You searched for: “energies
energy (s) (noun), energies (pl)
1. The capacity for work or vigorous activity; vigor; power.
2. Exertion of vigor or power: "I have this project which is requiring a great deal of time and energy."
3. Vitality and intensity of expression; forcefulness of expression; such as, a speech delivered with energy and emotion.
4. Usable heat or power.
5. A source of usable power; such as, petroleum or coal.
6. In physics, the capacity to do work; the property of a system that diminishes when the system does work on any other system, by an amount equal to the work so done; potential energy.

Forms of energy include heat, light, sound, electricity, and chemical energy. Energy and work are measured in the same units—foot-pounds, joules, ergs, or some other, depending on the system of measurement being used. When a force acts on a body, the work performed (and the energy expended) is the product of the force and the distance over which it is exerted.

First recorded in 1599, from Middle French energie, from Late Latin energia, which was from Greek energeia, "efficiency, activity, operation" came from energos, "active, working" from en-, "at" + ergon, "work". Used by Aristotle with a sense of "force of expression"; the broader meaning of "power" was first recorded in English in 1665. To energize; that is, "rouse to activity" is from 1753; energetic of people, institutions, etc., is from 1796. The term energy crisis was first recorded in 1970.

—The etymological information in the last paragraph came from
A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language
by Dr. Ernest Klein
The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology, Robert K. Barnhart, Editor
This entry is located in the following units: en-, em-, el- (page 2) ergo-, erg- (page 1)
Word Entries containing the term: “energies
potential energy (s) (noun), potential energies (pl)
The energy stored in a body or system as a consequence of its position, composition, shape or state: Four types of potential energies are, for example, gravitational energy, electrical energy, nuclear energy, or chemical energy.
This entry is located in the following unit: poten-, pot-, poss-, -potent, -potence, -potency, -potential + (page 5)
waste-to-energy (s) (noun), waste-to-energies (pl)
A process that generates energy from useless, discarded materials; especially, by the incineration of municipal solid wastes or (MSW): The waste-to-energy process utilizes "waste" to generate useful energy; such as, electricity, heat, or both.

This waste-to-energy is possible, and convenient, when the heat generated by burning the "waste" is high enough to warrant satisfactory combustion conditions and to make enough energy available to overcome losses and auxiliary consumption.

Characteristics of waste-to-energy production

  • Waste-to-energy is the offspring of the incineration of materials, which were originally introduced to sterilize and to reduce the volume of useless substances by burning it in a furnace.
  • Modern waste-to-energy plants allow the export of energy, with very low environmental impact.
  • The waste-to-energy plant consists of four basic sections: waste combustor, recovery boiler, flue gas treatment, and steam cycle.
  • Waste-to-energy is the process in which municipal waste is used to generate useful energy for electricity, heat, or both.

  • The design of the combustor varies widely with the waste characteristics: physical state (solid versus liquid), size distribution, heating value, ash and moisture content, etc.
  • Municipal solid waste is typically burned on a moving grate, where it is kept 20-30 minutes until it is completely burned.
  • The hot gases generated in the combustor go through the recovery boiler to generate steam, which is used directly as a heat carrier or it is sent to a steam turbine to produce power.
  • Flue gases are treated by adding reactants called sorbents and by filtering the particulate matter.
  • A modern, large plant, treating a half-million tons of municipal solid waste per year, can generate more than 400 million kWh per year, meeting the electricity needs of more than 150,000 families.
—Compiled from information in
"Waste-to-energy" by Stefano Consonni; Dictionary of Energy,
Elsevier Publisher; Oxford, UK; 2006.
This entry is located in the following units: ergo-, erg- (page 5) vast-, wast- (page 3)