waste heat
Unwanted energy output
Waste heat is thermal energy released as a byproduct of mechanical or chemical processes—heat that escapes rather than performs useful work.
Engines, power plants, and industrial equipment all generate waste heat: The factory captures waste heat to warm its offices.
Efforts to recover waste heat improve energy efficiency; what escapes represents lost potential.
- cogenerationSimultaneous heat and electricity production
- radiatorHeat transfer device
- steamHeated water's gaseous form
- engineMachine producing motion
- thermal efficiencyUseful output per heat input
power plants · thermal pollution · thermal runaway · vent · blowing off steam · dissipation · cooling tower · byproduct · entropy · energy loss · exhaust · boiler · furnace · chimney · condenser · server farm · recapture · thermal
- energyelectricity, power, oil, fuel, gas
- heatingfurnace, boiler, radiator, furnaces, stoves
- byproductsbagasse, pomace, molasses, sawdust, bran
- urban heathot spots, surface temperature, asphalt, pavement, hot pavement
- cogenerationcogeneration, thermal power, power generation, steam turbine, gas turbine
- power systemsgenerators, turbines, power plants, power stations, electricity