Forms and Sources of Energy

Section A
Each question is followed by four options. Choose the correct answer and write its number in
the brackets provided.

1. What happens to the amount of potential energy and kinetic energy of a girl when she runs
down the stairs at a constant speed?

Potential energy Kinetic energy

1) Decreases Remains unchanged
2) Decreases Increases
3) Remains unchanged Decreases
4) Remains unchanged Increases
( )

2. Hong Liang rides his motorcycle up a hill. He applies the brakes to stop his motorcycle along
the hill slope. The energy of the moving motorcycle is changed into _____________.
A. Sound energy
B. Gravitational potential energy
C. Heat energy
D. Kinetic energy

1) C only
2) A and C only
3) A, B and C only ( )
4) B and D only

3. Given that each of the following objects weighs 100g, which of them has the greatest potential
energy?

1) Book
2) Cone
3) Bowl
4) Ball ( )

1
4. Activities A and B produce the following types of energy:

Which of the following activities can A and B possibly be?

A B
1) Lighting cigarette Switching on radio
2) Throwing a tennis ball against a wall Exploding a bomb
3) Turning on a bulb Speaking into a phone
4) Lighting a candle Setting off fireworks

( )

5. A paper clip was pulled open and pushed back twenty times.

Which one of the following correctly shows the energy change that took place?

( )

2
6. Study the diagram below.

A ball tied to a string is swung from A to B and back again. Which one of the following shows
the correct energy change from A to B?

( )

7. Which one of the following correctly shows the conversion of energy in a battery operated
analogue clock?

( )

8. Study the diagram carefully. It shows how nuclear power is being harnessed.

3
 Which of the following statements is false?

1) Nuclear energy is converted to heat energy to boil water.

2) Heat energy is converted to kinetic energy of steam.
3) Kinetic energy of steam drives the turbine.
4) Potential energy of the turbine drives the generator which produces
electricity. ( )

9. Which one of the following appliances matches the energy conversion below?

1) Light bulb
2) Solar powered car
3) Fuel power station
4) Electric iron ( )

10. Four objects, K, L, M and N are hung on a bar above the ground, using ropes of different
lengths. The table shows the mass of each object and its distance from the ground.

Which of the following statement is true of Objects K, L, M and N?

1) Object L possesses the least gravitational potential energy.
2) Object M possess the most gravitational potential energy than Object N.
3) Object K has more gravitational potential energy than Object N. ( )
4) Object M has less gravitational potential energy than Object L.

Section B
Answer the following questions.

11. A group of students were brought to the theme park to study the conversion of energy in
several theme park rides. They were tasked to make a drawing of one ride and label the parts

4
 of the ride to show the conversion of energy. The diagram below shows the drawing of one of
the students.

a) Explain why the top of the loop (Point C) has to be constructed lower than Point A.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) Suggest what can be done to increase the height of Point C while ensuring that the
roller coaster car is still able to make it through the loop.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

12. Andrew played a game called Shooting Tins at his school carnival. Players are to use a-
pebble and a catapult to aim and hit the metal tins from a distance. He tried for the first time
and noticed that his pebble did not fly far enough to reach the target.

a) Suggest one way Andrew can make his pebble travel further so as to hit the target.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) State the energy changes from the time Andrew stretched the catapult, to the point
when the pebble hits the target.

5
 _____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

c) What is the relationship between the length that the catapult elastic band is stretched to
the distance travelled by the pebble which is shot out?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

13. An experiment was carried out to find out how the height of the ramp affects the distance
moved by the car along the ground. In the experiment shown below, when the car is released,
it rolls down the ramp and moves a distance of 10 cm before coming to a stop.

a) If the ramp is moved such that the centre of the ramp rests on the edge of the wooden
block to the experiment is repeated with the car at the same starting point, will it move
more or less than 10 cm? Explain your answer.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) State one variable that has to be kept the same in order for the experiment to be fair?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

14. Wenjie had two similar drums. He placed a few grains of sand on Drum A and hit Drum B
with a drumstick. He observed the grains of sand on Drum A vibrating each time he hit Drum
B.

