UNITS AND DIMENSIONS

Page 1 of 4

Contents | Prev | Next | Index | Quiz UNITS AND DIMENSIONS FORMS OF ENERGY FIRST AND SECOND LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS Review Questions

Chapter 1: UNITS AND DIMENSIONS

Before beginning our discussion of BEST systems, it is important that we review several of the dimensional terms that we will be using. Each of these terms have English and metric units associated with it, and conversion multipliers between them. You need to memorize the associated units now, but the conversion values will come later. TIME is measured in the same units in both English and metric systems. However, we are inconsistent in using one unit of time. Sometimes the second is used, sometimes time is measured in minutes, and other times hours, days or months. LENGTH is the distance between two points and is usually measured in feet or meters. Pipe and duct dimensions, however, are usually measured in inches or millimeters. AREA is the product of two perpendicular lengths, and is measured in square feet or square meters. VOLUME is the product of an area and a perpendicular distance, and is measured in cubic feet and gallons or cubic meters and liters. MASS is the number of atoms or molecules contained in a system, and is measured in pounds mass (lbm) or kilograms. DENSITY is the ratio of mass per unit volume and is measured in lbm/ft3 or kg/m3. Water is often used as a density standard, with things lighter than water having a lower density. FORCE is the attraction between two bodies caused by gravity or other means. It carries the units of lbf or Newtons. ENERGY is a force moving through a distance, but can also take several other forms. It is measured in a variety of units such as ft-lbf and BTU or joules and kilowatt-hours. POWER is the rate of energy usage (energy per unit time). If it takes a certain quantity of energy to accomplish some task, a high power for a short period or a lower power for a longer time will both suffice. If you had to take 100 potatoes up a flight of stairs, you could carry one up at a time, 25 in each of four trips, or the whole lot in one trip. If the load to be moved was concrete blocks, you would probably make a different power selection. The units for measuring power are usually BTU per hour or kilowatts. TEMPERATURE is a measure of the rate of molecular vibration occurring within the object. Temperatures are normally measured in degrees - Fahrenheit or Celsius.

http://www2.fe.psu.edu/~dxm15/aet121/Ch01Units.htm

9/21/2009

UNITS AND DIMENSIONS

Page 2 of 4

THERMAL CAPACITANCE is the ability of materials to absorb heat energy. It is measured in BTU/lbm-F or KJ/kg-C. The table at the top of the next page summarizes the English and Metric units commonly used for these variables in our industry. You will need to become familiar with all of them before starting a job in this industry. So, now would be a good time to memorize which units are associated with which measurement. We will encounter a few additional units later in this course, but these should be enough to get you started for now.

UNITS Time Length Area Volume Density

ENGLISH METRIC second,minute,hour second inch, feet meter ft2 ft3 m2 m3 kg / m3 N KJ, kwh kw C KJ / kg- C

lbm / ft3 Force lbf Energy ft-lbf, Btu Power Btu / hr Temperature F Thermal Btu / lbm-F Capacitance

FORMS OF ENERGY
As mentioned above, energy can take on a variety of forms. Some of these are more important than others to the building environmental systems technician, but all have some impact on our designs. KINETIC energy deals with matter (usually fluids) in motion. We will use kinetic energy as a means of measuring the flow rate of fluids through the mechanical systems. POTENTIAL energy is the effect of having matter at a relatively higher location. The fluid in the cooling tower on the roof has higher potential energy than the same fluid in the basement. THERMAL energy is usually what we are trying to control through our systems. Heat added to matter will cause the temperature of the material to rise, or could cause it to change phase: heat added to ice converts it to water; heat added to water converts it to steam. In the other direction, heat removed from steam converts it to water. ELECTRICAL energy is the movement of electrons through an electrical potential. The automotive battery supplies direct current, and the utility grid supplies our homes with alternating current. RADIANT energy is carried by electromagnetic waves. Sunlight and microwave radiation are two examples of this form.

