Chapte

C er 14: Enerrgy fast facts

f
C..1 Energgy source
es
Societies are
a completeely dependent on energyy resources. The T quantityy of energy
is conserveed in any con
nversion but the quality is degraded.

Energy is th
he ability to do work. The law of conservation off energy sayss that energyy cannot be created
c or
destroyed,, only change ed from one form to anoother.
A useful en
nergy sourcee releases energy at a reaasonable ratee and producces minimal pollution.
A fuel can release useaable energy by
b changing its chemical or nuclear sttructure.
In any cyclical process designed to convert heat to work, soome energy is i always deggraded. Degrraded energyy is
energy thaat is no longeer available fo
or the performance of usseful work.
The qualityy of energy iss degraded as
a heat is transferred to the
t surrounddings. Energyy and materials go from a
m. The quantity of the energy available for doing work decreaases.
concentratted into a disspersed form
Renewable c be replenished at a rate
e resources can r han they are used (e.g. wood).
faster th w

enerrgy density


speccific energy


efficciency of eneergy transfer 100%

Nuclear fueels have a higher energy density and specific eneergy than fosssil fuels.

C..2 Fossil ffuels

The ennergy of fossil fuels origin
nates from so
olar energy that
t has been stored by chemical proocesses
over tim
me. These abbundant reso ources are non-renewab ble but providde large amo
ounts of energy due
to the nature of ch
hemical bond ds in hydrocaarbons.

Fossil fuelss were formeed by the red

duction of biiological com
mpounds thatt contain carrbon, hydroggen, nitrogen
n,
sulfur and oxygen at hiigh temperatture and preessure in the absence of air.
a
Crude oil iss valuable ass a source of chemicals and as a fuel; however, it is a limited resource.
r
Crude oil needs
n to be refined
r beforre use as it iss a mixture of
o organic compounds an nd inorganic impurities (ee.g.
ns, these can be further distilled
sulfur). Fraactional distilllation separrates the mixxture into useeful fraction d to
produce usseful hydrocaarbons.
Cracking breaks down large alkanees into smalleer alkanes annd alkenes. Thermal
T craccking uses heeat, catalyticc
cracking usses lower tem
mperatures and a catalysst (e.g. Al2O3 and SiO2). Hydrocrackin
H ng with hydrogen and a Pt P
oduces branched chains,, cyclic hydro
catalyst pro ocarbons, an nd aromatic compounds.
c
In a petrol engine the fuel
f may igniite due to heeat and presssure alone auto-ignition this givess rise to
knocking wwhich can damage the en ngine. The teendency to auto-ignite is based on the fuels octaane number.
The higherr the numberr the less likeely it is to auto-ignite.
duces the tendency of a fuel to auto--ignite by maaking it more
Catalytic reeforming red e branched. This
T can also
o
be achieveed by reacting alkanes with low mass alkenes.

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 Natural gass is mostly methane.
m Sup
pplies of metthane can bee increased by
b cracking hydrocarbons
h s or by coal
gasification
n.
Coal gasificcation and liiquefaction are
a chemical processes that
t convert coal to gaseous and liquid
hydrocarbo ons.
All fossil fu
uels are non-renewable and
a produce the greenho
ouse gas carb
bon dioxide.
A carbon fo
ootprint is th
he total amoount of greennhouse gases produced during
d humaan activities. It is generallly
expressed in equivalennt tons of carrbon dioxide.

C..3 Nucleaar fusion

n and fisssion
The
T fusion of hydrogen nuclei in the SunS is the source of much h of the enerrgy needed for
f life on Eaarth. There are
many techn
nological chaallenges in reeplicating this process on
n Earth but it would offerr a rich sourcce of energy.
Fission invvolves the splitting of a laarge unstablee nucleus intto smaller staable nuclei.

