P1.

6 Energy, Work and Power TOPIC NOTES

CONTENTS
CONTENTS
P1.6 SYLLABUS
GLOSSARY AND DEFINITIONS
EQUATIONS
01 Energy Stores
7 Stores of Energy
02 Energy Transfers
03 Principle of Conservation of Energy (a law)
Worked Example:
04 Kinetic Energy
Equation for Kinetic Energy
Worked Example:
05 Gravitational Potential Energy
Equation for Gravitational Potential Energy
Worked Example:
Diagram showing how GPE changes depending on height:
06 Work UNFINISHED
07 Energy Resources UNFINISHED
08 Power UNFINISHED

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P1.6 SYLLABUS

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 GLOSSARY AND DEFINITIONS
NOTE: Definitions in BOLD are standard definitions and must be learned word-perfect!

KEY TERM GLOSSARY / DEFINITION

Biofuel Material, recently living, used as a fuel.
Boiler Device where thermal energy is transferred to water to turn it into
steam.
Chemical energy Energy stored in bonds between atoms that can be released when
chemical reactions take place.
Doing work Transferring energy by means of a force.
Efficiency The fraction (or percentage) of energy supplied that is usefully
transferred.
Elastic energy /strain energy Energy stored in an object that is stretched or compressed.
By Electrical current, or Transfer of energy via charge carriers through a potential
Electrical Work Done difference.(so this only occurs in electrical currents)
Electrostatic energy The energy stored when charges are separated or squashed
together.
Energy Quantity that must be changed or transferred to make something
happen.
Event Something that happens or takes place, often at a specific time and
place.
Forces (energy transfer), or Transfer of energy by forces acting on an object, causing it to
Mechanical Work Done change shape (deform) or move
Fossil fuels Material, formed from long-dead material, used for releasing energy
through combustion.
Geothermal energy Energy stored in hot rocks underground.
Gravitational potential energy The energy store of an object raised up against the force of gravity;
(G.P.E. or ΔEp) more generally, it is the distance between particles or bodies.
Heating (energy transfer) Transfer of energy from warmer object to a colder object
Internal energy / thermal The energy of an object; the total kinetic and potential energies of
energy its particles.
Joule (J) The SI unit for energy or work done
Kinetic energy (K.E. or Ek) The energy store of a moving object.
Lubrication Usually a liquid, allows 2 surfaces to slide past each other easily
Non-renewables An energy resource that is gone forever once it has been used.
Nuclear energy Energy stored in the nucleus of an atom.
Power The rate at which work is done, or the rate at which energy is
transferred; measured with the SI unit Watts, W.
Principle of conservation of Energy cannot be created or destroyed; it can only be stored
energy or transferred.
Process A series of actions or steps, often taking place over a long period of
time.

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KEY TERM GLOSSARY / DEFINITION
Renewables An energy resource that will be replenished (replaced) naturally
when used.
Solar cell (also called An electrical device that transfers the energy of sunlight directly to
photocell / photovoltaic cell) electricity, by producing a voltage when light falls on it.
Solar panel Used to collect energy that is transferred by light from the Sun.
Thermal conduction The transfer of thermal energy by the vibration of particles.
Thermal conductor A substance that transfers thermal energy easily.
Thermal energy See Internal energy.
Turbine A device that is caused to turn by moving air, steam or water; often
used to generate electricity.
Watt (W) The unit of power when 1 J of energy is transferred per unit time.
(1 W = 1 J/s)
Waves (energy transfer) Transfer of energy by waves that carry energy from one location to
another. (e.g. by sound, by EM waves or by other waves)
Work done The energy transferred when one body exerts a force on another;
the energy transferred by a force when it moves.
(work done = energy transferred)

EQUATIONS
SYMBOL EQUATION WHAT EACH SYMBOL MEANS AND ITS UNIT

KE or Ek = ½ mv2 Kinetic Energy Equation

K.E. or Ek: Kinetic energy of the object, in Joules, J.
m: Mass of the object, in kilograms, kg
v: Velocity or speed of the object, in metres per second, m/s

Gravitational Potential Energy Equation

GPE or ΔEp = mgΔh ΔEp: Gravitational potential energy of the object, in Joules, J.
m: Mass of the object, in kilograms, kg
g: Gravitational field strength, which is 9.8 N/kg, or 9.8 m/s2)
Δh: change in height, in metres, m

Mechanical Work Done Equation

W = Fd = ΔE W: Mechanical work done on an object, in Joules, J
F: Force acting on the object (to move it), in Newtons, N
d: Distance that the object is moved, in metres, m
ΔE: Change in energy, or energy transferred, in Joules, J

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01 Energy Stores
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.1 Energy

 Energy is the quantity which is transferred whenever we observe a change.

