“Today we’re going to investigate how fossil fuels are used in the United States. To get started, let’s discuss what we learned in Lesson 1.” Facilitate a short class discussion summarizing the distribution and formation of fossil fuels in Pennsylvania. “And fuels are…” materials that can be converted to energy to do work. “So if crude oil, natural gas, and coal are fossil fuels, they can be converted to energy for us to use. Let’s see how people in the United States produce and consume (use) energy.”
Group students and provide each group with a copy of the Group Materials document (S-6-2-2_Group Materials.doc) and the Lesson 2 Worksheet (S-6-2-2_ Lesson 2 Worksheet and KEY.doc). Instruct students to look at the Share of Energy Consumed by Major Sectors of the Economy pie graph and the economy sector definitions found below the graph. Instruct students to answer question 1 on the worksheet. Facilitate a class discussion to clarify the definitions. Monitor students throughout the lesson as they complete the worksheet, providing feedback. “What does the pie graph show us?” (The pie graph tells us the percentage of total energy consumption (use) for each sector during 2008. The industrial sector consumed the most energy at 31%. The transportation sector was a close second at 28%, followed by the residential sector at 22%. The commercial sector consumed the least amount of energy at 19%.) “Let’s see how fossil fuels help meet energy needs of the United States.”
Distribute to each group copies of the U.S. Primary Energy Production bar graph and BTU information card (S-6-2-2_Group Materials.doc). “What does this graph show us?” (This bar graph shows the major sources of energy ranked by amount of energy produced from each in 2008.) “A BTU is a unit of energy used to compare energy produced from different fuels. Let’s take a look at the BTU information card.” Facilitate a short class discussion illustrating how the BTU serves as a comparison unit among different energy sources. “Which three fuels were the leading sources of energy produced in the United States during 2008?” (coal, natural gas, and crude oil) “What kind of fuels are coal, natural gas, and crude oil?” (fossil fuels) “So, based on this graph, what can we say about the relationship between energy produced in the United States and fossil fuels?” (Most of the energy produced today in the United States comes from fossil fuels.) “How many BTUs combined were produced from fossil fuels?” (55.6 quadrillion BTU) “Which energy sources on the graph are alternative energy sources?” [biomass, hydroelectric power, natural gas plant liquids, and wind, geothermal, and solar p/v (photovoltaic cells)] “How many BTUs combined were produced from these sources?” (9.8 quadrillion BTU) “So fossil fuels provided about 5-1/2 times as much energy as alternative sources in the United States during 2008. Which fossil fuel was the leading source of energy produced in the United States during 2008?” (coal) “So the United States produces more energy from coal than any other energy source.”
“Now let’s see what these energy statistics mean to us as energy consumers (users). In other words, how do the people of the United States consume (use) energy?” Distribute to each group a copy of the U.S. Primary Energy Consumption pie graph (S-6-2-2_Group Materials.doc). Explain that the rectangular representation to the right of the pie graph is a treemap, or rectangular pie graph, that gives information about the energy consumption by sector. The first three bars represent energy consumption by the sectors discussed above in the economic sector usage pie graph section of the lesson. Notice that the Residential and Commercial sectors are combined in the third rectangle. A fourth rectangle representing the consumption of energy to produce electricity has been added. The pie graph shows information about energy consumption source. “What does the pie graph show us?” (People in the United States in 2008 consumed energy produced mainly from petroleum (crude oil), natural gas, and coal.) “This makes sense because we already know that the leading energy sources produced are these fossil fuels. Now let’s look at the tree map for further details. Scan down the rectangles, comparing the lengths of the petroleum sections of the rectangles. Which sector consumed the most petroleum in 2008?” (transportation) “Why do you think this is so?” (Gasoline, diesel fuel, and kerosene-type jet fuel are refined from crude oil.) “How about coal? Which sector consumed the most coal in 2008?” (electric power production )“Why?” (Coal is burned as a source of energy used to spin the turbines in electric generators in electric power plants.) “How about natural gas? Which sectors consumed the most natural gas in 2008?” (residential and commercial.) “How?” (Natural gas is used as heating fuel and as fuel for stoves, water heaters, clothes dryers, and other household appliances.)
Explain the next activity to students. “Create your own pie graph representing the information contained in the following statement:
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Approximately 93% of the coal used in the United States is used for generating electricity. The rest of the coal is exported or used in the United States as a basic energy source in many industries including steel, cement, and paper. http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm?page=coal_use
Your pie graph must include: 1) a title, 2) two sections reflecting percentages of use, 3) a different color for each section, and 4) label for each section that describes percentage and type of use.” A scoring rubric is provided in the Resources folder (S-6-2-2_Pie Graph KEY.doc).
Extension:
