Can Fahrenheit and Rankine Cancel Directly in Unit Conversion?

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SUMMARY

In unit conversion, degrees Fahrenheit (°F) cannot be directly canceled with degrees Rankine (°R) without proper conversion. Although both scales use the same degree size, they differ in their starting points, necessitating conversion to a common scale. To convert Fahrenheit to Rankine, one must add 459.67 to the Fahrenheit value. Failure to perform this conversion will result in incorrect numerical values despite having the correct units.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of unit conversion principles
  • Familiarity with temperature scales, specifically Fahrenheit and Rankine
  • Basic knowledge of dimensional analysis
  • Mathematical skills for performing conversions
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the conversion formula from Fahrenheit to Rankine, specifically adding 459.67
  • Explore dimensional analysis techniques for unit cancellation
  • Learn about other temperature scales and their relationships, such as Celsius and Kelvin
  • Investigate practical applications of temperature conversions in engineering and physics
USEFUL FOR

Students, engineers, and scientists involved in thermodynamics, as well as anyone needing to perform accurate temperature conversions in calculations.

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If I have units with degree Fahrenheit in the denominator can I cancel it with degree Rankine without a problem? Or do I need to use F + 459.xx to clear it?

does 1/F cancel with R?

I believe 1/F and R can cancel one to one, right?

\frac{\frac{Btu}{hr*ft^2*F}*\frac{ft^2}{}}{\frac{lbm}{hr}*\frac{Btu}{lbm*R}}

The above is unitless following my thinking.
 
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The Fahrenheit scale and the Rankine scale use the same-sized degree, but they have a different starting point. You should convert all the temperatures to the same scale before cancelling them. If you do not, you'll end up getting an answer with the right unit but wrong numerical value. To convert from degrees Fahrenheit to degrees Rankine, add 459.67.

- Warren
 

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