Forms of Energy – The Two Most Important Types Are Electrical Energy and Kinetic Energy

Energy, also called the energy of movement, is a property of any material which is used either to alter its direction and speed, or to move objects. Normally, energy is used to push objects from a straight line to a curved line. It can also be the natural energy inherent in a given object, including the pull that an object exerts on another object. The energy may be kinetic energy or potential energy, the former referring to the ability of an object to move with the velocity it initially possesses, while the latter refers to the potential energy a body possesses, which can change depending on various factors.

When an object has kinetic energy, it denotes that the object’s position can be changed with the help of some external force, usually in the form of a collision. The most common kind of external force is friction, which acts through heat. One can further consider the kind of energy needed for a chain reaction to take place, and the amount of energy required for a power plant to generate power. The amount of thermal energy needed for a chain reaction to take place depends on the temperature of the substance involved, the nature of the atom holding the atom together, and the number of electron volts (naturally, the higher the number of electrons, the higher the voltage.) Another factor, which determines the amount of thermal energy, is the temperature of the surrounding air.

Kinetic energy, on the other hand, is the product of thermal and mechanical energy. Kinetic energy pertains to the power that an object can acquire due to its motion. A particular instance of kinetic energy is the kinetic energy a baseball acquires due to its spin. The spin of the ball determines how much time and distance it will travel, which allows the batter to decide whether to swing at the ball or not. If the baseball hits the ball on the inner side, where its spin axis is located, the batter will have a longer time and distance to the plate; while if the ball hits the outer side, where its spin axis is aligned, the batter will hit the ball at a high velocity.

Now let us consider one form of energy: chemical energy. It is the potential energy possessed by a compound or element when its molecules are isolated from any other matter. Molecules exist in solution, and inorganic compounds consist mainly of hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. In aqueous solution, there is no concentration of molecules, so the potential energy is in free form. Thus, every element has some amount of inherent chemical energy. This elemental chemical energy can be found in the form of a zero charge alkaline salt, in the form of covalent sulfur compounds, in the form of polysaccharides, and in the form of amino acids (proteins).

However, one form of energy is distinct from another, and they are not actually differentiated in a biological sense, even though it might be assumed that they are inorganic compounds. Any number of these substances may combine at a single position to give rise to an energetic particle. But this is not how they gain their kinetic energy. Kinetic energy is real, but not specific. One can calculate it in terms of momentum, but that is the only way that the particular substance’s molecular vibrations can be measured.

Kinetic energy is therefore neither a constant nor a measurable quantity. It exists only due to motion, which is the movement of something in a direction parallel to the symmetry of the system. And this happens in chemical energy, electricity, and magnetism.