Energy terms starting with S

358 terms

  1. Sigma Heat The sum of sensible heat and latent heat in a substance above a base temperature, typically 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Silencer A device used for reducing noise within air and gas flow systems.
  3. Silicic volcanism Volcanism characterized by the eruption of magma that is rich in lighter elements such as silicon, oxygen, aluminum, sodium, and potassium.
  4. Silicon A chemical element, of atomic number 14, that is semi-metallic, and an excellent semiconductor material used in solar photovoltaic devices; commonly found…
  5. Silt A rock or mineral fragment of any composition that has a diameter ranging from 0.002 to 0.05 millimeter.
  6. Siltation Process by which loose soil is transferred and builds up in streams, rivers, and lakes, causing changes in stream channels and in depth.
  7. Siltstone A sedimentary rock made mostly of silt-sized grains.
  8. Silviculture The theory and practice of forest stand establishment and management.
  9. Simple CS (Caulk and Seal) A technique for insulating and sealing exterior walls that reduces vapor diffusion through air leakage points by installing pre-cut blocks of rigid foam…
  10. Sine Wave The type of alternative current generated by alternating current generators, rotary inverters, and solid-state inverters.
  11. Single Glaze or Pane One layer of glass in a window frame. It has very little insulating value (R-1) and provides only a thin barrier to the outside and can account for…
  12. Single settlement system A market structure that provides only a real-time market.
  13. Single-Crystal Material In reference to solar photovoltaic devices, a material that is composed of a single crystal or a few large crystals.
  14. Single-Package System A year 'round heating and air conditioning system that has all the components completely encased in one unit outside the home.
  15. Single-Phase A generator with a single armature coil, which may have many turns and the alternating current output consists of a succession of cycles.
  16. Sink Any process, activity, or mechanism which removes a greenhouse gas, an aerosol, or a precursor of a greenhouse gas or aerosol from the atmosphere.
  17. Site Plan A drawing of the footprint of the subject building and immediate adjacent buildings indicating the location of the proposed work.
  18. Site potential tree A tree that has attained the average maximum height possible given site conditions where it occurs.
  19. Site preparation Various treatments applied to a harvested area to promote regeneration of the site.
  20. Sizing The process of designing a solar system to meet a specified load given the solar resource and the nominal or rated energy output of the solar energy…
  21. Skidder A self-propelled machine to transport harvested trees or logs from the stump area to the landing or work deck.
  22. Skirt (fan, dune) A sloping alluvial fan surface made of sediment deposited by a stream at the mouth of a canyon between a mountain and the adjacent alluvial valley floor.
  23. Sky glow Brightening of the sky caused by outdoor lighting and natural atmospheric and celestial factors.
  24. Skylight A window located on the roof of a structure to provide interior building spaces with natural daylight, warmth, and ventilation.
  25. Skylining Siting of a structure on or near a ridge line so that it is silhouetted against the sky.
  26. Slab A concrete pad that sits on gravel or crushed rock, well-compacted soil either level with the ground or above the ground.
  27. Slab on Grade A slab floor that sits directly on top of the surrounding ground.
  28. Slash The unmerchantable material left on site subsequent to harvesting a timber stand, including tops, limbs, cull sections.
  29. Slinky<sup>TM</sup> Ground Loop In this type of closed-loop, horizontal geothermal heat pump installation, the fluid-filled plastic heat exchanger pipes are coiled like a SlinkyTM to…
  30. SLIP Motion occurring along a fault plane.
  31. Slip rate The rate of motion obtained when the amount of offset is divided by a time interval.
  32. Slope failure The downward and outward movement of a mass of rock or unconsolidated materials as a unit. Landslides and slumps are examples.
  33. Slope stability The resistance of an inclined surface to failure by sliding or collapsing.
  34. Slow pyrolysis Thermal conversion of biomass to fuel by slow heating to less than 450°C in the absence of oxygen.
  35. Sludge The mixture of organic and inorganic substances separated from sewage.
  36. Small Scale Energy Loan Program (SELP) In Oregon, a low-cost loan and technical assistance program administered by the Oregon Department of Energy.
  37. Smart Energy Is the use of renewable resources to create electricity and to heat and cool buildings, as well as more efficient use of energy through conservation and…
  38. Smart Growth Well-planned development that protects open space and farmland, revitalizes communities, keeps housing affordable and provides more transportation choices.
  39. Smart Window A term used to describe a technologically advanced window system that contains glazing that can change or switch its optical qualities when a low voltage…
  40. Smog A visible haze caused by particulate matter and ground-level ozone.
  41. Snag Any standing dead, partially dead or defective tree. A hard snag is composed primarily of sound wood.
  42. SO<sub>2</sub> See Sulfur dioxide
  43. Social disruption Social and psychological dislocation associated with the alteration or breakdown of social life in small rural communities that may occur as a result of…
  44. Socioeconomic Relating to social or economic factors or to a combination of both social and economic factors.
  45. Socioeconomics The social and economic conditions in the study area.
  46. Sodium Lights A type of high intensity discharge light that has the most lumens per watt of any light source.
  47. Soffit 1. The exposed underside of any architectural element, especially a roof. 2. The underside of a structural component such as a beam, arch, or recessed…
  48. softwood Generally, one of the botanical groups of trees that in most cases have needle-like or scale-like leaves; the conifers; also the wood produced by such…
  49. Soil compaction Compression of the soil which results in reduced soil pore space (the spaces between soil particles), decreased movement of water and air into and within…
  50. Soil deposition A general term for the accumulation of sediments by either physical or chemical sedimentation.
  51. Soil horizon A layer of soil developed in response to localized chemical and physical processes resulting from the activities of soil organisms, the addition of…
  52. Soil horizon mixing Soil horizon mixing occurs when soil is disturbed by activities such as excavation.
  53. Solar Access or Rights The legal issues related to protecting or ensuring access to sunlight to operate a solar energy system, or use solar energy for heating and cooling.
