Energy, work and power

Learning outcomes

• Identify changes in different energy stores

• Recognise different energy transfers and interpret energy flow
diagrams
• Explain the meaning of energy efficiency
• Apply the principle of conservation of energy
• Calculate potential energy and kinetic energy
• Explain the link between energy transferred and work done
• Use the equation for calculation of power
 Key terms

• Types of Energy
• Energy stores/transfers
• Energy flow diagram
• Energy efficiency
• Kinetic energy/elastic(strain) energy/chemical energy/electrostatic
energy/geothermal energy/tidal energy
• Gravitational potential energy/nuclear energy/thermal energy
• Work done/power
 Energy stores
An energy store is a way in which energy can be kept in a system.
Practice questions
Energy can be transferred from one store to another, even within the same object.
For example, when you climb a hill, you are transferring energy from your
chemical store to your gravity (or g.p.e.) store.
Here are four different ways in which energy can be transferred:
1. By a force (mechanical working).
If you lift something, you give it gravitational potential energy – you provide the
force that lifts it. Alternatively, you can provide the force needed to start something
moving – you give it kinetic energy
2. By heating (thermal working).
thermal energy spreads out from hot objects. No matter how good the
insulation, energy is transferred from a hot object to its cooler surroundings.
3. By radiation (light). Light reaches us from the Sun. That is how energy is transferred
from the sun to the earth.
4. By electrical currents (electrical working). An electric current is a
convenient way of transferring energy from place to place. The electricity
may be generated in a power station many kilometres away from where the energy is
required.
 Conservation of energy

• In any energy transfer, the total amount of energy before and after
the transfer is constant.
• In other words, the total input energy should equal the total output
energy.
An effective way to represent the principle of conservation of energy is
by using a Sankey diagram.
 Energy efficiency

• Most wasted energy is transferred away as heat.

• Another common wasted energy transfer is sound
•.
The efficiency of a system can be increased by
1. Reducing waste output( lubrication, thermal insulation)
2. Recycling waste output( absorbing thermal waste and recycling it as
input energy
 Practice questions

1. A tidal-power station is expected to produce 32 TJ of energy (1 TJ =

1012 J) when the tides provide it with 100 TJ of gravitational
potential energy. What is the efficiency of the power station?
2. A tungsten-filament lamp is 4% efficient. How much electrical
energy must be supplied to the lamp each second when it produces 6
J of light per second?
 Gravitational potential energy

• an object’s gravitational potential energy (g.p.e.) depends on two

factors – (1) the object’s weight, mg – the greater its weight, the
greater its g.p.e. (2) the object’s height, h, above ground level – the
greater its height, the greater its g.p.e.
• Potential energy PE= mgh
 Practice questions

• An athlete of mass 50 kg runs up a hill. The foot of the hill is 400

metres above sea-level. The summit is 1200 metres above sea-level.
By how much does the athlete’s g.p.e. increase? Assume that
acceleration due to gravity g =10ms-2
 Kinetic energy

• the kinetic energy of an object depends on two factors: (1) the object’s
mass m – the greater the mass, the greater its kinetic energy and (2) the
object’s speed v – the greater the speed, the greater its kinetic energy.
Practice questions
The energy we use
 Energy resources

Energy resources we use on earth can be renewable and non-

renewable.
Renewable- natural resources that are replenished at a higher rate than
they are consumed.
Non-renewable-natural resources that cannot be readily replaced by
natural means.
 Renewable energy sources

✓ solar energy
✓Wind energy
✓Hydro energy
✓Tidal energy
✓Geothermal energy
✓Biomass energy
 Non-renewable energy sources

✓Coal
✓Oil
✓Natural gas
✓Nuclear energy
 Nuclear fuel

• The fuel for a nuclear power station is usually uranium, sometimes plutonium.
These are radioactive materials. Inside a nuclear reactor, the radioactive decay of
these materials is speeded up so that the energy they store is released much more
quickly. This is the process of nuclear fission.
• Nuclear power provides a lot of energy. In France, for example, nuclear power
stations generate three-quarters of the country’s electricity. Excess production is
exported to neighbouring countries, including Spain, Switzerland and the UK.
• Nuclear fuel is a relatively cheap, concentrated energy resource. However, nuclear
power has proved to be expensive because of the initial cost of building the power
stations, and the costs of disposing of the radioactive spent fuel. Also, accidents
like those at Chernobyl in 1986 and Fukushima in 2011 can cause radioactive
material to be spread over a wide area.
 Tidal energy

• A tidal power station is similar to a hydroelectric power station: electrical power is

generated by moving water. A barrage (dam) is built across a river estuary (where
a river meets the sea) creating a reservoir. As the tide goes in and out, water passes
through turbines in the dam.
• Tidal power has the advantage of being renewable. Also, tides are predictable
making it a fairly reliable energy resource. However, by flooding estuaries, a tidal
power station can destroy wetlands, an important habitat for wildlife, particularly
migrating birds that use it to feed and rest before the next leg of their journey. The
barrage can also block shipping routes
 Solar energy
• In hot, sunny countries, solar panels are used to collect energy transferred by light
from the Sun. The Sun’s rays fall on a large solar panel, on the roof of a house.
This absorbs the energy of the rays, and water inside the panel heats up. This
provides hot water for washing. It can also be pumped round the house, through
radiators, to provide a cheap form of central heating.
• We can also generate electricity directly from sunlight. The Sun’s rays shine on a
large array of solar cells (also known as a photocells or photovoltaic cells). The
solar cells absorb the energy of the rays, and electricity is produced.
• While solar power (from solar panels and photocells) is renewable and does not
contribute to global warming, it is unreliable because the intensity of sunlight
varies (and drops to zero at night) and a large area of solar panels is required to
capture the energy.
 A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device
that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by
the photovoltaic effect,

