Introduction

Energy is one of the most fundamental parts of our universe. We use energy to do work. Energy lights our cities. Energy powers our vehicles, trains, planes and rockets. Energy warms our homes, cooks our food, plays our music, gives us pictures on television. Energy from the sun gives us light during the day. Everything we do is connected to energy in one form or another. Energy is defined as:

"the ability to

do work."
When we eat, our bodies transform the energy stored in the food into energy to do work. When we run or walk, we "burn" food energy in our bodies. Cars, planes, light bulbs, boats and machinery also transform energy into work. Energy can be found in a number of different forms. It can be chemical energy, electrical energy, heat (thermal energy), light (radiant energy), mechanical energy, and nuclear energy.

Thomas Young the first to use the term "energy" in the modern sense.

The sun is a vast source of energy. It produces energy by nuclear fusion.

Stored and Moving Energy

Energy makes everything happen and can be divided into two types:

Stored energy is called potential energy. Moving energy is called kinetic energy.

Potential Energy
Potential energy is stored energy and the energy of position gravitational energy. There are several forms of potential energy.

Kinetic Energy
Kinetic energy is motion of waves, electrons, atoms, molecules, substances, and objects. Radiant Energy includes visible light, x-rays, gamma rays and radio waves. Light is one type of radiant energy. Sunshine is radiant energy, which provides the fuel and warmth that make life on Earth possible. Thermal Energy, or heat, is the vibration and movement of the atoms and molecules within substances. Motion Energy is energy stored in the movement of objects. The faster they move, the more energy is stored. Sound is produced when a force causes an object or substance to vibrate the energy is transferred through the substance in longitudinal wave. Electrical Energy is delivered by tiny charged particles called electrons, typically moving through a wire. Lightning is an example of electrical energy in nature, so powerful that it is not confined to a wire.

Chemical Energy is energy stored in the bonds of atoms and molecules. Batteries, biomass, petroleum, natural gas, and coal are examples of stored chemical energy. Mechanical Energy is energy stored in objects by tension. Compressed springs and stretched rubber bands are examples of stored mechanical energy. Nuclear Energy is energy stored in the nucleus of an atom the energy that holds the nucleus together. Very large amounts of energy can be released when the nuclei are combined or split apart. Gravitational Energy is energy stored in an object's height. The higher and heavier the object, the more gravitational energy is stored.

Energy Is Neither Created Nor Destroyed

To scientists, "conservation of energy" does not mean saving energy. Instead, the law of conservation of energy says that energy is neither created nor destroyed. When we use energy, it doesn't disappear. We change it from one form of energy into another.

A car engine burns gasoline, converting the chemical energy in gasoline into mechanical energy. Solar cells change radiant energy into electrical energy. Energy changes form, but the total amount of energy in the universe stays the same.

Energy Sources Can be Categorized As Renewable or Nonrenewable

Energy sources are divided into two groups renewable (an energy source that can be easily replenished) and nonrenewable (an energy source that we are using up and cannot recreate). Renewable Energy Renewable energy sources include:

Solar energy from the sun, which can be turned into electricity and heat Wind Geothermal energy from heat inside the Earth Biomass from plants, which includes firewood from trees, ethanol from corn, and biodiesel from vegetable oil

Hydropower from hydro turbines at a dam

Nonrenewable Energy We get most of our energy from nonrenewable energy sources, which include the fossil fuels oil, natural gas, and coal. They're called fossil fuels because they were formed over millions and millions of years by the action of heat from the Earth's core and pressure from rock and soil on the remains (or "fossils") of dead plants and creatures like microscopic diatoms.

Coal
Coal is a fossil fuel that is commonly used in producing energy. It is available in different forms, with some more common and more useful than others. The use of coal in energy production causes many major problems, usually on a greater scale than the use of oil or gas. Coal-burning produces acid rain, sulfur oxide emission, carbon dioxide emission, poorer land, hazardous waste, and other problems. Several forms of coal exist in the world. Anthracite, bituminous coal, lignite, and subbituminous coal are all different types that are used by humans.

Oil (Petroleum)
Oil was formed from the remains of animals and plants that lived millions of years ago in a marine (water) environment before the dinosaurs. Over the years, the remains were covered by layers of mud. Heat and pressure from these layers helped the remains turn into what we today call crude oil. The word "petroleum" means "rock oil" or "oil from the earth." Where does Oil come from? Crude oil is a smelly, yellow-to-black liquid and is usually found in underground areas called reservoirs. Scientists and engineers explore a chosen area by studying rock samples from the earth. Measurements are taken, and, if the site seems promising, drilling begins. When finished, the drilled well will bring a steady flow of oil to the surface.

The world's top five crude oil-producing countries are: Saudi Arabia Russia United States Iran China

Wind energy

Wind is air in motion. It is produced by the uneven heating of the earths surface by the sun. Wind is called a renewable energy source because wind will continually be produced as long as the sun shines on the earth. Today, wind energy is mainly used to generate electricity. Wind turbines Windmills work because they slow down the speed of the wind. The wind flows over the airfoil shaped blades causing lift, like the effect on airplane wings, causing them to turn. The blades are connected to a drive shaft that turns an electric generator to produce electricity.

