Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Environment: A self-administered test on Energy

 A single flash of lightning generates power sufficient to provide the power needs of a city for days, but we have yet to tame this natural element and store its power for our use. 

 Energy - Self-Administered Test on Energy (True or False, 50 items)
Dr. Abe V. Rotor and Ms. Melly Tenorio
Lessons on Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid DZRB 738 AM,
8 to 9 Evening Class, Monday to Friday

1. You need less energy to boil water on the lowland (sea level) than on the highland (mountaintop)

2. When water boils at sea level, and you want to increase the temperature, all you need to do is burn more fuel, and even prolong it.

3. The temperature of boiling water inside a pressure cooker can be raised higher than 100ºC.

4. It is cooler on the mountain top than on the lowland, because the air is thinner.

5. One-half of the fossil fuels we use for heating, electricity, machines is actually lost; it’s really a waste of energy.

6. All over the world, the percentage contributions of these main energy sources are as follows: oil and gas 35 %, coal 60%, nuclear 5%.

7. Worldwide eighty (80) percent of energy used for cooking comes from firewood.

8. Generally firewood smoke is harmless to health and the environment. If fact it drives pest and other vermin, induces flowering and fruiting of fruit trees.

9. The most popular local firewood comes from madre de cacao (Gliricida sepium) and ipil-ipil (Leucaena glauca).
10. Firewood farming can be integrated with the forestry program, in mixed tree farming, strip and contour farming; it helps reduce erosion and siltation.

11. SALT means Sloping Agricultural Land Technology, a program of the DA and DENR to protect our hillsides and uplands.

12. Forests, irrespective of its kind and location, increase O², absorb CO², create a mini-climate, attract cloud and increase rainfall. They provide food, energy, shelter and serve as wildlife sanctuary.

13. Biofuel refers to energy derived from farm wastes, oil from plants such as Jatropha, consuelda, castor bean, lumbang, bitaog.

14. Gasohol or alcogas is a mixture of ethanol and kerosene.

15. Car maintenance includes observing carless day, planned route, and car pool,

16. There will be one billion cars in the world by 2018. There are some 600 million cars in the world today which consume 20 million barrels of oil a day.

17. Driving at 100 kph on NLEX is more economical than driving at 80 kph.

18. It takes 1000 people to travel on 125 cars, 10 buses, 1 train.

19. House plan and design should be environment friendly, low in energy consumption, and easily and economical maintenance.

20. Measure the energy you use, monitor monthly consumption. 1,000 watts = 1 kw; 1,000,000 watts = 1 MW; 1 b watts – 1 gigawatt (1GW)

21. Practice recycling to reduce energy requirement – water, re-heat food, waste utilization (wood), scrap metal, used tires, plastics, metals (bauxite most efficient in recycled metal).

22. Austerity in electric energy consumption is necessary. Philippines has the highest cost of electric energy cost, yet it has the lowest GDP per capita.

23. The world continues to build new nuclear power plants, even if the US and Sweden have not built new ones..

24. The world’s worse nuclear power plant accident (meltdown) happen in Cernobyl, Kiev, and three-mile island in the US.

25. Energy of falling water is also called gravitational energy. Hydroelectric plants make use of this principle.

26. SWIP means Small Water Impounding Project is self contained for small communities providing them electric power generation, irrigation, fisheries and forestry.

27. Energy efficiency in agriculture and industry is part of sustainable productivity. It take advantage of the greenhouse effect.

28. Cars, cars, cars. Here are examples of people to car ratios: 1.8 US; 2.9 Russia 24; Peru 52; China 1374

29. Some 1 million cars are manufactured everyday, 80 percent are sold in developed countries.

30. The old Dutch windmills are coming back in the form of wind power farms. (Remember the windmill Don Quijote fought in Miguel de Cervantes’ novel – Don Quijote?)

31. Ethanol comes from sugarcane, sugar beets and root crops (cassava). One objection to biofuels is the direct competition between food and fuel, thus affecting food supply and nutrition.
True.

32. Home Biogas generators are most found in China and India. We have in the Philippine a commercial biogas models at the Madamba Maya Farms in Rizal.

33. These are the used of Solar energy: reflected light (mirror concentrator) to generate electricity, desalination for potable and irrigation water, direct drying, solar panels, solar battery/cell.

25. Fire in the Earth means geothermal energy from hot rocks and volcanic vents. Water is pump to the ground circulates in the cracks, becomes hot up to 200 centigrade and comes through a borehole which then turns a turbine that generate electricity. True. Anglo-French link – the Old Red Sandstone – produces 76 ºcentigrade, hot enough to heat buildings. We trapping volcanic heat at Los Baños.and Tiwi. True.

26. New sails for sea vessels are being developed – but this is not significant to reduce energy of sea vessels which would rather run on fuel. False. New sails can replace engine power.

27. Surging energy of the sea - waves, tides, heat content, salty water, ocean currents – are just dreams yet to come true as alternative energy sources. False. There are pioneer projects such as gully wave generator, wave power, OTEC Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion, CLAM – British wave pressure system, Japanese osmosis system at estuaries. .

28. There are now biodegradable plastics for biogas and compost production.

29. Nuclear Powers are North Korea and Iran. While they stirred fear and criticism led by the US and Japan imposing sanction on North Korea, South Korea appears undisturbed by the issue of having a bomb at the other side of its fence.

30. Walking saves on energy, in fact it is therapy and leisure when you combine and harmonize your body, mind and spirit with nature.

31. Energize, instead of exercise. It is exercise that restores gait and adds strength, while it brings inner peace. The mind becomes sharper; sensitivity is honed.

