Module 10 HW Questions_
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School
Colorado State University, Fort Collins *
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Course
364
Subject
Geography
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
Pages
4
Uploaded by mq.joness
Coal:
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How much of the United States’ electric generation comes from coal? How much supply
remains?
50%, there is hundreds of years worth of supply remaining
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The power plan shown uses five trainloads of coal per day, every day. Why is coal such
an attractive source of electricity?
Coal is such an attractive source of electricity because it is inexpensive. It is cheap to
obtain, sell, and buy.
-
What are the external problems caused by burning coal for electricity?
Local air pollution and global carbon dioxide.
-
Clean coal is a technology that captures and sequesters the pollutants released by burning
it. Why isn't this technology used in all coal planes?
Because it is extremely expensive ($300 million). Coal is mainly used because it benefits
the economy due to how low cost it is, but because new technology is so expensive, it is
uncommon and not affordable.
Oil:
-
What are two factors that can influence the price of oil?
Supply and demand
-
What is a spar platform?
A floating oil rig. It is similar to a “floating can” or buoy
-
How long does it take to get from geologist saying drill here to getting rig in place to
drill?
It takes up to 14 years to set up a spar drilling rig.
-
What happens at an oil refinery?
Gasoline and jet fuel is produced.
-
Gasoline is described in the documentary as a “miracle” fuel. Why is it so ideal for
transportation?
Because it is more efficient in allowing automobiles to travel further for cheaper. There is
no ash or visible byproduct from gasoline. Gasoline is able to refill transportation
quickly. It also has four times the density of liquid hydrogen.
-
How much U.S. oil demand is represented by the large oil tanker?
1/30th of oil demand
Biofuels:
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What advantage do biofuels have within our current system?
Biofuels are a renewable resource and don't produce as large of a carbon footprint as coal.
They are also more cost efficient. Our current system, especially in the automotive
industry, already supports biofuels.
-
What is the most commonly used source of biofuel?
Corn
-
What is the advantage of using plant high cellulose like sorghum and switchgrass instead
of corn?
They have an advantage of not needing as many resources to thrive (less food and can
grow well in various habitats), and they produce efficiently.
-
Switchgrass can be grown on “marginal land”. What is marginal land?
Marginal land is where crops are able to grow and produce efficiently in various climates.
-
The biggest problem using biofuels is “scale”. Explain what this means.
“Scale” is taking a low density plant and turning it into a high density liquid. Because the
scale of biofuels is much less than oil, it is predicted that biofuels can come more
common and popular, but it is unlikely that they will replace oil.
Compressed Natural Gas:
-
Explain how natural gas is a cleaner fuel than diesel.
Natural gas is cleaner fuel than diesel because it does not produce byproducts, such as
smoke, other than water and CO2. The emissions that come from natural gas are clean.
-
Natural gas is a cheaper fuel than diesel, but it has higher capital costs. What does this
mean?
The material and machinery necessary before production for natural gas is higher than
diesel but after capital costs, natural gas is a cheaper fuel.
Oil Sands:
-
Compare the consistency of oil present in the tar sands of Canada with typical petroleum.
The consistency of oil present in the tar sands of Canada is similar to a hockey puck
(hard) compared to typical petroleum. The oil in the tar sands of Canada is 80% and in
typical petroleum is 84%.
-
Explain how oil is extracted from the sands.
Oil is extracted from the sands by burning natural gas, pumping hot water into oil to
release steam, and melting the oil out from within the rock.
-
If oil from the Canadian sands is so different to extract, why does ConocoPhillips bother?
Conoco Phillips brothers to extract oil from the Canadian sand because the oil there is an
available resource that can make money due to its difficult location. An increase in
money caused Phillips to want to extract more oil from that location.
Hybrid:
-
Why are we transitioning into hybrid cars instead of jumping straight to all electric?
Because it is a slow transition route we are taking from gasoline to energy use. Batteries
are also costly.
-
What is the base price of the Tesla model shown?
The base price of the Tesla model shown is $109,000
-
How much more electricity would need to be generated if all our vehicles were converted
to electric?
40% more electric energy would need to be generated if all of our vehicles were
converted to electric.
Geothermal:
-
Explain how geothermal plants produce electricity.
They produce electricity by moving water and steam through pipes into wells, which give
the product from the pipes to the plants. A turbine and generator are present in this
system to convert energy and produce electricity.
-
What waste product(s) are given off by geothermal plants?
Silica dust, water, and steam are given off by geothermal plants.
-
Explain how geothermal energy is a regional resource and dependent on geology.
It is depended on geology because without a geothermal hotspot, getting an effective
amount of naturally generated heat would be difficult.
Solar:
-
How long does it take homeowners who install solar panels to recover their investment?
It takes homeowners who install solar panels 8-10 years to recover from their investment.
-
Solar energy is described as regional. What three variables must be at high levels for it to
be economically viable?
Sun, electric prices, and subsidies
-
Diablo Valley College has a solar array above one of its parking lots. How much energy
is produced by this array per year?
50% of energy is produced by this array per year
-
How does concentrated solar heating work differently than photovoltaic cells?
By being a more sustainable production option. It works by heating up sodium, which
produces energy for other things and storing heat rather than electrons.
Wind:
-
What advantage does wind power have over other renewable resources?
It is inexpensive, as a quick installation, and has no CO2 emissions over other renewable
resources.
-
The biggest problem with wind power is its intermittence. What does this mean?
Intermittence in terms of wind power means without the presence, or, in the occurrence
of changes to this wind, the efficiency of the plants will change. Wind is never a constant
source.
-
Explain why so many transmission lines have to be constructed to support wind farms.
Many transmission lines have to be constructed to support wind farms because the energy
produced by wind needs to be exported to other places.
-
Based on the graph shown, when are the peak times for electricity consumption?
The peak time for electricity consumption is around 17:00 on both days
Hydrofracking:
-
Natural gas within shale formations cannot escape. How does hydrofracking change this?
Hydrofracking changes the fact that natural gas within shale formations cannot normally
escape by drilling a well into the material and breaking it, allowing the natural gas to
escape.
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-
Name two big advantages of tapping these deep shale formations.
It is cheap and still has hundreds of years worth of supply remaining.
-
What is the single biggest problem with hydrofracking?
Fossil fuels produce carbon dioxide
-
Is water contamination more likely to occur from the deep well operations, or surface
operations? Give an example.
Water contamination is more likely to occur from surface operations. For example,
material can possibly leak, which could cause an effect on places that affect us.
-
Natural gas is very difficult to store. How is the gas captured at sea between Iran and
Qatar transported?
The gas captured between Iran and Qatar is transported by ship.
Nuclear:
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What kinds of external damage can nuclear containment buildings withstand?
Nuclear containment buildings can withstand tornadoes.
-
What is the bigger hurdle in developing nuclear power: the cost of the plant, or the fuel?
The bigger hurdle in developing nuclear power is the cost of the plant.
-
France gets 80% of its electricity from nuclear power. What do they do with the waste-
the spent fuel rods?
France recycles the waste.
Conclusion:
-
Scott Tinker discusses a 50-year “crossover”, where our use of alternative fuels for
energy overtakes foundational fuels. What does he include in the foundational fuels
graph? What does he include in the alternative fuels graph?
Foundational fuels graph: the higher the price increases, the more oil there is.
Alternative fuels graph: the scale necessary to produce enough volume.
-
Meeting the challenge of the 50-year crossover will require a tremendous amount of
construction of renewable, nuclear, and gas-powered plants. What does Scott suggest is
the best way to deal with this?
Scott suggests that nuclear, natural gas, and renewable energy be combined to meet the
50 year crossover.