SOURCES OF ENERGY 6

CHAPTER

CONTENTS RENEWABLE AND NON- RENEWABLE

Good sources of energy RESOURCES

Renewable and non-renewable Natural resources can be classified into the

resources renewable resources and non-renewable
resources.
 Conventional sources of energy
The resources which have the capacity or ability
Non-Conventional source of
to reproduce or renew quickly are called
energy renewable resources. They include solar and
Electricity from nuclear energy wind energy, water, soil, forests, etc. Some of the
Sun "the ultimate source of energy" renewable resources can be destroyed due to
careless use.
 Destructive form of nuclear
energy The non-renewable resources are limited in
 Environmental consequences reserves and it may take thousands of years to
renew them. For example, coal or petroleum if
Saving Energy resources taken out completely, may take millions of years
to produce them.

 INTRODUCTION CONVENTIONAL SOURCES OF ENERGY

If energy can neither be created nor destroyed, we (A) Fossil Fuels :

should have no worries! We should be able to Millions of years ago, the remains of plants and
perform endless activities without thinking about
energy resources then why we speak to save animals were buried under the earth by the
energy ? forces of nature. The large amount of heat and
Its because energy from the usable form, is pressure inside the earth converted these
dissipated to the surroundings in less usable remains in fossil fuels, such as coal, petroleum
forms. Hence, any source of energy we use, to do and natural gas. These are the main sources of
work, is consumed and cannot be used again.
conventional energy.

 GOOD SOURCES OF ENERGY The reserves of the fossil fuels are finite and
A good source of energy would be one limited. Their consumption is rapidly
Which would do a large amount of work per unit

increasing in the modern world than their rate
volume or mass,
Be easily accessible,

of formation. Thus one day or the other, the
Be easy to store and transport, and
 fossil fuels are likely to be exhausted.
Economical.

 They cannot be replenished like commodities Limitation : constructions of big dams have
derived from plant and animal kingdoms. certain problems associated with it. The dams can
Thus, we must develop alternative sources of be constructed only in a limited number of places,
power preferably in hilly terrains. Large areas of
agricultural land and human habitation are to be
(B) Thermal power plant :
sacrificed as they get submerged.
Large amount of fossil fuels are burnt every day
Large eco-systems are destroyed when submerged
in power stations to heat up water to produce
under the water in dams.
steam which further runs the turbine to generate
The vegetation which is submerged rots under
electricity.
anaerobic conditions and gives rise to large
The transmission of electricity is more efficient
amounts of methane which is also a green-house
than transporting coal or petroleum over the same
gas. It creates the problem of satisfactory
distance. Therefore, many thermal power plants
rehabilitation of displaced people. Opposition to
are set up near coal or oil fields. Here fuel is burnt
the construction of Tehri Dam on the river Ganga
to produce heat energy which is converted into
and Sardar Sarovar project on the river Narmada
electrical energy.
are due to such problems.

(C) Hydro power plants : (D) Bio-mass :

