After a brief introduction to scattering processes, a Monte Carlo procedure is described and used to simulate the interaction of an electron beam with a thick solid target. In particular the backscattering coefficient and the mean energy of the reflected electrons are computed and compared with the experimental data of Cosslett and Thomas, Palluel and Bishop. The Monte Carlo simulations, performed for several elements (Be, C, Al, Si, Ca, Ti, Cr, Cu, Ge, Mo, Ag, Ta, W, Pt, and Au) and for 5 and 10 keV primary energies, have then been used to calculate the energy dissipated in the target and compared with a simple theoretical treatment.