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Energy Use Investigation
Glossary of Terms
Here you will find a list of terms and phrases explained in an easy to understand manner.
A - B | C - D | E - End | Energy - Externality
F - G | H - K | L - M | N | P | R - S | T - W
- Rate
- The cost per unit of electricity or natural gas charged to a utility
customer. Examples of rates include $0.60 per therm for natural gas and $0.07
per kilowatt-hour for electricity.
- Reading date
- The date when a meter reader collects consumption information from an
electric or natural gas meter.
- Renewable energy resource
- Energy resources that can be quickly replenished. Certain renewable
resources will always be available no matter how they are used (e.g., solar
energy), while other renewable resources can be depleted when their rate of use
exceeds their rate of replacement (e.g., wood).
- Resistance
- The opposition of electric current by a material or electrical device.
Electrical energy is converted into thermal energy and other forms of energy
when work is done by a current to overcome resistance.
- R-value
- A measure of the ability of a material to insulate against heat loss. The
higher the R-value, the better the material is at insulating. R-values are
usually expressed in terms of a standard unit of thickness of the material. For
example, loose fiberglass insulation has an average R-value of 2.7 per inch,
while rigid boards made of expanded polystyrene insulation have an R-value of 4
per inch.
- Semiconductor
- A substance or material that conducts electricity better than an insulator
but not as well as a conductor. Examples of semiconductors include silicon and
germanium.
- Series circuit (also Series
connection)
- An electrical circuit in which a voltage course (e.g., a battery) and each
component of the circuit (e.g., a set of light bulbs) are connected one after
the other so that an electric current can only flow along one path. See Parallel
circuit.
- Shortage
- A condition that occurs when the demand for a good or service exceeds its
supply. Shortages occur when the price for a good or service is lower than its
equilibrium price.
- Solar cell
- See Photovoltaic cell
- Solar energy
- Energy transferred from the sun to Earth in the form of electromagnetic
radiation.
- Sulfur dioxide (formula: SO2)
- A colorless gas with an odor like a struck match produced by burning fossil
fuels that contain a percentage of sulfur such as coal, oil, and natural gas.
Atmospheric emissions of sulfur dioxide combine with water vapor and oxygen to
form sulfuric acid, a component of acid deposition. Sulfur dioxide is listed as
a criteria pollutant.
- Supply schedule
- A chart or table showing the relationship between the price and quantity of
a good or service demanded by customers according to the law of supply. See Law
of supply.
- Surplus
- A condition that occurs when the supply of a good or service exceeds its
demand. Surpluses occur when the price for a good or service is higher than its
equilibrium price.
- Sustainable society
- Society based on working with nature by recycling and reusing discarded
matter, conserving matter and energy resources by reducing unnecessary waste and
use, and by building things that are easy to recycle, reuse, and repair.
- Switch
- A device used to open or close an electric circuit or to divert electric
current from one part of a circuit to another.
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