Hydro power plants convert the potential energy Plant and animal products are said to be bio-mass.
of falling water into electricity. Since there are These fuels, however, do not produce much heat
very few water-falls which could be used as a on burning and a lot of smoke is given out when
source of potential energy, hydro power plants are they are burnt. Therefore, technological inputs to
associated with dams. improve the efficiency of these fuels are
necessary.
Reservoir When wood is burnt in a limited supply of
oxygen, water and volatile materials present in it
Sluice
gates get removed and charcoal is left behind as the
Power house Power lines
residue. Charcoal burns without flames, is
Generator
comparatively smokeless and has a higher heat
generation efficiency.
Similarly, cow-dung, various plant materials like
the residue after harvesting the crops, vegetable
To river
waste and sewage are decomposed in the absence
of oxygen to give bio-gas. Since the starting
material is mainly cow-dung, it is popularly
In order to produce hydel electricity, high-rise
known as ‘gobar-gas’
dams are constructed on the river to obstruct the
flow of water and thereby collect water in larger Slury
reservoirs. The water level rises and in this Gas outlet
process the kinetic energy of flowing water gets Manure
transformed into potential energy. The water from Soil
Soil Fertiliser
the high level in the dam is carried through pipes, Gas tank
to the turbine, at the bottom of the dam .
Since the water in the reservoir would be refilled
each time it rains (hydro power is a renewable
source of energy) we would not have to worry
about hydro electricity sources getting used up the Digester
way fossil fuels would get finished one day. Bio-gas plant
 Structure : Advantage :
The plant has a dome-like structure built with Wind energy is an environment-friendly and
bricks. A slurry of cow-dung and water is made in efficient source of renewable energy. It
the mixing tank from where it is fed into the requires no recurring expenses for the production
digester. of electricity.
The digester is a sealed chamber in which there is limitations : Wind energy farms can be
no oxygen. Anaerobic micro-organisms that do established only at those places where wind blows
not require oxygen decompose or break down for the greater part of a year. The wind speed
complex compounds of the cow-dung slurry. should also be higher than 15 km/h to maintain
It takes a few days for the decomposition process the required speed of the turbine. Furthermore,
to be complete and generate gases like methane, there should be some back-up facilities (like
carbon dioxide, hydrogen and hydrogen sulphide. storage cells) to take care of the energy needs
The bio-gas is stored in the gas tank above the during a period when there is no wind.
digester from which they are drawn through pipes
Establishment of wind energy farms requires large
for use. Bio-gas is an excellent fuel as it contains
area of land. For a 1 MW generator, the farm
up to 75% methane. It burns without smoke,
needs about 2 hectares of land. The initial cost of
leaves no residue like ash in wood, charcoal and
establishment of the farm is quite high. Moreover,
coal burning. Its heating capacity is high. Bio-gas
since the tower and blades are exposed to the
is also used for lighting. The slurry left behind is
vagaries of nature like rain, Sun, storm and
removed periodically and used as excellent
cyclone, they need a high level of maintenance.
manure, rich in nitrogen and phosphorous.

(E) Wind energy :  NON CONVENTIONAL SOURCES OF



Heating of the landmass and water bodies by solar ENERGY

radiation generates air movement and causes
winds to blow. This kinetic energy of the wind (A) SOLAR ENERGY :
can be used to do work. This energy was The Sun has been radiating an enormous amount
harnessed by windmills in the past to do of energy. Small part of solar energy reaches the
mechanical work. outer layer of the earth’s atmosphere is absorbed
For example, in a water-lifting pump, the rotatory while passing through the atmosphere and the rest
motion of windmill is utilised to lift water from a reaches the earth’s surface.
well. Today, wind energy is also used to generate (i) Solar cooker :
electricity. A black surface absorbs more heat as compared to
a white or a reflecting surface under identical
To generate electricity, the rotatory motion of the
conditions. Solar cookers and solar water heaters
windmill is used to turn the turbine of the electric
use this property in their working. Some solar
generator. The output of a single windmill is quite cookers achieve a higher temperature by using
small and cannot be used for commercial mirrors to focus the rays of the Sun. Solar cookers
purposes. Therefore, a number of windmills are are covered with a glass plate.
erected over a large area, which is known as wind
energy farm.

