Energy terms starting with C

326 terms

C unit (CCF) One hundred cubic feet of solid wood. Used as a log measure or as a measure of solid wood content. 1 CCF contains typically 1.4 BDT.
Cable yarding A term used to describe a means of removing logs from the stump area to a landing or yarding area through use of an overhead system of winch-driven cables…
Cadastral survey system A survey that creates, marks, defines, retraces, or re-establishes the boundaries and subdivisions of the public land of the United States.
Cadmium (Cd) A chemical element used in making certain types of solar cells and batteries.
Cadmium telluride (CdTe) A polycrystalline thin-film photovoltaic material.
Cage Where the casino cashier is located.
Cairn A mound of stones erected as a memorial or marker.
Calcareous Of, containing, or like calcite (calcium carbonate).
Caldera A large, usually circular depression at the summit of a volcano, formed when magma is erupted from a shallow underground magma reservoir.
Caliche A sedimentary deposit, commonly made of calcium carbonate, and formed from the leaching of minerals from the top layers of soil.
California Ambient Air Quality Standard (CAAQS) A legal limit that specifies the maximum level and time of exposure in the outdoor air for a given air pollutant and which is protective of human health…
Calorie (KA-luh-ree) A measurement of the energy content of food. The body needs calories as to perform its functions, such as breathing, circulating the blood…
Calorific Value The heat liberated by the combustion of a unit quantity of a fuel under specific conditions; measured in calories.
cambium (pl.: cambia) A one or two cells thick layer of plant meristematic tissue, between the xylem and phloem tissues, which gives rise to secondary tissues…
Cancer (KAN-ser) A term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control. Cancer cells can invade nearby tissues and can spread to other parts of the…
Candela The luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 × 1012 hertz and that has a radiant…
Candidate species See threatened, endangered and sensitive species.
Candle Power The illuminating power of a standard candle employed as a unit for determining the illuminating quality of an illuminant.
Cap A cap is a ceiling, or the highest level to which something can go. For example, an interest rate cap limits the amount by which an interest rate can be…
Capability The maximum load that a generating unit, power plant, or other electrical apparatus can carry under specified conditions for a given period of time…
Capability Margin The difference between net electrical system capability and system maximum load requirements (peak load); the margin of capability available to provide…
Capacitance A measure of the electrical charge of a capacitor consisting of two plates separated by an insulating material.
Capacitor An electrical device that adjusts the leading current of an applied alternating current to balance the lag of the circuit to provide a high power factor.
Capacity Your ability to make your mortgage payments on time. This depends on your income and income stability (job history and security), your assets and savings…
Capacity (Condensing Unit) The refrigerating effect in Btu/h produced by the difference in total enthalpy between a refrigerant liquid leaving the unit and the total enthalpy of the…
Capacity (Effective, of a motor) The maximum load that a motor is capable of supplying.
Capacity (Heating, of a material) The amount of heat energy needed to raise the temperature of a given mass of a substance by one degree Celsius.
Capacity factor The ratio of the average load on (or power output of) a generating unit or system to the capacity rating of the unit or system over a specified period of…
Capacity margin The amount of capacity above planned peak system demand available to provide for scheduled maintenance, emergency outages, system operating requirements…
Capacity markets A market for the trading of capacity credits (the ability to produce electricity in the market area during a defined period) usually between parties…
Capital cost The total investment needed to complete a project and bring it to a commercially operable status. The cost of construction of a new plant.
Capital Costs The amount of money needed to purchase equipment, buildings, tools, and other manufactured goods that can be used in production.
carbohydrate A sugar molecule. Carbohydrates can be small and simple (for example, glucose) or they can be large and complex (for example, polysaccharides such as…
Carbon Dioxide (KAR-bun dy-OK-side) A colorless, odorless gas. It is a waste product made by the body.
Carbon Dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) A product of combustion. The most common greenhouse gas.
carbon monoxide (KAR-bun muh-NOK-side) A poisonous gas that has no color or odor. It is given off by burning fuel (as in exhaust from cars or household heaters) and…
Carbon Monoxide (CO) A colorless, odorless gas produced by incomplete combustion. Carbon monoxide is poisonous if inhaled.
Carbon Sequestration The absorption and storage of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Naturally-occurring in plants.
Carbon sink A reservoir that absorbs or takes up released carbon from another part of the carbon cycle.
Carbon Zinc Cell Battery A cell produces electric energy by the galvanic oxidation of carbon; commonly used in household appliances.
Carbonate rock Rocks (such as limestone or dolostone) that are composed primarily of minerals (such as calcite and dolomite) containing the carbonate ion (CO32-).
Carbonate-rock aquifer See Aquifer-carbonate rock
Carnot Cycle An ideal heat engine (conceived by Sadi Carnot) in which the sequence of operations forming the working cycle consists of isothermal expansion, adiabatic…
Carrying capacity The theoretical maximum weight of fish that can be maintained in a pond without depleting the food supply.
Cascade aeration Aeration of an effluent stream through the action of falling water.
catalyst A substance that promotes a chemical reaction by lowering the activation energy of a chemical reaction, but which itself remains unaltered at the end of…
Catalytic Converter An air pollution control device that removes organic contaminants by oxidizing them into carbon dioxide and water through a chemical reaction using a…
Catch Basin A conventional structure for the capture of stormwater utilized in streets and parking areas.
Catchment basin A topographic region in which all water drains to a common outlet; a watershed.
