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a heat unit A common
One BTU = 1054 joules = 0.000 293 kWh |
One British Thermal Unit (BTU)
is the heat that will raise the temperature of one pound of water by one
degree Fahrenheit. It is approximately the amount of heat generated
by burning one blue-tip kitchen match.
Furnaces are often confusingly rated in "BTU", an incorrect substitution for BTU per hour. (Failing to make the distinction is like not being able to distinguish where you are from how fast you're going.) Just as much confusion results from simply using BTU in the first place, because few people can tell whether, for example, one BTU is greater or less than one kilowatt-hour. |
