Glossary
The following definitions reflect those used by the International Energy Agency (IEA); definitions used by other organisations and publications may vary.
FAME
fatty acid methyl ester
FBC
fluidised bed combustion
FCV
fuel-cell vehicles
FDI
foreign direct investment
FFV
flex-fuel vehicle
FID
final investment decision
FIT
feed-in tariff
FOB
free-on-board
FP
framework programmes for research and technology development
FPCC
Fusion Power Co-ordinating Committee (Fusion Working Party)
FSU
Former Soviet Union
FYP
five-year plan
Fischer-Tropsch (FT) synthesis
catalytic production process for the production of synthetic fuels. Natural gas, coal and biomass feedstocks can be used.
fission
a reaction when the nucleus of an atom, having captured a neutron, splits into two or more nuclei, and in so doing, releases a significant amount of energy as well as more neutrons. These neutrons then go on to split more nuclei and a chain reaction takes place.
flex fuel
a vehicle that has one fuel system but can mix different types of fuels, such as gasoline/ethanol, in the same tank, in any (or a wide range of) mixtures.
fuel cell models
convert hydrogen into electricity using a fuel cell system. Hydrogen is typically stored on-board the vehicle for conversion, so these need not be plug-in vehicles. However, it appears likely that plug-in hybrid type fuel cell vehicles – with batteries and a fuel cell system instead of an internal combustion engine – may be an optimal configuration, and thus they would be plug-in vehicles.
fusion
a process with nuclei collide and join together to form a heavier atom. When this happens a considerable amount of energy gets released. (This is what happens at the Sun’s core).
futures
tradable financial contracts.
ft
foot