Fundamental Definitions
Power- The rate of work or how much work can be accomplished by a device.
This measure is used for sizing certain components as well as determining the peak demand and storage requirements of a System.
ie. A 100 W solar electric panel produces up to 100 watts of power when operating.
Energy- The rate of work (Power) over a period of time.
This measure is used to equate and consolidate the total System requirements over the course of a year.
ie. A 100 W solar electric panel operating for 10 hours produces up to 1000 Wh or 1 kWh of of electrical energy for the system.
A 100 kW CHP operating for 1 hour produces 100 kWh of electrical energy and 140 kWh of heat energy.
Peak- The highest point of output or requirement on a System.
This measure describes a single point in time rather than a period of time and typically describes power or maximum capacity.
ie. An array of 10x 100 W solar electric panels can supply a peak of 1000 W or 1kW of power.
Common Definitions
ASHRAE - American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers
Borehole - A drilled hole in the ground.
Building Load - The energy consumption of a building for power, heating, and cooling.
CHP- Combined Heat and Power, a generator that produces heat and electricity as usable energy from low emission fuel.
Combustible - A fuel which releases energy by exothermic reaction, typically burning.
Component - A device which generate or stores energy.
Consumption - The amount of energy required for various applications.
Conventional - Infrastructure supported sources of energy such as regulated electricity and natural gas.
Daily Load - The average daily energy requirement of a building.
Degree Days- Number of degrees in an average day over a given period that a building must be heated or cooled to reach a standardized temperature.
Design Days - The days on which the peak heating or cooling demand of a building can be expected to occur.
Electrical Storage - A medium for storing generated energy, typically an electrochemical battery.
Fixed Rate - A specific cost of power per unit delivered.
Fuel - A material which can be readily converted into energy.
Grid- The infrastructure which provides conventional energy to a location.
Ground Temperature- The average temperature of the soil in a location.
Heat Pump - A device which moves thermal energy in a system.
Joule - A standard metric unit of energy transfer, the amount of heat generated when one ampere moves through a 1 ohm resistor for 1 second.
Load - A building's energy requirement, typically for heating, cooling, or electrical demands.
Metric- The International System of Units derived from invariant constants of nature, also known as SI.
Microgrid- A system of component infrastructure independent from the grid.
Peak Load- The maximum power usage of a system. Components are required to sustain an daily energy average and meet a peak power demand.
PV - Photovoltaic, the method of generating electric from solar cells.
Solar- As related to the sun.
STC - Standard Test Condition, an measurement standard for solar electric cells and other components.
TEES - Thermal Energy Exchange and Storage. A proprietary high efficiency form of Thermal Storage.
Thermal - As related to heat.
Tiered Rate - A fixed rate which fluctuates based on consumption. Typically more consumption invokes a higher rate.
TOU Rate - Time of Use, energy rates that change throughout the day based on demand.
United States customary - The system of measurements commonly used in the United States.