Energy terminology · MLC-0117

Energy terms: A (119)

• ACAlternating Current
• ACBMAcronym for "asbestos-containing building material."
• Account classificationThe way in which suppliers of electricity, natural gas, or fuel oil classify and bill their customers...
• Account of others (natural gas)Natural gas deliveries for the account of others are deliveries to customers by transporters that do not own...
• Accounting systemA method of recording accounting data for a utility or company or a method of supplying accounting...
• Acid mine drainageThis refers to water pollution that results when sulfur-bearing minerals associated with coal are exposed to...
• Acid rainAlso called acid precipitation or acid deposition, acid rain is precipitation containing harmful amounts of...
• Acquisition costs, mineral rightsDirect and indirect costs incurred to acquire legal rights to extract natural resources. Direct costs include...
• Acquisition (foreign crude oil)All transfers of ownership of foreign crude oil to a firm, irrespective of the terms of that transfer...
• Acquisition (minerals)The procurement of the legal right to explore for and produce discovered minerals, if any, within a specific...
• AcreageAn area, measured in acres, that is subject to ownership or control by those holding total or fractional...
• Acre-footThe volume of water that will cover an area of 1 acre to a depth of 1 foot.
• Active powerThe component of electric power that performs work, typically measured in kilowatts (kW) or megawatts(MW)...
• Active solarAs an energy source, energy from the sun collected and stored using mechanical pumps or fans to circulate...
• Actual peak reductionThe actual reduction in annual peak load (measured in kilowatts) achieved by customers that participate in a...
• Adequacy (electric)The ability of the electric system to supply the aggregate electrical demand and energy requirements of the...
• Adjustable speed drivesDrives that save energy by ensuring the motor's speed is properly matched to the load placed on the motor...
• Adjusted electricityA measurement of electricity that includes the approximate amount of energy used to generate electricity. To...
• Adjustment bidA bid auction conducted by the independent system operator or power exchange to redirect supply or demand of...
• Administrative and general expensesExpenses of an electric utility relating to the overall directions of its corporate offices and...
• Advance royaltyA royalty required to be paid in advance of production from a mineral property that may or may not be...
• Advanced fuel ethanolFuel ethanol derived from sources other than cornstarch, as classified by the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS)...
• Advances from municipalityThe amount of loans and advances made by the municipality or its other departments to the utility department...
• Advances to municipalityThe amount of loans and advances made by the utility department to the municipality or its other departments...
• Adverse water conditionsReduced stream flow, lack of rain in the drainage basin, or low water supply behind a pondage or reservoir...
• Adverse Weather ConditionsReduced streamflow, lack of rain in the drainage basin, or low water supply behind a pondage or reservoir dam...
• AffiliateAn entity which is directly or indirectly owned, operated, or controlled by another entity. See Firm.
• AfforestationPlanting of new forests on lands that have not been recently forested.
• Aftermarket converted vehicleA standard conventionally fueled, factory-produced vehicle to which equipment has been added that enables the...
• Aftermarket vehicle converterAn organization or individual that modifies OEM vehicles after first use or sale to operate on a different...
• AFUDCAllowance for Funds Used During Construction
• AFVAlternative-Fuel Vehicle
• AGAAmerican Gas Association
• Agglomerating characterAgglomeration describes the caking properties of coal. Agglomerating character is determined by examination...
• Aggregate ratioThe ratio of two population aggregates (totals). For example, the aggregate expenditures per household is the...
• AggregatorAny marketer, broker, public agency, city, county, or special district that combines the loads of multiple...
• Agricultural and forestry residuesThe agricultural and forestry-related feedstocks used to produce biofuels that do not include corn kernels or...
• AgricultureAn energy-consuming subsector of the industrial sector that consists of all facilities and equipment engaged...
• Agriculture, mining, and construction (consumer category)Companies engaged in agriculture, mining (other than coal mining), or construction industries.
• Air cleanerA device using filters or electrostatic precipitators to remove indoor-air pollutants such as tobacco smoke...
• Air collectorA medium-temperature collector used predominantly in space heating, utilizing pumped air as the heat-transfer...
