Energy of Matter




While we have described the pieces of a reaction, we haven't discussed why a reaction occurs.

Energy is needed to drive a chemical reaction. There are two types of energy, potential and kinetic.



Use the following simulation to help understand the difference between potential and kinetic energy. Make sure you click to show the bar graph and watch how as the skate boarder moves, the total energy stays constant, while the amount of kinetic and potential energy changes. This follows the law of conservation of energy.



Energy Skate Park
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