Energy Kid's Page

DID YOU KNOW?

Did you know that Energy Ant was "born" in May of 1975?He was created by the Federal Energy Administration, the Department of Energy's predecessor, to tell kids about energy and how to use it wisely (ants are very energy-efficient creatures), and he is a registered trademark of the Department of Energy. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) thought it would be fun to bring him back as a guide to its Energy Kid's Page and as an ambassador for energy information. In addition, a human-sized Energy Ant (really an EIA employee in costume) makes guest appearances at school events in the Washington, DC area to talk to students about energy and science.

 

Did you know that there is a unit of measure that can be used to compare different forms of energy? It is called a Btu (British thermal unit). One Btu is approximately equal to the energy released in the burning of a wood match.

What do these things have in common: ink, crayons, bubble gum, dishwashing liquid, deodorant, eyeglasses, tires and heart valves? They’re all among the 3,000 synthetic products made from fossil fuels.

All crude oil is not the same. Crude oil is called “sweet” when it contains only a small amount of sulfur and “sour” if it contains a lot of sulfur. Crude oil is also classified by the weight of its molecules. “Light” crude oil flows freely like water while “heavy” crude oil is thick like tar.

When natural gas is burned, it produces mostly carbon dioxide and water vapor. These are the same substances emitted when people breathe.

Natural gas is odorless but has an organic compound called mercaptan added to give it an odor. That way, you can detect possible leaks.

If all the passenger vehicles in the United States were lined up bumper to bumper, they would reach from the earth to the moon and back! The amount of fuel consumed in these vehicles each year is enough to fill a swimming pool as big as a football field that is 40 miles deep!

Nine of every ten tons of coal used in the United States are used for electricity generation. Here’s how it works: coal is burned to heat water into steam in an electric power plant, then the steam turns a turbine that drives a generator that produces electricity. During this process, about 2/3 of the energy in the coal is used up to make electricity, or becomes waste heat, and only 1/3 winds up being delivered to users as electricity.

Did you know that the gasoline in your car's tank is made from petroleum formed from plants and tiny animals that lived 100's of millions of years ago, way BEFORE dinosaurs.

NUCLEAR ENERGY (URANIUM) ENERGY FROM ATOMS

Nuclear Energy is Energy from Atoms Nuclear Fuel- Uranium Nuclear Power Plants Generate Electricity Types of Reactors Nuclear Power and the Environment links page recent statistics

NUCLEAR ENERGY IS ENERGY FROM ATOMS

Nuclear energy is energy in the nucleus (core) of an atom. Atoms are tiny particles that make up every object in the universe. There is enormous energy in the bonds that hold atoms together.
Nuclear energy can be used to make electricity. But first the energy must be released. It can be released from atoms in two ways: nuclear fusion and nuclear fission.

In nuclear fusion, energy is released when atoms are combined or fused together to form a larger atom. This is how the sun produces energy.

In nuclear fission, atoms are split apart to form smaller atoms, releasing energy. Nuclear power plants use nuclear fission to produce electricity.

NUCLEAR FUEL - URANIUM

The fuel most widely used by nuclear plants for nuclear fission is uranium. Uranium is nonrenewable, though it is a common metal found in rocks all over the world. Nuclear plants use a certain kind of uranium, U-235, as fuel because its atoms are easily split apart. Though uranium is quite common, about 100 times more common than silver, U-235 is relatively rare.   Most U.S. uranium is mined, in the Western United States.  Once uranium is mined the U-235 must be extracted and processed before it can be used as a fuel.

During nuclear fission, a small particle called a neutron hits the uranium atom and splits it, releasing a great amount of energy as heat and radiation. More neutrons are also released. These neutrons go on to bombard other uranium atoms, and the process repeats itself over and over again. This is called a chain reaction.

NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS GENERATE ELECTRICITY

Nuclear power accounts for about 19 percent of the total net electricity generated in the United States, about as much as the electricity used in California,Texas and New York, the three states with the most people.  In 2006, there were 66 nuclear power plants (composed of 104 licensed nuclear reactors) throughout the United States. 

Most power plants burn fuel to produce electricity, but not nuclear power plants. Instead, nuclear plants use the heat given off during fission as fuel. Fission takes place inside the reactor of a nuclear power plant. At the center of the reactor is the core, which contains the uranium fuel.

The uranium fuel is formed into ceramic pellets. The pellets are about the size of your fingertip, but each one produces the same amount of energy as 150 gallons of oil. These energy-rich pellets are stacked end-to-end in 12-foot metal fuel rods. A bundle of fuel rods is called a fuel assembly.

Fission generates heat in a reactor just as coal generates heat in a boiler. The heat is used to boil water into steam. The steam turns huge turbine blades. As they turn, they drive generators that make electricity. Afterward, the steam is changed back into water and cooled in a separate structure at the power plant called a cooling tower. The water can be used again and again...