KS4 Physics

Energy Transfers
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Contents

Energy Transfers
Useful energy

Conservation of energy
Wasted energy Efficiency Summary activities
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Useful energy transfer

Many everyday objects are designed to transfer energy from one form into another useful form. What energy transfer is an electric fan designed to carry out?

electrical energy
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kinetic energy
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What is the useful energy transfer?

What energy transfer is a speaker designed to carry out?

electrical energy
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sound energy
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What is the useful energy transfer?

What energy transfer is a wind farm designed to carry out?

kinetic energy
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electrical energy
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What is the useful energy transfer?

What energy transfer is a hydroelectric power station designed to carry out?

gravitational energy
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electrical energy
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Useful energy transfers

Complete the input and useful output energies for the devices in this table.

Device kettle solar cell catapult coal fire

Input energy electrical light elastic chemical

Output energy heat

electrical
kinetic

heat

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Contents

Energy Transfers
Useful energy

Conservation of energy
Wasted energy Efficiency Summary activities
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Law of conservation of energy

All energy transfers follow the law of conservation of energy:

Energy cannot be created or destroyed, just changed in form.

This means that energy never just disappears. The total amount of energy always stays the same, i.e. the total input energy = total output energy. In most energy transfers, the energy is transferred to several different forms, which may be useful or not useful. The energy that is transferred to unwanted forms of energy is wasted.
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Energy transfer in a television

An energy transfer diagram shows the input energy and the output energies for a device. This includes all the useful and wasted forms of energy. For example, in a television:

light
electrical sound

heat

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Energy transfer in a radio

What are the main energy transfers in a radio? (Dont forget the wasted energy.)

electrical

sound
heat

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Energy transfer in a car engine

What are the main energy transfers in a car engine? (Dont forget the wasted energy.)

kinetic chemical sound

heat

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Identifying energy transfers

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Falling objects
When an object falls in a gravitational field:

Gravitational potential energy (GPE) at the top equals the kinetic energy (KE) of the object just before it hits the ground.
If a diver has 4 000 J of GPE at the top of a cliff, how much KE will she have just before she hits the sea?

4 000 J _________
Assuming no energy is lost by air resistance!!!

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Gerald the Human Cannonball

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Contents

Energy Transfers
Useful energy

Conservation of energy
Wasted energy Efficiency Summary activities
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Wasted energy
Whenever energy is changed from one form to another, some energy is always wasted. Energy is usually wasted as: heat energy;

sound energy.
All electrical devices produce a small amount of heat energy, which is normally wasted.

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Wasted sound energy

If you can hear a device that is not designed to make noise then energy is wasted as sound. Examples of devices that waste energy as sound include:

car engine washing machine jet engine

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hairdryer

Wasted heat energy

If a device gets warm and it is not designed to get warm then energy is wasted as heat. Examples of devices that waste energy as heat include:

car engine television radio

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mobile phone charger

Which type of energy is wasted?

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What happens to wasted energy?

What happens to the wasted energy produced whenever energy is changed from one form to another? (Remember that energy cannot be created or destroyed.) Wasted energy spreads out into the surroundings this is called dissipated energy. This dissipated energy is too spread out to do useful work and so cannot be re-used.

This is why it is important to reduce the amount of energy that is wasted.

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Contents

Energy Transfers
Useful energy

Conservation of energy
Wasted energy Efficiency Summary activities
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Energy efficiency
Efficiency is a measure of how good a device is at changing energy from one form to another. All devices waste energy, so the efficiency of a device is never 100%. The more efficient a device is the less energy is wasted.

Energy efficient light bulbs are more efficient than normal light bulbs aste less energy. because they w____ More of the e_______ lectrical energy that they are supplied with is converted into l____ ight energy and not h___. eat
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Calculating efficiency
The efficiency of a device can be calculated using this formula:

useful energy out efficiency = total energy in

Useful energy is measured in joules (J).
Total energy is measured in joules (J).

This means that efficiency does not have any units.

It is a number between 0 and 1 or a percentage.

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Efficiency of a bulb
This filament bulb is supplied with 100 J of electrical energy which it converts to 45 J of light energy. a) How much energy is wasted? 55 J Wasted energy = Total Useful = 100 J 45 J = 55 J Efficiency = Useful Total = 45 J 100 J = 0.45 or 45%
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b) In what form is the energy wasted? heat

c) What is the efficiency of the bulb? 0.45 or 45%

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Efficiency of a radio
This radio is supplied with 300J of electrical energy which it converts to 96J of sound energy. Wasted energy = Total Useful = 300 J 96 J = 204 J Efficiency = Useful Total = 96 J 300J = 0.32 or 32%
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a) How much energy is wasted? 204 J

b) In what form is the energy wasted? heat

c) What is the efficiency of the radio? 0.32 or 32%

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Efficiency of a television
This television converts 2 000J of electrical energy into useful energy at an efficiency of 65%.

a) What useful energy does a television produce? light and sound b) How much useful energy is produced? 1 300 J Efficiency = Useful Total Useful = Efficiency x Total = 0.65 x 2 000 J = 1 300 J
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Efficiency questions

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Contents

Energy Transfers
Useful energy

Conservation of energy
Wasted energy Efficiency Summary activities
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Glossary dissipated Energy that spreads out into its surroundings

so that it is no longer useful.

efficiency A measure of how good a device is at

changing energy from one form to another.

energy transfer The process of changing energy from

one form into another.

input energy The energy going into a device. output energy The forms of energy produced by a
device.

useful energy Energy in a form that is wanted. wasted energy Energy in a form that is not wanted or
is not used.
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Anagrams

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Energy transfers summary

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Multiple-choice quiz

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