However, as this technology becomes cheaper, it is finding more and more uses.
Solar cells have also been used extensively for powering spacecraft. Ideally, a solar
cell is connected to a rechargeable battery, which stores the energy collected, so that
it can be available during the hours of darkness.
 Wind power
• Wind and waves are also caused by the effects of the Sun. The Sun heats some
parts of the atmosphere more than others. Heated air expands and starts to move
around. This is the origin of winds. There are many technologies for extracting
energy from the wind. Windmills have been used for a long time for grinding and
pumping, and modern wind turbines can generate electricity.
• Wind is renewable and does not contribute to global warming. However, it is
unreliable because the speed of the wind can vary and on calm days no power is
produced. Wind turbines need a minimum wind speed of about 5 m/s and are
switched off when wind speeds exceed 25 m/s to prevent them being damaged.
• Wind is a dilute energy resource. It would take a ‘wind farm’ of several hundred
wind turbines to produce the same energy as a typical fossil fuel power station.
Wind turbines are also noisy and many people think they spoil the appearance of
places where they are located.
 Wave power

➢Most of the energy of winds is transferred to the sea as waves are

formed by friction between wind and water. Like wind, wave power is
renewable and does not contribute to global warming.
➢ However, it is unreliable because the height of waves can vary and,
when there are no waves, no power is produced. It is also difficult to
convert the up-and-down motion of waves into the spinning motion
required for a turbine in the wave energy converters, which float on
the water.
➢The cost is high because these machines corrode in the saltwater and
can be damaged in storms
 Hydroelectric power

• For centuries, people have used the kinetic energy of moving water to turn water
wheels, which then drive machinery.
• Today we have hydroelectric power stations where Water stored behind a dam is
released to turn turbines, which make generators spin. This is a very safe, clean
and reliable way of producing electricity, but it is not without its problems.
• A new reservoir floods land that have been used for farming. People may be made
homeless, and wildlife habitats destroyed.
• Hydroelectric power stations have a very short start up time (the time between
switching on a power station and energy being delivered). This makes them very
useful for storing energy until there is a sudden surge (increase) in demand.
 Biomass fuels

• For many people in the world, wood is the most important fuel. It warms their
homes and provides the heat necessary for cooking their food. Wood is made by
trees and shrubs. It stores energy that the plant has captured from sunlight in the
process of photosynthesis.
• Wood is just one example of a biofuel. Others include animal dung and biogas,
generated by rotting vegetable matter.
• Biomass has the advantage that it is renewable and does not contribute to global
warming. It is reliable because it can be burned when needed. However, burning
biofuels, particularly indoors, can lead to respiratory and other health problems.
 Energy from the Sun

Most of the energy we use can be traced back to radiation from the Sun.
• Fossil fuels are stores of energy that came from the Sun millions of years ago.
• Radiation (light and heat) from the Sun can be absorbed by solar panels to provide hot
water. Sunlight can also be absorbed by arrays of solar cells (photocells) to generate
electricity.
• The wind is caused when air is heated by the Sun. Warm air rises; cool air flows in to
replace it. This moving air can be used to generate electricity using wind turbines.
• Most hydroelectric power comes ultimately from the Sun. The Sun’s rays cause water to
evaporate from the oceans and land surface. This water vapour in the atmosphere
eventually forms clouds at high altitudes. Rain falls on high ground, and can then be
trapped behind a dam. This is part of the water cycle. Without energy from the Sun, there
would be no water cycle and no hydroelectric power.
However, we make use of a small amount of energy that does not come from theSun as
radiation. Here are three examples:
❖ The Moon and the Sun both contribute to the oceans’ tides. Their gravitational pull
causes the level of the ocean’s surface to rise and fall every twelve-and-a-bit hours. At
high tide, water can be trapped behind a dam. Later, at lower tides, it can be released
to drive turbines and generators. Because this depends on gravity, and not the Sun’s
heat and light.

❖ Nuclear power makes use of nuclear fuels – mostly uranium – mined from
underground. Uranium is a slightly radioactive element, which has been in the ground
ever since the Earth formed, together with the rest of the Solar System.

❖ Geothermal energy also depends on the presence of radioactive substances inside the
Earth. These have been there since the Earth formed; they have been continuously
releasing their store of energy ever since
 The source of the Sun’s energy

• The Sun consists largely of hydrogen, but there is no oxygen to burn this gas.
• Instead, energy is released in the Sun by the process of nuclear fusion. In nuclear
fusion, four energetic hydrogen atoms collide and fuse (join together) to form an
atom of helium.
• Nuclear fusion requires very high temperatures and pressures. The temperature
inside the Sun is close to 15 million degrees. The pressure is also very high, sothat
hydrogen atoms are forced very close together, allowing them to fuse.
Checking for understanding
 Doing work

The work done to move a weight vertically

upwards is equal to g.p.e.
 power

• In physics, the word power is used with a special meaning.

• Power is the rate at which energy is transferred, or the rate at which
work is done.
Power is measured in watts (W). One watt (1 W) is the power when
one joule (1J) of work is done per unit time. So one watt is one joule
per second.
1 W = 1 J/s
1000 W = 1 kW (kilowatt)
1 000 000 W = 1 MW (megawatt)
Checking for understanding