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Btu: A British thermal unit is a unit
of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 pound of water 1oC. An average residential gas customer consumes about 100 million Btu per year.
CCHP: Combined cooling, heating and power systems consume a fuel, usually natural gas, and produce heat, cooling and electricity.
Cogeneration: An energy system that consumes a fuel, usually natural gas, to produce both heat and electricity. Cogeneration systems are very efficient because they capture and use energy that otherwise would be wasted.
Combined-cycle system: An energy system that consumes a fuel, usually natural gas, to produce electricity. Combined-cycle systems are very efficient because they capture and use heat that otherwise would be wasted.
Distributed generation: Electricity generation that occurs at or near the site of ultimate consumption as opposed to most electricity which is generated at a remote site and transported by long-distance transmission lines to the consumer.
Fuel cell: A piece of equipment that converts chemical energy into electricity and hot water through an electrochemical process rather than through combusting the fuel source.
Fossil fuel: A fuel source, primarily oil, coal and natural gas, that originates from decayed fossils.
Liquefied natural gas: Natural gas that is liquefied by reducing the temperature to -260oF, usually to allow for transportation by ship. Upon reaching its final destination, LNG can be re-gasified and injected into the pipeline system.
Methane hydrates: Methane, the primary component of natural gas, can be trapped in crystalline ice-like substances with water and small amounts of other gases. If this methane can be economically freed, it can be added to the natural gas supply base.
Microturbine: A very small turbine, fueled by natural gas or some other energy source, that generates electricity for use in homes or commercial establishments.
Natural gas resource base: The amount of gas that supply experts believe remains in the ground ready to be produced.
Quad: A unit of energy of 1 quadrillion British thermal units. Total U.S. energy consumption is roughly 90 quads per year.
Tcf: A trillion cubic feet of natural gas, equivalent in energy content to 1.03 quads.
Throughput: The amount of gas traveling through the natural gas delivery system.
Total energy efficiency: Refers to the energy that is used or lost in the processes of energy production, processing, conversion, transmission, distribution and use.
Wellhead: The point of gas production. Natural gas prices are often cited "at the wellhead" as opposed to the point of consumption which also includes the cost of transporting gas from the wellhead to the consumer.
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