  54. Solar Air Heater A type of solar thermal system where air is heated in a collector and either transferred directly to the interior space or to a storage medium, such as a…
  55. Solar Altitude Angle The angle between a line from a point on the earth's surface to the center of the solar disc, and a line extending horizontally from the point.
  56. Solar Array A group of solar collectors or solar modules connected together.
  57. Solar Azimuth The angle between the sun's apparent position in the sky and true south, as measured on a horizontal plane.
  58. Solar Cell A solar photovoltaic device with a specified area.
  59. Solar Collector A device used to collect, absorb, and transfer solar energy to a working fluid.
  60. Solar collector array That portion of the solar energy facility containing components that track and capture sunlight and convert it to other useful forms of energy, typically…
  61. Solar Constant The average amount of solar radiation that reaches the earth's upper atmosphere on a surface perpendicular to the sun's rays; equal to 1353 Watts per…
  62. Solar Cooling The use of solar thermal energy or solar electricity to power a cooling appliance.
  63. Solar Declination The apparent angle of the sun north or south of the earth's equatorial plane. The earth's rotation on its axis causes a daily change in the declination.
  64. Solar Distillation The process of distilling (purifying) water using solar energy. Water can be placed in an air tight solar collector with a sloped glazing material, and as…
  65. Solar energy Electromagnetic energy transmitted from the sun (solar radiation). The amount that reaches the earth is equal to one billionth of total solar energy…
  66. Solar Energy Collector See solar collector.
  67. Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) A national trade association of solar energy equipment manufacturers, retailers, suppliers, installers, and consultants.
  68. Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI) A federally funded institute, created by the Solar Energy Research, Development and Demonstration Act of 1974, that conducted research and development of…
  69. Solar energy technology Any engineered method for harnessing, storing, and using the Sun's energy.
  70. Solar Energy Zone (SEZ) Lands identified by the BLM as best-suited for large-scale production of solar energy.
  71. Solar Film A window glazing coating, usually tinted bronze or gray, used to reduce building cooling loads, glare, and fabric fading.
  72. Solar Fraction The percentage of a building's seasonal energy requirements that can be met by a solar energy device(s) or system(s).
  73. Solar Furnace A device that achieves very high temperatures by the use of reflectors to focus and concentrate sunlight onto a small receiver.
  74. Solar Gain The amount of energy that a building absorbs due to solar energy striking its exterior and conducting to the interior or passing through windows and being…
  75. Solar Irradiation The amount of solar radiation, both direct and diffuse, received at any location.
  76. Solar Mass A term used for materials used to absorb and store solar energy.
  77. Solar module See Photovoltaic (PV) module
  78. Solar Module (Panel) A solar photovoltaic device that produces a specified power output under defined test conditions, usually composed of groups of solar cells connected in…
  79. Solar Noon The time of the day, at a specific location, when the sun reaches its highest, apparent point in the sky; equal to true or due, geographic south.
  80. Solar One A solar thermal electric central receiver power plant ("power tower") located in Barstow, California, and completed in 1981.
  81. Solar Panel See Photovoltaic Module.
  82. Solar Pond A body of water that contains brackish (highly saline) water that forms layers of differing salinity (stratifies) that absorb and trap solar energy.
  83. Solar Power (or Energy) Use of sunlight, or solar energy, to heat and light buildings, generate electricity (using solar photovoltaic systems - PV cells/panels), heat hot water…
  84. Solar Power Satellite A solar power station investigated by NASA that entailed a satellite in geosynchronous orbit that would consist of a very large array of solar…
  85. Solar power tower See Power tower
  86. Solar Radiation A general term for the visible and near visible (ultraviolet and near-infrared) electromagnetic radiation that is emitted by the sun.
  87. Solar Simulator An apparatus that replicates the solar spectrum, and used for testing solar energy conversion devices.
  88. Solar Space Heater A solar energy system designed to provide heat to individual rooms in a building.
  89. Solar Spectrum The total distribution of electromagnetic radiation emanating from the sun. The different regions of the solar spectrum are described by their wavelength…
  90. Solar Thermal Electric Systems Solar energy conversion technologies that convert solar energy to electricity, by heating a working fluid to power a turbine that drives a generator.
  91. Solar Thermal Parabolic Dishes A solar thermal technology that uses a modular mirror system that approximates a parabola and incorporates two-axis tracking to focus the sunlight onto…
  92. Solar Thermal Systems Solar energy systems that collect or absorb solar energy for useful purposes. Can be used to generate high temperature heat (for electricity production…
  93. Solar Time The period marked by successive crossing of the earth's meridian by the sun; the hour angle of the sun at a point of observance (apparent time) is…
  94. Solar tracking The solar panels can be swiveled using the electric motors to follow the path of the sun exactly in the course of the day to maximize the yields.
  95. Solar Transmittance The amount of solar energy that passes through a glazing material, expressed as a percentage.
  96. Solar Trough Systems (see also Parabolic Trough, above) A type of solar thermal system where sunlight is concentrated by a curved reflector onto a pipe containing a working fluid that can be used for process…
  97. Solar Two Solar Two is a retrofit of the Solar One project (see above). It is demonstrating the technical feasibility and power potential of a solar power tower…
  98. Solarium A glazed structure, such as greenhouse or "sunspace."
  99. Sole source aquifer An aquifer that supplies 50 percent or more of the drinking water of an area.
  100. Solenoid An electromechanical device composed of a coil of wire wound around a cylinder containing a bar or plunger, that when a current is applied to the coil…