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Energy · Energy

Forms of energy and energy transformations

When you switch on your phone on the DART, when you jump on a trampoline or when the microwave heats your milk, the same thing is always going on underneath: energy is changing form. You can't see energy directly, but you can recognise it by what it is able to do: move something, heat it, light it up or make something sound.

Forms of energy

A moving car brakes, a match heats water and a light bulb lights up a dark room: all these changes need something to be transferred or transformed, but what quantity do movement, heat and light have in common? It is measured in joules (J).

Six illustrated forms of energy: a moving car (kinetic), a book on a high shelf (gravitational potential), a battery and an apple (chemical), charges flowing along a wire with a plug (electrical), a cup of hot water with steam (thermal) and a light bulb giving off light (light). Kinetic h Gravitational + Chemical Electrical Thermal Light
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State what form of energy each of these things has: a) A kite flying high at the beach. b) Water stored in a reservoir, at the top of the dam. c) A new, unused battery.…

State what form of energy each of these things has:

  1. a) A kite flying high at the beach.
  2. b) Water stored in a reservoir, at the top of the dam.
  3. c) A new, unused battery.
  4. d) The flame of a camping stove.
Solve
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Match each form of energy to its example and write out the four complete pairs: a) Nuclear energy. b) Wind energy. c) Sound energy. d) Electrical energy. Examples: the…

Match each form of energy to its example and write out the four complete pairs:

  1. a) Nuclear energy.
  2. b) Wind energy.
  3. c) Sound energy.
  4. d) Electrical energy.

Examples: the doorbell, a windmill, the wall socket and the Sun.

Solve
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Yasmin has a sandwich for breakfast and then plays a handball match, in which she runs and sweats a lot. a) What form of energy was stored in the breakfast food? b) Name…

Yasmin has a sandwich for breakfast and then plays a handball match, in which she runs and sweats a lot.

  1. a) What form of energy was stored in the breakfast food?
  2. b) Name two forms of energy into which her body transforms it during the match.
Solve
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The wind turns the colourful pinwheel that Nico has planted in the garden, as shown in the figure. a) What form of energy does the moving air have? b) What form of…

The wind turns the colourful pinwheel that Nico has planted in the garden, as shown in the figure.

? ?
  1. a) What form of energy does the moving air have?
  2. b) What form of energy do the pinwheel blades have as they rotate?
Solve
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A gymnast jumps on a trampoline. a) What form of energy does she have at the highest point of the jump? b) Describe the complete transformations from the moment she…

A gymnast jumps on a trampoline.

  1. a) What form of energy does she have at the highest point of the jump?
  2. b) Describe the complete transformations from the moment she falls until she rises again: what happens to the energy when the trampoline stretches and when it recoils?
  3. c) To jump higher and higher, the gymnast "pushes" with her legs on each bounce. Where does her body get this extra energy from?
Solve

One form changes into another

Diagram of the chain of transformations in a torch: the chemical energy of the battery becomes electrical energy in the circuit and is converted into light and thermal energy. chemical (battery) electrical light+ thermal example: a battery torch
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Aoife has left her book on the top shelf of the bookcase, as shown in the figure. a) What form of energy does the book have because it is so high up? b) If the book…

Aoife has left her book on the top shelf of the bookcase, as shown in the figure.

  1. a) What form of energy does the book have because it is so high up?
  2. b) If the book falls, into what form of energy is that energy transformed while it falls?
Solve
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At the neighbourhood party they have connected some large speakers, like the one in the figure. a) What form of energy enters the speaker through the cable? b) What form…

At the neighbourhood party they have connected some large speakers, like the one in the figure.

? ?
  1. a) What form of energy enters the speaker through the cable?
  2. b) What form of energy comes out of it and makes us dance?
Solve
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In Aoife's garden there is a solar street light that turns on automatically at night. a) What form of energy does it collect from the Sun during the day? b) In what form…

In Aoife's garden there is a solar street light that turns on automatically at night.

  1. a) What form of energy does it collect from the Sun during the day?
  2. b) In what form is that energy stored in the light's battery?
  3. c) Write the chain of transformations that energy undergoes at night, from the battery to the light.
Solve
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In a thermal power plant, natural gas is burned to generate electricity. The diagram of the plant is as follows: The chain of transformations is out of order: a)…

In a thermal power plant, natural gas is burned to generate electricity. The diagram of the plant is as follows:

gas steam turbine generator power grid

The chain of transformations is out of order:

  1. a) Electrical energy.
  2. b) Chemical energy of the gas.
  3. c) Kinetic energy of the turbine.
  4. d) Thermal energy of the water vapour.

