British thermal unit
noun
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Despite its name, the British thermal unit, or BTU, may be more widely used in North America than in Britain. Air conditioners, furnaces, and stoves are generally rated by BTUs. (Though "BTUs" is often short for "BTUs per hour;" in air-conditioner ratings, for instance, "BTUs" really means "BTUs of cooling capacity per hour".) Fuels such as natural gas and propane are also compared using BTUs. The BTU first appeared in 1865 and isn't part of the metric system—the metric unit of energy is the much smaller joule—so it isn't much used by scientists, but its practicality keeps it popular for consumer goods and fuels. A better-known heat unit is the calorie; a BTU is equal to about 252 calories. (Since the familiar food calorie is actually a kilocalorie, a BTU equals only about a quarter of a food calorie.)
Examples of British thermal unit in a Sentence
arkansasonline.com, 11 Feb. 2025
Benchmark Henry Hub natural gas reached $3.66 per million British thermal units on Thursday, peaking at $4.20 earlier in the week.
—Amanda Castro, Newsweek, 3 Jan. 2025
One British thermal unit is equivalent to 1,055 joules and will raise the temperature of one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit.
—Matthew J. C. Clark, Harper's Magazine, 2 Aug. 2024
The price of natural gas surged more than 15% early Monday, nearing $4 per million British thermal units.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 30 Dec. 2024
The Henry Hub natural gas spot price averaged $2.15 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) through December 16, falling short of 2023's $2.53/MMBtu average.
—Robert Rapier, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
Analysts now predict that LNG prices in Asia could soar to over $20 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) if global supply tightens.
—Dan Eberhart, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
The summer and fall have also been volatile — but in the past month, natural gas is up a little over 12% and traded just over $3 per million British thermal units on Friday.
—Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 6 Dec. 2024
There’s lots of room for more buybacks and payout hikes, as CF’s sales and earnings gained in the third quarter, with profits getting an assist from a drop in the price of natural gas, CF’s main feedstock, from $2.58 per million British thermal units a year ago to $2.08.
—Brett Owens, Forbes, 6 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“British thermal unit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/British%20thermal%20unit. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.
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