 Examples of changes are a change in motion of a ball, a change in temperature of water,
a torch that is switched on.
 Energy is stored and it can be transferred. Energy can never be destroyed.

7 Stores of Energy
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.1 Energy

Energy can be stored in these 7 different ways:

ENERGY DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

STORE
Kinetic Energy stored in any object
Energy that is moving.

Gravitational The energy store of an object raised

Potential up against the force of gravity.
Energy More generally, it is the distance
(GPE) between particles or bodies.

Chemical Energy stored in bonds between

Energy atoms that can be released when
chemical reactions take place.

Elastic Energy stored in an

(strain) object that is stretched
Energy or compressed.

Electrostatic The energy stored when

Potential charges are separated
Energy or squashed together.

Internal The total energy of an object;

(thermal) the total kinetic and potential energies
Energy of its particles

Nuclear Energy stored in the nucleus

Energy of an atom.

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 02 Energy Transfers
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.1 Energy

Energy can be transferred between stores during events and processes:

Event: Something that happens or takes place, often at a specific time and place.
Process: A series of actions or steps, often taking place over a long period of time

ENERGY DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

TRANSFER
By Forces, Transfer of energy by forces acting on
also called an object, causing it to change shape or
Mechanical Work move. NOTE: When a force makes
Done something move, we say it is doing work.

By Electrical Transfer of energy via charge carriers

current, or also through a potential difference.
Electrical Work (so this only occurs in electrical currents)
Done

By Heating Transfer of energy from warmer object

to a colder object

By Waves Transfer of energy by waves that carry

(e.g. by sound, energy from one location to another.
by EM waves or (e.g. moving light waves, sound waves,
by other waves) water waves)

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03 Principle of Conservation of Energy (a law)
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.1 Energy

Principle of Conservation of Energy (Definition):

Energy cannot be created or destroyed; it can only be stored or transferred.

 When energy is transferred from one store to another, some of this energy ends up as
useful (wanted) energy, and some energy ends up as unwanted energy
 For example, a light bulb transfers light (which we want) and heat (which we don’t want)
 But for all energy transfers, the total amount of energy before and after the transfer is
constant.
 If we measure or calculate the amount of energy before and after a transfer, and find any
difference, we must look for the places where energy may have entered or escaped
unnoticed.
 The Principle of Conservation of Energy also tells us that the total amount of energy in
the Universe since the Big Bang, is constant.

Worked Example:
A car burns 3 x 105 J of fuel (chemical energy) per second. It has 1.3 × 105 J of kinetic energy
and gains 0.7 x 105 J of gravitational potential energy as it goes up a slope.
How much energy transfers away from the car through thermal energy transfer?

Answer:

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04 Kinetic Energy
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.1 Energy

Kinetic Energy: The energy store of a moving object.

It takes energy to make things move. For example:

 You transfer energy to a ball when you throw it or hit it.
 A car uses energy from its fuel to get it moving.
 Elastic energy stored in a stretched piece of rubber is needed to fire a pellet from a
catapult. So a moving object is a store of energy.

These are examples of objects storing kinetic energy.

Equation for Kinetic Energy

SYMBOL EQUATION WHAT EACH SYMBOL MEANS AND ITS UNIT

KE or Ek = ½ mv2 K.E. or Ek: Kinetic energy of the object, in Joules, J.

m: Mass of the object, in kilograms, kg
v: Velocity or speed of the object, in metres per second, m/s

This equation shows that:

 If 2 cars are moving on a road: car A has more mass than car B, and both travel at the
same speed, then car A has more kinetic energy than car B.
 If 2 footballs are moving through the air: both footballs have the same mass but football A
is moving faster than football B, then football A has more kinetic energy than football B.