Write it in order using arrows, from the gas to the power grid.

Solve
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An old light bulb transforms $100\ \text{J}$ of electrical energy into $10\ \text{J}$ of light. An LED bulb transforms the same $100\ \text{J}$ into $40\ \text{J}$ of…

An old light bulb transforms $100\ \text{J}$ of electrical energy into $10\ \text{J}$ of light. An LED bulb transforms the same $100\ \text{J}$ into $40\ \text{J}$ of light. The figure compares the energy flow of the two bulbs.

old light bulb LED bulb 100 J light 10 J heat = ? 100 J light 40 J heat = ?
  1. a) How much energy does each one lose as heat?
  2. b) Which one would you choose for your home? Justify your answer using the data.
  3. c) In summer it is hot at home. Explain why having many old light bulbs switched on can make the air conditioning use even more energy.
Solve
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An electric car is charged at a house with solar panels, as shown in the figure. a) Write the complete chain of transformations, from sunlight to the motion of the car.…

An electric car is charged at a house with solar panels, as shown in the figure.

  1. a) Write the complete chain of transformations, from sunlight to the motion of the car. It must include at least four forms of energy.
  2. b) State two moments in that chain where some energy is lost as heat.
  3. c) Some electric cars recharge the battery slightly when braking. What energy transformation do they take advantage of to do this?
Solve

Energy is neither created nor destroyed

If you rub your hands together hard you feel heat straight away, and if you drop a rubber ball it bounces several times, losing height until it stops: where has the energy it had at the start gone if nothing can be destroyed?

Diagram of the conservation of energy: the input energy is split into a useful part and a wasted part (dissipated as heat), and the sum equals the input. 100 % input energy useful form wasted form (dissipated as heat) useful energy + wasted energy = input energy

A Sankey diagram is an energy flow diagram: it shows how the input energy is split into useful and wasted energy, and the width of each arrow is proportional to the amount of energy it carries. For the old bulb, a thin arrow carries 10 J of light and an arrow nine times as wide carries 90 J of heat dissipated to the surroundings.

Sankey diagram of an old light bulb: 100 J of electrical energy in, 10 J of light out as a thin arrow and 90 J of heat dissipated to the surroundings as a thick arrow. Electrical 100 J Light 10 J Heat 90 J
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Complete the sentence with the missing words: "Energy is neither created nor destroyed, it is only $\dots$ from one form to $\dots$". Then give an everyday example in…

Complete the sentence with the missing words: "Energy is neither created nor destroyed, it is only $\dots$ from one form to $\dots$". Then give an everyday example in which this happens.

Solve
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In an old light bulb, out of every $100\ \text{J}$ of electrical energy, only $10\ \text{J}$ are converted into light. The figure shows this energy flow. a) How many…

In an old light bulb, out of every $100\ \text{J}$ of electrical energy, only $10\ \text{J}$ are converted into light. The figure shows this energy flow.

100 J light 10 J heat = ?
  1. a) How many joules are lost as heat?
  2. b) Why does it burn to touch one of these light bulbs after it has been on for a while?
Solve
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Cian goes down a long hill on his bike without pedalling, and brakes when he reaches the bottom, as shown in the figure. a) What energy transformation takes place while…

Cian goes down a long hill on his bike without pedalling, and brakes when he reaches the bottom, as shown in the figure.

? ?
  1. a) What energy transformation takes place while he goes down and gains speed?
  2. b) When braking to a stop, into what form of energy is the kinetic energy transformed?
Solve
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Aoife swings on a swing higher and higher. The figure shows the swing at the highest point (A) and at the lowest point (B). a) What form of energy does she have at the…

Aoife swings on a swing higher and higher. The figure shows the swing at the highest point (A) and at the lowest point (B).

A B
  1. a) What form of energy does she have at the highest point, where she stops for a moment?
  2. b) And what form of energy does she have when passing through the lowest point?
  3. c) If nobody pushes her, she goes less high each time. What "thief" takes away part of the energy and into what form does it convert it?
Solve
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On a roller coaster, the carriage is stopped at the top of a $30\ \text{m}$ hill and then drops almost to the ground, as shown in the figure. a) Describe the energy…

On a roller coaster, the carriage is stopped at the top of a $30\ \text{m}$ hill and then drops almost to the ground, as shown in the figure.

v = 0 30 m h = ?
  1. a) Describe the energy transformation that takes place on the way down.
  2. b) If there were no friction at all, to what height could it climb on the next hill? Why?
  3. c) In reality it always climbs a little less. Into what has the "missing" energy been converted?
Solve
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A friend tells you: "It doesn't matter if you leave the light on, because energy is not destroyed, it is only transformed." a) Is it true that energy is not destroyed?…

A friend tells you: "It doesn't matter if you leave the light on, because energy is not destroyed, it is only transformed."