sun ray being

Mirror
reflected

Glass sheet
(ii) Solar cell : (iii) Ocean Thermal Energy :
Solar cells convert solar energy into electricity. A The water at the surface of the sea or ocean is
typical cell develops a voltage of 0.5–1 V and can heated by the Sun while the water in deeper
produce about 0.7 W of electricity when exposed sections is relatively cold. This difference in
to the Sun. A large number of solar cells are,
combined in an arrangement called solar cell temperature is exploited to obtain energy in
panel that can deliver enough electricity for ocean-thermal-energy conversion plants. These
practical use. plants can operate if the temperature difference
The principal advantages associated with solar between the water at the surface and water at
cells are that they have no moving parts, require depths up to 2 km is 293 K (20°C) or more. The
little maintenance and work quite satisfactorily
without the use of any focussing device. warm surface-water is used to boil a volatile
liquid like ammonia. The vapours of the liquid are
Another advantage is that they can be set up in then used to run the turbine of generator. The cold
remote and inaccessible hamlets or very sparsely water from the depth of the ocean is pumped up
inhabited areas in which laying of a power and condense vapour again to liquid.
transmission line may be expensive and not
commercially viable. The energy potential from the sea (tidal energy,
wave energy and ocean thermal energy) is quite
Silicon, which is used for making solar cells, is large, but efficient commercial exploitation is
abundant in nature but availability of the special difficult.
grade silicon for making solar cells is limited. The
entire process of manufacture is still very
expensive, silver used for interconnection of the (C) GEO THERMAL ENERGY :
cells in the panel further adds to the cost. Due to geological changes, molten rocks formed
in the deeper hot regions of earth’s crust are
In spite of the high cost and low efficiency, solar pushed upward and trapped in certain regions
cells are used for many scientific and called ‘hot spots’. When underground water
technological applications. Artificial satellites and
space probes like Mars orbiters use solar cells as comes in contact with the hot spot, steam is
the main source of energy. generated. Sometimes hot water from that region
finds outlets at the surface. Such outlets are
(B) ENERGY FROM SEA : known as hot springs.
(i) Tidal energy : Due to the gravitational pull of The steam trapped in rocks is routed through a
mainly the moon on the spinning earth, the level
pipe to a turbine and used to generate electricity.
of water in the sea rises and falls.This
The cost of production would not be much, but
phenomenon is called high and low tides and the
difference in sea-levels gives us tidal energy. there are very few commercially viable sites
Tidal energy is harnessed by constructing a dam where such energy can be exploited. There are
across a narrow opening to the sea. number of power plants based on geothermal
A turbine fixed at the opening of the dam converts energy operational in New Zealand and United
tidal energy to electricity. States of America.
(ii) Wave Energy : the kinetic energy possessed by
huge waves near the seashore can be trapped in a (D) NUCLEAR ENERGY :
similar manner to generate electricity. Nuclear fission :
The waves are generated by strong winds blowing   The process of splitting of a heavy nucleus
across the sea. Wave energy would be a viable into two lighter nuclei of comparable masses
proposition only where waves are very strong. A (after bombardment with a energetic particle)
wide variety of devices have been developed to with liberation of energy is called nuclear
trap wave energy for rotation of turbine and fission.
production of electricity.
  Fission reaction of U235 The triton so formed can further fuse with a third
deuteron to form an –particle (Helium–nucleus).
92U
235 + 0n1  92U236 
3
1H + 12 H  4 1
2 He + 0 n + 17.6 MeV energy
(unstable nucleus)


141 + Kr92 + 3 n1 + Q
56Ba 36 0  Difference (Table) :

S.
 The energy released in U235 fission is about NUCLEAR FISSION NUCLEAR FUSION
No
200MeV or 0.8 MeV per nucleon.
1 A heavy nucleus Two or more light
 Fission of U235 occurs by slow neutrons only disintegrates to give nuclei join together
(of energy about 1eV) or even by thermal
lighter nuclei with the to form a heavy
neutrons (of energy about 0.025 eV).
release of energy. nucleus with the
 The neutrons released during the fission release of energy
process are called prompt neutrons. 2 Nuclear fission is a Nuclear fusion is not
 Most of energy released appears in the form chain reaction-the a chain reaction.
fission of one
of kinetic energy of fission fragments. nucleus leading to the
production of
neutrons, which
Ba
cause more nuclei to
Energy disintegrate.
3 Nuclear fission Nuclear fusion
Energy requires thermal requires high
Slow neutrons temperatures in the
6
Neutron 235 235 neutronswith range of 10 K.
92U 92U
Energy sufficient energy to
split a nucleus. But it
Energy does not require very
high temp.
Kr 4

Fission process can Fusion cannot be
be carried out in a carried out in any
 Nuclear Fusion : reactor. container, as the
It has been observed that under special conditions, temperature is very
it is possible for the nuclei of light elements to high. Scientists hope
to contain matter in a
combine and form a nucleus of a high atomic
magnetic field
number. When two or more light nuclei moving at 5 Controlled nuclear Controlled nuclear
very high speed are fused together to form a fission is possible fusion has so far not
heavy nucleus, then the process is known as and takes place in a been achieved. Only
nuclear fusion. nuclear reactor. uncontrolled fusion
reactions in the
The mass of the product nucleus is smaller than thermonuclear
the sum of the masses of the nuclei which were devices such as the
fused. The lost mass is converted into energy hydrogen bomb have
which is released in the process. been achieved.

