Podcast
Questions and Answers
A battery-powered toy car converts chemical energy into kinetic energy to move, and as it travels uphill, it gains gravitational potential energy. During this process, some energy is also dissipated as heat due to friction and motor inefficiency. To effectively visualize the proportion of energy converted into each form and the energy losses throughout this process, which type of diagram would be MOST appropriate?
A battery-powered toy car converts chemical energy into kinetic energy to move, and as it travels uphill, it gains gravitational potential energy. During this process, some energy is also dissipated as heat due to friction and motor inefficiency. To effectively visualize the proportion of energy converted into each form and the energy losses throughout this process, which type of diagram would be MOST appropriate?
- A Sankey diagram, where the width of arrows is scaled to represent the proportion of energy in each transfer pathway. (correct)
- A transfer diagram, illustrating energy stores as boxes and transfers as arrows between them.
- A bar chart, comparing the magnitudes of different energy stores at discrete stages of the car's motion.
- A pie chart, showing the percentage distribution of energy across different stores at a specific moment in time.
Flashcards
Energy Conservation and Transfer
Energy Conservation and Transfer
Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but it can be transferred, dissipated, or stored in different forms. Energy transfers occur whenever a system changes, altering how energy is stored.
Study Notes
- Energy exists in different 'stores' and can be transferred, dissipated, or stored.
- Energy cannot be created or destroyed (law of conservation of energy).
- Energy can remain in the same store for varying durations
- Whenever a system changes, energy is transferred and the way energy is stored is altered.
Examples of Energy Transfers:
- Boat moving through water: Chemical energy converts to kinetic energy.
- Boiling water in an electric kettle: Electrical energy increases the internal energy of the element, subsequently increasing the water's internal (thermal) energy and temperature.
- Swinging pirate ship: Kinetic energy converts into gravitational potential energy and vice versa.
Four Types of Energy Transfer:
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Heating
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Waves
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Electric current
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Force moving an object
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Potential difference (voltage) measures the energy given to charge carriers in a circuit, measured in volts (V).
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Energy is 'given-out' by a material, reducing its internal energy
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'Work' signifies energy transfer, demonstrated by examples like a grazing cow, firing catapult, or boiling kettle.
Diagrams Representing Energy Transfer:
- Transfer diagrams use boxes for energy stores and arrows for energy transfers.
- Example: A child at the top of a slide.
- Gravitational energy converts to mechanical work, increasing speed and overcoming friction.
- Energy shifts from gravitational potential energy to kinetic and internal energy (raising temperature).
- Example: A child at the top of a slide.
- Sankey diagrams illustrate how energy transfers into different stores, with arrow widths indicating the amount of energy.
- Useful when the amount of energy in each source is known.
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