Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Verified for the 2026 exam
Verified for the 2026 exam•Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Definition
The energy conservation principle states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred or transformed from one form to another.
Related terms
Work-energy theorem: This theorem relates the work done on an object to its change in kinetic energy.
Law of conservation of mechanical energy: This law states that the sum of an object's kinetic and potential energies remains constant if no external forces act on it.
Law of conservation of energy: This law extends beyond just mechanical energy and applies to all forms of energy, including thermal, chemical, and nuclear. It states that the total amount of energy in a closed system remains constant.