How much refrigeration is equivalent to one ton of refrigeration?

One ton of refrigeration is defined as the amount of heat absorbed by melting one ton of ice in a 24-hour period, which is equivalent to 288,000 Btu when fully calculated. To express this in terms of a per minute rate, you divide 288,000 Btu by the number of minutes in 24 hours, which is 1,440 minutes.

When you perform this calculation:

288,000 Btu divided by 1,440 minutes equals 200 Btu per minute.

This means that one ton of refrigeration is equivalent to the transfer of heat of 200 Btu per minute, which reflects the cooling capacity. Understanding this concept is crucial in fields related to HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) and refrigeration, as it helps professionals determine the appropriate systems needed for various cooling applications.