BALLAST

Ballast

Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship, submarine, or other floating structure that holds water is called a ballast tank. In a vessel that travels on the water, the ballast will remain below the water level, to counteract the effects of weight above the water level. The ballast may be redistributed in the vessel or disposed of altogether to change its effects on the movement of the vessel.

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ballast

Noun

  1. Heavy material that is placed in the hold of a ship (or in the gondola of a balloon), to provide stability.
  2. Anything that steadies emotion or the mind.
  3. Coarse gravel or similar material laid to form a bed for roads or railroads, or in making concrete.
  4. A material, such as aggregate or precast concrete pavers, which employs its mass and the force of gravity to hold single-ply roof membranes in place.
  5. device used for stabilizing current in an electric circuit (e.g.in a tube lamp supply circuit)
  6. That which gives, or helps to maintain, uprightness, steadiness, and security.

<gallery> File:Hsin-chu-1.jpg|Ballast provides a supporting bed for rail tracks File:Magnetic Ballasts 1.jpg|Several typical styles of magnetic ballasts for fluorescent lamps </gallery>

Verb

  1. To stabilize or load a ship with ballast.
  2. To lay ballast on the bed of a railroad track.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: ballast
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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