For a fossil fueled electrical generating plant, 10,000 Btu of chemical energy into the plant will result in about how many Btu's of waste heat dumped into the environment:
A) 0
B) 1000
C) 4000
D) 6000
E) 10,000 Btu's

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

According to the laws of thermodynamics, it is impossible for any system to convert all of the input energy into useful work. In a fossil fueled electrical generating plant, only about one-third of the chemical energy will be converted into electricity, while the remaining two-thirds will be lost as waste heat. Therefore, for every 10,000 Btu of chemical energy input, about 6,000 Btu of waste heat will be dumped into the environment.

For a Fossil Fueled Electrical Generating Plant, 10,000 Btu of Chemical