Nuclear reaactions invollve the proto

ons and neuttrons in the nucleus,
n and
d the atoms may
m be convverted to other
elements. In chemical reactions
r only valence ellectrons are involved and n change their identityy.
d atoms do not
Alpha partticles (2p and mitted by nuclei with too many proton
d 2n) are em ns; beta partticles (electrons) are
emitted whhen a neutro on decays in a nucleus with too manyy neutrons; gamma
g rays are emitted when the
nucleons reearrange theemselves.
The mass d defect is the difference between
b the mass of the nucleus and
d the sum of the masses of the
individual n
nucleons. Thhe binding ennergy is the energy
e releaased when a nucleus is made
m from prrotons and
neutrons.
Nuclear fusion is the jo oining of ligh
ht nuclei (occcurs for elem
ments with attomic numbeer less than 2
26, Fe); nucle
ear
fission is th
he splitting of
o heavy nuclei (occurs fo or isotopes with
w atomic number
n greaater than 56).
The electro e energy giveen to an elecctron when itt is acceleratted through a potential difference
on volt is the d off 1
V. 1 eV = 1.602189 10 019 J. It is a convenient
c u of energy in nuclear reactions.
unit
Nu
uclear fussion
Nuclear fussion is a posssible source of energy, but the high temperature
t es needed an nd the formation of a
confined plasma causee practical problems. How wever, the fu
uel is abundaant, radioactive productss have a shorrt
half-life, an
nd little wastte needs to be
b transporteed or stored.
Absorption
n spectra aree used to anaalyze the com
mposition off stars
Nu
uclear fisssion
Nuclear fission producees large amo ounts of enerrgy. Chain reeactions can trigger fissio
on in other atoms. In a
nuclear reaactor this is controlled
c ussing moderattors (e.g. boron) to stop the reaction n going out o
of control.
The critical mass is the
e minimum amount of fisssionable maaterial needeed to sustain a chain reacction.
Uncontrolled nuclear reactions aree used in nuclear weapon
ns.
Fast breed c convert U-238 into the more fisssionable Pu-2
der reactors can 239; howeveer, plutonium
m is toxic,
breeder reactors are no
ot very efficiient, and req
quire liquid metals
m as coo
olants.
Radioactivee waste mayy contain isottopes with lo T half-life is the time it takes for half
ong and shorrt half-lives. The
the numbeer of atoms to decay.
Most nucleear waste has very long half-lives
h cau ms with transport and storage.
using problem
nclude: healtth, problemss associated with nuclearr waste and core meltdown and the
Safety and risk issues in
possibility that nuclearr fuels may be used in nu
uclear weapo ons.

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C..4 Solar energy
Visible light can be ab
bsorbed by molecules
m thaat have a connjugated stru
ucture with an
a extended system of
alternating single and multiple
m bondds. Solar eneergy can be cconverted to
o chemical ennergy in phottosynthesis.

Light can be
b absorbed by chlorophyyll and otherr pigments co
ontaining a conjugated
c e
electronic strructure, and
begin the process
p of ph
hotosynthessis.
A conjugatted system contains
c alternate doublee and single bonds. The benzene
b ringg is a conjugaated system..
The waveleength of the light absorb
bed by an orgganic molecuule increasess with the lenngth of the conjugated
system.
Chromophhores within organic moleecules absorrb light. Chro
omophores contain
c unsatturated grou
ups such as
C=C, C=O, N=N, etc.
Photosynth mical energy. 6CO2 + 6H2O C6H12O6 + 6O2
hesis converts light energgy into chem
The produccts of photossynthesis can
n be convertted into ethaanol, which can a a biofuel, by
c be used as
fermentatiion: C6H12O6 2C2H5OH + 2CO2
Energy con ntent of vegeetable oils is similar to that of diesel fuel
f but theyy are not use ed in internall combustion
n
engines as they are too o viscous. Traansesterificaation of vegeetable oils prroduces a miixture of oils with low
viscosity th
hat can be ussed as a replacement forr diesel.

C..5 Enviro
onmentaal impactt: global warmingg
Gases in
n the atmosp phere that arre produced by human activities are changing thee climate as they are
upsettingg the balancee between raadiation enteering and leaaving the atm
mosphere.

Greenhousse gases alloww the passagge of incoming solar shorrt-wavelengtth radiation but absorb the
t longer-
wavelength
h radiation from
f the Eartth. Some of the
t absorbed d radiation iss re-radiated
d back to Earrth.
Greenhousse moleculess such as CO2, CH4, and H2O absorb IR R radiation th
hat is radiateed from the earth,
e as theere
is a changee in dipole moment as the bonds in th he molecule stretch and bend which increases th heir vibrationnal
energy. This natural process is calleed the greenhouse effectt. Human acttivities can inncrease the amount
a of
these gases present in the atmosph here and lead to increaseed global waarming.
The ability of a gas to absorb
a IR rad own as its greeenhouse factor. CO2 has a value of 1.
diation is kno 1
Increasing the amount of CO2 in thee atmospherre can increaase the aciditty of oceans as there is an
a equilibrium
m
between thhe gas in thee atmospheree and dissolvved CO2. Thiss affects shell-forming an
nimals.
Global dim
mming caused d by particulaates in the atmosphere can
c reduce global
g tempe
eratures by preventing
p
radiation frrom reachingg the earth.
There are essentially
e th
hree strategiies for reducing carbon dioxide
d levelss:
increeased energyy efficiency and
a conservaation
redu bon-based energy resourrces
uced dependence on carb
capture and storrage of carbo om the atmosphere.
on from fossiil fuels or fro

C..6 Electrrochemisstry, rech

hargeable batteries, and fuel cellss
Cheemical energgy from redoxx reactions can
c be used as
a a portable
e source of electrical
e eneergy.

An electrocchemical cell has internaal resistance due to the finite

f time it takes for ion
ns to diffuse.. The maximum
current of a cell is limitted by its inteernal resistance.

