Energy — page 10 of 33

Energy terms

901. Distillers´ dried grains (DDG) (DDG) The dried byproduct of the grain fermentation process. Typically used as a high-protein animal feed.
902. Distributed Generation A term used by the power industry to describe localized or on-site power generation.
903. Distribution The sale of securities. Also refers to a sum payable to shareholders representing their share of profits.
904. Distribution Feeder (See Feeder)
905. Distribution Line One or more circuits of a distribution system on the same line or poles or supporting structures' usually operating at a lower voltage relative to the…
906. Distribution System That portion of an electricity supply system used to deliver electricity from points on the transmission system to consumers.
907. District Energy A district energy system consists of a central plant that produces steam, hot water, or chilled water, to provide space heating, domestic hot water…
908. District Heating A heating system in which steam or hot water for space heating or hot water is piped from a central boiler plant or electric power/heating plant to a…
909. District heating or cooling A system that involves the central production of hot water, steam, or chilled water and the distribution of these transfer media to heat or cool buildings.
910. District Improvement Financing (DIF) Economic tool that promotes redevelopment by channeling dollars into targeted redevelopment districts.
911. Disturbance (land) See Land disturbance
912. Diversion The process of removing some minor criminal, traffic or juvenile cases from the full judicial process, on the condition that the accused undergo some sort…
913. Diversity The distribution and abundance of different plants and animals within an area.
914. Diversity Factor The ratio of the sum of the noncoincidental maximum demands of two or more loads to their coincidental maximum demands for the same period.
915. DNI See Direct Normal Insolation
916. DOE-2.1 A computer software program that simulates energy consumption of commercial buildings; used for design and auditing purposes.
917. Dolomite A magnesium-rich carbonate sedimentary rock. Also, a magnesium-rich carbonate mineral (CaMgCO3).
918. Dome (Geodesic) An architectural design invented by Buckminster Fuller with a regular polygonal structure based on radial symmetry.
919. Dome, volcanic Rounded, steep-sided mounds built by very viscous magma, usually either dacite or rhyolite.
920. Domestic Hot Water Water heated for residential washing, bathing, etc.
921. Domestic solid waste Solid wastes of the type routinely generated by households.
922. Domestic water use Water used for household purposes such as drinking; food preparation; bathing; washing clothes, dishes, and dogs; flushing toilets; and watering lawns and…
923. Donor In a solar photovoltaic device, an n-type dopant, such as phosphorus, that puts an additional electron into an energy level very near the conduction band…
924. Dopant A chemical element (impurity) added in small amounts to an otherwise pure semiconductor material to modify the electrical properties of the material.
925. Doping The addition of dopants to a semiconductor.
926. Double Wall Heat Exchanger A heat exchanger in a solar water heating system that has two distinct walls between the heat transfer fluid and the domestic water, to ensure that there…
927. Double-Pane or Glazed Window A type of window having two layers (panes or glazing) of glass separated by an air space.
928. Down-dropped basin See Graben
929. Downdraft gasifier A gasifier in which the product gases pass through a combustion zone at the bottom of the gasifier.
930. Downwind Wind Turbine A horizontal axis wind turbine in which the rotor is downwind of the tower.
931. Downzoning A change in zoning classification to less intensive use and/or development.
932. Draft A signed, written order by which one party (the drawer) instructs another party (the drawee) to pay a specified sum to a third party (the payee), at sight…
933. Draft Diverter A door-like device located at the mouth of a fireplace chimney flue for controlling the direction and flow of the draft in the fireplace as well as the…
934. Draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) (DEIS) A draft statement of environmental effects. Section 102 of the National Environmental Policy Act requires a DEIS for all major federal actions.
935. Draft Hood A device built into or installed above a combustion appliance to assure the escape of combustion byproducts, to prevent backdrafting of the appliance, or…
936. Drag Device on fishing reels that allows line to pay out under pressure, even though the reel is engaged; set correctly, it ensures against line breakage.
937. Drainage See Watershed.
938. Drainback (Solar) Systems A closed-loop solar heating system in which the heat transfer fluid in the collector loop drains into a tank or reservoir whenever the booster pump stops…
939. Draindown (Solar) Systems An open-loop solar heating system in which the heat transfer fluid from the collector loop and the piping drain into a drain whenever freezing conditions…
940. Drawdown Lowering a lake level for a specific purpose.
941. Drill An oblong tool made of flaked stone used in drilling holes in wood, leather or hides.
942. Drop structure An in-stream structure of various materials designed to reduce the energy and force of stream flow.
943. Dry Bulb Temperature The temperature of the air as measured by a standard thermometer.
944. Dry closed-loop cooling See Dry cooling system
945. Dry cooling See Dry cooling system
946. Dry cooling system Also known as dry closed-loop cooling; a technology for rejecting heat from the steam condensate of a thermoelectric plant.
947. Dry lake An ephemeral lake of an arid or semiarid region, typically found at low elevation points in desert valleys.
948. Dry Steam Geothermal Plants Conventional turbine generators are used with the dry steam resources. The steam is used directly, eliminating the need for boilers and boiler fuel that…
949. Dry Ton 2,000 pounds of material dried to a constant weight.
950. Dry wash A natural drainage channel that is typically dry, but conveys water following significant rainfall events and is subject to rapid flow during flash…
951. drying Moisture removal from biomass to improve serviceability and utility.
