Convert British Thermal Units to Picojoules
Convert British Thermal Units (BTU) to Picojoules (pJ) instantly and accurately.
Conversion Formula
pJ = BTU × 1.055055853e+15
About British Thermal Units
A British Thermal Unit (BTU) - the heat to raise 1 lb of water by 1°F - equals exactly 1,055.05585262 J. It dominates US HVAC: room air conditioners are rated in BTU/h (5,000-24,000 BTU/h = 1.5-7.0 kW); one ton of refrigeration is exactly 12,000 BTU/h. Natural gas is billed in therms (100,000 BTU) in the US. Higher heating values: natural gas ~1,020-1,050 BTU/ft³; No. 2 fuel oil ~138,700 BTU/US gal; propane ~91,500 BTU/US gal. 1 BTU = 1,055.06 J = 252.164 cal = 0.29307 Wh.
About Picojoules
A picojoule (pJ) is 10⁻¹² J - the scale of laser pulses in scientific instruments and chip-level capacitor storage. A 1 pF capacitor charged to 1 V stores exactly 0.5 pJ. Laser pulse energies in OCT and ultrafast spectroscopy are typically 1-1,000 pJ. Single-photon SNSPD detector dead-time dissipates 1-100 pJ per event. Phase-change memory cells (PCM, ReRAM) switch at 10-100 pJ per state transition, setting a lower bound on non-volatile memory energy efficiency. 1 pJ = 10⁻¹² J = 6.242 MeV.
Quick Reference Table
| British Thermal Units (BTU) | Picojoules (pJ) |
|---|---|
| 1 BTU | 1.055 × 1015 pJ |
| 2 BTU | 2.11 × 1015 pJ |
| 5 BTU | 5.275 × 1015 pJ |
| 10 BTU | 1.055 × 1016 pJ |
| 25 BTU | 2.638 × 1016 pJ |
| 50 BTU | 5.275 × 1016 pJ |
| 100 BTU | 1.055 × 1017 pJ |