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How much electricity do you think you use? (Avg., above avg. or below avg.) Why?
Where does your energy come from?
What impacts does energy production have?
Question of the day
http://www.worldpopulationbalance.org/pop/energy/
Though accounting for only 5 percent of the world's population, Americans consume 26 percent of the world's energy. (American Almanac)
In 1997, U.S. residents consumed an average of 12,133 kilowatt-hours of electricity each, almost nine times greater than the average for the rest of the world. (Grist Magazine)
Average American’s Energy consumption
Sources of Electricity in PA
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Energy Source
Coal 56%Nuclear 37%Natural gas 3.3%Petroleum 1.3%Renewables 1.3%Hydro <1%
PA Electricity GenerationEfficiency: A conventional coal generation facility is about 40% efficient, which means that 60% of the energy is lost before leaving the plant.
Transmission & Distribution: In the U.S. approximately 7% of electricity is lost moving electricity through the wires to your home or schools
Our School: By the time electricity gets to your school, nearly 2/3 of the energy is lost. Keep in mind, that most schools in PA could stand to improve energy efficiency by 30%.
o Energy consumption in the US• Industries (production)
use the most• Heating, cooling, and
illuminating building is 1/3
How do fossil fuels form?
List three fossil fuels.
Where are there abundant resources of fossil fuels? (Region or countries)
QUESTION OF THE DAY:
What are they ? Fossil Fuels Combustible deposits in the Earth’s crust
◦ Composed of the remnants (fossils) of prehistoric organisms that existed millions of years ago
◦ Includes coal, oil (petroleum) and natural gas
Non-renewable resource◦ Fossil fuels are created too slowly to replace the
reserves we use
How Are Fossil Fuels Formed? 300 million years ago
◦ Climate was mild◦ Vast swamps covered much of the land◦ Dead plant material decayed slowly in the swamp
environment
How the types of Fossil Fuels are Formed: Over time, layers of sediment accumulated
over the dead plant material Coal
◦ Heat, pressure and time turned the plant material into carbon-rich rock (coal)
Oil◦ Sediment deposited over microscopic plants ◦ Heat pressure and time turned them into
hydrocarbons (oil) Natural Gas
◦ Formed the same way as oil, but at temperatures higher than 100 °C
Coal is America’s most abundant fossil fuel and we have an estimated 250 year supply.
America produces about 1 billion tons of coal each year -- 90% is used for electricity generation.
Coal generated electricity provides 51% of all electricity in America.
America’s electricity demand is expected to increase 36% by 2020
Statistics from www.learnaboutcoal.org
Coal
Coal
PA Geologic Survey Map
Worlds largest oil reserves:
Oil
Country Millions of Barrels
Percent World Reserve
Saudi Arabia 259,400 21.83%
Iran 125,800 10.59%
Iraq 115,000 9.68%
Kuwait 99,000 8.33%
Venezuela 77,800 6.55%
United Arab Emirates
55,210 4.65%
Rest of World 456,090 38.37
Chart edited from www.factsonfuel.org
2004 Crude Oil Consumption by Region.
Oil
25%26%
30%19%
USA
Asia Pacific
WesternEurope
Rest of World
Edited from, Source: BP Statistical Review of World Energy, June 2005
Brainstorm 5 ideas with a partner
What are the impacts of burning fossil fuels?
1. Combustion of fossil fuels creates air pollution
2. Excess CO2 gas released to atmosphere 3. Increase global climate- due to increase
of greenhouse gases 4. Melting of the polar ice caps, rise in sea
level due to climate change 5. Coal- acid mine drainage, ash etc. 6. Acid deposition- acid rain from sulfur and
nitrogen compounds released when burned
Impacts of burning fossil fuels:
From Union of Concerned Scientists http://www.ucsusa.org/
Environment
From Union of Concerned Scientists http://www.ucsusa.org/
Environment
Coal plants produce one-third of America’s CO2 emissions—about the same amount as all our cars, SUVs, trucks, buses, planes, ships, and trains combined.
A 500-megawatt (MW) plant produces the annual global warming emission equivalent of roughly 600,000 cars, but operates on average for 40 to 50 years(or longer).
Statistics from Union of Concerned Scientists “Gambling with Coal”
Environment – Negative impacts of Coal fired power plants
In 2005, Pennsylvania coal-fired power plants pumped almost 120 million tons of carbon dioxide, more than 985,000 tons of sulfur dioxide and more than 171,000 tons of nitrogen oxide into our air. Over the last several decades, this noxious mix of pollutants has seared Pennsylvania forests with the nation's highest levels of acid rain.… On the ridges of the Allegheny National Forest… 30 to 40 percent of the trees on some slopes are dead or
dying…
PennFuture Facts, Vol. 8, No. 20 -- October 4, 2006
Environment – Negative impacts continued
Solutions: Making Coal Cleaner-No such thing as “clean coal” but ways to burn coal cleaner Scrubbers Fluidized Bed Combustion (below)
Economic issues with fossil fuels - Oil
Annual world oil consumption has been exceeding additions for a long time.
