A pre-cut layer of insulation applied around a water heater storage tank to reduce standby heat loss from the tank.

A device or material with a high resistance to electricity flow.

ICS solar systems are also called "batch" or "breadbox" water heaters. They combine the collector and storage tank in one unit. The sun shining into the collector strikes the storage tank directly, heating the water. The large thermal mass of the water, p ...

A type of heating appliance that performs more than one function, for example space and water heating.

A plan developed by an electric utility, sometimes as required by a public regulatory commission or agency, that defines the short and long term capacity additions (supply side) and demand side management programs that it will undertake to meet projected ...

A connection or link between power systems that enables them to draw on each other's reserve capacity in time of need.

Power plants, whose output depends on a factor(s) that cannot be controlled by the power generator because they utilize intermittent resources such as solar energy or the wind.

The generation of electric power by a heat engine which converts part of the heat generated by combustion of the fuel into mechanical motion to operate an electric generator.

The heat produced by sources of heat in a building (occupants, appliances, lighting, etc).

Materials with high thermal energy storage capacity contained in or part of a building's walls, floors, or freestanding elements.

A widely used rate of return for performing economic analysis. This method solves for the interest rate that equates the equivalent worth of an alternative's cash receipts or savings to the equivalent worth of cash expenditures, including investments. The ...

Energy loads that can be shut off or disconnected at the supplier's discretion or as determined by a contractual agreement between the supplier and the customer.

A layer of semiconductor material (as used in a solar photovoltaic device) whose properties are essentially those of the pure, undoped, material.

A device that that converts direct current electricity (from for example a solar photovoltaic module or array) to alternating current for use directly to operate appliances or to supply power to a electricity grid.

A tax credit granted for specific types of investments.

A utility owned by stockholders or other investors; sometimes referred to as a private utility, in contrast to a public utility that is owned by a government agency or cooperative.

An electrically charged atom or group of atoms that has lost or gained electrons; a loss makes the resulting particle positively charged; a gain makes the particle negatively charged.

A device that removes airborne particles from breathable air. Negative ions are produced and give up their negative charge to the particles. These new negative particles are then attracted to the positive particles surrounding them. This accumulation proc ...

The direct, diffuse, and reflected solar radiation that strikes a surface.

A type of passive solar heating system where heat is collected in one area for use in another.