Hi everyone, I've just published an online tool for simple water boiling tests:
http://smallredtile.com/stove/wbt-buddy/ This is a sort of experiment, so let me know what you think. Is it useful? What would make it more useful? Did I make any mistakes in the model? I was driving at a few things with the experiment. Is it possible to make the Water Boiling Test calculation simpler and easier to follow? Can we make the steps of the calculation more visible? (to help newcomers, to help identify problems with the calculation) I find that, even with an engineering background, the WBT Excel sheet is not easy to use. The equation for finding thermal efficiency is buried in one cell and looks like this: =IF(W26=0,0,(4.186*SUM((W12-$N15)*(AA8-W8),(W13-$N16)*(AA9-W9),(W14-$N17)*(AA10-W10),(W15-$N18)*(AA11-W11))+2260*W27)/(W26*$E20)) Also, some of the steps of the calculation (moisture content, char energy content) aren't necessary for many use-cases of the WBT. For example, if I'm trying out a new design, all I want to know if the general range of efficiency: 10-20%, 40-50%, etc. I think there may be some benefit to emphasizing that the WBT is an *estimate*. Wasn't it originally designed as a quick-and-dirty test for the field? So, I simplified the engineering model, tried to build a user friendly interface, and laid out the step of the calculation as clearly as I could. I think that I'm going to build something for TLUDs next. So do send me any suggestions for this right away, if you like. marc
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