Page 165 - Science Coursebook

11.2 Fossil fuels

Generating electricity
Electricity is a convenient way of sending
energy from place to place. Most electricity is
generated in power stations which burn fossil
fuels, especially coal and gas.

A coal fired power station in China.
Activity 11.2
nuclear fuel
Energy changes

A nuclear power station is supplied with nuclear fuel. It produces electricity.
Some energy is wasted – it escapes as heat energy.

The diagram shows the inputs and outputs with red arrows. The blue energy
arrow shows the energy change which takes place within the power station.

heat energy

nuclear fuel electricity

nuclear energy electrical energy

Your task is to draw similar diagrams for the situations described below. You
may need to revise the different forms that energy can take. Look at Stage 7
Unit 10 again.

1 Coal is burned in a power station to generate electricity.
2 When a car starts moving, it uses petrol stored in its fuel tank.
3 A stove uses gas to heat water for cooking.
4 An aircraft burns kerosene to fly fast and high.

Summary
• Fossil fuels are stores of chemical energy.
• Fossil fuels are burnt to release their energy.
• Most of our electricity is generated in fossil fuel power stations.

11 Energy 163