  1. a) Is it true that energy is not destroyed?
  2. b) Explain why, even so, this reasoning is wrong: think about what form of energy the bulb's energy ends up as and whether it can be reused.
  3. c) Add another argument related to energy sources or money.
Solve
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A pumped-storage hydroelectric power plant pumps water at night from a lower lake to an upper one, using cheap excess electricity. During the day it releases the water…

A pumped-storage hydroelectric power plant pumps water at night from a lower lake to an upper one, using cheap excess electricity. During the day it releases the water and generates electricity. The diagram of the installation is as follows:

upper reservoir lower reservoir night day
  1. a) Write down the sequence of transformations at night, when pumping the water up, and during the day, when releasing it.
  2. b) In the process, some energy is lost as heat. Does this contradict the idea that energy is conserved? Explain your answer.
  3. c) If it loses energy, why is it worthwhile for the power station to operate like this? Think about how electricity does not cost the same at $3$ in the morning as at $8$ in the afternoon.
Solve
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The International Space Station has huge solar panels as well as large batteries. a) It orbits the Earth once every $90\ \text{min}$ and part of the journey is in…

The International Space Station has huge solar panels as well as large batteries.

  1. a) It orbits the Earth once every $90\ \text{min}$ and part of the journey is in shadow. Why does it need batteries if it already has panels?
  2. b) Write the chain of transformations from sunlight to the onboard computer when the station is in shadow.
  3. c) Computers and appliances heat up: what form of energy is in excess and must be radiated into space?
Solve

Measuring and paying for energy: the kilowatt-hour

An electric heater (power P in kW) multiplied by the time shown on a clock (t in hours) gives the energy recorded by the electricity meter (E in kWh). P (kW) × t (h) = 0 0 0 6 E (kWh)
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An electric heater of $2\ \text{kW}$ is switched on for $3\ \text{h}$. How much energy does it consume? Express it in $\text{kWh}$.

An electric heater of $2\ \text{kW}$ is switched on for $3\ \text{h}$. How much energy does it consume? Express it in $\text{kWh}$.

Solve
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A washing machine of $2\ \text{kW}$ does a wash cycle that lasts $1.5\ \text{h}$. a) How much energy does it consume, in $\text{kWh}$? b) If a kilowatt-hour costs…

A washing machine of $2\ \text{kW}$ does a wash cycle that lasts $1.5\ \text{h}$.

  1. a) How much energy does it consume, in $\text{kWh}$?
  2. b) If a kilowatt-hour costs $0.20\ \text{€/kWh}$, how much does that wash cycle cost?
Solve
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The microwave oven at home consumed $7.2\times10^{6}\ \text{J}$ in one month. Knowing that $1\ \text{kWh} = 3.6\times10^{6}\ \text{J}$: a) How many $\text{kWh}$ has it…

The microwave oven at home consumed $7.2\times10^{6}\ \text{J}$ in one month. Knowing that $1\ \text{kWh} = 3.6\times10^{6}\ \text{J}$:

  1. a) How many $\text{kWh}$ has it consumed?
  2. b) How much did that month of microwave use cost, at $0.20\ \text{€/kWh}$?
Solve
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Hugo's family's house has solar panels that produce $8\ \text{kWh}$ per day, but the house consumes $11\ \text{kWh}$ per day. a) How many $\text{kWh}$ do they buy each…

Hugo's family's house has solar panels that produce $8\ \text{kWh}$ per day, but the house consumes $11\ \text{kWh}$ per day.

  1. a) How many $\text{kWh}$ do they buy each day from the power grid?
  2. b) How many $\text{kWh}$ do they buy in a month of $30$ days?
  3. c) How much do those kilowatt-hours cost, at $0.20\ \text{€/kWh}$?
Solve

Back to the beginning: On the DART, in your phone, the chemical energy of the battery is transformed into light and sound; on the trampoline, your kinetic and elastic potential energy are exchanged with gravitational potential energy; and in the microwave, electrical energy is transformed into thermal energy to heat the milk.

Summary

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