Question

A microwave can reheat one cup of coffee in 30 seconds. It takes a coffee maker 10 minutes to brew 12 cups of coffee. If the coffee maker requires 900 W of power and the microwave requires 1200 Watts of power, does it require more energy to brew 12 cups with the coffee maker or reheat 12 cups of the coffee and a microwave?

Answer 1

To calculate the total energy required for each method, we need to consider the power consumption and the time taken.

Energy required to brew 12 cups of coffee with the coffee maker:
Power = 900 W
Time = 10 minutes = 600 seconds
Energy = Power x Time = 900 W x 600 s = 540,000 J

Energy required to reheat 12 cups of coffee with the microwave:
12 cups x 30 seconds = 360 seconds
Energy = Power x Time = 1200 W x 360 s = 432,000 J

Therefore, it requires more energy to brew 12 cups of coffee with the coffee maker (540,000 J) than to reheat 12 cups of coffee in the microwave (432,000 J).