• Air conditioningCooling and dehumidifying the air in an enclosed space by use of a refrigeration unit powered by electricity...
• Air conditioning intensityThe ratio of air-conditioning consumption or expenditures to square footage of cooled floor space and cooling...
• Air pollution abatement equipmentEquipment used to reduce or eliminate airborne pollutants, including particulate matter (dust, smoke, fly...
• AlcoholThe family name of a group of organic chemical compounds composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The series...
• AlkylateThe product of an alkylation reaction. It usually refers to the high-octane product from alkylation units...
• AlkylationA refining process for chemically combining isobutane with olefin hydrocarbons (e.g., propylene, butylene)...
• All-electric homeA residence in which electricity is used for the main source of energy for space heating, water heating, and...
• Alternate energy source for primary heaterThe fuel that would be used in place of the usual main heating fuel if the building had to switch fuels. (See...
• Alternating currentAn electric current that reverses its direction at regularly recurring intervals.
• Alternative fuelAlternative fuels, for transportation applications, include the following:
• Alternative fuel vehicleA vehicle designed to operate on an alternative fuel (for example, compressed natural gas, liquefied propane...
• Alternative fuel vehicle converterAn organization (including companies, government agencies and utilities), or individual that performs...
• Alternative-rate DSM program assistanceA DSM (demand-side management) program assistance that offers special rate structures or discounts on the...
• American Indian Coal LeaseA lease granted to a mining company to produce coal from land held in trust by the United States for Native...
• AMIAdvanced Metering Infrastructure is a term denoting electricity meters that measure and record usage data at...
• Amorphous siliconAn alloy of silica and hydrogen, with a disordered, noncrystalline internal atomic arrangement, that can be...
• AmortizationThe depreciation, depletion, or charge-off to expense of intangible and tangible assets over a period of...
• AmpereThe unit of measurement of electrical current produced in a circuit by 1 volt acting through a resistance of...
• AMRAutomated Meter Reading is a term denoting electricity meters that collect data for billing purposes only and...
• Anaerobic decompositionDecomposition in the absence of oxygen, as in an anaerobic lagoon or digester, which produces CO2 and CH4.
• Anaerobic lagoonA liquid-based organic waste management installation characterized by waste residing in water at a depth of...
• Ancillary servicesServices that ensure reliability and support the transmission of electricity from generation sites to...
• Annual operating factorThe annual fuel consumption divided by the product of design firing rate and hours of operation per year.
• Annual requirementThe reporting company's best estimate of the annual requirement for natural gas to make direct sales or sales...
• ANSIAmerican National Standards Institute
• ANSI assembly identifierThe serial numbering scheme adopted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) to ensure uniqueness...
• AnthraciteThe highest rank of coal; used primarily for residential and commercial space heating. It is a hard, brittle...
• AnthropogenicMade or generated by a human or caused by human activity. The term is used in the context of global climate...
• APIThe American Petroleum Institute, a trade association.
• API gravityAmerican Petroleum Institute measure of specific gravity of crude oil or condensate in degrees. An arbitrary...
• Apparent consumption, (coal)Coal production plus imports of coal, coke, and briquets minus exports of coal, coke, and briquets plus or...
• Apparent consumption, natural gas (international)The total of an individual nation's dry natural gas production plus imports less exports.
• Apparent consumption, petroleum (international)Consumption that includes internal consumption, refinery fuel and loss, and bunkering. For countries in the...
• Apparent powerThe product of the voltage (in volts) and the current (in amperes). It comprises both active and reactive...
• ApplianceA piece of equipment, commonly powered by electricity, used to perform a particular energy-driven function...
• Appliance efficiency indexA relative comparison of trends in new-model efficiencies for major appliances and energy-using equipment...
• Appliance efficiency standardsThe National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987 established minimum efficiency standards for major...
• ARAAmsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp
• ArbitrageThe simultaneous purchase and sale of identical or similar assets across two or more markets in order to...
• AromaticsHydrocarbons characterized by unsaturated ring structures of carbon atoms. Commercial petroleum aromatics are...
