[Greenbuilding] energy and power terms

[RT]

On Mon, 21 Nov 2011 10:04:08 -0500, Alan Abrams  
<alan at abramsdesignbuild.com> wrote:

> methinks that what is problematical is semantical.

> if these terms are logical and  intuitive--then
> watts should logically be the term for the volume of electricity  
> consumed, and watts per hours should be the term for the rate.
>
> but it's not.  hence the confusion.


I feel like that old Italian grandfather in the movie "Moonstruck" who,  
seated at the dinner (or breakfast ?) table and confronted with what he  
thought were a number of illicit affairs going on amongst the gathered,  
moaned while holding his head

    "I'm very confooosed !!!"

I remember from my Grade 10 high school "Electricity" class:

	Power (P) = voltage (E)  x  current (I), expressed in the units "Watts".

If one flicks the light switch to power "on" a 1000 watt light bulb and  
leave that switch in the "ON" position for 23 hours then the electricity  
consumed during that period is:

    1000 Watts x 23 hours = 2300 Watt * hours  =  2.3 kiloWatt* hours (or  
2.3 kW-hrs)

... and not "2300 watts per hours" (ie 2300 watts/hrs) as AA-Man logic &  
intuition would suggest.

Eh what ?

-- 
=== * ===
Rob Tom
Kanata, Ontario, Canada
< A r c h i L o g i c  at  Y a h o o  dot  c a >
(manually winnow the chaff from my edress if you hit "reply")