Lesson 16 — Activity 1: Sources of Alternative Energy
Completion requirements
Lesson 16 — Activity 1:
Sources of Alternative Energy
Explore
People have looked for renewable resources to fulfill the demand for energy and to avoid the negative impacts that the burning of fossil fuels has on the environment. People want resources that will not be used up if they are managed wisely. In this activity, you will learn about sources of alternative energy.
Renewable resources can be used to provide energy and are used to varying degrees in industry and by individuals. Below are some of these forms of energy.
- Geothermal energy: Heat from inside the earth can be used and converted to electricity.
- Hydro energy: The power of moving water and tides can be transformed into electricity.
- Wind energy: The power of the wind can be collected and converted to useful forms of energy.
- Solar energy: Heat and light from the sun are collected and converted into power, especially electricity.
- Bioenergy: The chemical energy stored in plants is converted to various useful forms of energy.
Nuclear energy: The power of the bonds that hold the nucleus of an atom can be released and converted to electricity.
Click here to go to the Study Jams! website to watch a video that further explains renewable sources of energy. When you have finished watching the video, click on the "close" button in the upper right-hand corner to exit the video. Then, click on the "Test Yourself" button to see how much you know about renewable fuels.
Let's look closely at two of these sources.
Hydro Energy
In Canada, hydro-electric power plants produce much of our electric energy. This kind of system uses the energy from falling water to generate electricity. Dams are built high above a generating station.
Hydro-electric power is an efficient and very clean way to generate electric energy. There is little environmental damage once the facilities are built and working, and there are no harmful emissions released into the atmosphere.
A major disadvantage of hydro-electric power is that the generating stations require large dams. These dams produce large lakes or reservoirs that can flood land and change the ecology of an area.
Nuclear Energy
Nuclear energy is produced in a system called a reactor.
Here's how a reactor works:
1. Uranium fuel bundles are inserted into the reactor core. Nuclear fission begins, and the atoms in the uranium are split.
2. This splitting releases an enormous amount of thermal energy. This energy is carried away from the reactor by a coolant.
3. The coolant is taken to a tank where the thermal energy converts water into steam.
4. The steam flows through pipes to the blades of a turbine.
5. The spinning turbine turns the generator. The generator turns this mechanical energy into electric energy.
6. Then transmission lines take electric energy to customers.
Advantages of this system are that a small quantity of nuclear fuel generates an enormous amount of electricity. Reactors do not release harmful gases, such as carbon and sulfur dioxides.
Disadvantages are that nuclear waste is dangerous to life for many centuries and storing waste safely is expensive and very dangerous. As well, accidents can release radioactive materials that can kill plants and animals.
Self-Check
Try This!
Try the questions below on your own first and then click on the tab to check your answers!
Decide if the following statements are true or false.
1. If a resource is renewable, it will always be available.
2. Geo-thermal energy uses heat from inside the earth.
3. Solar energy uses the power of water as an energy source.
4. Nuclear energy is very powerful but poses some environmental problems with the radioactive waste it produces.
5. A major disadvantage of hydro-electric power is that the generating stations require large dams that produce large lakes or reservoirs that can flood land and change the ecology of an area.