9.3Chapter 9: Energy Resources

Non-renewable resources: fossil fuels and nuclear power — Alhussan Physics - Stage 8 Revision Notes & Topical Questions

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Physics 9.3 Non-renewable resources: fossil fuels and nuclear power — Alhussan International Academy — Physics (Stages 7–9) notes: Describe how fossil fuels formed, how fossil-fuel and nuclear power stations work and their uses, advantages and disadvantages.Fossil fuels = coal, o…

Oil and gas
Electricity
Transportation
Energy chain
Wasted energy
Heat source

Part 1 of 6Formation of fossil fuels

Fossil fuels

Fossil fuels coal, oil and natural gas, formed from the remains of plants and animals that lived millions of years ago.

Coal

Trees die and are buried by mud and sand;
- over millions of years pressure and thermal energy from beneath the Earth's surface turn them into coal.

Oil and gas

Sea creatures die and are buried by mud and sand;
- over millions of years pressure and heat turn them into oil and gas.

Non-renewable

They take millions of years to form, so they will run out.

Estimates

Scientists can only estimate how much coal, oil and gas there is and the effects of burning it.

Part 2 of 6Uses of fossil fuels

Electricity

All three are used, but mainly coal and gas.

Transportation

Oil is used to produce petrol and other fuels.

Heating

All three can be burned to heat houses.

Part 3 of 6A fossil-fuel power station

The coal, oil or gas is burned, transferring chemical energy as thermal energy.

The heat turns water into steam at high pressure.

The steam drives a turbine, which is like a giant fan.

The turbine turns a generator to produce a voltage.

The steam is turned back into water in the condenser, cooled by water from a river or reservoir.

Energy chain

Chemical energy to thermal energy to kinetic energy of steam and turbine to electrical energy.

Wasted energy

Most wasted energy heats the surroundings, so a typical coal station is only about 35 to 40% efficient.

Part 4 of 6Nuclear power

Heat source

In a nuclear power station the heat comes from nuclear fission of uranium in a reactor instead of from burning.

Electricity

The heat boils water and the steam drives turbines and generators in the same way.

Advantages

A very small mass of fuel gives enormous energy and no carbon dioxide is produced while running.

Disadvantages

It makes radioactive waste that must be stored safely for thousands of years, accidents can have severe consequences and the stations are expensive to build and decommission.

Part 5 of 6Advantages and disadvantages

Source	Advantages	Disadvantages
Coal, oil, gas	Electricity produced constantly, very reliable, fuel readily available, cheap to run	Produces carbon dioxide that contributes to climate change, causes pollution, will run out
Nuclear	Small amount of fuel, no carbon dioxide while running, reliable	Radioactive waste, risk of accidents, expensive to build

Part 6 of 6Environmental effects

Carbon dioxide

Burning fossil fuels releases it, adding to the greenhouse effect and climate change.

Sulphur dioxide

It dissolves in rainwater to form acid rain.

Mining and drilling

They damage land and seas.

Combined heat

Some power stations send hot water to nearby homes and factories to use the waste heat.

Key terms

Term	Meaning
Fossil fuel	A fuel such as coal, oil or gas formed from the remains of living things.
Turbine	A giant fan turned by steam, water or wind to drive a generator.
Condenser	Part of a power station that turns steam back into water.
Nuclear fission	The splitting of uranium atoms to release energy.
Radioactive waste	Dangerous waste from nuclear reactors that must be stored safely.