Quiz: What You Don't Know About Energy Vocabulary

Question:

Photograph by Stanley K Patz, Getty Images

You probably know words such as fracking and hydroelectricity, but how well do you really know the language that helps describe our energy landscape?

Quiz by Christina Nunez

Bitumen describes

A drilling implement
Tar
A byproduct of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking
Acid

Bitumen is a mixture of hydrocarbons also known as tar or asphalt. Naturally occurring bitumen is a source of "unconventional" oil produced from Canada's tar sands. (See related story: "A Quest to Clean Up Canada's Oil Sands Carbon")

Lumens are a measure of

Electric power
Brightness
Color temperature
Heat

Lumens measure brightness. A 100-watt incandescent light bulb produces a minimum of 1,600 lumens. (See related interactive: "Light Bulb Savings Calculator")

A passive house

does not require any lighting
uses only wood heat
is always located near public transportation to minimize fuel use
uses little or no energy for heating and cooling

The passive house standard is designed to maintain a comfortable indoor temperature using superior insulation, ventilation, and other techniques for maximizing efficiency.

A flywheel is used

To lengthen the life of a car's tires
To grind flour in energy-poor areas
To store energy
To cool nuclear equipment

A flywheel is a disk or cylinder that, when connected to a motor, stores energy. The wheel converts surplus energy from the motor into kinetic energy; the faster it spins, the more energy it holds. When energy is needed, it can be taken out by slowing the flywheel. (See related story: "Upgrading the Electric Grid With Flywheels and Air"

CSP typically stands for

concentrating solar power
cascading shortage of power
carbon storage pond
captive supplier of petroleum

Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies use mirrors to reflect and concentrate sunlight onto receivers that collect solar energy and convert it to heat. The heat is then used to produce electricity by turning a steam turbine or driving a heat engine. (For an example, see "Pictures: Spanish Solar Energy")

Mercaptan is

Oil that is obtained from deepwater drilling
One of the fluids used in fracking
A fitting on a wind turbine
An additive to natural gas

Mercaptan is a chemical with a sulfurous smell that is added to natural gas, which is odorless, as a safety measure so consumers can detect leaks.

A BTU, or British Thermal Unit, measures

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit.
The amount of energy produced by one liter of gasoline
The amount of electricity needed to heat one liter of water to 180 degrees
The amount of heat generated by burning one pound of wood

One BTU heats a pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit.

CHP typically stands for

Cooling and heating processes
Coal heat production
Combined heat and power
Catalytic hydrocracking performance

A combined heat and power, or CHP plant, produces both heat and electricity from the same source. (See related story: "KPMG Captures Heat for Data Center Cooling")

An ampere measures

Electric current
Resistance to the flow of an electric current
Brightness
Heat

An ampere, or amp for short, is a unit of measure for the amount of electric current flowing at a force of one volt and a resistance of one ohm.

A Christmas tree is a nickname for

An array of valves, pipes and other equipment at the top of an oil or gas well
A tangle of transmitters and wiring at the top of a utility pole
A tool used in the processing of coal
A marker used to designate an oil or gas drilling site

A Christmas tree is the system of fittings at the top of a well to control the flow of oil or gas to pipelines.

Coke breeze is a term for

The greenhouse gas emissions from coal plants
The smoke that emerges from the production of coke from coal
Bits of coke sized half an inch or smaller
The heat emitted by vending machines

Coke breeze is fine coke, a small particle of the carbon residue produced from coal and used as fuel and for steel production.

GTL typically stands for

Generator transmission line
Gallon to liter
Global transportation load
Gas to liquids

GTL typically refers to gas to liquids, or the conversion of natural gas to petroleum products such as diesel fuel.

Results

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