With reference to ISO standards, below are the definitions (in alphabetical order) commonly used among professionals internationally. English terminologies are indicated in parentheses, along with the reference to the standard paragraph, if present. The literal translations are in italics.
Primary and Secondary Energy Sources
Primary energy sources include:
- coal and other solid fossil fuels;
- crude oil;
- natural gas
- primary electrical energy (hydroelectric, wind, solar, etc.).
Secondary or derived energy sources are defined as:
- coal derivatives (coke, charcoal, coke oven gas, blast furnace gas);
- oil derivatives (fuel oil, diesel, gasoline and other light distillates, LPG, refinery gas);
- secondary electrical energy (thermal power).
Renewable Sources
Renewable energy sources are considered to be solar power, wind, hydraulic energy, geothermal resources, tides, wave motion, conversion of organic and inorganic waste or plant products, as well as recoverable heat from power generation plants, exhaust fumes, thermal plants, and industrial processes, and other forms of recoverable energy in processes or facilities.
Hydrocarbons
Organic substances containing only carbon and hydrogen in the molecule. They are the fundamental constituents of oil and natural gas.
Incineration
(Incineration): Thermal degradation of waste with possible energy recovery; leads to a reduction in waste mass.
Auxiliary Inputs
(Ancillary input - ISO 14041, par. 3.1): Incoming materials used in the production process that do not result in any of the produced outputs.
Interpretation
(Life Cycle Interpretation - ISO 14040, par 3.11): Phase of an LCA in which the results of inventory and/or impact analysis are processed according to the study's objective and scope to draw conclusions and recommendations.
Inventory
(Life Cycle Inventory - ISO 14040, par. 3.12): Stage of an LCA involving the collection and quantification of inputs and outputs for a given product system throughout its life cycle.
Energy Mix
The energy mix is the set of primary fuels that a nation uses for electricity production; the mix is characteristic of each country and includes the balance of energy exchanges with neighboring countries in the case of being part of an electric network.
ISO Standard
Technical standard of the International Organisation for Standardisation, which performs standardization activities worldwide in all industrial sectors, except for the electrical/electronic sector. About 90 countries' standardization bodies are members of ISO.
Organization
(ISO 14050): Group, company, enterprise, institution, or their parts or combinations, whether public or private, that have their functional and administrative structure.
Lower Calorific Value
(Net calorific value or Low Heat): It is the energy released when the fuel is completely burned with oxygen, and all water in the combustion products is cooled to 100°C but remains in the gaseous state.
Higher Calorific Value
(Gross calorific value or High Heat): It is the energy released when the fuel is fully burned with oxygen, and all produced water is cooled to the reference thermodynamic state (25°C and 1 atm).
Unit Process
(Unit process - ISO 14040, par. 3.19): The smallest portion into which a production system can be divided, from which data can be collected to prepare an LCA.
Part 4 follows
