[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Fw: some of the reason why energy and power definitions areconfusing



Original poster: "John Couture" <johncouture-at-bellsouth-dot-net> 

To All -

I woke up this morning realizing that in the post below I had provided a
good example of confusion between power and energy. The horsepower does not
have a rating of 33000 ft lbs as I said below. Power is the rate of doing
work. The 33000 ft lbs is energy.  Power is not rated in energy.. One
horsepower means work done at the rate of 33000 ft lbs per minute. This
would mean that any engine marked as 1 horsepower or 746 watts would be
capable of doing work at the rate of  33000 ft lbs per minute. David used
the word power correctly by saying it is a rate of doing work.

John Couture

---------------------------------------------

----- Original Message -----
From: "John Couture" <johncouture-at-bellsouth-dot-net>
To: "Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
Sent: Friday, June 25, 2004 11:13 PM
Subject: Re: some of the reason why energy and power definitions
areconfusing


 > All -
 >
 > I read many years ago that the horsepower was given a rating of 33000 ft
 > lbs for only one reason. That reason was that the engineers designing the
 > newly invented steam engine wanted a one horse power steam engine to be
 > capable of doing more work than any real horse. It was then not possible
for critics to belittle the engine when compared to a horse. The watt is a
 > mechanical unit and found to be 746 watts equal to one horsepower.
 >
 > John Couture
 >
 > ----------------------------------------
 >
 > ----- Original Message -----
 > From: "Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
 > To: <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
 > Sent: Friday, June 25, 2004 5:44 PM
 > Subject: Re: some of the reason why energy and power definitions
 > areconfusing
 >
 >
 > > Original poster: DRIEBEN-at-midsouth.rr-dot-com
 > >
 > > John, Al, all,
 > >
 > > It has been my understanding that the "horsepower" unit was
 > > originally derived from the rate of work that an average work
 > > horse could put out for 8 to 10 hours a day, like pulling a
 > > plough. I suppose this was suppose to represent the work out-
 > > put of an average healthy, middle aged adult horse, but of
 > > what particular breed of horse, I don't know. I'm no equestri-
 > > an expert, but I do know that there's a significant difference
 > > between the size and strength of a Shetland and a Clydesdale!
 > > So is it Shetland HP or Clydesdale) HP ;^/?? "I" would tend
 > > to think somewhere in between.
 > >
 > > I guess once industrialization took affect, the horse power was
 > > a well-known albeit ill-defined unit that most people were fa-
 > > miliar with. As to how the exact 746 watt (550 ft/lbs per second
 > > or 33,000 ft/lbs per minute-kinetic measure) unit was derived as
 > > the standard "horsepower", I have no idea. Maybe a Google search
 > > would reveal more. BTW, "human" power is supposed to be about
 > > 1/8 to 1/10 of a HP, so I suppose that's about 75 to 95 watts?
 > > But is that the strength of an "average" 150 lb. man or a 250
 > > lb. body builder ;^)))))
 > >
 > > David Rieben
 > >
 > >  > >
 > >  > >Al Erpel
 > >  >
 > >  > I've had the same issues twisting thru my mind, especially with
 > >  > one
 > >  > horsepower equalling 746 or whatever, watts.  Who in the hell came
 > >  > up with
 > >  > that one?  And how do you prove it?  Small horse, medium horse?
 > >  > What if we
 > >  > want to use camels?  How many watts per bactrian?  There are a few
 > >  > problems
 > >  > with the way science has been taught but we tend to build upon
 > >  > what is 'known'.
 > >  >
 > >  > For coiling, we need our own specific definitions.  I mean math is
 > >  > math and
 > >  > we should all be capable, perhaps better than most but these
 > >  > issues of what
 > >  > is what is driving all but the highly educated out of the
 > >  > conversation, and
 > >  > most likely some of them as well.  We need some 'rock-solid'
 > >  > definitions,
 > >  > specific to this art, that all can build upon.  Anyone else see an
 > >  > evolving
 > >  > art here?
 > >  >
 > >  > I'll not pretend to be even vaguely qualified to set these out but
 > >  > I can
 > >  > sure incorporate them into my work and thinking, once defined.
 > >  >
 > >  > Drizzle, Drazzle, Druzzle Drone, Help Mr. Wizard!  Where's Antonio
 > >  > on this one?
 > >  >
 > >  > John
 > >
 > >
 > >
 >