ENERGY STORES AND TANSFERS

Energy can be stored or transferred but it cannot be used up. For example, energy is stored in the chemical
bonds of molecules in diesel oil and oxygen molecules in the air. This energy is transferred in combustion and
allows the car to move and accelerate, or reach a certain distance. Where there are energy transfers in
a system, the total energy associated with the system stays the same.

ENERGY STORES

There are eight energy stores which are used to keep track of energy in a system.

TRANSFERRING ENERGY

In each of these examples energy is transferred by one of the following four types of energy transfer:

● mechanical work - a force moving an object through a distance

● electrical work - charges moving due to a potential difference

● heating - due to temperature difference caused electrically or by chemical reaction

● radiation - energy transferred as a wave, eg light and infrared - the Sun emits light radiation and infrared radiation
ENERGY TRANSFERS
Energy can remain in the same store for millions of years before it is transferred, sometimes just for a fraction
of a second. Energy transfers happen all the time - whenever a system changes, there is a change in the way
some or all of the energy is stored.

CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING SCENARIOS -

Kinetic energy store is transferred to a gravitational energy store Electricity supplied to the kettle increases the
thermal energy store of the element, which
increases the thermal energy store of the water.
This increases the temperature of the water.

As the boat pushes through the water, a chemical energy store in the fuel is transferred to the kinetic energy store of the boat and the water
EXAMPLE FROM QUESTION PAPER