.