3.1.23

Conservation of Energy

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Conservation of Energy

The principle of the conservation of energy says that energy cannot be created or destroyed. Energy can only be transferred from one store of energy into another. Energy can be transferred by:

Illustrative background for Mechanical workIllustrative background for Mechanical work ?? "content

Mechanical work

  • Energy transferred from one object to another via a force is an example of mechanical work.
    • When an object falls from a building, the weight does mechanical work to transfer energy from the gravitational potential store to the kinetic store.
    • When you push a wheelchair, energy is transferred to the kinetic store of the wheelchair.
Illustrative background for Electrical workIllustrative background for Electrical work ?? "content

Electrical work

  • An electrical current transfers energy from one object to another.
  • Example: a battery powering a torch.
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Heating

  • Heating an object transfers energy to the object's internal store of energy.
    • The internal store of energy is the sum of the energy in the kinetic and chemical stores of its particles.
Illustrative background for WavesIllustrative background for Waves ?? "content

Waves

  • Light and other types of waves can transfer energy from one object to another.

Jump to other topics

1Biology

1.1Cells, Tissues & Organs

1.2Reproduction & Variation

1.3Ecological Relationships & Classification

1.4Digestion & Nutrition

1.5Plants & Photosynthesis

1.6Biological Systems & Processes

2Chemistry

2.1Particles

2.2Chemical Reactions

2.3Atoms, Elements, Compounds

2.4The Periodic Table

2.5Materials & the Earth

2.6Reactivity

2.7Energetics

2.8Properties of Materials

3Physics

3.1Energy

3.2Forces & Motion

3.3Waves

3.4Electricity & Magnetism

3.5Matter

3.6Space Physics

4Disciplinary Knowledge

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