Surface Tension Units Converter
Coversion factor: 1 N/m = 0.0057101472 lbf/in
Additional information
Surface tension is the tendency of the surface of a liquid to shrink into the minimum surface area possible. This is because the molecules at the surface of the liquid are attracted to each other more strongly than they are to the molecules in the air above the liquid.
The standard unit for surface tension in the International System of Units (SI) is newtons per meter (N/m). It represents the surface tension of a liquid in terms of the force required per unit length to overcome the cohesive forces between its molecules.
In the US customary system of units, surface tension is typically expressed using the unit pounds-force per inch (lbf/in).
Surface Tension Conversion Factors
| mN/m | N/m | gf/cm | dyn/cm | erg/cm2 | erg/mm2 | pdl/in | lbf/in | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mN/m | 1 | 0.001 | 0.0010197162 | 1 | 1 | 0.01 | 0.0001837186 | 0.0000057101 |
| 1 N/m | 1000 | 1 | 1.019716213 | 1000 | 1000 | 10 | 0.1837185518 | 0.0057101472 |
| 1 gf/cm | 980.665 | 0.980665 | 1 | 980.665 | 980.665 | 9.80665 | 0.1801663536 | 0.0055997415 |
| 1 dyn/cm | 1 | 0.001 | 0.0010197162 | 1 | 1 | 0.01 | 0.0001837186 | 0.0000057101 |
| 1 erg/cm2 | 1 | 0.001 | 0.0010197162 | 1 | 1 | 0.01 | 0.0001837186 | 0.0000057101 |
| 1 erg/mm2 | 100 | 0.1 | 0.1019716213 | 100 | 100 | 1 | 0.0183718552 | 0.0005710147 |
| 1 pdl/in | 5443.10844 | 5.44310844 | 5.5504259253 | 5443.10844 | 5443.10844 | 54.4310844 | 1 | 0.0310809503 |
| 1 lbf/in | 175126.83465 | 175.12683465 | 178.57967262 | 175126.83465 | 175126.83465 | 1751.2683465 | 32.174048446 | 1 |
References: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). “Unit Conversion”. https://www.nist.gov/pml/owm/metric-si/unit-conversion. Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM). “The International System of Units (SI)”. https://www.bipm.org/en/measurement-units/. United States Geological Survey (USGS). “Surface Tension and Water”. https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/surface-tension-and-water.