Coal Definition & Meaning | Energy Term | CSIMarket
CSI Market
Sign In | Register

Glossary

Coal

Energy Term

Coal is a combustible sedimentary rock composed mainly of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. It is formed from the remains of dead plants and animals that have been buried and subjected to high pressure and heat over millions of years.

The energy industry is the largest user of coal in the world. Coal is primarily used for electricity generation, accounting for around 38% of global electricity production. Coal-fired power plants are found in many countries, and they operate by burning coal to heat water and produce steam, which drives turbines to generate electricity.

In addition to electricity generation, coal is also used in industrial processes such as steel production and cement manufacturing. Coal is an important source of energy for these industries due to its high heat content and relatively low cost.

However, the use of coal has come under scrutiny in recent years due to concerns about its environmental impact. Burning coal releases carbon dioxide and other pollutants into the atmosphere, contributing to global climate change and air pollution. Many countries are transitioning away from coal and towards cleaner forms of energy, such as wind and solar power. Nonetheless, coal remains an important energy source in many parts of the world, particularly in developing countries where electricity demand is growing rapidly.




Coal Industry Operating Statistics

More Glossary Terms Beginning with C
  • Calcined
    To be heated to a high temperature, but below the melting or fusing point, causing loss of moisture, reduction or oxidation or thermal decomposition (a chemical reaction where a single compound breaks up into two or more simpler compounds or elements when heated).
    Manufacturing Term Letter: C
  • Call Option
    An option that provides the right, but not the obligation, to buy an underlying futures contract at a specified strike price for a specified time.
    Financial Term Letter: C
  • Cancer
    A disease characterized by loss or enhancement of one or more mechanisms that regulate the growth of cells of a specific tissue. Loss of these control mechanisms or gain of abnormal mechanisms in a single cell that put cell growth into overdrive allows that cell to grow, invade local tissue, and to spread to other regions of the body. This spreading of altered cells to distant sites is the process
    Health Care Term Letter: C
  • Cancer Stem Cell
    cancer cells (found within tumors or hematological cancers) that possess characteristics associated with normal stem cells, specifically the ability to give rise to all cell types found in a particular cancer sample.
    Health Care Term Letter: C
  • Capacity Insurance
    The percentage of surplus, or the dollar amount of exposure, that an insurer or reinsurer is willing or able to place at risk. Capacity may apply to a single risk, a program, a line of business or an entire book of business. Capacity may be constrained by legal restrictions, corporate restrictions or indirect restrictions.
    Insurance Term Letter: C
  • Capacity Oil and Gas Operations Industry
    Capacity is defined as the throughput a process unit is capable of sustaining, either on a calendar or stream day basis. The throughput may be expressed in terms of maximum sustainable, nameplate or economic capacity. The maximum sustainable or nameplate capacities may not be the most economical. The economic capacity is the throughput that generally provides the greatest economic benefit based on
    Energy Term Letter: C
  • Capital Asset Pricing Model
    Generates an appropriate discount rate using internal and external inputs to value future cash flows based on the time value of money and the price for bearing uncertainty inherent in an investment.
    Financial Term Letter: C
  • Capital Gain or Capital Loss
    the difference between the amount paid for an investment and its value at a later time. If the investment has been sold, the capital gain or loss is considered a realized gain or loss. If the investment is still held, the gain or loss is still "on paper" and is considered unrealized.
    Financial Term Letter: C
  • Capital Ratios
    Represents the minimum standards established by the regulatory agencies as a measure to determine whether the regulated entity has sufficient capital to absorb on and off-balance sheet losses beyond current loss accrual estimates.
    Financial Term Letter: C
  • Captive
    A closely-held insurance company whose primary purpose is to provide insurance coverage to the companys owners or their affiliates.
    Insurance Term Letter: C
  • Car Miles per Car Day
    The total car-miles for a period divided by the total number of active cars. Total car-miles includes the distance travelled by every car on a revenue-producing train and a train used in or around our yards. Railroads Industry
    Transportation Term Letter: C
  • Carcinomas
    A type of cancer that arises from the lining cells of the body, called epithelial cells. Epithelial cells form the outer layer of the skin, and the membranes lining the digestive tract, bladder and uterus, as well as the tubes and ducts that run through the bodys organs.
    Health Care Term Letter: C