ENV100H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 61: Nuclear Power, Alternative Energy, Thermal Pollution
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Session 61: Energy Alternatives (I) (7-3-16)
·World energy scenario
oAlternatives to fossil fuels but are still conventional energy
sources.
Nuclear (non renewable because it is a mineral resource,
it is also non renewable because once you split an atom
you cannot put it back together.
Biomass and Hydro are renewable sources
Overall, the world is dominated by oil, coal, and natural
gas.
Wood fuel is also very important (about 9%): burning
wood.
Oil and coal are still very important – no longer use coal
to generate electricity in Ontario
Nuclear is around 6% (it fluctuates due to many things in-
cluding natural disasters)
Canada relies heavily on Hydro power
·No energy source has no impact on the environment- we must mini-
mize the impact.
·Alternative energy sources are beginning to grow in popularity.
·Hydro: utilizing the kinetic energy of running water
oFlow of matter: gradience
oWhen water is moving from high to low, we can extract energy
o2 basic approaches to extracting the energy
1. Impoundment approach (putting a dam in the way of
moving water: Allow the water to build up, and allow it
to flow up when it gets full
Niagara Falls has a dam like this
3 Gorges Dam: one of the largest dams (a lot of
controversy)
·When you stop a river from flowing there will
be environmental impacts.
2. Run of the River
Less common
Minimize the disruption in river channel
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