Master the Science of Energy Transfers

Science Quiz - Physics - Energy Transfers (AQA) (Questions)

In this GCSE Physics quiz you’ll review different energy stores and how energy moves between them in everyday situations, from falling objects to electric heaters and motors.

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Fascinating Fact:

Energy is stored in types of store, like kinetic, thermal, gravitational, elastic, chemical and nuclear.

In GCSE Science (Physics), you model situations using energy stores and transfers. You describe how energy moves between stores, explain where it ends up, and use this to understand useful and wasted energy.

Key Terms

Energy store: A way of describing where energy is kept in a system, such as thermal, kinetic or gravitational potential.
Energy transfer: The movement of energy from one store to another, for example by heating, waves, electric current or mechanical work.
System: The part of the universe you are studying, such as an object, a group of objects or a whole process.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is an energy store in GCSE physics?

An energy store is a way of describing where energy is held in a system, such as in a moving object, a hot object, raised mass, stretched spring or chemical fuel.

What are the main ways energy can be transferred?

Energy can be transferred by heating, by waves (like sound or light), by electric current and by mechanical work when a force moves an object.

Is energy ever used up in an energy transfer?

Energy is not used up or created. It is conserved. In many transfers, more energy ends up spread out as thermal energy in the surroundings, so it becomes less useful.

Try These Related Quizzes

In which direction does thermal energy (heat) flow?

[ ]	Cold to hot
[ ]	Hot to cold
[ ]	All directions
[ ]	It depends on the exact situation

The rate at which an object transfers thermal energy depends on what?

[ ]	Its surface area
[ ]	Its volume and what it is made from
[ ]	The nature of the surface with which it is in contact
[ ]	All of the above

A student investigated the rate of heat transfer from four identical containers of water. The water was heated to different temperatures (shown below) and she noted the temperature drop during the first two minutes of cooling. Which answer puts them in the correct order, from lowest rate to highest rate?

Container A: 35^oC
Container B: 55^oC
Container C: 45^oC
Container D: 80^oC

[ ]	A, B, C, D
[ ]	D, C, B, A
[ ]	A, C, B, D
[ ]	D, B, C, A

A student investigated the rate of heat transfer from four identical containers of water. The water was heated to different temperatures (shown below). She then placed containers B and C in a freezer at -5^oC and containers A and D in a room with a temperature of 20^oC, and noted the temperature drop during the first two minutes of cooling. Which of the following statements is correct?

Container A: 35^oC
Container B: 55^oC
Container C: 45^oC
Container D: 80^oC

[ ]	Container D cooled the fastest
[ ]	Container B and container D cooled at the same rate
[ ]	Container A cooled the fastest
[ ]	Container B and container C cooled faster than all of the others

At the back of a refigerator there is a condenser which is designed to change the hot refrigerant gas into a liquid. The tubes of the condenser are attached to hundreds of small metal 'fins'. Why?

[ ]	To make the process of condensation work more efficiently
[ ]	To make the refrigerator look good
[ ]	For insulation so that the food inside stays cold
[ ]	To protect the condenser tubes

Why are cooling fins thin and flat?

[ ]	To give them a small surface area
[ ]	To make them as light as possible
[ ]	To make them fit into place better
[ ]	To give them a large surface area compared to their volume

Based on the information that "the chemical called ether evaporates much faster than water", which of the following statements is true?

[ ]	Ether must be a colourless liquid
[ ]	Ether must be a colourless solid
[ ]	Ether will make a surface cooler than water would
[ ]	Water will make a surface cooler than ether would

During the winter, moisture often condenses on the inside of windows of old houses. This rarely happens during the summer. Which of the following is likely to be the main reason for this?

[ ]	There are no plants actively growing in the winter to absorb the moisture for photosynthesis
[ ]	The glass of the window is colder in the winter than it is in the summer
[ ]	Central heating systems used in winter give off moisture
[ ]	Winters are cloudier than summers

Which of the following statements is false?

[ ]	Conduction involves thermal energy being passed between vibrating particles
[ ]	Solids are better heat conductors than liquids and gases
[ ]	Plastic is a good insulator because it contains free electrons
[ ]	When a liquid is evaporating it cools down

10.

During the cold weather, birds can often appear bigger than they do when the weather is warm. Which of the following is the most likely explanation?

[ ]	Muscles in their skin lift their feathers further away from their body than in the summer
[ ]	People put out food for the birds so they eat more
[ ]	They do it to try to attract a mate
[ ]	There are no leaves on the trees so they just look bigger when really they are the same size

Science Quiz - Physics - Energy Transfers (AQA) (Answers)

In which direction does thermal energy (heat) flow?

[ ]	Cold to hot
[x]	Hot to cold
[ ]	All directions
[ ]	It depends on the exact situation

Heat energy always travels from a higher temperature to a lower temperature. There are no exceptions

The rate at which an object transfers thermal energy depends on what?

[ ]	Its surface area
[ ]	Its volume and what it is made from
[ ]	The nature of the surface with which it is in contact
[x]	All of the above

A hot object with a small surface area, in contact with an insulating surface will transfer its heat energy very slowly

[ ]	A, B, C, D
[ ]	D, C, B, A
[x]	A, C, B, D
[ ]	D, B, C, A

Heat is lost more slowly where the difference in temperature and the surroundings is lower. Hot objects therefore cool down quickly at first and then more slowly as they get closer to the temperature of the surroundings

[ ]	Container D cooled the fastest
[x]	Container B and container D cooled at the same rate
[ ]	Container A cooled the fastest
[ ]	Container B and container C cooled faster than all of the others

This question is checking to see if you understand about temperature gradients.The difference in temperature and the surroundings is called the temperature gradient - the greater the difference, the greater the gradient and the faster the cooling

At the back of a refigerator there is a condenser which is designed to change the hot refrigerant gas into a liquid. The tubes of the condenser are attached to hundreds of small metal 'fins'. Why?

[x]	To make the process of condensation work more efficiently
[ ]	To make the refrigerator look good
[ ]	For insulation so that the food inside stays cold
[ ]	To protect the condenser tubes

Cooling fins make the process more efficient. The rate of thermal energy transfer to the surroundings is faster than it would be if they weren't there

Why are cooling fins thin and flat?

[ ]	To give them a small surface area
[ ]	To make them as light as possible
[ ]	To make them fit into place better
[x]	To give them a large surface area compared to their volume

Since their job is to transfer thermal energy into the air, a large surface area compared to their volume makes them more efficient

Based on the information that "the chemical called ether evaporates much faster than water", which of the following statements is true?

[ ]	Ether must be a colourless liquid
[ ]	Ether must be a colourless solid
[x]	Ether will make a surface cooler than water would
[ ]	Water will make a surface cooler than ether would

The faster something evaporates, the cooler it makes the surface on which it is placed

During the winter, moisture often condenses on the inside of windows of old houses. This rarely happens during the summer. Which of the following is likely to be the main reason for this?

[ ]	There are no plants actively growing in the winter to absorb the moisture for photosynthesis
[x]	The glass of the window is colder in the winter than it is in the summer
[ ]	Central heating systems used in winter give off moisture
[ ]	Winters are cloudier than summers

Moisture in the air condenses on colder surfaces