2 2 3 1
6 Nuclear fission Nuclear fusion does
1H + 1H  1H + 1H + 4.0 MeV produces radioactive not produce
wastes, which pose radioactive wastes
Deuteron Deuteron Triton Proton Energy
the problem of waste and, therefore, does
disposal. not cause pollution.
 ELECTRICITY FROM NUCLEAR ENERGY  Location of Power Station in India
At present about 3% of the electrical energy
ELECTRICITY FROM NUCLEAR ENERGY produced in India is obtained from nuclear power
stations (also called atomic power stations).
 Nuclear Power Plant and it’s Working :
The heat produced in a controlled fission can be The following atomic stations are in operation in
used for producing electricity. The set–up used India :
for generating electricity from the heat released  Tarapur atomic power station (420 MW) in
in a controlled nuclear fission is called a nuclear maharashtra.
power plant or nuclear power station. The heat  Rajasthan atomic power station (440 MW) at
produced in a controlled nuclear fission is used Rana Pratap Sagar near Kota in Rajasthan.
for producing steam. The steam so produced runs
 Madras atomic power station (420 MW) at
the turbine. The rotatory motion of the turbine
Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu.
rotates the alternator of the generator and the
electricity is produced. Thus, in a nuclear power  Narora atomic power station (470MW) near
plant the energy transforms in the following Bulandshahar in Uttar Pradesh.
sequence :
Nuclear energy of uranium–235 nucleus  Heat SUN"THE ULTIMATE SOURCE OF ENERGY"
energy of steam  Kinetic energy of turbine 
Kinetic energy of the alternator  Electrical The source of the large amount of solar energy is
energy due to fusion of lighter nuclei. About 90 percent
 Components of a Nuclear Power Plant :
of the solar mass is composed of hydrogen and
A nuclear power plant consists of the following helium and rest 10 percent contains other
components : elements. The temperature of the interior of the
(a) Nuclear reactor : Here, a controlled nuclear
235
sun is estimated to be about 2 × 107K.
fission of a fissionable fuel such as 92 U is
The nuclei of hydrogen fuse together in the sun’s
carried out. interior to produce helium and a huge amount of
(b) Heat exchanger : The reactor is connected to energy is released. It is estimated that 1g of
heat exchanger. Here, the heat produced in hydrogen produces 620,000 million joules of
the reactor is transferred to water by energy.
circulating a coolant through a coiled pipe.
The fusion process in the sun can be described by
The water gets converted into steam. The
the equation.
coolant is pumped back to the reactor.
(c) Steam turbine : The steam generated in the 411 H  42 He + 2 01 e + Energy
heat exchanger is used to run the steam
turbine. The spent steam is sent back as hot
water to the heat exchanger. DESTRUCTIVE FORM OF NUCLEAR
(d) Electric generator (or dynamo) : The shaft ENERGY
of the steam turbine is connected to an
electric generator (or dynamo). Electricity so (A) NUCLEAR BOMB
produced is sent for transmission.
This produces tremendous amount of destructive
Control rod
energy. This energy is produced by uncontrolled
Steam Dynamo For
transmission nuclear fission chain reaction.

Reactor
The atom bomb or nuclear bomb produces large
core Water amount of energy when two pieces of uranium
Water
(235U) or Plutonium (239Pu) are brought in contact
Moderator
so that the total mass become greater then critical
Fuel rod Water
Coolant
Heat exchanger
mass.
Nuclear reactor During this process a very high temperature of the
Electricity generating unit
order of million degree kelvin is produced and
Fig : Nuclear Power Plant also a very high pressure of the order of several
million atmosphere is developed.

