SWES 210: EXAM 3
45 Cards in this Set
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what are tar sands?
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mix of sand, clay, other materials
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How do Canada's tar sands reserves compare to the rest of the world
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canada has 3rd largest
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what are some examples of unconventional oil
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heavy oils, oil sands, oil shale and tight sands
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what are the two methods of mining tar sands?
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surface mining and steam-assisted gravity drainage
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define a boreal forest and show where its located
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coniferous forest, fragile, unique biome located in Canada, Alaska, Russia
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What species has become at risk or endangered
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woodland caribou
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explain the differences between keystone and xl pipelines
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xl pipeline is an extension of the keystone. xl is more direct route from canada to the gulf of mexico
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what are some concerns regarding the ogallala aquifer and the sandhill wetlands area
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throw the path of migratory birds and wetlands are uncommon. also possible oils spills contaminating the water
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how are the alberta tar sands and the keystone and xl pipelines connected
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tar sands get transported thru the pipeline and requires lots of energy. both open-pit mines
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what are the challenges to wind energy
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locations remote, intermittency, upgrading electrical grids and transmissions, systems require upfront investment
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Which country leads the world in terms of percentage of electrical power produced by wind energy? What is the percentage?
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Denmark 29%
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Which countries have the most installed wind capacity currently?
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Portugal, spain, china, germany
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What is the potential for wind power in the US?
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16 to 22 times the current electricity needs
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Denmark has developed off-shore wind farms. What about the US?
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No people think it will look ugly
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How might one think of the connection between wind power and electric cars?
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store wind energy into electric car batteries at night to run in the day
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What is the global installed wind capacity as of 2012?
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282.4
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What is concentrated solar power?
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systems that use mirrors or lenses to concentrate large areas of sunlight or thermal energy on
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How do they store energy at the Solano concentrated solar power facility?
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molten salt tanks
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What is the difference between the power tower and trough approach to concentrated solar power?
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power tower= mirrors concentrate sunlight onto receiver on top of tall tower
trough= used curves mirrors that focus sunlight on synthetic oil in pipes to produce electricity
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How many megawatts of solar capacity are installed at the Solano concentrated solar power facility?
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280
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What is the "feed-in" tariff system for solar energy in Germany?
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requires utilities to buy power from anyone who generates it
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How do photovoltaic (PV) solar cells work to produce electricity?
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sunlight hits PV panels and cause electrons to move from the p-type to n-type and motion produces electricity
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What fuel sources are used to produce electricity commercially? Name several.
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coal, oil, natural gas, renewables
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What percentage of our electricity is produced from coal?
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45%
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How do electrical power plants work? (from the fuel to the generator)
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fossil fuels heat water to make steam, then steam turns turbines and starts generator and produces electricity
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What is the most common fuel used in power plants?
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coal
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What is coal, how is it formed? What are the conditions that lead to coal and other fossil fuel formation in the subsurface?
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sedimentary material, carbonized plant matter. formed by compressed and heated underground. no oxygen, some water
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What is fly ash? What is bottom ash?
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fly ash= residue generated from combustion and tiny particles in flue gases
bottom ash= agglomerated ash particles, too large to be carried in flue gases
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In a properly running coal fired power plant, what should be coming out the exhaust stack?
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water vapor and co2
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What is natural gas?
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methane and volatile hydrocarbons. fastest growing fuel
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Why is natural gas considered a better alternative than coal?
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emits half as much co2 as coal, and 2/3 as much as oil, no ash or impurities, which is a major problem for coal
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What is the difference between biogenic and thermogenic production of natural gas?
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biogenic= swamp gas, methane created at shallow depths by bacterial anaerobic decomposition of organic materials
thermogenic= methane and other gases arise from compression and heat deep underground
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What is the difference between methane and natural gas?
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methane is pure c4 gas
natural gas= liqueified and mixture of elements
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How are gas and oil trapped underground?
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isolated in deposits and collected in porous layers under impermeable layers
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What is hydraulic fracturing (fracking)? Describe the process. Why has there been a recent boom in the energy industry in the US?
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release oil or natural gas from shale rock
drills a mile horizontally and pumps high pressure salt water into rocks to crack them then sucks up the gas
discovery of horizontal drilling
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What is shale?
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fine-grained classic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments
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50% of new power plants that came on line in 2013 are powered by _____?
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natural gas
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In second place, ~25% of new power plants that came on line in 2013 are powered by _____?
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solar
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What is liquefied natural gas?
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gas that has been converters to liquid form for ease of storage and transport, transported around the world
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What is the difference between oil, natural gas and coal?
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oil=liquid, made up of hydrocarbons and animal materials
coal= solid, mostly c02 and plant materials
natural gas= gas form, mostly methane
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What is meant by proven recoverable reserves?
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amount of oil or other fuels that is technically and economically feasible to remove under current conditions
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What is the difference between primary and secondary oil extraction?
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primary= initial drilling and pumping of oil
secondary= solvents, water, stream used to remove additional oil
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In October 2013 the US produced more oil than it imported, why?
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b/c we have large natural gas reserves
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Describe the trend in US oil production versus oil imports over the last 20 years.
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started producing more than imported
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What is the Keystone XL pipeline and why is it controversial?
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pipeline that runs from canada to gulf of mexico to transport tar sands. b/c if oil spill were to happen it would contaminate ogalla aquifer, destroys habitats, wetlands
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SWES 210: Final Exam