Want to know your Air Source Heat Pumps from your Liquid Air Batteries, and your EV's from your Hybrids? We've started our own terminology bank of 'Sustainable' related words and acronyms for you. If you think of one we haven't covered please contact us!
A
Air Source Heat Pump (ASH) - A system that transfers heat from outside of a building to the inside, or vice versa. Under the principles of vapor compression refrigeration, an ASHP uses a refrigerant system involving a compressor and a condenser to absorb heat found in the air at one place to release it at another. They can be used as a space heater or cooler, and are sometimes called "reverse-cycle air conditioners". Why are they Sustainable? Because they produce far greater energy output in the form of heating than the energy input (electricity) consumed to run them and have no fossil fuel emissions unlike an old fashioned Gas Central Heating Boiler.
B
C
D
E
Electric Vehicle (EV)- A vehicle with no other on board power source other than it's own batteries. Uses electric motors and usually Lithium based batteries which can be recharged by being plugged in to a home power circuit and to a lesser extent while braking. Why are they Sustainable? Because except for the emissions used in manufacture and the debate over sustainable sourcing of Lithium used in the batteries, EV's unlike Petrol/Diesel/Gas vehicles don't emit gases such as Co2 and don't drive the demand for fossil fuels on an ongoing basis.
F
Full Hybrid Vehicle (HEV) - See H.
G
Ground Source Heat Pump (GSH) - Otherwise known as a Geothermal heat pump a ground source heat pump is a central heating and/or cooling system that transfers heat to or from the ground. It uses the earth all the time, without any intermittency, as a heat source or a heat sink. They take advantage of the moderate temperatures in the ground to boost efficiency and reduce the operational costs of heating and cooling systems, and may be combined with solar heating to form a geosolar system with even greater efficiency. They are also known by other names, including geoexchange, earth-coupled, earth energy systems. The engineering and scientific communities prefer the terms "geoexchange" or "ground source heat pumps" to avoid confusion with traditional geothermal power, which uses a high temperature heat source to generate electricity. Ground source heat pumps take advantage of the heat absorbed by the ground from the sun. The temperature in the ground below 6 metres is roughly equal to the local mean annual air temperature. Why are they Sustainable? Because they produce greater energy output in the form of heating than the energy input (electricity) consumed to run them and have no fossil fuel emissions unlike an old fashioned Gas Central Heating Boiler.
H
Full Hybrid Vehicle (HEV) - A vehicle which uses usually a combination of a petrol Combustion Engine and a battery powered electric Motor system. They can travel short distances using electric power alone (15-50 miles). An HEV has no facility to Plug-In. Why are they Sustainable? Because they can use pure electric power some of the time, this saves fuel and reduces overall fossil fuel emissions of the vehicle.
Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) system- A system installed in a building designed to efficiently heat or cool whilst pushing out moisture and keeping a constant flow of fresh air. Not simply an 'air conditioner' which will normally just heat/cool the air without ensuring moisture is ejected and air is replaced regularly. Why are they Sustainable? They can avoid heating/cooling by fossil fuels plus the heat/cooling is efficiently circulated where it is needed as opposed to old fashioned radiator systems which throw out an uneven and inefficient pattern of heat, and of course cannot cool!
I
J
K
L
M
Mild Hybrid Vehicle (MHEV) - A vehicle which has usually a combination of a petrol Combustion Engine and a smaller battery powered electric Motor system. They only use electric motors to assist with accelleration and cannot run on pure electric power alone (unlike a HEV). An MHEV has no facility to Plug-In. Why are they Sustainable? Because the electric motor assisting when accellerating does reduce fuel use and therefore reduces overall emmissions of the vehicle.
N
O
P
Plug-In Hybrid Vehicle (PHEV) - A vehicle which uses usually a combination of a petrol Combustion Engine and a battery powered electric Motor system. They can travel further using electric power alone than non-plug-in HEV's as the batteries can be recharged along the route. Why are they Sustainable? Because they can use pure electric power some of the time, this saves fuel and reduces overall fossil fuel emissions of the vehicle.
Q
R
S
Solar Thermal- A process of heating water by using solar panels, the liquid passing through the panels is not actually the water to be heated but is a special heat conducting fluid which then passes through the water tank, acting as a heat exchange, to heat the water. Why are they Sustainable? Because they harness the free energy from the sun to heat the water, so that less heat from potentially unsustainable sources is required.
Solar Photovoltaic (or Solar PV)- A process of converting the suns free energy into electricity through the use of photovoltaic cells mounted within panels. The electricity is generated as a DC current and then this is converted via an Inverter into AC current compatible with the building's electrical system. Excess electricity generated can be fed back into the National Grid. Why are they Sustainable? Because they harness the free energy from the sun to create electricity, and this in turn reduces the demand for electricity from the National Grid. This reduces electricity bills and reliance upon externally supplied power, potentially generated through unsustainable sources.
T
Tiny Home- A very small house usually built on a trailer bed for portability but sometimes static, designed for minimalist living and using an inventive space-saving design with the aim of providing housing without the requirements of a large mortgage. Most are made of at least 50% wood. A trend becoming increasingly fashionable and pragmatic. Currently most popular in the U.S.A and Australia, but now spreading throughout the world. Why are they Sustainable? Because they encourage a minimalist lifestyle and due to their simple lack of space they encourage their occupants to think twice about every material purchase. They also tend to use materials from sustainable sources and require very little heat and energy demands due to their small footprint.