(B) HYDROGEN BOMB areas to produce longer lasting devices that will
cause less damage throughout their life.
It produces extremely high destructive energy by
using nuclear fusion. The fusion reaction is
performed over heavy–hydrogen nuclei at very  SAVING ENERGY RESOURCES
high temperature and pressure.
To get this high temperature and pressure, nuclear we cannot depend on the fossil fuels for much
fission bomb is used at the centre core of a longer. Such sources that will get depleted some
hydrogen bomb which is formed of heavy day are said to be exhaustible sources or non-
hydrogen like lithium hydride (LiH2). renewable sources of energy. On the other hand, if
we manage bio-mass by replacing the trees we cut
down for fire-wood, we can be assured of a
 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES constant supply of energy at a particular rate.
Such energy sources that can be regenerated are
Exploiting any source of energy disturbs the called renewable sources of energy.
environment in some way or the other. In any Renewable energy is available in our natural
given situation, the source we would choose environment, in the form of some continuing or
depends on factors such as the ease of repetitive currents of energy, or is stored in such
extracting energy from that source, the large underground reservoirs that the rate of
economics of extracting energy from the source, depletion of the reservoir because of extraction of
the efficiency of the technology available and the usable energy is practically negligible.
environmental damage that will be caused by
using that source. Research continues in these

EXERCISE # 1
Q.5 What are the qualities of an ideal source of
SUBJECTIVE QUESTIONS energy?
Q.6 What are the advantages and disadvantages
Q.1 Compare and contrast fossil fuels and the Sun of using a solar cooker? Are there places
as direct sources of energy. where solar cookers would have limited
Q.2 Compare and contrast bio-mass and hydro utility?
electricity as sources of energy. Q.7 What are the environmental consequences of
Q.3 What are the limitations of extracting energy the increasing demand for energy? What steps
from - would you suggest to reduce energy
(a) the wind? (b) waves? (c) tides? consumption?
Q.4 On what basis would you classify energy
sources as
(a) renewable and non-renewable?
(b) exhaustible and inexhaustible?
Are the options given in (a) and (b) the same?
 EXERCISE # 2

Single Correct Answer type Questions

Q.7 The fusion reactions occur at-
(A) low pressure
Q.1 A solar water heater cannot be used to get hot (B) low temperature
water on (C) extremely high temperature
(A) a sunny day. (B) a cloudy day.
(D) high temperature and low pressures
(C) a hot day. (D) a windy day.

Q.2 Which of the following is not an example of a Q.8 The source of energy of the sun is-
bio-mass energy source? (A) Nuclear fission
(A) wood (B) gobar-gas (B) Chemical reaction
(C) nuclear energy (D) coal (C) Nuclear fusion
(D) None of these
Q.3 Most of the sources of energy we use
represent stored solar energy. Which of the Q.9 The number of neutrons in an atom X of
following is not ultimately derived from the
Sun’s energy? atomic number Z and mass number A is-
(A) geothermal energy (A) Zero (B) Z
(B) wind energy (C) A – Z (D) A
(C) nuclear energy
(D) bio-mass. Q.10 When a beta particle is given out, the atomic
number of the parent atom -
Q.4 The device in which the nuclear fission and (A) Increases by unity
release of energy is controlled is known as- (B) Decreases by unity
(A) Thermopile (B) Thermostat (C) Remains the same
(C) Nuclear reactor (D) Cloud chamber
(D) Is halved

Q.5 For a sustained chain reaction, the

Q.11 Which of the following has least penetrating
reproduction factor should be -
power ?
(A) zero (B) one
(A) Alpha particles
(C) two (D) three
(B) Gamma rays
(C) Beta particles
Q.6 Moderator is used in nuclear reactor for - (D) All have the same penetrating power
(A) slowing neutrons
(B) accelerating neutrons
(C) stopping neutrons
(D) heating the neutrons

ANSWER KEY

EXERCISE-2
Ques 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Ans B C C C B A C C C A A