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Energy, Work and Power: ENERGY FORCE X DISTANCE MOVED (In Direction of Force) E FD
Energy, Work and Power: ENERGY FORCE X DISTANCE MOVED (In Direction of Force) E FD
ENERGY
If something has energy then it can move or it is capable of making something move. For
example an airplane has energy because it is moving but a can of petrol also has energy.
Although it may not be moving it is capable of making a car move if you put it into the engine.
In other words if a force is moved energy is being used.
E = fd
P.E. = mgh
9. LIGHT - A light bulb, the sun and a fire all give out light energy.
CONSERVATION OF ENERGY
This means that you cannot destroy energy but you can change it from one form to another.
ELECTRIC HEATER
ELECTRICAL HEAT
FLASHLIGHT
STRAIN KINETIC
GRAVITATIONAL KINETIC
In energy conversions, heat is often given out. For example a car is designed to convert the
chemical energy in petrol into kinetic energy but the engine also gives out heat. A light bulb is
designed to convert electrical energy into light but the bulb also gives out a lot of heat.
The word EFFICIENCY is often used to describe how good a device is at converting one form
of energy into another. A car is about 30 % efficient which means that about 30% of the
energy in the fuel is used to make the car move, the other 70% is mostly given out as heat.
This can be used to make the car warm inside during the winter but in the summer the heat is
not needed.
Suppose 70 J of electrical energy went into a light bulb. This then gave out 64 J of heat and 6J
of light. As bulbs are designed to give out light and not heat we calculate efficiency using the
numbers:
6 x 100 = 8.6%
70
NUCLEAR ENERGY
This energy comes from the nucleus of the atom.
In nuclear FISSION the nucleus of a large atom like uranium is split up into smaller nuclei
plus energy.
LARGE SMALLER
NUCLEUS NUCLEI
In nuclear FUSION two smaller nuclei such as that of hydrogen combine to form a larger
nucleus plus energy.
SMALL LARGE
NUCLEI NUCLEUS
THE POWER STATION
This converts the chemical energy in coal, oil or gas into electricity. The fuel is burnt to in a
BOILER to produce heat. The heat is then used to turn water into steam which is fired against
big fans called TURBINES. These spin and then turn a GENERATOR to produce electricity.
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
This comes from hot rocks under the ground.
These rocks are hot because the core of the
Earth is about 4,000oC. This heat is produced
from radioactive decay. The hot rocks
naturally heat water under the ground which
reaches the surface in the form of geysers and
hot springs. You can drill two holes under the
ground in these areas and pump cold water
down one hole which gets heated up and comes
up as hot water in the other hole. The hot water
can be used to heat houses. If the water comes
to the surface as steam then it can be used to
turn turbines that drive generators that produce
electricity.
SOLAR ENERGY
This comes from the sun in the form of
heat and light.
HYDROELECTRIC POWER
Water, stored high up in lakes in a mountain or behind a dam, flows rapidly downhill and turns
a turbine as it does so which then turns a generator to produce electricity.
TIDE ENERGY
This is different from wave energy.
The tides are caused by the
gravitational attraction of the moon
on the oceans. There are normally
two tides a day in coastal areas. If
you build a dam (barrage) in the
mouth of an estuary you can hold the
water behind it as the tide comes in or
out and the difference in water levels
can be used to turn a turbine which
will turn a generator to generate
electricity.
WORK
Work is done when a force moves an object. The greater the force and the further the object
moves the more work is done.
Work is measured in newton metres (Nm) and one newton metre is known as a JOULE
(symbol J)
POWER
This means how much work is done in a second. If a machine does a lot of work in a short time
then the machine is said to be powerful.
Power is measured in joules per second (J/s) and one joule per second is known as a WATT
(symbol W).
WORKED EXAMPLE
A man of mass 80 kg runs up 20 steps in 8 seconds. If each step is 25 cm high, what is his
power?
GPE = mgh 6m
= 2 x 10 x 6
= 120 J