http://www2.fe.psu.edu/~dxm15/aet121/Ch01Units.htm

9/21/2009

UNITS AND DIMENSIONS

Page 3 of 4

CHEMICAL energy is stored within the molecular bonds in fuels such as gas, petroleum and coal. The process of combustion converts this chemical energy to thermal energy. NUCLEAR energy is obtained by changing the structure within atoms. Fission is the breaking of internal bonds, and is used in all nuclear power plants today. Fusion is the uniting of separate particles, and is the source of the sun's power. It is possible to convert energy from one form to another. For example, the automobile engine converts chemical energy (gasoline) to kinetic energy (moving down the highway). In a light bulb, electrical energy is converted to radiant energy, but in a solar cell, radiant energy is converted to electricity. While all of these processes are possible, some of these conversions are more important to our industry than others. But what is energy? One common answer is that energy is the ability to do work. The problem with energy is that we cannot see it, feel it or hear it. Only the effects of energy can be measured. If we add energy to a bucket of water (whether by inserting an electric heating element or stirring it rapidly with a stick), the effect that we can measure is the rise in temperature. Since we will be discussing thermal energy frequently, let us make a distinction between temperature and energy. The temperature of a heat source is essentially a measure of the quality of that energy. However, in nearly all situations, we actually pay for the quantity of energy that we use. As long as the temperature of an energy source is higher than the minimum needed in a specific application, it is the quantity of thermal energy that we are concerned with. If 100 Btu of thermal energy is added to a cup of cold water, it will be hotter than the coffee at McDonalds. But add the same quantity of energy to a bathtub full of water and you will hardly be able to measure the change in temperature.

FIRST AND SECOND LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS

Two fundamental laws of physics play a major role in our ability to provide comfort in a controlled environment. These are the first and second laws of thermodynamics, which literally means "heat in motion." The first law of thermodynamics says that "energy must be conserved." It allows us to change the form of the energy (from radiant to thermal for example), but requires that we must be able to account for all of the energy involved in the process. Think about what is happening when you drive your car: gasoline (chemical energy) and air enter the cylinder and are ignited. The fuel burns rapidly, creating a hot (thermal energy), high pressure gas which pushes the piston down to turn the drive shaft (kinetic energy) and move the car forward. The second law of thermodynamics says that there will always be losses associated with converting energy from one form to another. These losses will generally show up in the form of waste heat. This law also precludes the construction of any perpetual motion machines, since the losses that occur will eventually cause the device to fail. We measure the effect of these losses with a term called EFFICIENCY. Efficiency is the ratio of what you get out divided by what you have to put in. They are usually expressed as a percent, as shown in the table below. An incandescent light bulb, for example, has an efficiency of about 1%. This means that a 100 watt bulb will produce one watt of light, and 99 watts of waste heat, which is why light bulbs are very hot! Replacing that bulb with a 10 watt fluorescent fixture will generate the same light (one watt) but only nine watts of waste heat. Since it is our job to remove the excess heat from the building, we can

http://www2.fe.psu.edu/~dxm15/aet121/Ch01Units.htm

9/21/2009

UNITS AND DIMENSIONS

Page 4 of 4

cool a properly lit building for less money: Less waste heat means lower cooling costs and a smaller (cheaper) system. TABLE OF TYPICAL EFFICIENCIES Electric motor >90% Home furnace 50-95% Electric power plant 30% Automobile 20% Fluorescent light 10% Incandescent light 1%

Review Questions
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Explain the difference between energy and power. List seven forms of energy, and give an example of each. Name the units used to measure the quality and quantity of energy. Explain the first and second laws of thermodynamics. Define the term "efficiency," and list typical values for common devices.

Online Chapter Quiz Contents | Prev | Next | Index | Quiz

http://www2.fe.psu.edu/~dxm15/aet121/Ch01Units.htm

9/21/2009