Types of Windmills Two types of wind machines are commonly used today, the horizontalaxis with blades like airplane propellers and the verticalaxis, which looks like an egg-beater: 1) Horizontal-axis.

The main elements of Horizontal-axis wind machines are:

2) Vertical-axis

Both types of turbine rotors are turned by air flowing over their wing shaped blades. Verticalaxis blades lose energy as they turn out of the wind, while horizontal-axis blades work all the time. At many sites, the wind increases higher above the ground, giving an advantage to tall horizontal-axis turbines. The small tower and ground-mounted generators on vertical-axis turbines make them cheaper and easier to maintain.

Solar Energy Systems

It is a known fact that the majority of people believe that solar energy systems such as solar panels are going to be the future. The world cannot go on living by using all the fossil fuels that are currently available. In fact, years down the line they are simply not going to be available, which is why it is important to convert to solar energy systems; NOW! The great thing about solar energy systems is that they can instantly convert the energy from the sun and use the electricity that has been created to provide free power for their home.

How does solar energy work

A lot of people wonder how solar energy works. The actually mechanism that solar based products use are extremely simple. One of the most common types of generator for solar energy is photovoltaic based products like solar panels. They take the power that the sunlight offers on a daily basis and then converts it directly into usable electricity.

Nuclear Energy Fission and Fusion

Another major form of energy is nuclear energy, the energy that is trapped inside each atom. One of the laws of the universe is that matter and energy can't be created nor destroyed. But they can be changed in form. Matter can be changed into energy. The world's most famous scientist, Albert Einstein, created the mathematical formula that explains this. It is: This equation says:

E [energy] equals m [mass] times c2 [c stands for the velocity of light].

Scientists used Einstein's famous equation as the key to unlock atomic energy and also create atomic bombs.

Nuclear Fission
An atom's nucleus can be split apart. When this is done, a tremendous amount of energy is released. The energy is both heat and light energy. Einstein said that a very small amount of matter contains a very LARGE amount of energy. This energy, when let out slowly, can be harnessed to generate electricity. When it is let out all at once, it can make a tremendous explosion in an atomic bomb. A nuclear power plant uses uranium as a "fuel." Uranium is an element that is dug out of the ground many places around the world. It is processed into tiny pellets that are loaded into very long rods that are put into the power plant's reactor.

Power plant drawing courtesy Nuclear Institute

Nuclear Fusion
Another form of nuclear energy is called fusion. Fusion means joining smaller nuclei (the plural of nucleus) to make a larger nucleus. The sun uses nuclear fusion of hydrogen atoms into helium atoms. This gives off heat and light and other radiation. In the picture below, two types of hydrogen atoms, deuterium and tritium, combine to make a helium atom and an extra particle called a neutron.

Scientists have been working on controlling nuclear fusion for a long time, trying to make a fusion reactor to produce electricity. But they have been having trouble learning how to control the reaction in a contained space. What's better about nuclear fusion is that it creates less radioactive material than fission, and its supply of fuel can last longer than the sun.

Albert Einstein (1879)

Albert Einstein was born in Germany in 1879. He enjoyed classical music and played the violin. One story Einstein liked to tell about his childhood was of a wonder he saw when he was four or five years old: a magnetic compass. The needle's invariable northward swing, guided by an invisible force, profoundly impressed the child. The compass convinced him that there had to be "something behind things, something deeply hidden." Even as a small boy Einstein was self-sufficient and thoughtful. According to family legend he was a slow talker, pausing to consider what he would say. His sister remembered the concentration and perseverance with which he would build houses of cards. In 1933, he joined the staff of the newly created Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. He accepted this position for life, living there until his death. Einstein is probably familiar

to most people for his mathematical equation about the nature of

energy,

Einstein wrote a paper with a new understanding of the structure of light. For example, he made clear how light ejects electrons from metals. James Prescott Joule (1818) James Prescott Joule was born in 1818 in Salford, England. He was tutored at home and was expected to go into the family brewery business, along with his brother, Benjamin. When James was 16 years old, both boys were sent to learn chemistry from John Dalton, the father of modern chemistry. Although James had responsibilities with the brewery, he began a lifetime of scientific experimentation. Joule published 97 scientific papers, and shared more than 20 with other scientists. He shares credit for discovering the law of the conservation of energy, which says that energy used in one form will reappear in another and will never be lost. In 1840, he declared another law of science that says that heat is produced in an electrical conductor and is now called Joule's Law. The international unit of energy, the joule, is named in his honor. J. Robert Oppenheimer (1908)

J. Robert Oppenheimer is considered the father of the atomic bomb. He was the director of the team who designed and built the first atomic bomb. Oppenheimer was born in 1908 in New York City. In 1925 he graduated from Harvard University. J. Robert Oppenheimer spent the last years of his life as the director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. He died in 1967.