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The Law of Conservation of Energy.

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Michael Scalise

Lvl 12
2y ago
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15y ago

Energy is not lost, it is just converted into forms that are less able to do work, such as heat. The energy in something like gasoline is in the chemical bonds. A car engine converts the chemical energy into kinetic energy that can do work. When you burn gasoline in your car engine, the chemical energy is converted into mechanical energy that drives the engine and makes the car move. The more efficient the engine, the more useful work you get from the chemical energy and the less that is wasted and dissipated as heat. But even the most efficient engines are able to convert only a portion of the chemical energy into useful work. It is physically impossible to make an engine that is 100 percent efficient. The laws of nature are such that whenever energy is converted from one form to another the conversion is not totally efficient, so some energy is converted into other forms that are less able to do work. So energy is not lost, it just eventually dissipates into heat with lower and lower temperature.

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13y ago

The first law of thermodynamics, an expression of the principle of conservation of energy, states that energy can be transformed (changed from one form to another), but cannot be created or destroyed.

No. Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only change form. Energy may be transformed into heat energy. The laws of thermodynamics also state that two bodies who remain in contact transfer heat energy until they reach an equilibrium. Due to this heat energy may be absorbed within air particles. Good luck attempting to get this energy back once permeated through the air :D

An example is how chemical energy in petrol is converted into kinetic (movement) energy to drive a car, and how slowing down the car (by braking, crashing or just letting friction slow it down) converts the kinetic energy into heat.

Although energy is never destroyed, it tends towards 'lower quality' and less useful energy every step on the way. As an example, there is no easy way to collect the low grade heat energy from slowing down a car to put it back on the tank. The energy is still there, but in tiny pieces spread all over the place in a form we cannot use.

This is the second law of thermodynamics, saying that in any closed system (where the system does not get new energy from the outside) the entropy tends to increase. (Entropy is a mathematical definition of disorder - higher entropy means many small pieces instead of a few large ones)

One scenario for how the Universe will eventually end is that the stars burn out and leave just a cold and dark empty space. In this scenario all the energy from the Big Bang, which today forms our Sun, the planets and the stars, will still be there. It will just be spread very, very thinly across the whole of the Universe instead of being concentrated in relatively few big lumps (the Sun and the stars) the way it is today. :)

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10y ago

(Another contributor wrote:)

Energy is not lost, it is just converted into forms that are less able to do work, such as heat. The energy in something like gasoline is in the chemical bonds. A car engine converts the chemical energy into kinetic energy that can do work. When you burn gasoline in your car engine, the chemical energy is converted into mechanical energy that drives the engine and makes the car move. The more efficient the engine, the more useful work you get from the chemical energy and the less that is wasted and dissipated as heat. But even the most efficient engines are able to convert only a portion of the chemical energy into useful work. It is physically impossible to make an engine that is 100 percent efficient. The laws of nature are such that whenever energy is converted from one form to another the conversion is not totally efficient, so some energy is converted into other forms that are less able to do work. So energy is not lost, it just eventually dissipates into heat with lower and lower temperature.

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14y ago

Yes, energy is never lost. it can only change forms. This means the total amount of possible energy is always constant. Even though energy and matter can change into one another, the amount of energy and the possible energy (matter) stays the same. If you were to change all matter into energy, that amount of energy is always going to stay the same.

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13y ago

Energy is never lost or gained but it can be transformed.

Potential energy will remain constant if there is no movement within a system. As soon as the body moves, so the potential energy will change into another form of energy such as kinetic energy. A mass falling from a height is the most common demonstration of this transfer of energy. Kinetic energy, the energy of a moving mass, can be changed into other forms. For example, friction can slow a moving mass. Kinetic energy is transformed into thermal energy (heat), the result of the friction.

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12y ago

Because of the first law of thermodynamics energy can never be created or destroyed. It can only be converted to another form. For example the energy that is lost from the food that we eat is not destroyed it is released from our bodies as heat into the atmosphere. We can not reuse it but it is not destroyed.

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14y ago

No, energy can never be lost it is sort of passed on.

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8y ago

According to the first law of thermodynamics energy can never be destroyed. Energy can neither be created nor be destroyed. It can only be transferred in to and out of a system.

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lenpollock

Lvl 15
2y ago

The Law of Conservation of Energy.

There is also a law:-

The Law of Conservation of Matter.

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Q: What law states that energy is never gained or lost?
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Related questions

What happens when a substance change states?

When a substance changes state, Energy within the substance is gained or lost, but the composition is unchanged.


Does energy lost equal energy gained?

no


How is calorimetry related to the law of conservation of energy?

The Law of Conservation of Energy states that energy is neither created nor destroyed but remains constant in a given system. Therefore, wouldn't calorimetry make use of it because the energy gained/lost by the water would cancel out the energy lost/gained by the substance and result in no change overall? The Law of Conservation of Energy states that energy is neither created nor destroyed but remains constant in a given system. Therefore, wouldn't calorimetry make use of it because the energy gained/lost by the water would cancel out the energy lost/gained by the substance and result in no change overall?


When a bond is formed is energy lost or gained?

give out energy


The law of conservation of energy states that energy can be created or destroyed as long as it is later converted to a more common form?

No, the Law of Conservation of Energy (a.k.a. First Law of Thermodynamics) states that energy CAN NOT be created or destroyed. Converting energy to a less valuable form is related to the Second Law of Thermodynamics.


What is chemical energy and how is energy released?

chemical energy is energy found in substances. energy is never lost or gained (remember that) . you can measure the energy and release energy by heating substances. This way energy is released when the compounds heated are broken down.


Is energy gained or lost during vaporization?

Vaporization is an endothermic process. It takes energy to heat up material to the point that it vaporizes, so energy is gained by the material being vaporized and lost by the environment.


What law states that energy is neither lost nor gained?

That would be the law of conservation of mass, conservation of matter.


Is energy lost when energy changes?

Energy is never lost or destroyed.


What percentage of energy is lost or gained from one stage to the next in an ecosystem?

90 % is lost.


Is energy gained or lost during evaporation?

When a substance evaporates, it gains energy.


Energy transforms from one form to another with no net loss or gain True Or False?

The second law of thermodynamics states that energy cannot be changed from one form to another without the loss of usable energy. Enargy is usually lost in the form of heat. This law essentially means that energy changing forms is never 100% efficient.