UTHS: Final -APES B FINAL Exam
Questions with Complete Answers
2026 Updated.
U5 - Describe the laws of thermodynamics to understand energy transformations - Answer
Open systems: exchange energy with their surroundings
Closed systems: do not exchange energy with their surroundings
Energy - the ability to do work or to change
According to the First Law of Thermodynamics, energy may be transferred from place to place
or transformed into different forms, but it cannot be created or destroyed
When energy is converted from one form to another, some energy is lost as heat. This heat
becomes an unusable form of thermal energy called entropy, or disorder
U5 - Describe historical energy consumption and evaluate future energy needs - Answer
Historical events:
• Industrial Revolution from 1760 to 1840
• Oil discovered in U.S. in 1859
• Mass production of automobiles in 1890
• Enrico Fermi produces first self-sustaining nuclear reaction in 1942
• OPEC places ban on U.S. petroleum exports in 1973
• U.S. Department of Energy established in 1977
• Energy Policy Act of 2005 provided tax incentives for cleaner energy production
World's energy consumption (2006):
• Petroleum - 35%
• Coal - 28%
• Natural gas - 23%
• Hydro - 6%
• Nuclear - 6%
• Renewables - 1%
U5 - Describe how various fossil fuels are formed and extracted to produce energy - Answer
Three main types of fossil fuels:
, 1. coal
2. oil
3. natural gas
Coal formation:
1. Millions of years ago, dead plant matter was trapped under dirt and rock
2. Under the pressure, the plant matter turned to peat
3. As more heat and pressure was applied to the peat, oxygen escaped leaving coal
Oil & natural gas formation:
1. Millions of years ago, animals and plants were buried under the ocean floor
2. As they were buried deeper and under heat and pressure, their remains turned into oil and
natural gas
Coal extraction:
• Strip-mining - causes erosion and habitat destruction
• Sub-surface mining - less environmental impact but more danger for workers
Oil extraction:
• Pumping oil removes about 25% of the oil in a reservoir
• Hot water is injected to push more oil to the surface
• Sometimes steam is pumped into the well to remove all of the oil
Natural gas extraction:
• Fracking involves injecting water, sand, and other chemicals into the ground to crack bedrock
and release natural gas from oil reservoirs
U5 - Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of fossil fuels - Answer Advantages:
• Coal - most abundant fossil fuel, expected to last another 200 years
• Oil - inexpensive fuel source, provides more energy than coal, cleaner energy source than coal
• Natural gas - clean energy source, easy and inexpensive to transport
Disadvantages:
• Coal - releases chemical pollutants, releases toxic ash
• Oil - very limited supply, may only last another 30 years
Questions with Complete Answers
2026 Updated.
U5 - Describe the laws of thermodynamics to understand energy transformations - Answer
Open systems: exchange energy with their surroundings
Closed systems: do not exchange energy with their surroundings
Energy - the ability to do work or to change
According to the First Law of Thermodynamics, energy may be transferred from place to place
or transformed into different forms, but it cannot be created or destroyed
When energy is converted from one form to another, some energy is lost as heat. This heat
becomes an unusable form of thermal energy called entropy, or disorder
U5 - Describe historical energy consumption and evaluate future energy needs - Answer
Historical events:
• Industrial Revolution from 1760 to 1840
• Oil discovered in U.S. in 1859
• Mass production of automobiles in 1890
• Enrico Fermi produces first self-sustaining nuclear reaction in 1942
• OPEC places ban on U.S. petroleum exports in 1973
• U.S. Department of Energy established in 1977
• Energy Policy Act of 2005 provided tax incentives for cleaner energy production
World's energy consumption (2006):
• Petroleum - 35%
• Coal - 28%
• Natural gas - 23%
• Hydro - 6%
• Nuclear - 6%
• Renewables - 1%
U5 - Describe how various fossil fuels are formed and extracted to produce energy - Answer
Three main types of fossil fuels:
, 1. coal
2. oil
3. natural gas
Coal formation:
1. Millions of years ago, dead plant matter was trapped under dirt and rock
2. Under the pressure, the plant matter turned to peat
3. As more heat and pressure was applied to the peat, oxygen escaped leaving coal
Oil & natural gas formation:
1. Millions of years ago, animals and plants were buried under the ocean floor
2. As they were buried deeper and under heat and pressure, their remains turned into oil and
natural gas
Coal extraction:
• Strip-mining - causes erosion and habitat destruction
• Sub-surface mining - less environmental impact but more danger for workers
Oil extraction:
• Pumping oil removes about 25% of the oil in a reservoir
• Hot water is injected to push more oil to the surface
• Sometimes steam is pumped into the well to remove all of the oil
Natural gas extraction:
• Fracking involves injecting water, sand, and other chemicals into the ground to crack bedrock
and release natural gas from oil reservoirs
U5 - Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of fossil fuels - Answer Advantages:
• Coal - most abundant fossil fuel, expected to last another 200 years
• Oil - inexpensive fuel source, provides more energy than coal, cleaner energy source than coal
• Natural gas - clean energy source, easy and inexpensive to transport
Disadvantages:
• Coal - releases chemical pollutants, releases toxic ash
• Oil - very limited supply, may only last another 30 years
