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Appendix A - Definition of Terms
<br />DEFINITION OF TERMS
<br />Alternative fuels: identifies "non-traditional° alternatives to gasoline and regular diesel fuel. The
<br />designation typically includes bio-diesel (i.e., B-5, B-100), alcohols (ethanol blends, i.e., E-10, E-85,
<br />methanol), compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), liquefied petroleum as (LPG),
<br />electricity/hybrid vehicles, flex-fuel vehicles, hydrogen. Orange County currently uses the following fuel
<br />types for vehicles: bio-diesel (B-5), ethanol blend (E-10), compressed natural gas (CNG), hybrid
<br />gas/electric vehicles.
<br />BTU usage: In North America, the term "BTU" is used to describe the heat value (energy content) of
<br />fuels, and also to describe the power of heating and cooling systems, such as furnaces, stoves, and air
<br />conditioners. The rate of heat transfer can be described by adding the dimension of time, for example,
<br />BTU/hr or Btuh.
<br />When measuring and comparing energy use between devices, systems or buildings, it is common to
<br />convert all forms of energy to BTUs. Converting all forms of energy used in a facility to BTUs, allows
<br />comparisons of BTUs per square foot between different buildings and energy-using systems.
<br />MBTU is occasionally used as a standard unit of measurement for natural gas and provides a convenient
<br />basis for comparing the energy content of various grades of natural gas and other fuels. One cubic foot of
<br />natural gas produces approximately 1,000 BTUs, so 1,000 cu.ft. of gas is comparable to 1 MBTU. MBTU
<br />is occasionally expressed as MMBTU, which is intended to represent a thousand thousand BTUs. 16
<br />The table below provides a summary of conversions for the energy forms used in Orange County
<br />buildings.
<br />Energy Forms Converted to BTUs
<br />Ener form Measured in E uivalent BTUs
<br />Electrici Kilowatts k 3,412
<br />Natural as Therms 100,000
<br />Pro ane as Gallons 91,330
<br />Fuel oil Gallons 139,000
<br />Building envelope: refers to those building components that enclose conditioned spaces and through
<br />which thermal energy is transferred to or from the outdoor environment.
<br />Carbon footprint: is "the total set of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an organization, event,
<br />product or person". For simplicity of reporting, it is often expressed in terms of the amount of carbon
<br />dioxide, or its equivalent of other GHGs, emitted. 17
<br />Commissioning (includes new building commissioning re-commissioning and retro-commissioning of
<br />existing buildings): is the process of verifying, in new construction, that all the subsystems for HVAC,
<br />plumbing, Electrical, fire/Gfe safety, building envelopes, interior systems (example laboratory units),
<br />sustainable systems, lighting, wastewater, controls, and building security achieve the owner's project
<br />requirements as intended by the building owner and as designed by the building architects and
<br />engineers. 18
<br />16 htta://www.enerawortex.com/eneravdictionarv/british thermal unit (btu) mbtu mmbtu html
<br />17 http://en.wikipedia.ore/wiki/Carbon footprint
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<br />18 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New construction Building commissioning
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