Worked Example:
A van of mass 2000 kg is travelling at 10 m/s. Calculate its kinetic energy.

Answer:

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05 Gravitational Potential Energy
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.1 Energy

Gravitational Potential Energy:

The energy store of an object raised up against the force of gravity.
More generally, it is the distance between particles or bodies.

High-jumping on the Moon should be easy!

 The Moon's gravitational field
strength is only 1.6 N/kg, much
weaker than the Earth's g of 9.8
N/kg. This is because the Moon's
mass is only one-eightieth (1/80)
of Earth's mass.
 This means that the weight of an
astronaut on the Moon is a
fraction of their weight on Earth.
 So, it is possible for the same
person to jump much higher on
the Moon, and fall down much
more slowly, than on Earth!

The higher an object is from the ground, the more gravitational potential energy it has.
The more gravitational potential energy it has, the more energy it has to transfer to another
store of energy (e.g. kinetic energy)

Equation for Gravitational Potential Energy

SYMBOL EQUATION WHAT EACH SYMBOL MEANS AND ITS UNIT
ΔEp = Gravitational potential energy of the object, in Joules, J.
GPE or ΔEp = mgΔh m: Mass of the object, in kilograms, kg
g: Gravitational field strength, which is 9.8 N/kg, or 9.8 m/s2)
Δh: change in height, in metres, m

This equation shows that:

 If 2 aeroplanes are travelling in the air: both aeroplanes have the exact same mass but
aeroplane A is higher up in the air than aeroplane B, then aeroplane A has more
gravitational potential energy than aeroplane B.
 If 2 skydivers jumped out of a moving aeroplane: both jumped from the same height but
skydiver A has more mass than skydiver B, then skydiver A has more gravitational
potential energy than skydiver B.

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Worked Example:
An athlete of mass 50 kg runs up a hill. The foot of the hill is 400 metres above sea-level. The
summit is 1200 metres above sea-level. By how much does the athlete's gravitational potential
energy increase?

Answer:
Step 1: Assume that gravitational potential energy is zero at the foot of the hill.
Calculate the increase in height.
Δh = 1200m - 400m = 800 m
Step 2: Write down the equation for gravitational potential energy, substitute values and solve.
ΔEp = weight x change in height
= mgΔh
= 50 kg x 9.8 N/kg x 800 m
= 392,000 J
= 392 kJ

Diagram showing how GPE changes depending on height:

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06 Work UNFINISHED
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.2 Work

1 Understand that mechanical or electrical work done is equal to the energy transferred
2 Recall and use the equation for mechanical working: W = Fd = ΔE

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07 Energy Resources UNFINISHED
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.3 Energy resources

1 Describe how useful energy may be obtained, or electrical power generated, from:
(a) Fossil fuels
(b) biofuels
(c) water, including waves, tides, and hydroelectric dams
(d) geothermal resources
(e) nuclear fission
(f) light from the Sun (solar cells)
(g) infrared and other electromagnetic waves from the Sun to heat water (solar thermal
collectors)
(h) wind (wind turbines)
including references to a boiler, turbine and generator where they are used
2 Give advantages and disadvantages of each method in terms of renewability, availability,
reliability, scale and environmental impact
3 Understand, qualitatively, the concept of efficiency of energy transfer
4 [Supp] Know that radiation from the Sun is the main source of energy for all our energy
resources except geothermal, nuclear and tidal
5 [Supp] Know that energy is released by nuclear fusion in the Sun (detailed knowledge of the
process of fusion is not required)
6 [Supp] Know that energy is released by nuclear fission in nuclear reactors (detailed
knowledge of the process of fission is not required)
7 [Supp] Define efficiency as:
(a) efficiency = useful energy output / total energy input × 100%
(b) efficiency = useful power output / total power input × 100%
recall and use the equations

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08 Power UNFINISHED
Syllabus Reference: P1.6.4 Power

1 Define power as work done per unit time and also as energy transferred per unit time; recall
and use the equations:
(a) P = W/t
(b) P = DE/t.

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