• As received coalCoal in the condition as received by the user.
• AsbestosA group of naturally occurring minerals that separate into long, thin fibers. Asbestos was used for many...
• AshImpurities consisting of silica, iron, alumina, and other noncombustible matter that are contained in coal...
• AsphaltA dark brown-to-black cement-like material obtained by petroleum processing and containing bitumens as the...
• As-received condition or as-received basis (coal)Coal in the condition as received by the consumer or the laboratory analyzing the coal.
• Assembly identifierA unique string of alphanumeric characters that identifies an assembly, bundle, or canister for aspecific...
• Assembly typeEach assembly is characterized by a fabricator, rod-array size, and model type. An eight-digit assembly type...
• Assessment workThe annual or biennial work performed on a mining claim (or claims), after claim location and before patent...
• Assistance for heating in winterAssistance from the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The purpose of LIHEAP is to assist...
• Assistance for weatherization of residenceThe household received services free, or at a reduced cost, from the Federal, State, or local Government. Any...
• Associated-dissolved natural gasNatural gas that occurs in crude oil reservoirs either as free gas (associated) or as gas in solution with...
• ASTMAmerican Society for Testing and Materials
• at wtThe abbreviation for atomic weight.
• Atmospheric crude oil distillationThe refining process of separating crude oil components at atmospheric pressure by heating to temperatures of...
• Auger mineA surface mine in which the coal bed is removed by means of a large diameter drill. Usually operated only...
• Authorized cash distribution to municipalityThe authorized cash distributions to the municipality from the earned surplus of the utility department.
• Automatic set-back or clock thermostatA thermostat that can be set to turn the heating/cooling system off and on at certain predetermined times.
• Automobile and truck classificationsVehicle classifications for automobiles and light duty trucks were obtained from the EPA (Environmental...
• Auxiliary generatorA generator at the electric plant site that provides power for the operation of the electrical generating...
• Available but not needed capabilityNet capability of main generating units that are operable but not considered necessary to carry load and...
• Average Annual Percent Change (Coal)The average annual percent change over a period of several years that is calculated by taking the nth root...
• Average daily productionThe ratio of the total production at a mining operation to the total number of production days worked at the...
• Average delivered priceThe weighted average of all contract price commitments and market price settlements in a delivery year.
• Average household energy expendituresA ratio estimate defined as the total household energy expenditures divided by the total number of households.
• Average mine priceThe ratio of the total value of the coal produced at the mine to the total production tonnage.
• Average Number of Employees (coal)The average number of employees working in a specific year at coal mines and preparation plants. Includes...
• Average Open Market Sales Price (coal)The ratio, for a specified time period, of the total value of the open market sales of coal produced at the...
• Average production per miner per dayThe product of the average production per miner per hour at a mining operation and the average length of a...
• Average production per miner per hourThe ratio of the total production at a mining operation to the total direct labor hours worked at the...
• Average Recovery Percentage (coal)The percentage of coal that can be recovered from known coal reserves at reporting mines, weight averaged for...
• Average revenue per kilowatthourThe average revenue per kilowatthour of electricity sold by sector (residential, commercial, industrial, or...
• Average stream flowThe rate, usually expressed in cubic feet per second, at which water passes a given point in a stream over a...
• Average vehicle fuel consumptionA ratio estimate defined as total gallons of fuel consumed by all vehicles divided by (1) the total number of...
• Average vehicle miles traveledA ratio estimate defined as total miles traveled by all vehicles, divided by: (1) the total number of...
• Average water conditionsThe amount and distribution of precipitation within a drainage basin and the run off conditions present as...
• Aviation gasoline blending componentsNaphthas that will be used for blending or compounding into finished aviation gasoline (e.g., straight run...
• Aviation gasoline (finished)A complex mixture of relatively volatile hydrocarbons with or without small quantities of additives, blended...
• Azimuth angleThe orientation angle relative to north that a solar panel tilts toward: 0° is north, 90° is east, 180° is...

119 of 2,515 terms in Energy terminology (MLC-0117). Request the full dataset.