32. Oil from wild plants lighted the homes of our ancestors.

33. One source of oil is lumbang (Aleurites moluccana). Its seeds yield 62 percent lamp and industrial oil. Just pick its ripe berry and light it. It produces a bright bluish flame.

34. Among the alternative sources of oil which are being investigated in the light of spiraling oil price, are the following species of Family Euphorbiaceae, to which the rubber tree belongs.
• Soro-soro (Euphorbia neriifolia),
• Gatas-gatas (E. pilulifera),
• Consuelda (E. tirucalli),
• Physic nut (Jatropha curcas),
• Castor-oil plant or tangantangan (Ricinus communis)
35. Generally the ultimate source of energy is the sun, either directly or indirectly.

36. If you direct all the light of the stars and harness them collectively you will be able to amass tremendous energy.

37. We have succeeded in inventing the “Perpetual machine,” a long dream of mankind.

38. The human body is a perfect machine in terms of energy conversation and utilization, which no human invention can compare.

39. There are now hydrogen powered car running on the streets – the promise to replace fossil fuels.

40. Magnetic shield protects the earth from deleterious radiation from space. .

41. Living organisms do not use energy during dormancy – aestivation and hibernation.

42. Hydrogen bomb works on the principle of fusion, while the atomic bomb works of the principle of fission.

43. Polysaccharides or complex sugars directly release energy in the body.

44. Prisoners become emaciated when, due to prolonged and extreme lack of food, the body converts adipose and muscle tissues into energy.

45. The nemesis of moving parts that reduce fuel efficiency is friction.

46. Synergy means there is more energy than the sum of energies.

47. The ultimate end result when energy is transformed from one form to another is low level heat.

48. Energy is neither created nor destroyed.

49. A single lightning bolt, if only it can be stored, is enough to light a community for days.

50. Overall conclusion and recommendation in conserving energy can be summarized into
“Less is More”

Hydro-electric energy is the main source of electricity in the world. Village size plants can be tapped for power and irrigation, and lately eco-tourism.




ANSWERS
1. False, at sea level water boils at 100ºC; 3,000m – 90ºC; 6,000m – 81ºC; 9,000m – 75ºC)
2. False, Water boils at 100ºC, and remains at this temperature, water will simply change from liquid to gaseous form – steam.
3. True, usually at 120ºC for typical pressure cookers.
4. True. Air absorbs and conserves heat. There is less at higher elevation.
5. True. 50% is wasted
6. False. Oil and gas 60%, coal 35% nuclear 5%
7. True. In rural communities firewood is the main cooking fuel.
8. True. Environment-friendly. Too much exposure is harmful though.
9. True. Philippines, as well as in tropical countries where these trees grow naturally.
10. True
11. True
12. True. Forest also “catch” smog (suspended layer of fog and smoke).
13. True
14. False. Alcohol and gasoline
15.True
16. False, consumption is based on 1 billion cars.
17. False
18. False. 500 only, on the average.
19. True
20. True
21. True
22. False, exaggerated data. But practice energy conservation, such as fewer and more efficient light bulbs, limit laundry (ex. sun dry, bulk washing and ironing), forego using electricity in bath, pressurized water system)

23. True. There are 500 nuclear plants all over the world – now there is a slowdown for new ones. France, Germany, Belgium and Japan will produce more electricity from nuclear reactors
24. True
25. True
26. True
27. True
28. True
29. True
30. True. But there are only 20,000 wind turbine generators (WTGs) in the world with 15,000 located in California. Total production is only 5,000 MW.

31. True. Just like what the Greeks believed in, exercise is the fountain of youth, it could be the missing key to “a healthy mind in a healthy body.”
32. Other than the coconut which is the main source of oil in the country, there are plants growing in the wild that yield lamp oil, among them a large tree called
palomaria or bitaog (Calophyllum inophyllum) whose large seed is a rich source of oil called domba or “laurel-nut” oil. The seed or kernel yields 70 to 75 percent oil, and is rich in resin (28.5 percent) making bitaog oil an excellent natural varnish. The resin however, is poisonous. Old folks also use bitaog bark for tanning because of its high tannin content (19.12 percent)
33. True. Other than the coconut which is the main source of oil in the country, there are plants growing in the wild that yield lamp oil, among them a large tree called palomaria or bitaog whose large seed is a rich source of oil called domba or “laurel-nut” oil. The seed or kernel yields 70 to 75 percent oil, and is rich in resin (28.5 percent) making bitaog oil an excellent natural varnish. The resin however, is poisonous. Old folks also use bitaog bark for tanning because of its high tannin content (19.12 percent)

34. False. You may be referring to
hanga, a small tree whose mature berries directly burn with bluish flame. It is plentiful in the highlands, such as in Benguet. One can visit the collection of hanga trees at the DENR field station in Loakan, near the Baguio airport.

34. True. However, many of these potential energy sources are in the pioneering stage of development.
35. True. Including fossil fuels, wind and water energy.
36. False. So far no one has succeeded.
37. False. The rule is, “energy in, energy out.” We still have to contend with friction, decay, imprecision, etc.
38. True
39. False. By and large, the Hydrogen engine is still on experimental stage.
40.. True. Magnetic lines run from South Pole to North Pole, creating beautiful aurora borealis and aurora austalis
41. False. Energy consumption takes place at very low rate.
42. True.
43. False. Hydrolysis before respiration/oxidation.
44. True
45. True.
46. True, say the maximum weight the left hand can lift is 20 kg and the right hand is 20 kg, both hands can lift not only 40 kg, but more - perhaps 50 kg. This is not follow the laws of physics.
47. True
48. True.
49. True. We don’t have the technology to “catch and store the energy of lightning”
50. True. Conserve and there will be sufficient energy for everyone.


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