Orange Standards of Learning (SOL) Practice Exam

Stored energy is energy kept in reserve, ready to be used to do work. It’s a form of potential energy—found in things like a stretched spring, compressed materials, or chemical bonds—so it isn’t moving by itself until it’s released. When released, this energy can be converted into motion or other forms of work. This differs from the energy of random motion, which is already in use as kinetic energy, and from energy dissipated as heat, which is lost to the surroundings and not readily available to do work. While chemical energy is a kind of stored energy in bonds, stored energy as a concept emphasizes energy kept for future use rather than energy that merely drives a reaction.