| Tailings |
| The waste material from a mill after the desired mineral has been extracted from the ore. Uranium tailings contain the radioactive products of uranium mixed with a large volume of non-radioactive rock, all in a finely ground form, mixed with water. |
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| Tanker |
| Ocean going ship designed for carrying crude oil and other liquid products. |
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| Tankwagon Price |
| A term denoting the price of petroleum products delivered by tanker truck (tankwagon). In actual practice, the terms most commonly used are dealer tankwagon price and consumer tankwagon price. |
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| Temporary Voluntary Allowance (TVA) |
| A price discount instituted voluntarily by a supplier, usually in recognition of competitive factors. |
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| Tertiary Recovery |
| See "recovery - tertiary". |
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| Testing |
| The oil company may wish to obtain ore information on the productive formation, specifically as to what fluids the formation contains. In performing the test, the drill string is removed from the hole, the bit is replaced by chemical tools, and the drill string is re-entered in the hold. Samples are enclosed in testing chambers and brought back to surfact for examination. |
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| Tetraethyl Lead (TEL) |
| A chemical additive used to enhance the anti-knock characteristics of motor gasoline. |
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| Thermal Coal |
| Coal burned to produce heat, for example, to raise steam for electrical generation or industrial processes. Such coal will also yield gaseous fuels by gasification processes and liquid fuels by liquefaction processes. |
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| Thermal Generation |
| Energy conversion in which fuel is consumed to generate heat, which is then converted to electrical energy. The fuel may be coal, oil, natural gas, or uranium. |
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| Thermal Processes |
| Enhanced oil recovery processes in which heat is added to the reservoir to increase recovery. |
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| Thermal Recovery |
| An enhanced recovery method using heat to reduce the viscosity of oils that are too thick to flow to production wells. Two principal thermal processes are steam flooding and in situ combustion. In steam flooding, steam is injected into the reservoir. In situ combustion involves injecting oxygen and igniting the oil in the reservoir. |
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| Thermo-mechanical Pulping Process (TMP) |
| A process used in the pulp and paper industry. Electrically produced mechanical energy is used to steam and refine wood chips into pulp. The steaming process softens the wood chips with the result that the pulp produced is of a higher quality than that obtained from other processes. Recovery steam may be used for space heating or for drying pulp fibres. |
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| Tight Hole |
| A drilling well in which the information obtained is restricted and passed only to those authorized to receive it. |
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| Tight Reserves |
| Soil or rock formations with low permeability to oil, natural gas or water. |
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| Time-of-use Pricing |
| A method of charging for electricity or some other service that takes into consideration both the time of day and the season of the year at which it is used. |
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| Toolpusher |
| The foreman in charge of the drilling rig operations and crew members. |
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| Topsides |
| The superstructure of a platform. |
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| Total Depth |
| The final depth to which the well is drilled, that is, the depth at which the drill bit stops its forward penetration. |
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| Toluene |
| One of the aromatic hydrocarbons, produced from crude oil via fractional distillation and catalytic reforming. When separated from the mixed aromatic stream, toluene is used to produce benzene via dealkylation, as a high-octane blending stock for gasoline, as a feedstock for the manufacture of chemicals (including benzoic acid) or as a solvent. |
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| Toronto City Gate Price |
| The price of Alberta gas delivered to the distribution utility at Toronto, once related to the energy-equivalent cost of crude oil at accordance with federal/provincial energy pricing agreements. Sometimes called the Toronto Reference Price or the Eastern Zone Wholesale Price. |
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| Transfer Capability |
| The overall capacity of interprovincial or international power lines, together with the associated electrical system facilities, to transfer power and energy from one electrical system to another. |
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| Transmission |
| The movement or transfer of electricity from one point to another in a power system. Also used to refer to the movement of natural gas through a trunk pipeline system. |
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| Transmission Line |
| A line used for bulk transfer of electricity between a generating plant or receiving point and major substations or delivery points. |
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| Tripping |
| This consists of hoisting the drill string to the surface for the purpose of changing the bit or some similar activity and returning it to the bottom of the well bore. |
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| Tritium |
| A radioactive isotope of hydrogen containing one proton and two neutrons in the nucleus. If tritium occurs naturally, it is present in amounts smaller than one part in 1017 parts of ordinary hydrogen. Tritium is produced in CANDU Reactors, when a deuterium atom in the heavy water moderator captures a neutron. It is used commercially in self-illuminating signs and is under development as a fuel for nuclear fusion. However, at present, almost all tritium is produced via pile radiation of lithium and is used in the manufacture of the hydrogen bomb. |
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| Turbine |
| An enclosed rotary type of mechanism in which heat energy is converted into mechanical energy by the force of a high-velocity flow of steam or gases directed against successive rows of radial blades fastened to a central shaft. |
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| Turnaround |
| The closure of a refinery for a period of time for maintenance purposes. |
