How Large is a Quadrillion BTU?
It's about equal to the amount of energy in 45 million tons of coal, or 1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, or 170 million barrels of crude oil. In 1988, total world energy consumption was about 1 quad every 26 hours.
To make this a bit less abstract, 45 million tons of coal would be a pile 10 feet thick, one mile wide and about 3.3 miles long. At 60 mph, it would take about 9 minutes to drive around the pile.
In terms of electricity, 1 quad is equal to 293 gigawatt-hours.
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Peter J Wilcoxen, The Maxwell School, Syracuse University
Revised 05/18/2006
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