Joules to Gigawatt-hours conversion

How to convert joules to gigawatt-hours?

Certainly! To convert joules to gigawatt-hours, we'll need to perform a unit conversion. The relationship between joules (J) and gigawatt-hours (GWh) can be understood through several intermediary steps:

1. Joules to Watt-seconds: 1 joule (J) is equivalent to 1 watt-second (Ws).

2. Watt-seconds to Watt-hours: Since there are 3600 seconds in an hour: $1 \text{ Ws} = \frac{1}{3600} \text{ Wh}$.

3. Watt-hours to Gigawatt-hours: Since there are $10^9$ (1 billion) watts in a gigawatt: $1 \text{ Wh} = 10^{-9} \text{ GWh}$.

Combining these conversions: $1 \text{ J} = \frac{1}{3600} \text{ Wh} = \frac{1}{3600 \times 10^9} \text{ GWh}$ $1 \text{ J} = 2.77778 \times 10^{-10} \text{ GWh}$

So, 1 joule is approximately $2.77778 \times 10^{-10}$ gigawatt-hours.

Real-World Examples of Joules

1. Kinetic Energy of a Moving Object:

   • A car with a mass of 1000 kg moving at a speed of 10 m/s has a kinetic energy of $\frac{1}{2} m v^2 = \frac{1}{2} \times 1000 \times 10^2 = 50,000$ joules.

2. Calories and Food Energy:

   • 1 calorie (the kind used to measure food energy) is about 4,184 joules. So, a slice of bread with around 70 kilocalories contains about 292,880 joules of energy.

3. Electricity Usage:

   • A 100-watt incandescent light bulb running for 1 hour uses 360,000 joules of energy (100 watts × 3600 seconds).

4. Heat Energy:

   • The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius (1 calorie) is approximately 4.184 joules.

5. Human Metabolism:

   • The average human at rest burns roughly 8,368 joules per minute (2,000 kilocalories per day divided by 24 hours divided by 60 minutes).

These examples illustrate different contexts in which joules are a useful measure for comparing and understanding energy.