When it comes to clear communications, precision is essential.
That's why we're providing you with a glossary that gives short definitions of some of the technical terms used in our industry and communication materials. The glossary is not exhaustive, it just provides some additional references to help you understand what we're all about.
| Dam |
Structure built across a riverbed to hold back water and, in a hydroelectric development, to provide the falling water that drives the power station turbines. |
| Cogeneration |
Simultaneous production of electricity and thermal energy in the form of heat or steam, from a single fuel source. |
| Combustion gas |
A mixture of mainly the following gases: nitrogen, carbon dioxide, oxygen and water vapour, from burning fossil fuels. |
| Green energy |
Green energy, or clean energy, is an energy source that doesn't produce any pollutants. |
| Hydroelectric power station |
Power station that generates electricity using the mechanical energy of water. |
| Installed capacity |
The power measured at the generating terminals of all the power plant's generating groups, calculated, without deducting the energy consumed by station services, as a function of the maximum anticipated load or simultaneous maximum demand which the generating system is expected to meet. Also, the total manufacturer-rated capacities of equipment. |
| Natural gas power station |
Power station that generates electricity by using gas turbines to drive one or more generators. |
| Nitrogen oxides (NOx) |
Mixture of NO and NO2 formed when nitrogen (N2) reacts with oxygen (O2). |
| Renewable energy |
Energy sources that produce electrical, thermal or mechanical energy without unnecessarily depleting resources. The renewable energy sources are generally classified as water, biomass, wind, solar, earth and energy from wastes. |
| Run-of-river power station |
Power station driven by water flow, with almost no reserve source of water. The electricity it generates varies with the water flow. |
| Thermal power station |
Power station that generates electricity using thermal energy. |
| Volt |
Scientific unit used to measure the voltage of an electrical current (most residential and office systems are in North America 120 volts and in Europe 220 volts). |
| Voltage |
Designates the electrical voltage of a circuit, measured in volts. |
| Watt (W) |
Scientific unit used to measure power.
The most common multiples are:
- kilowatt (kW) = 1 thousand watts
- megawatt (MW) = 1 million watts
- gigawatt (GW) = 1 million kilowatts
- terawatt (TW) = 1 billion kilowatts
|
| WATT-HOUR (Wh) |
Scientific unit used to measure electrical energy.
The most common multiples are:
- kilowatt-hour (kWh) = 1 thousand watt-hours
- megawatt-hour (MWh) = 1 million watt-hours
- gigawatt-hour (GWh) = 1 million kilowatt-hours
- terawatt-hour (TWh) = 1 billion kilowatt-hours
|
| Wind power station or wind farm |
Power station that generates electricity using the kinetic energy of the wind. |
| Wood residue thermal power station |
Power station that generates electricity via steam produced by a wood-residue-fuelled boiler. |