Cathedral Ceiling/Roof A type of ceiling and roof assembly that has no attic.
Cathode The negative pole or electrode of an electrolytic cell, vacuum tube, etc., where electrons enter (current leaves) the system; the opposite of an anode.
Cathode Disconnect Ballast An electromagnetic ballast that disconnects a lamp's electrode heating circuit once is has started; often called "low frequency electronic" ballasts.
Cathodic Protection A method of preventing oxidation of the exposed metal in structures by imposing between the structure and the ground a small electrical voltage.
Caulking A material used to seal areas of potential air leakage into or out of a building envelope.
cavity (KA-vih-tee) A hollow area or hole. It may describe a body cavity (such as the space within the abdomen) or a hole in a tooth caused by decay.
Ceiling If there is an upper limit, or cap, on the interest rate you can be charged on an adjustable-rate loan, it's known as a ceiling.
Ceiling Fan A mechanical device used for air circulation and to provide cooling.
Cell The fundamental level of structural organization in complex organisms. Eukaryotic cells contain a nucleus (with chromosome s) and cytoplasm with the…
Cell (solar) See Photovoltaic (PV) cell
Cellulase Enzyme catalysing the breakdown of cellulose.
Cellulose (SEL-yoo-lose) A building block of plant cells and fiber. Cellulose cannot be digested by people, and is used to add bulk to the diet.
Cellulose Insulation A type of insulation composed of waste newspaper, cardboard, or other forms of waste paper.
Cenozoic An era of geologic time from the beginning of the Tertiary period (65 million years ago) to the present. Its name is from the Greek and it means "new life.
Census block Census blocks are defined by the U.S. Bureau of Census and are the smallest geographic unit for which the Census Bureau tabulates data.
Census block groups Geographic entities consisting of groups of individual census blocks. Census blocks are grouped together so that they contain between 250 and 550 housing…
Center pivot irrigation A form of sprinkler irrigation consisting of several segments of pipe (usually galvanized steel or aluminum) that are joined together and supported by…
Central Arizona Project (CAP) Aqueduct A 336-mi (541-km) long diversion canal operated by the Central Arizona Water Conservation District that diverts water from the Colorado River into central…
Central Business District (CBD) The downtown retail trade and commercial area of a city or town, or an area of very high land valuation, traffic flow, and concentration of retail…
Central Heating System A system where heat is supplied to areas of a building from a single appliance through a network of ducts or pipes.
Central Power Plant A large power plant that generates power for distribution to multiple customers.
Central Receiver Solar Power Plants Also known as "power towers," these use fields of two-axis tracking mirrors known as heliostats.
Centralized Exchange A market where market participants execute all transactions with the central entity operating under a set of rules (product specifications, execution…
Centralized sewage treatment The collection and treatment of sewage from many sources to remove pollutants and pathogens.
CEQ See Council on Environmental Quality
CERCLA See Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980
Cetane Ignition performance rating of diesel fuel.
Cetane Number A measure of a fuel's (liquid) ease of self-ignition.
cfm Cubic feet per minute.
Change-out The routine replacement of chemicals contained in process equipment, in accordance with schedules established by the manufacturer, or as a result of…
Channel incision The process of downcutting into a stream channel leading to a decrease in the channel bed elevation.
Chaparral A plant community of shrubs and low trees adapted to annual drought and often extreme summer heat and also highly adapted to fires recurring every 5 to 20…
Char A byproduct of low-temperature carbonization of a solid fuel.
Charcoal The black porous residue of partly burnt wood, bones, etc; a form of carbon. See: activated charcoal
Charge Carrier A free and mobile conduction electron or hole in a semiconductor.
Charge Controller An electronic device that regulates the electrical charge stored in batteries so that unsafe, overcharge conditions for the batteries are avoided.
Charrette A Charrette is a planning session in which participants brainstorm and visualize solutions to a design issue.
Chemical Energy The energy liberated in a chemical reaction, as in the combustion of fuels.
Chemical oxygen demand (COD) The amount of dissolved oxygen required to combine with chemicals in wastewater.
Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) A method of depositing thin semiconductor films used to make certain types of solar photovoltaic devices.
Chert A hard, dense, fine-grained type of sedimentary rock; a microcrystalline aggregate of silica (quartz).
Chiller A device for removing heat from a gas or liquid stream for air conditioning/cooling.
Chimney A masonry or metal stack that creates a draft to bring air to a fire and to carry the gaseous byproducts of combustion safely away.
Chimney Effect The tendency of heated air or gas to rise in a duct or other vertical passage, such as in a chimney, small enclosure, or building, due to its lower…
Chip vans Special construction bottom dump trucks (grain trucks) or conventional tractor- trailer vans used for hauling pulp chips, mill residues, hog fuel, and…
Chipper A machine that produces wood chips by knife action.
CHIPS Woody material cut into short, thin wafers. Chips are used as a raw material for pulping and fiberboard or as biomass fuel.
Chlorofluorocarbon A family of chemicals composed primarily of carbon, hydrogen, chlorine, and fluorine. Used principally as refrigerants and industrial cleansers.
Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) A family of chemicals composed primarily of carbon, hydrogen, chlorine, and fluorine whose principal applications are as refrigerants and industrial…
Choker A cable loop that is attached to a log during the yarding process.
Chronic effects Effects resulting from exposure to low levels of a stressing factor (e.g., contaminant, disease, electromagnetic field, noise, and radionuclides) over…