Conversion Units
English units: (these are exact – no need to worry about sig. figs.)
Mass:
16 oz. = 1 lb.
2000 lbs. = 1 ton
Volume: 8 fl. oz. = 1 cup
Length: 12 in. = 1 ft.
2 cups = 1 pt.
2 pts. = 1 qt.
3 ft = 1 yd. = 36 in.
4 qts. = 1 gal. = 128 fl. oz.
1 mi. = 5280 ft. = 1760 yd.
Metric prefixes:
12
tera (T)
= 10
-12
pico (p)
= 10
nano (n)
micro ()
= 10
-6
= 10
3
milli (m)
= 10
2
9
giga (G) = 10
6
mega (M) = 10
-9
-3
kilo (k)
= 10
hecto (h)
= 10
centi (c)
= 10
1
deci (d)
= 10
deka (da) = 10
-2
-1
-10
For length: 1 Angstrom A = 10 meter;
1 micrometer is also called a micron (m). is the Greek letter mu
Metric-to-English Conversions:
1 lb. = 453.6 grams
1 qt. = 0.946 liters
1 in = 2.54 cm (exactly!)
1 mile = 1.609 km (approx.)
Temperature Scales / Conversions:
Fahrenheit
Celsius
Kelvin
o
o
°F = 1.8 C + 32
°C = 5/9(°F - 32) or (°F- 32)/1.8
o
Rankine
K = 273.15 + C
o
R = 459.6 + F
o
point of intersection: - 40 C = -40 F
R = 1.8(K)
0K = 0R
Fundamental SI Units:
Mass
Time
Length
Quantity (Amount of substance)
Luminous Intensity
Electric current
Temperature
kilogram (kg)
second (s or sec)
meter (m)
mole (mol)
candela (cd)
ampere (A or amp)
Kelvin (K)
Note that volume is a derived unit. The liter and milliliter are not actually recognized as correct units of
3
volume. The accepted volume unit (based on length) is the cubic decimeter. 1dm = 1 liter
For volume: 1 cc = 1 cm3 = 1 ml