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United StatesEnvironmental Science

Unit 6: Energy Resources and Consumption

13 dot points across 13 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

Why does some energy come from one country but get burned in another?

Topic 6.4 Distribution of Natural Energy Resources: explain why energy resources are unevenly distributed and the consequences of that uneven distribution.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.4, covering why fossil fuels and renewable resources are unevenly distributed across the globe, how geology and geography determine availability, and the economic and political consequences of that uneven distribution, with a worked import dependence calculation.
9 min answer →

How can using energy more wisely cut both our bills and our impact?

Topic 6.13 Energy Conservation: describe strategies for energy conservation and efficiency and explain how they reduce environmental impact.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.13, covering energy conservation and efficiency strategies (efficient vehicles, appliances, lighting, insulation, public transport, CAFE standards), the difference between conservation and efficiency, and how they reduce impact, with a worked energy-saving calculation.
9 min answer →

Can burning wood and crops be a clean way to make energy?

Topic 6.7 Energy from Biomass: describe how biomass and biofuels are used for energy and evaluate their benefits and drawbacks.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.7, covering biomass and biofuels (wood, charcoal, dung, crop residues, ethanol, biodiesel), how they are used, their advantages and disadvantages, the carbon-neutrality debate, and a worked ethanol energy calculation.
9 min answer →

How do we turn buried coal, oil and gas into electricity, and what does it cost the environment?

Topic 6.5 Fossil Fuels: explain how fossil fuels form and are used to generate electricity, and describe their environmental impacts, including cogeneration.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.5, covering how fossil fuels form, how a fossil-fuel power plant generates electricity, fracking, cogeneration, and the environmental impacts of coal, oil and gas, with a worked power plant efficiency calculation.
10 min answer →

What are the main fuels we burn, and what do we use each one for?

Topic 6.3 Fuel Types and Uses: identify the major fuel types (coal, oil, natural gas, biomass) and describe their main uses and relative impacts.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.3, covering the major fuel types (coal, crude oil, natural gas, biomass), the grades of coal, what each fuel is mainly used for, their relative energy density and emissions, with a worked combustion energy calculation.
9 min answer →

How can Earth's internal heat be used to make electricity and warm buildings?

Topic 6.10 Geothermal Energy: describe how geothermal energy is captured and evaluate its benefits and drawbacks.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.10, covering how geothermal energy from Earth's internal heat is used for electricity and heating, ground-source heat pumps, the benefits (renewable, reliable, low emissions) and drawbacks (location, cost, gas release), and a worked geothermal heating calculation.
9 min answer →

Who uses the most energy in the world, and what do they use it for?

Topic 6.2 Global Energy Consumption: describe patterns of global energy use and the factors, including development and population, that drive demand.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.2, covering global patterns of energy consumption, the dominance of fossil fuels, differences between more and less developed countries, the drivers of demand (population, economic development, lifestyle), and a worked per capita energy calculation.
9 min answer →

How does flowing water make electricity, and what does a dam do to a river?

Topic 6.9 Hydroelectric Power: describe how hydroelectric and tidal power generate electricity and evaluate their benefits and drawbacks.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.9, covering how hydroelectric dams and tidal power generate electricity, the benefits (renewable, low emissions, reliable) and drawbacks (habitat disruption, sediment, displacement) of damming rivers, and a worked hydro power calculation.
9 min answer →

Can hydrogen be a clean fuel, and where does the hydrogen come from?

Topic 6.11 Hydrogen Fuel Cell: explain how a hydrogen fuel cell works and evaluate its benefits and drawbacks.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.11, covering how a hydrogen fuel cell generates electricity from hydrogen and oxygen, the only direct emission (water), the benefits and the key drawback that producing hydrogen often uses fossil fuels, with a worked fuel-cell energy calculation.
9 min answer →

How does splitting atoms make electricity, and why is the waste so hard to deal with?

Topic 6.6 Nuclear Power: explain how nuclear fission generates electricity and describe the benefits and risks, including radioactive waste and half-life.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.6, covering nuclear fission, how a nuclear power plant generates electricity, the fuel (uranium-235), the benefits (low carbon dioxide), the risks (meltdown, radioactive waste, thermal pollution), and half-life, with a worked half-life calculation.
10 min answer →

Which energy sources run out, and which keep being replenished?

Topic 6.1 Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources: distinguish renewable from nonrenewable energy resources and explain why the distinction matters for sustainability.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.1, covering the difference between renewable and nonrenewable energy resources, examples of each, the idea of potentially renewable resources, and why the distinction matters for sustainability, with a worked depletion calculation.
9 min answer →

How can we turn sunlight into electricity and heat, and what are the limits?

Topic 6.8 Solar Energy: describe how solar energy is captured using photovoltaic, active and passive systems and evaluate its benefits and drawbacks.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.8, covering photovoltaic cells, active and passive solar heating, the benefits (renewable, low emissions) and drawbacks (intermittency, land, cost) of solar energy, and a worked photovoltaic output calculation.
9 min answer →

How do wind turbines make electricity, and what are the trade-offs?

Topic 6.12 Wind Energy: describe how wind turbines generate electricity and evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of wind power.
A focused answer to APES Topic 6.12, covering how wind turbines convert wind into electricity, onshore and offshore wind, the benefits (renewable, low emissions, low operating cost) and drawbacks (intermittency, location, wildlife, noise) of wind power, and a worked wind farm output calculation.
9 min answer →