IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI

CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Wasted Energy

• In practice, most systems tend to be open systems

• Unlike other forms of energy, heat, light and sound have a tendency to spread out

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

into the surroundings
o This is known as dissipation
• When they do so it becomes very difficult to “gather” the energy back together
again
o As a result, the energy becomes less useful
o Because of this, whenever a process produces unwanted heat, light or
sound, the energy that ends up in those forms is essentially wasted
• Useful energy can be defined as:

The energy that is transferred to the place where it is wanted and in the form that it is
needed

• Wasted energy can be defined as:

The energy that is not useful for the intended purpose and is dissipated to the
surroundings

• Total energy (input) = Useful energy + Wasted energy

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD
Worked Example
A student uses an electric motor to lift a load.

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

In the motor, the electrical energy is transferred into other types of energy. Some of this
energy is useful and the rest of the energy is wasted.
a) State the useful energy output from the electric motor.
b) State the main source of wasted energy and describe what eventually happens to it.
Part (a)
o The motor causes the load to move upwards
o Therefore, the useful energy output is kinetic energy and gravitational
potential energy
Part (b)
o As the motor operates, it heats up
o In this case, heat energy is not useful, hence it is the main source
of wasted energy
o This heat energy is eventually dissipated into the surroundings

Exam Tip

Make sure you are able to identify different types of “useful” and “wasted” energy as this is
commonly tested in exams!
When describing types of wasted energy, make sure to say the energy is lost to the
surroundings, if you say the energy is simply “lost”, this will not gain you the mark as it
implies energy is not conserved.

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD
Reducing Energy Loss
• Energy loss can be reduced by doing one of two things:
o By reducing the amount of unwanted (wasted) energy that is produced
o By preventing the energy from dissipating (if, for example, it has been
produced deliberately)

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

Lubrication
• Friction is a major cause of wasted energy in machines
• For example, the gears on a bike can become hot if the rider has been cycling for a
long time
o Energy is wasted as it is transferred from the kinetic energy store of the
bike to the thermal energy store of the gears and the chain
o This friction makes them become hot and transfers energy by heating to
the thermal energy store of the surrounding air
• This wasted energy can be reduced if the amount of friction can be reduced
o This can be achieved by lubricating the parts that rub together

Insulation
• In many situations, the heat that is produced is wanted. For example:
o When heating a home
o When boiling a kettle
• If this heat can be prevented from dissipating, then less thermal energy will be
needed to replace the heat that has been lost
o This can be achieved by surrounding the appliance with insulation
• The effectiveness of insulation depends upon:
o How well the insulation conducts heat
o How thick the insulation is

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Efficiency
• The efficiency of a system is a measure of how well energy is transferred in a
system
• Efficiency is defined as:

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

The ratio of the useful power or energy transfer output from a system to its total power
or energy transfer input

• If a system has high efficiency, this means most of the energy transferred is useful
• If a system has low efficiency, this means most of the energy transferred is wasted
• Determining which type of energy is useful or wasted depends on the system
o When electrical energy is converted to light in a lightbulb, the light energy
is useful and the heat energy produced is wasted
o When electrical energy is converted to heat for a heater, the heat energy
is useful and the sound energy produced is wasted
• Efficiency is represented as a percentage, and can be calculated using the equation:

• The energy can be of any form e.g. gravitational potential energy, kinetic energy
• The efficiency equation can also be written in terms of power:

• Where power is defined as the energy transferred per unit of time

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD
Worked Example
An electric motor has an efficiency of 35 %. It lifts a 7.2 kg load through a height of 5 m in
3 s. Calculate the power of the motor.

Step 1: Write down the efficiency equation

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

Step 2: Rearrange for the power input

Step 3: Calculate the power output

o The power output is equal to energy ÷ time
o The electric motor transferred electric energy into gravitational potential
energy to lift the load

Gravitational potential energy = mgh = 7.2 × 9.81 × 5 = 353.16 J

Power = 353.16 ÷ 3 = 117.72 W

Step 4: Substitute values into power input equation

Exam Tip

Efficiency can be in a ratio (between 0 and 1) or percentage format (between 0 and 100%)
If the question asks for efficiency as a ratio, give your answer as a fraction or decimal.
If the answer is required as a percentage, remember to multiply the ratio by 100 to convert
it: if the ratio = 0.25, percentage = 0.25 × 100 = 25 %
Remember that efficiency has no units

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Improving Efficiency

• The efficiency of a device can be improved by reducing the amount of unwanted

energy that is produced (usually heat, light or sound)
• Machines waste energy due to:

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

o Friction between their moving parts
o Air resistance
o Electrical resistance
o Noise

Reducing Friction
• In a mechanical system, for example, there is often friction, which can result in
unwanted heat being produced
• This friction can be reduced by:
o Adding bearings to prevent components from directly rubbing together
o Lubricating parts