6
 a) State the energy changes that took place from the point when Wenjie hit Drum B to the
point when the grains of sand started to vibrate.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) How should Wenjie hit Drum B in order to make the sand vibrate more?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

15. The diagram below shows a solar powered car. It has photovoltaic cells which captures
energy from the sun and uses it to power the car. It also has a rechargeable battery to store
some of this energy for use during time of darkness.

a) State the energy conversions that takes place which enable the car to be driven at
night. Begin with the energy from the sun and end with the energy of the moving car.

7
 _____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) What is one advantage of using the suns energy to power the car?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

c) Apart from the reliance on sunlight, what is one other disadvantage of using a solar
powered car?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

16. Chelsea wanted to find out how the mass of an object affects its Kinetic energy. She used two
balls of the same size. Ball A has a mass of 1kg while Ball B has a mass of 500g. She rolled
Ball A over a carpet floor in her room. Later, she used the same amount of force to roll Ball B
over a marble floor in her living room.

Her Science tutor said that her experiment was not a fair one.

a) How should Chelsea ensure that her experiment is fair?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) Which variable should Chelsea measure to help her draw a conclusion?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

c) If Chelsea had performed a fair experiment, what conclusion can she draw from it?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

8
17. (a) Amjit has a stress ball made of polyurethane foam rubber. She squeezed and released it
several times and realized that the ball felt warm after that. State the energy changes that take
place during one cycle of squeezing and releasing the ball.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

(b) Amjit dropped the stress ball from a height of 180 cm above a concrete floor. It
bounced to a lower height each time it hit the ground as shown below until it finally
stopped.

Why is the bounce-back height of the stress ball lower after each bounce?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

(c) Amjit then dropped a rubber ball of similar size and weight to that of the stress ball
and observed that is initial bounce-back height was higher than that of the stress ball.
Suggest a reason why this is so.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

18. Identify the energy conversions which take place in each of the following objects and classify
them by writing the correct letters in the chart below.

A. A spinning windmill connected to the turbines of an electric generator

9
 B. The engine of a moving car
C. An electric fan which is switched on
D. The turbines of a hydroelectric power station as water flows through
E. A jack-in-the-box which has just been released
F. An electric sewing machine that is being used

19. The diagram below shows a track that Desmond set up. He wanted his toy car to roll round
the loop to the end of the track.

a) Explain why he stacked the books such that the starting point of the track is higher than
the height of the loop.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

10
 Desmond wanted to add a second loop to his set up.

b) Draw in the space below to show what his new set up should look like.

Desmond stacked more books to raise the starting height of the ramp.

c) State his observations about the distance moved by the car and explain his observation.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

20. The diagram below shows a simple toy that moves using energy stored in a twisted rubber
band. The rubber band is wound by twisting the stick attached to it.

a) Explain why the thread spool is able to move on its own when it is released.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

11
 b) What can be done to move the thread spool a greater distance?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

21. The diagram below shows a whistling kettle. When the water is boiled, a sound is produced
by the steam escaping through a hole in the spout.

a) State the energy changes that occur from the time the gas stove is turned on to the
point when the water is boiled.

b) By considering your answer in (a), suggest a way in which the volume of the whistling
sound can be increased.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

22. An echo sounder is used to measure the depth of water in oceans. It sends a sound to the
bottom of the ocean floor, where it is reflected back to the surface and detected by a receiver.

12
 a) What variable should be measured to determine the depth of the ocean?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) Describe the energy conversion that takes place from the time the sound is made to the
time it reached the ocean floor.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

23. Samuel wanted to find out how the type of bow string affects its elastic potential energy.

a) State 3 variables that Samuel should keep constant to ensure that his experiment is fair.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

13
 b) State the energy conversions that take place from the time the bow string is pulled back
to the point the arrow hits the target board.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

c) What is the relationship between the distance that the bow string was pulled back and
the depth of the hole made in the board?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

24. Hassan designed two set-ups to make holes into the ground when the wooden blocks are
released.

a) Which wooden block will make a deeper hole each time it pounds into the ground? Give
a reason for your answer.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

b) Instead of changing the mass of the wooden block, suggest another way to make a
deeper hole in the ground.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

25. Lena designed a water wheel to lift a bucket as shown in the diagram below.

14
a) State the energy changes that are expected to occur when the bucket is lifted.

b) Lena found that the water wheel would not turn as the bucket was too heavy. Suggest
two modifications to her set-up which will enable the wheel to turn.

i. ________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

ii. ________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

15
16
17