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Air Source Heat Pump (ASH) - A system that transfers heat from outside of a building to the inside, or vice versa. Under the principles of vapor compression refrigeration, an ASHP uses a refrigerant system involving a compressor and a condenser to absorb heat found in the air at one place to release it at another. They can be used as a space heater or cooler, and are sometimes called "reverse-cycle air conditioners". Why are they Sustainable? Because they produce far greater energy output in the form of heating than the energy input (electricity) consumed to run them and have no fossil fuel emissions unlike an old fashioned Gas Central Heating Boiler.
B
C
D
E
Electric Vehicle (EV)- A vehicle with no other on board power source other than it's own batteries. Uses electric motors and usually Lithium based batteries which can be recharged by being plugged in to a home power circuit and to a lesser extent while braking. Why are they Sustainable? Because except for the emissions used in manufacture and the debate over sustainable sourcing of Lithium used in the batteries, EV's unlike Petrol/Diesel/Gas vehicles don't emit gases such as Co2 and don't drive the demand for fossil fuels on an ongoing basis.
F
Full Hybrid Vehicle (HEV) - See H.
G
Ground Source Heat Pump (GSH) - Otherwise known as a Geothermal heat pump a ground source heat pump is a central heating and/or cooling system that transfers heat to or from the ground. It uses the earth all the time, without any intermittency, as a heat source or a heat sink. They take advantage of the moderate temperatures in the ground to boost efficiency and reduce the operational costs of heating and cooling systems, and may be combined with solar heating to form a geosolar system with even greater efficiency. They are also known by other names, including geoexchange, earth-coupled, earth energy systems. The engineering and scientific communities prefer the terms "geoexchange" or "ground source heat pumps" to avoid confusion with traditional geothermal power, which uses a high temperature heat source to generate electricity. Ground source heat pumps take advantage of the heat absorbed by the ground from the sun. The temperature in the ground below 6 metres is roughly equal to the local mean annual air temperature. Why are they Sustainable? Because they produce greater energy output in the form of heating than the energy input (electricity) consumed to run them and have no fossil fuel emissions unlike an old fashioned Gas Central Heating Boiler.
H
Full Hybrid Vehicle (HEV) - A vehicle which uses usually a combination of a petrol Combustion Engine and a battery powered electric Motor system. They can travel short distances using electric power alone (15-50 miles). An HEV has no facility to Plug-In. Why are they Sustainable? Because they can use pure electric power some of the time, this saves fuel and reduces overall fossil fuel emissions of the vehicle.
Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) system- A system installed in a building designed to efficiently heat or cool whilst pushing out moisture and keeping a constant flow of fresh air. Not simply an 'air conditioner' which will normally just heat/cool the air without ensuring moisture is ejected and air is replaced regularly. Why are they Sustainable? They can avoid heating/cooling by fossil fuels plus the heat/cooling is efficiently circulated where it is needed as opposed to old fashioned radiator systems which throw out an uneven and inefficient pattern of heat, and of course cannot cool!
I
J
K
L
M
Mild Hybrid Vehicle (MHEV) - A vehicle which has usually a combination of a petrol Combustion Engine and a smaller battery powered electric Motor system. They only use electric motors to assist with accelleration and cannot run on pure electric power alone (unlike a HEV). An MHEV has no facility to Plug-In. Why are they Sustainable? Because the electric motor assisting when accellerating does reduce fuel use and therefore reduces overall emmissions of the vehicle.
N
O
P
Plug-In Hybrid Vehicle (PHEV) - A vehicle which uses usually a combination of a petrol Combustion Engine and a battery powered electric Motor system. They can travel further using electric power alone than non-plug-in HEV's as the batteries can be recharged along the route. Why are they Sustainable? Because they can use pure electric power some of the time, this saves fuel and reduces overall fossil fuel emissions of the vehicle.
Q
R
S
Solar Thermal- A process of heating water by using solar panels, the liquid passing through the panels is not actually the water to be heated but is a special heat conducting fluid which then passes through the water tank, acting as a heat exchange, to heat the water. Why are they Sustainable? Because they harness the free energy from the sun to heat the water, so that less heat from potentially unsustainable sources is required.
Solar Photovoltaic (or Solar PV)- A process of converting the suns free energy into electricity through the use of photovoltaic cells mounted within panels. The electricity is generated as a DC current and then this is converted via an Inverter into AC current compatible with the building's electrical system. Excess electricity generated can be fed back into the National Grid. Why are they Sustainable? Because they harness the free energy from the sun to create electricity, and this in turn reduces the demand for electricity from the National Grid. This reduces electricity bills and reliance upon externally supplied power, potentially generated through unsustainable sources.
T
Tiny Home- A very small house usually built on a trailer bed for portability but sometimes static, designed for minimalist living and using an inventive space-saving design with the aim of providing housing without the requirements of a large mortgage. Most are made of at least 50% wood. A trend becoming increasingly fashionable and pragmatic. Currently most popular in the U.S.A and Australia, but now spreading throughout the world. Why are they Sustainable? Because they encourage a minimalist lifestyle and due to their simple lack of space they encourage their occupants to think twice about every material purchase. They also tend to use materials from sustainable sources and require very little heat and energy demands due to their small footprint.
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