Reducing Electrical Resistance

• Electrical systems can also produce heat due to the presence of resistance
• High resistance within electrical components can cause them to become very hot
• Heat loss can be reduced by:
o Using components with lower resistance
o Lowering the current to reduce the amount of heat produced

Reducing Air Resistance

• Air resistance causes a force between the moving object and the air that opposes
its motion
• Heat is produced as a result and is lost to the surroundings
• Heat loss can be reduced by:
o Streamlining the shapes of moving objects
• For example, a racing cyclist adopts a more streamlined posture to reduce the
effects of air resistance
o Also, the bicycle, clothing and helmet are designed to allow them to go as
fast as possible

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD
Reducing Noise
• Sound created by machinery causes energy transfer to the surroundings
• This noise can be reduced by:
o Tightening loose parts to reduce vibration
o Lubricating parts

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

Exam Tip

When answering questions about improving efficiency, it is helpful to identify the useful
energy output and the wasted energy output(s). Remember, the efficiency of a device is
improved by increasing the USEFUL energy output of the device.

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Sankey Diagrams
• A Sankey diagram gives a visual illustration of an input/output situation. This
diagram summarises all the energy transfers taking place in a process. The thicker
the line or arrow, the greater the amount of energy involved.

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

• Sankey diagrams allow us to visualize flow through a process or system more easily
than a table of numerical data can.
• They show not only the energy transfers involved but also the quantitative
distribution of values in the transfers.

This Sankey diagram for an electric lamp shows that most of the electrical energy is
transferred as heat rather than light.

Sankey diagram for a filament lamp

Energy can be transferred usefully, stored or dissipated. It cannot be created or

destroyed. This is called conservation of energy.

In the above Sankey diagram, note that 100 J of electrical energy is supplied to the lamp.
Of this, 10 J is transferred to the surroundings as light energy. The remainder, 90 J (100
J – 10 J) is transferred to the surroundings as heat energy.

The energy transfer to light energy is the useful transfer. The rest is ‘wasted’. It is
eventually transferred to the surroundings, making them warmer. This ‘wasted’ energy
eventually becomes so spread out that it becomes very difficult to do anything useful with
it.

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Drawing Sankey Diagrams

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

• The arrow in a Sankey diagram represents the transfer of energy:
o The end of the arrow pointing to the right represents the energy that ends
up in the desired store – the useful energy output.
o The end that points down represents the wasted energy.
• The width of each arrow is proportional to the amount of energy going to each
store.
• Start by planning your diagram:
o How wide are you going to make the input arrow?
o How wide will the useful energy out arrow need to be?
o How wide must the wasted arrow be?
• Next, start drawing the diagram one step at a time:
o Draw the left hand side of the arrow, along with the line going across the
top.
o Next add the useful energy out arrow, making sure it if the correct width.
o Now carefully mark the start and end of the wasted arrow – make sure your
marks are the correct distance apart.
o Finally join the markings together, finishing the wasted energy arrow.

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Sankey diagrams can be used to show the efficiency of a system

• Using energy values of input and output

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

o The efficiency of the filament lamp is 10 ÷ 100 = 0.10 (or 10%). This means
that 10 per cent of the electrical energy supplied is transferred as light
energy (90 per cent is transferred as heat energy).
• Using length of input energy width and output energy width

• Using percentage input and output

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad

IGCSE 9-1 PHYSICS CONTACT: 01671657761| BEYOND WARI
CHAPTER 14 TEACHER: AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD

Worked Example
Sankey diagram for the power station.

AANJANUL HAQUE FAHAD | O/A' LEVEL PHYSICS TEACHER | PH: 01671-657761

(i) State the relationship between efficiency, useful energy output and total energy input.
efficiency = (useful energy output) / (total energy input)

(ii) The efficiency of the power station is 36%. The total energy input is 1050 kJ.
Calculate the total wasted energy in kJ.
0.36 = (useful energy output) / 1050kJ
useful energy output = 0.36 x 1050kJ = 378 kJ
total wasted energy = 1050kJ - 378kJ = 672kJ

(iii) Name two forms of wasted energy in this power station.

thermal energy, noise/sound, frictional heating, etc.
(i) State the relationship between efficiency, useful energy output and total energy input.
efficiency = (useful energy output) / (total energy input)
(ii) The efficiency of the power station is 36%. The total energy input is 1050 kJ.
Calculate the total wasted energy in kJ.
0.36 = (useful energy output) / 1050kJ
useful energy output = 0.36 x 1050kJ = 378 kJ
total wasted energy = 1050kJ - 378kJ = 672kJ

Physics W/ Fahad | Facebook https://cutt.ly/PWFahad