fossil fuel
21Fossil fuel — An energy source formed in the Earth s crust from decayed organic material. The common fossil fuels are petroleum, coal, and natural gas. U.S. Dept. of Energy, Energy Information Administration s Energy Glossary *** Oil, coal, natural gas …
22fossil fuel — noun (C, U) a fuel 1 (1) such as coal or oil that is produced by the very gradual decaying of animals or plants over millions of years: Environmentalists would like to see fossil fuels replaced by renewable energy sources …
23fossil fuel — noun any fuel derived from hydrocarbon deposits such as coal, petroleum, natural gas and, to some extent, peat; these fuels are irreplaceable, and their burning generates the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide …
24fossil fuel — noun a natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms …
25ˈfossil ˌfuel — noun [C/U] coal or oil used as fuel …
26Fossil fuel electric generation — Electric generation in which the prime mover is an internal combustion engine or a turbine rotated by high pressure steam produced in a boiler or by a hot exhaust gas produced from the burning of fossil fuels. U.S. Dept. of Energy, Energy… …
27Fossil fuel steam-electric power plant — An electricity generation plant in which the prime mover is a turbine rotated by high pressure steam produced in a boiler by heat from burning fossil fuels. U.S. Dept. of Energy, Energy Information Administration s Energy Glossary …
28fossil fuel — coal, oil and gas. So called as they have been produced over millions of years after prehistoric forests were flooded and then overlain with sediments which compacted the material. As they are produced from hydrocarbons they can be burned to… …
29fossil fuel — fuels formed from the remains of plants and animals that lived in an earlier era (coal, petroleum, natural gas) …
30fossil fuel — fos′sil fu el n. ene any combustible organic material, as oil, coal, or natural gas, derived from the remains of former life • Etymology: 1835–45 …
