Renewable Energy terms starting with C

165 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.
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…
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…
Candidate species See threatened, endangered and sensitive species.
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…
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 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…
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.
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.
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
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…
Catchment basin A topographic region in which all water drains to a common outlet; a watershed.
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.
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.
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…
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.
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.
Chemical oxygen demand (COD) The amount of dissolved oxygen required to combine with chemicals in wastewater.
Chert A hard, dense, fine-grained type of sedimentary rock; a microcrystalline aggregate of silica (quartz).
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.
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…
Cienega A perennially wet area supported by a spring or other water source; also called wetland, marsh, or swamp.
Cinder cone A conical hill formed around a volcanic vent by the accumulation of loose cinders and other pyroclastics ejected during a volcanic eruption, normally…
Clarifier A tank used to remove solids by gravity, to remove colloidal solids by coagulation, and to remove floating oil and scum through skimming.
Class I Area Any area designated for the most stringent protection from air quality degradation.
Class II Area Any area where air is cleaner than required by federal air quality standards and designated for a moderate degree of protection from air quality…
Class IV All other intermittent streams not meeting higher class criteria.
Clay A very fine-grained rock or mineral fragment of any composition that has a diameter of less than 0.002 mm.
Clean Air Act (CAA) The Superfund law incorporates those substances listed as hazardous air pollutants under section 112 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) as CERCLA hazardous…
Clean Water Act (CWA) The Superfund law incorporates those substances listed as hazardous water pollutants under section 311 (b)(4) of the Clean Water Act (CWA) as CERCLA…
Clearcut The removal, in a single cutting, of the entire stand of trees within a designated area.
Clearing and grubbing Cleaning a site to prepare it for construction. Involves removing debris, structures, shrubbery, trees, obstructions, and objectionable and unsuitable…
CLFR See Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector
Climate The prevailing or average weather conditions of a geographic region.
Clone An exact genetic replica of a specific gene or an entire organism. See Cloning.
Closed Basin A basin draining to some depression or a pond within its area, from which water is lost only by evaporation or percolation.
Closed-loop cooling system Also known as a wet closed-cycle cooling system, a system that circulates water between a steam condenser and a cooling tower to cool steam condensate at…
Clovis Complex Characteristic of Paleoindian finds located near Clovis, New Mexico, such as specific fluted points.
CO See Carbon monoxide
co-firing The use of a mixture of two fuels within the same combustion chamber.
co-generation The technology of producing electric energy and another form of useful energy (usually thermal) for industrial, commercial, or domestic heating or cooling…
CO<sub>2</sub> See Carbon dioxide
Coastal Zone Management Act National law encouraging states to develop coastal management programs. The act establishes a method for the federal government to approve states´ plans…
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) An annual publication which contains the cumulative executive agency regulations.
Cogeneration The generation of electricity or shaft power by an energy conversion system and the concurrent use of rejected thermal energy from the conversion system…
Coliform bacteria Bacteria whose presence in waste water is an indicator of pollution and of potentially dangerous contamination.
Collection The capture or obtaining of plant or animal specimens. This can include obtaining specimens for scientific study, pets, or illegal trade.
Collector The component of a solar energy heating system that collects solar radiation, and that contains components to absorb solar radiation and transfer the heat…
Colluvium A general term to include loose rock and soil material that accumulates at the base of a slope as the result of mass wasting processes.
Color The sensible perception of hue, value and saturation characteristics of surfaces of window components.
Combined cycle Two or more generation processes in series or in parallel, configured to optimize the energy output of the system.
Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Also called cogeneration, CHP is the use of the waste heat generated by an engine or power station to produce useful heat, typically for heating of a…
Combined-cycle power plant A power plant that uses two thermodynamic cycles to achieve higher overall system efficiency; e.g.
Combustion The process of burning; the oxidation of a material by applying heat, which unites oxygen with a material or fuel.
Combustion Air Air that provides the necessary oxygen for complete, clean combustion and maximum heating value.
Combustion efficiency The actual heat produced by combustion divided by the total heat potential of the fuel consumed.
Combustion Gases The gaseous byproducts of the combustion of a fuel.
Combustion turbine A turbine that generates power from the combustion of a fuel.
Commercial forest land Forested land which is capable of producing new growth at a minimum rate of 20 cubic feet per acre per year, excluding lands withdrawn from timber…
Community A political entity that has the authority to adopt and enforce floodplain ordinances for the area under its jurisdiction.
compact An agreement between states apportioning the water of a river basin to each of the signatory states.
Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) A type of concentrated solar power (CSP) technology similar to a parabolic trough design, where the sun's heat energy is reflected onto a receiver…
Compensation A type of mitigation in which the impacts to a species or habitat are offset by protecting, restoring, or creating suitable habitat elsewhere.
Compensatory mitigation (For purposes of the Clean Water Act Section 404 and Rivers and Harbors Act Section 10 regulatory programs), compensatory mitigation is the restoration…
Composite noise level A single noise level summed on an energy basis from many noise sources (e.g., Stirling engine, electric generator, cooling fan, and air compressor for a…