Future fuels – introduction
Scientists think that about 14 billion years ago (that is a 14 followed by 9 zeros), this universe came into being through the Big Bang. This is described in the Big Bang theory.
Telescopic view of the Sun
An example of the amazing power of the sun can be observed when large amounts of magnetic energy are suddenly released. These bursts are called sun flares.
It is thought that, before the Big Bang, our universe had zero volume and must have consisted entirely of radiant energy with indefinite density of the energy and a temperature in the order of 1032°C (or 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000).
Find out more about what is the Big Bang theory in this video.
After the Big Bang, the universe began to expand and cool and has done so ever since. Once the temperature had dropped to about 100,000°C, it was possible for protons and electrons to combine in pairs and create hydrogen atoms to then combine and form hydrogen molecules. Galaxies and stars started to form, including our own solar system with our Sun.
Why is energy important?
Peter Hall from Scion explains why we need large quantities of carbon neutral energy.
Energy is everywhere. Anything we eat or use has energy embodied in it. Every object we produce required energy to make and/ or energy to transport, and the energy demands are closely linked to the economic growth of a country.
Points of interest
‘Carbon neutral’ is a term used to describe a product (or process) that does not release more carbon into the atmosphere than its capacity to consume or absorb carbon in the course of its lifetime. A business that aims to be carbon neutral will try to offset their carbon emissions by, for example, planting trees or using products produced from sustainable resources.
The Sun is the Earth’s power station. Every form of energy on Earth ultimately comes from the Sun. There are many ways that energy from the sunlight can be transformed, which demonstrates how much we rely on the Sun’s energy. The Sun’s energy drives the winds, the weather and movements of the oceans.
Plants rely on sunlight for energy, and animals get their energy either directly or indirectly from plants. Around 85% of the energy humans use comes from fossil fuels – remains of plants and animals that once used the Sun’s energy. Even hydroelectricity relies on the energy from the sunlight – if the Sun did not shine, all the water on Earth would be frozen and there wouldn’t be a water cycle driving the weather and movement of water.
New Zealand’s energy demand
Peter Hall from Scion discusses New Zealand’s energy demands and what we should think as a country about how to reduce our carbon footprint.
A country’s economic growth is closely linked to how much energy is being used. High-energy demands can have a big impact on the environment. Peter Hall suggests that, if we want to reduce our country’s carbon footprint, we need to look at how we use carbon-producing fuels. Peter explains that we need to look at three approaches if we want to improve our energy production and consumption overall: increasing energy efficiency of the things we use (for example, fuel efficient cars), improving our conservation efforts (for example, less private car use and more public transport use) and developing fuels with a small carbon footprint (for example, renewable energy and biofuels).
Points of interest
The carbon footprint describes how much carbon dioxide an individual, a business or a country emits. Every time we use a carbon dioxide-emitting fuel, we increase the size of our footprint. As a consequence, people use this term also when they are describing practices and how they affect the environment, for example, a person who recycles or grows their own vegetables in a sustainable way is said to reduce their carbon footprint.
Every living thing, without exception, depends on a source of energy to keep it living and reproducing. Sunlight provides the energy for green plants, and animals use the chemical energy in their food. All living things, except for subterranean microbes, are warmed directly or indirectly by the Sun’s radiant heat.
For all non-human animals, food and sunshine are the only sources of energy, but humans tap into a multitude of energy sources to convert ‘raw’ natural energy into energy for human use.
Wood bonfire
Bonfires are a large and controlled outdoor fires, often used as part of a celebration. These are different to small campfires which are used for warmth or cooking.
The first fuel used for heat, and maybe cooking, was wood around 200,000 years ago by Neanderthal man (Homo Neanderthalensis). Non-combustible energy sources – like geothermal heat, water for transportation or wind power in sails – may have been in use well before this.
Combustible fuels for early societies were wood, peat and dung, and sometimes oil, coal and natural gas. Combustion is a chemical reaction between the fuel and oxygen that releases heat energy. It can be either used directly for heating or it can be used to generate another kind of energy. A car, for example, converts heat energy into kinetic or moving energy.
Wind turbines in New Zealand
Renewable energy resources, such as wind power, support the national power grid.
Coal, oil and gas are collectively called fossil fuels because they were formed from the remains of plants or animals that lived hundreds of millions years ago. Although large amounts of these fossil fuels are found in underground rocks or at the surface, fossil fuels are limited and cannot be replaced.
This is why people are looking at alternative energy resources that are renewable and have less effect on our atmosphere by producing polluting greenhouse gases like CO2. Wind, water, solar and geothermal resources are renewable energy sources that humans have used for a long time. Lately, scientists have studied more closely how biomass – materials that come from living things – can be used effectively to lessen our need for fossil fuels.
Explore our resources to find out more about what will fuel our energy needs in the future, and whether it will involve oil or fuel produced from biomass. Hear and read about scientists, such as Peter Hall and Adam Vonk, who study oil resources and the type of biomass that could be used in New Zealand.
Activities
We have a number of activities and resources to use with your students when exploring future fuels.
Alternative conceptions about fossil fuels – answer a short multichoice survey to identify and address common alternative conceptions about fossil fuels.
Calculating potential and kinetic energy – calculate the kinetic and potential energy of a specific object.
Carbon cycle – three-level reading guide – read about the carbon cycle using a three-level reading guide.
Carbon dioxide emissions calculator – use this online calculator to calculate and compare the amount of CO2 produced by different energy sources.
Greenhouse simulation – use a plastic soda bottle to make and test the temperature of a bottle ‘greenhouse’ and demonstrate how light energy is transformed into heat energy.
Investigating heat absorption – use thermometers inside water-filled soda bottles to investigate how dark and light colours affect heat absorption.
Making a solar oven – learn about using the Sun’s energy to meet our needs - cooking food and heating water.
Electric vehicles
Using transport fuelled by renewable electricity is an effective way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Explore our resources on electric cars:
See the Electric car history timeline and the Participatory Science Platform (PSP) project in Taranaki called REV it UP, where students are building an electric vehicle.
Driving us into the future is an article on electric cars in Connected 2016, Level 4, which comes with additional teacher support material.
Explore the environmental impacts in terms of CO2 of standard vehicles vs electric vehicles in The environmental footprint of electric versus fossil cars.
This activity shows how to make a simple electric motor.
Question bank
The Future fuels – question bank provides a list of questions about our energy options and places where their answers can be found. The questions support an inquiry approach.
Key terms
For explanations of key concepts, see Future fuels – key terms. Climate change – key terms may also be useful.
Timeline
Use this timeline to explore how humans have relied on fossil fuels in the past and how we are looking for, and using, new energy source
Useful links
The 2014 Energy in New Zealand report from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
Information paper from the Royal Society of New Zealand that discusses the potential for New Zealand to move towards a green economy.
