ENERGY RESOURCES

Submitted by: Gomal Amin

What are Energy Resources

◦An energy resource is something that can produce heat, power life, move objects, or produce electricity.

◦The sun is the ultimate source of most of the energy we use every day.

◦Human energy consumption has grown steadily throughout human history.

◦Early humans had modest energy requirements, mostly food and fuel for fires to cook and keep warm.

◦But today it is increased up to 110% due to energy requirement for running Factories, Industries and Household cooking.

Types of Energy Resources

Energy Resources

Coal

Oil

Natural Gas

Solar Energy

Wind Energy

Hydropower Energy

Geothermal Energy

Nuclear Energy

From Where the Most of the Earth's energy comes from??

◦Renewable (16%)I. SolarII. WindIII. Falling, flowing

waterIV. BiomassV. Geothermal

◦Non-renewable (84%)I. OilII. Natural gasIII. CoalIV. Nuclear power

Fossil Fuels-Coal, Oil and Gas

◦Coal, Oil and Gas are called "fossil fuels"

◦Fossil fuels are formed from the fossilized remains of prehistoric plants and animals.

◦They provide around 66% of the world's electrical power, and 95% of the world's total energy demands

◦They worked as: Burn fuel> heat water to make steam> steam turns turbine>turbine turns generator>electrical power sent around the country

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◦Coal provides around 28% of our energy, Natural gas provides around 20% of the world's consumption of energy and oil provides 40%.

◦Fossil fuels are used for household cooking, heating, as auto-mobile oil, and electricity generation.

Nuclear Power

◦Nuclear power is generated using Uranium, which is a metal mined in various parts of the world.

◦Nuclear power produces around 11% of the world's energy needs.

◦ Nuclear power plant produces huge amounts of energy from small amounts of nuclear fuel, without the pollution that you'd get from burning fossil fuels.

◦But the Nuclear waste can cause more severe consequences if not properly disposed.

◦Nuclear fission makes heat>heated water makes steam>steam turns turbines>turbines turn generators>electrical power is sent around the country

◦The reactor uses Uranium rods as fuel, and the heat is generated by nuclear fission. Neutrons smash into the nucleus of the uranium atoms, which split roughly in half and release energy in the form of heat.

Disposal Action

◦Underground burial

◦Disposal in space (illegal under international law)

◦Burial in ice sheets

◦Dumping into subduction zones

◦Burial in ocean mud

◦Conversion into harmless materials

Solar Power◦Energy released due to reactions in sun and reached to earth in the

form of EMRs.

◦These radiations are used by both plants and animals for their survival.

◦Solar Cells really called photovoltaic" or "photoelectric" cells which convert light directly into electricity.

◦ In a sunny climate, you can get enough power to run a 100W light bulb from just one square meter of solar panel.

Solar energy can be utilized in the following ways:

◦ Solar Water Heating

◦ Solar Furnaces

Using Solar Energy to Provide Heat

Wind Power◦Moving air is called wind. It is form of energy which can be beneficial and

destructive.

◦Chinese use wind as source of energy 4,000 years ago, and sailing boats were around long before that.

◦Wind power was used in the Middle Ages, in Europe, to grind corn, which is where the term "windmill" comes from.

How Wind Power Works◦The Sun heats our atmosphere unevenly, so some patches become warmer

than others.

◦These warm patches of air rise, other air blows in to replace them - and we feel a wind blowing.

◦We can use the energy in the wind by building a tall tower, with a large propeller on the top which move the electric generator to produce energy.

How wind produces Energy

Hydroelectricity or Hydropower ◦Hydro-electricity provides 20% of the world’s power

◦A dam is built to trap water, usually in a valley where there is an existing lake.

◦Water is allowed to flow through tunnels in the dam, to turn turbines and thus drive generators.

◦Once the dam is built, the energy is virtually free.

◦No waste or pollution produced.

◦Much more reliable than wind, solar or wave power.

◦Water can be stored in dam ready to cope with peaks in demand.

Energy from Biomass◦ Energy from biomasses can be produced by burning them directly or by converting

them into gaseous and liquid biofuels.

Following are biomasses:

Biomass and biofuels

Biomass plantations

Crop residues

Animal manure

Biogas

Ethanol

Methanol

How they can be used ◦Burn fuel>heat water to make steam>steam turns

turbine>turbine turns generator>electrical power sent around the country

Geothermal Power ◦Hot rocks underground heat water to produce steam.

We drill holes down to the hot region, steam comes up, is purified and used to drive turbines, which drive electric generators.

◦There may be natural "groundwater" in the hot rocks anyway, or we may need to drill more holes and pump water down to them.

◦Geothermal heat pumps◦Dry and wet steam◦Hot water◦Hot dry-rock zones