Solar Glossary
Absorber
- Blackened surface in a collector that absorbs solar radiation and converts it to heat energy.
- Use of electical or mechanical devices to convert solar energy into electricity or to move heat to where it can be of use..
- A group of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules connected together in a power system.
Climate change
- Term used to describe the view that the Earth’s temperature and climate will change, in part, due to the buildup of greenhouse gas emissions from human activities.
- Device that concentrates the sun’s power into a smaller area and converts it to heat and electricity.
Direct current (DC)
- Electric current that flows in only one direction (as opposed to alternating current). The current supplied from a battery is direct current; early electric distribution systems were DC
- Process to resolve conflicts in mutually beneficial ways, using techniques such as negotiation or third-party mediation instead of public hearings or courts
- Energy produced by generating units close to the location of use. PV cells are a form of distributed energy.
Greenhouse effect
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The warming of the Earth’s surface caused by the presence of carbon dioxide and other gases, known as greenhouse gases, in the atmosphere that trap the heat of the sun.
- Gases that trap heat near the Earth’s surface. These include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and water vapor. These gases occur through natural processes (such as ocean currents, cloud cover, volcanoes) and human activities (such as the burning of fossil fuels).
Heat exchanger
- A device such as a coiled copper tube immersed in a tank of water that is used to transfer heat from one fluid to another through a separating wall.
Inverter
- A device used to convert direct current power (such as is produced by a photovoltaic cell) into standard alternating current.
National Energy Board (NEB)
- The federal regulatory agency in Canada that authorizes oil, natural gas, and electricity exports; certifies interprovincial and international pipelines, and designated interprovincial and international power lines; and sets tolls and tariffs for oil and gas pipelines under federal jurisdiction.
- Natural resources that cannot be replaced after they have been consumed. This term applies particularly to fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, but also applies to other mineral resources found in the Earth's crust.
Passive solar energy
- Technology that uses a building’s elements, such as walls, to capture and store the sun’s heat. Passive solar energy does not involve converting solar enegy to electricity.
- Thin silicone wafers that convert any light, not only sunlight, directly into electricity.
- Type of concentrating solar power system that uses a field of mirrors to track the sun and focus its light onto a single point on a tower. At this focal point, a fluid (typically water or molten salts) is heated and passed through a steam turbine to generate electricity. Also known as a “central receiver” system.
- Usually intended to mean the interest of the public generally as opposed to the interest of an individual or company.
Renewable energy
- Naturally occurring energy sources that are continually replenished. Examples of renewable energy are wind, solar and water.
Solar dish system
- System that uses mirrors clustered in the general shape of a parabolic (curved) dish to focus solar energy onto a heat engine positioned at the focal point of the mirrors. The heat engine converts solar energy into electricity.
- Radiant energy produced and transmitted to the Earth's surface by the sun.
- Facility where many PV modules are interconnected in arrays to generate power. These are usually one megawatt or more in generating capacity.
- Devices that use energy from the sun to heat water in a solar collector, then transfer the water to a storage tank, where it is either heated further by a conventional storage tank heater or passed through a heat exchanger to heat water to be used.
- People with an interest in industry activities that affect them. They may include nearby landowners, Aboriginal communities, recreational land users, other industries, environmental groups, governments and regulators.
- Ecosystem condition in which biodiversity, renewability and resource productivity are maintained over time.
- Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (as defined by United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development).
Turbine
- A rotary engine that converts the energy of a moving stream of water, steam or gas into mechanical energy. Turbines are classified as hydraulic (water) turbines, steam turbines or gas turbines. Turbine-power generators produce most of the world's electricity. Windmills that generate electicity are known as wind turbines.
Upstream
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Relating to the exploration and production sector of the petroleum industry.