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 The voltagge of a batterry depends on
o the naturee of the electtrodes and on
o the electrolytes.
In a primarry cell the electrochemiccal reaction is not reversiible. Recharggeable cells (e.g. leadaccid batteries,,
nickelcadmium batterries, lithium--ion batteries) involve redox reaction ns that can be reversed using
u electriccity.
Fuel cells cconvert chem
mical energy from a fuel into electriciity through a redox reacttion with oxyygen or otheer
oxidizing agents. Hydroogen or methhanol may be e used. Theyy need a consstant supply of fuel and oxygen
o to
sustain thee chemical re
eaction.
The thermodynamic effficiency of a fuel cell =
G/H
ossible sustaainable energgy source using differentt carbohydrates or
Microbial ffuel cells (MFCs) are a po
substrates present in wastewaters
w as the fuel.
Under non-standard co c be calcullated using the Nernst eq
onditions thee potential of a half-cell can quation:
RT
Ecell = Ecel l
log10
1 Q (where Q is the reac
ction quotien
nt)
nF
Q is the equilibrium expression with non-equilibrium conceentrations.
A concentrration cell is a voltaic cell where the two
t half-cellls are made of
o the same material butt differ in thee
concentrattion of the ellectrolyte.
The total work
w produceed by a cell depends
d on the
t quantity of materialss used; large batteries deeliver more
power as they producee more chargge per unit time.

C..7 Nucleear fusion

n and fission
Large quantities
q of energy can be
b obtained from small quantities
q of matter.

The mass d defect is the difference between

b the mass of the nucleus and
d the sum of the masses of the
individual n
nucleons. Thhe binding ennergy is the energy
e releaased when a nucleus is made
m from prrotons and
neutrons.
The energyy produced in a nuclear reaction
r can be calculateed from the mass
m differen
nce between
n the produccts
and reactants using Ein
nstein massenergy equivalence relationship
The critical mass is the
e minimum amount of fisssionable maaterial needeed to sustain a chain reacction.
The differeent isotopes of uranium in
i uranium hexafluoride
h can be separated, using diffusion or centrifugatio
on
causing fueel enrichmennt.
The effusio
on rate of a gas
g is inverseely proportio
onal to the sq
quare root off the molar mass
m (Grahams Law).

Radioactivee decay is kin

netically a firrst order pro
ocess with th
he half-life (tt) related to
o the decay constant
c () by
on .
the equatio
The numbeer of atoms at
a a given tim
me is given by
b umber of atoms
where t is the time and N0 the nu
when t = 0.
Nuclear deecay produce es ionizing raadiation whicch can damage DNA, oxid
dize polyunsaturated fatty acids in
lipids, and oxidize amin
no acids in proteins.

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C..8 Photo
ovoltaic and
a dye--sensitize
ed solar cells
c (DSSSC)
When
W solar energy is convverted to eleectrical energgy the light must
m be abso orbed and ch harges must be separated.
In a photovvoltaic cell both of thesee processes occur
o in the silicon
s semiconductor, whereas
w thesee processes
occur
o in separate locationns in a dye-seensitized solar cell (DSSC
C).

Molecules with longer conjugated systems absorb light of longer wavellength.

The electrical conductivity of a sem
miconductor increases wiith an increaase in temperature whereeas the
conductivitty of metals decreases.
Semicondu uctors (such as silicon) caan act as a seemiconductoor when theyy are given more
m energy or
o exposed to
t
light. Somee electrons may
m be remo oved from the outer shelll of the silico
on atom leavving a hole where
w electro
ons
from adjaccent silicon atoms can mo ove into, thuus increasing its conductivity.
Semicondu uctors can bee doped with
h Group 15 elements
e (e.gg. As), giving the lattice more
m electro
ons (n-type
semiconduuctor), or witth Group 13 elements
e (e..g. Ga), givingg the lattice fewer electrrons, i.e. more holes (p-
type semicconductor).
Photovoltaaic cells inclu on. Light of the correct energy can crreate more
ude sheets of n-type and p-type silico
electrons aand positive holes. Thesee electrons may
m have eno ough energy to pass thro ough an external circuit
from the n-type semico onductor to the p-type seemiconducto or.
In a photovvoltaic cell th t charges separated in
he light is absorbed and the n the silicon semi-conduc
s ctor. The
processes oof absorption and chargee separation are separated in a dye-ssensitised so
olar cell.
Dye-sensittized solar ceells have an anode
a made
e up of titaniu
um dioxide nanoparticle
n s coated in a molecular dye
d
that absorb T dye conttains a large conjugated system of ovverlapping p--orbitals. Thee cathode is a
bs sunlight. The
transition m
metal wire.
The dye ab
bsorbs a photton of light and
a becomess excited, thee excited eleectron movess to the titan
nium dioxide
e,
and then th
hrough the external
e circu
uit to the traansition metaal electrode.
An electrollyte preventss the electro
on from re-co
ombining witth the chargeed dye molecule.
miconductor covered in an
In a Gratzeel dye-sensitized solar ceell the anodee is made from a TiO2 sem a organic dyye.
The electroolyte is madee from an I3/I
/ 2 mixture.
The use of nanoparticlees coated wiith light-abso
orbing dye in
ncreases the effective surface area an
nd allows mo
ore
light over a wider range of the visib
ble spectrum
m to be absorrbed.

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