Main

ENERGY UNITS

What is a Btu?

Btu stands for British Thermal Unit, which is a unit of energy consumed by or delivered to a building. A Btu is defined as the amount of energy required to increase the temperature of 1 pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit, at normal atmospheric pressure.

Energy consumption is expressed in BTU to allow for consumption comparisons among fuels that are measured in different units.

BTU Conversion Factors:
The Btu conversion factors used for this survey are shown in the following table:

Energy Source	Btu Equivalent	Unit
Electricity	3,412	kilowatt hour (kWh)
Natural Gas	1,027	cubic foot
All types of Fuel Oil (except Kerosene)	138,690	gallon
Kerosene	135,000	gallon

Note: A Btu of district hot water has been converted into equivalent pounds of steam with the conversion of 1,000 Btu hot water approximately = 1 pound steam. Sources: Energy Information Administration; for natural gas � Natural Gas Annual (1992), p. 238; for electricity, fuel oil and kerosene � Monthly Energy Review (October, 1997); for district steam � Methodological Issues in the Nonresidential Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (September 1983), p. 173-175.

Examples

BTU to Kilowatt hours:      2,000,000 Btu / 3,412             =         586         kWh
Kilowatt hours to BTU:      800 kWh * 3,412                    = 2,729,600     BTU
BTU to Cubic feet:            2,000,000 Btu / 1,027              =        1,947      cubic feet
Cubic feet to BTU:            800 cubic feet * 1,027              =     821,600     BTU

conversionCalculator.aspx

Conversion Factors

The conversion factors below are intended to allow
quick conversions between common units of energy.

FUEL OIL
To Change	To	Multiply By
Barrel	Gallons	42
Gallons of # 2 Oil	MMBtu	0.14
Gallons of # 2 Oil	kWH	41.0196
Gallons of # 4 Oil	MMBtu	0.1465
Gallons of # 4 Oil	kWH	42.9241
Gallons of # 6 Oil	MMBtu	0.15
Gallons of # 6 Oil	kWH	43.9496

NATURAL GAS
To Change	To	Multiply By
MMBtu	Mcf	1
MMBtu	Bcf	0.000001
MMBtu	Dth	1
MMBtu	therm	10
MMBtu	Gallons of # 2 Oil	7.1429
MMBtu	Gallons of # 4 Oil	6.8259
MMBtu	Gallons of # 6 Oil	6.6667
MMBtu	KW	292.9974

ELECTRICITY
To Change	To	Multiply By
kWh	MW	0.001
kWH	Mcf	0.0034
kWH	Gallons of # 2 Oil	0.0244
kWH	Gallons of # 4 Oil	0.0233
kWH	Gallons of # 6 Oil	0.0228

FUEL OIL CONVERSION

1 Barrel = 42 gallons

1 Dth natural gas = 7 gallons of # 2 oil

# 2 oil      7.143 gallons        =     1 MMBtu
# 4 oil      6.826 gallons        =     1 MMBtu
# 6 oil      6.667 gallons        =     1 MMBtu

ELECTRICITY:
Demand 1 MW = 1,000 KW
Consumption 1 KWH = 1KW x 1 hour

TIME:

1 year = 8,760 hours

...............................................................................

Relative Btu Content
of Primary and Secondary Fuels

Fuel	Unit	Btu/unit	MBtu
# 2 Fuel Oil	gallon (US)	139,000	139
# 6 Fuel Oil	gallon (US)	150,000	150
Coal - Anthracite	ton	15,200,000	15,200
Coal - Bituminous Low Volatile	ton	22,000,000	22,000
Coal - High Volatile	ton	28,600,000	28,600
Coal - Lignite (Brown Coal)	ton	13,800,000	13,800
District Steam (Secondary)	pound	1,000	1
District Steam (Secondary)	Kilo-pound	1,000,000	1,000
Electricity	kwh	3,412	3.412
Natural Gas (Dth)	dekatherm	1,000,000	1,000
Natural Gas	cubic feet	1,034	1.034
Propane (LP Gas)	gallon (US)	91,600	92
Propane (LP Gas)	pound	21,698	22

ENERGY CONVERSION CALCULATOR: http://www.hessenergy.com/dashboard/conversionCalculator.aspx

Conversion Factors

FUEL OIL CONVERSION

ELECTRICITY: Demand 1 MW = 1,000 KW Consumption 1 KWH = 1KW x 1 hour

Relative Btu Content of Primary and Secondary Fuels

ENERGY CONVERSION CALCULATOR:
http://www.hessenergy.com/dashboard/conversionCalculator.aspx

ELECTRICITY:
Demand 1 MW = 1,000 KW
Consumption 1 KWH = 1KW x 1 hour

Relative Btu Content
of Primary and Secondary Fuels