Glossary

A vehicle which uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. A battery electric vehicle is a type of EV that uses chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs. A plug-in hybrid EV can be recharged by an external source of electric power. Fuel cell vehicles are EVs which use…

Biomass, also known as biofuels or bioenergy, is obtained from organic matter - either directly from plants or indirectly from industrial, commercial, domestic or agricultural products. The use of biomass is classed as a 'carbon neutral' process because the carbon dioxide released during the generation of energy from biomass is…

Biogas is generated when bacteria degrades biological material in the absence of oxygen, in a process known as anaerobic digestion. Since biogas is a mixture of methane (also known as marsh gas or natural gas) and carbon dioxide it is a renewable fuel produced from waste treatment. Raw biogas can…

Biofuel is a liquid or gaseous fuel derived from biomass, primarily ethanol, biodiesel and biogas. Biofuels can be combusted in vehicle engines as transport fuels and in stationary engines for heat and electricity generation. They can also be used for domestic heating and cooking (for example, as ethanol gels). Conventional…

Energy derived from any form of biomass (solid, liquid or gaseous) for heat, power and transport

Biodiesel. A fuel produced from oilseed crops such as soy, rapeseed (canola) and palm oil, and from other oil sources such as waste cooking oil and animal fats. Biodiesel is used in diesel engines installed in cars, trucks, buses and other vehicles, as well as in stationary heat and power applications.…

The fibrous matter which remains after extraction of sugar from sugar cane

A biological process which produces a gas principally composed of methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) otherwise known as biogas. Organic material and/or waste is converted into biogas in a digester. Suitable feedstocks include agricultural residues, animal wastes, food industry wastes, sewage sludge, purpose-grown green crops and the organic components…

A wind turbine is a rotating machine which transfers kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is instead converted to electricity, the machine may be called a wind turbine generator (WTG)

A hybrid technology of solar PV with battery storage. Other types of renewable energy-plus-storage plants also exist.