Most experts are predicting that oil production will peak in the next 5-10 years.
Prices will continue to increase due to costs of extraction and transportation
Proposed federal laws limiting global warming (also see Northeast Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative http://www.rggi.org/)
In PA, electric rate caps are being removed by 2010.
Economic issues – Coal & Oil
School Districts pay energy bills out of the same budget which pays salaries, books, supplies, etc.
Increases in fuel cost must = decrease other budget items (or increases in taxes)
Economics for Schools
The least efficient schools use 3 times as much energy as the best performers.
What do you know of the current Nuclear crisis in Japan?
How about any past nuclear issues?
Is nuclear power safe? Why or why not?
Question of the day:
What is it?◦Splitting of uranium atoms in a “reactor” to release energy to create heat to make steam to make electricity
Nuclear Energy (fission)
Nuclear Fission
Nuclear Fuel Cycle◦ processes involved
in producing the fuel used in nuclear reactors and in disposing of radioactive (nuclear) wastes
How Electricity is Produced
Nuclear power plants in US
Local Plants- Limerick
Three Mile Island
Salem NJ plant on DE river
Nuclear Power Pros/Cons Pros
◦No air pollution◦Small amounts of
fuel = large amounts of energy
◦U.S. has technology
Cons◦ Expensive to build
and maintain Nuclear power plant
◦ Radioactive fuel, dangerous waste to dispose of
Safety Issues in Nuclear Power Plants
Meltdown◦ At high temperatures the metal encasing the
uranium fuel can melt, releasing radiation Probability of meltdown or other accident is
low Public perception is that nuclear power is
not safe Sites of major accidents:
◦ Three Mile Island◦ Chornobyl (Ukraine)
Three-Mile Island 1979- most serious reactor accident in US 50% meltdown of reactor core
◦ Containment building kept radiation from escaping
◦ No substantial environmental damage◦ No human casualties
Elevated public apprehension of nuclear energy◦ Led to cancellation of many new plants in US
Chernobyl
1986- worst accident in history
1 or 2 explosions destroyed the nuclear reactor◦ Large amounts of
radiation escaped into atmosphere
Spread across large portions of Europe
Chernobyl
Radiation spread was unpredictable
Radiation fallout was dumped unevenly
Death toll is 10,000-100,000
Chernobyl Phila Inq. Article-
Visiting Chernobyl Life after people
series on History Channel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A62au7Avq1E&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1
Textbook reading Three Mile Island Pgs. 464-468
questions 1-13.
Radioactive Waste Low-level radioactive waste-
◦ Radioactive solids, liquids, or gasses that give off small amounts of ionizing radiation
High-level radioactive waste- ◦ Radioactive solids, liquids, or gasses that give off
large amounts of ionizing radiation
Radioactive Wastes Long term solution to waste
◦ Deep geologic burial –Yucca Mountain◦ As of 2004, site must meet EPA million year
standard (compared to previous 10,000 year standard)
◦ Possibilities: Above ground mausoleums Arctic ice sheets Beneath ocean floor
Radioactive Waste Temporary storage solutions
◦ In nuclear plant facility (require high security) Under water storage Above ground concrete and steel casks
Need approved permanent options soon.
Case-In-Point Yucca Mountain
70,000 tons of high-level radioactive waste
Tectonic issues have been identified
End Energy Notes- Alternative Energy presentations need to finish
Alternative energy information
Nuclear fusion (from the SUN)What is it? Combining atoms (nuclei) to form a heavier atom and huge amounts of energy
Pros Cons
Safer than fission No air pollution Renewable energy
Technology very difficult
Requires unrealistic high temp, pressure and concentration
Biofuel – Any fuel derived from recently-living biomass◦ Corn/grains◦ Soybeans◦ Wood (forestry residue, mill waste, C&D waste)◦ Sugarcane◦ Switchgrass◦ Food waste ◦ Algae
What is a Biofuel??
Ethanol◦ Starches (corn) ◦ Cellulosic materials
Biodiesel◦ Waste vegetable oils/greases◦ Soybean oil◦ Canola
Main Types of Transportation Biofuels
Biomass- using plant and animal matter and waste as fuel Pros
◦Renewable◦Good use of “waste”
◦Ethanol less polluting than gas
Cons◦Does produce
CO2 (global warming) and smoke
◦More grain for ethanol, less for food
Corn to Ethanol
