V.P101 — Radiated energy bound

The total energy radiated during a quasi-circular non-spinning BH merger satisfies Delta_E/((M_1+M_2)c^2) <= 1 - 1/sqrt(2) ~ 0.293. For equal-mass mergers, numerical relativity gives ~0.05, well below this bound. The maximum is achieved only in the extreme-spin Kerr limit.