952. Dual Duct System An air conditioning system that has two ducts, one is heated and the other is cooled, so that air of the correct temperature is provided by mixing varying…
953. Dual Fuel (or Flex Fuel) Vehicle A vehicle with an engine capable of operating on two different types of fuels.
954. Dual-fueled (or dual-fired) unit A generating unit that can produce electricity using two or more fuels. In some of these units, only the primary fuel can be used continuously; the…
955. Duct Fan An axial flow fan mounted in a section of duct to move conditioned air.
956. Duct(s) The round or rectangular tube(s), generally constructed of sheet metal, fiberglass board, or a flexible plastic-and-wire composite, located within a wall…
957. Duff The layer of forest litter.
958. Dune Mounds of unconsolidated sand grains shaped by wind. Often temporary and nonstationary.
959. Dunnage Supports for air conditioning and other equipment above the roof of a building.
960. Duripan A subsurface soil horizon cemented by silica (usually derived from a volcanic source such as ash).
961. Dutch oven furnace One of the earliest types of furnaces, having a large, rectangular box lined with firebrick (refractory) on the sides and top.
962. Duty Cycle The duration and periodicity of the operation of a device.
963. Dynamic Head The pressure equivalent of the velocity of a fluid.
964. Dynamo A machine for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy by magneto-electric induction; may be used as a motor.
965. Dynamometer An apparatus for measuring force or power, especially the power developed by a motor.
966. Dyne The absolute centimeter-gram-second unit of force; that force that will impart to a free mass of one gram an acceleration of one centimeter per second per…
967. E-10 A mixture of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline based on volume.
968. E-85 A mixture of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline based on volume.
969. E85 A high-level gasoline-ethanol blend containing 51% to 83% ethanol, depending on geography and season.
970. Early Archaic The period 7,500 to 5,000 years B.P.
971. Early seral species Shrubs (such as ceanothus) and hardwoods (usually in tree form, such as red alder, bitter cherry and big leaf maple) that start growing in natural…
972. Earth Berm A mound of dirt next to exterior walls to provide wind protection and insulation.
973. Earth Cooling Tube A long, underground metal or plastic pipe through which air is drawn. As air travels through the pipe it gives up some of its heat to the soil, and enters…
974. Earth Sheltered Houses Houses that have earth berms around exterior walls.
975. Earth-Coupled Ground Source (Geothermal) Heat Pump A type of heat pump that uses sealed horizontal or vertical pipes, buried in the ground, as heat exchangers through which a fluid is circulated to…
976. Earth-Ship A registered trademark name for houses built with tires, aluminum cans, and earth.
977. Earthern cattle tank A watering area or basin for cattle that is usually created in a natural drainage area by obstructing natural water flows with berms of soil.
978. Earthquake Ground shaking caused by the sudden release of energy stored in rock beneath the Earth's surface.
979. Easement A right to the use of, or access to, land owned by another.
980. Eccentric A device for converting continuous circular motion into reciprocating rectilinear motion.
981. Ecological Footprint The impact of humans on ecosystems created by their use of land, water, and other natural resources.
982. Ecological resources Biota (fish, wildlife, and plants) and their habitats, which may be land, air, or water.
983. Ecological segmentation Development that fragments animal habitat and does not provide corridors for movement.
984. Ecology The study of the interactions of organisms with their environment and with each other.
985. Economic Opportunity Area (EOA) An area or several areas within a designated Massachusetts Environmental Target Area of particular need and priority for economic development.
986. Economic sector A subdivision of economic activities based on major purpose (for example, "commercial sector" or "private sector").
987. Economizer A heat exchanger for recovering heat from flue gases for heating water or air.
988. Ecoregion A geographically distinct area of land that is characterized by a distinctive climate, ecological features, and plant and animal communities.
989. Ecosystem A complex ecological community or environment forming a functioning whole.
990. Ecotones The borders between two different types of ecosystems or communities (e.g., a forest and a grassland) containing characteristic species of each.
991. Edge habitat The transitional zone where one cover type ends and another begins.
992. Edge-Defined Film-Fed Growth (EFG) (EFG) A method for making sheets of polycrystalline silicon (for solar photovoltaic devices) in which molten silicon is drawn upward by capillary action through…
993. Edge-on A descriptor for the appearance of solar facility collector/reflector arrays when viewed at very low vertical angles, such that the viewing angle is at or…
994. Effective Capacity The maximum load that a device is capable of carrying.
995. Effects Environmental consequences (the scientific and analytical basis for comparison of alternatives) as a result of a proposed action.
996. Efficacy Effectiveness. In medicine, the ability of an intervention (for example, a drug or surgery) to produce the desired beneficial effect.
997. Efficiency Under the First Law of Thermodynamics, efficiency is the ratio of work or energy output to work or energy input, and cannot exceed 100 percent.
998. Efficiency (Appliance) Ratings A measure of the efficiency of an appliance's energy efficiency.
999. Effigy An object bearing the likeness of an animal or human.
1000. Effluent The treated waste water discharged by sewage treatment plants.