Some help with Si Unit conversions

[Yusufzai]

Some help with Si Unit conversions :)

Homework Statement

762 Mg/m to ng/µm

Homework Equations

Si unit conversions

The Attempt at a Solution

How do I know where to place the variables? Can someone give me a tut or written explantion on how to do this?

 

[berkeman]

Homework Statement

762 Mg/m to ng/µm

Homework Equations

Si unit conversions

The Attempt at a Solution

How do I know where to place the variables? Can someone give me a tut or written explantion on how to do this?

Welcome to the PF.

Yes, there is a very straightforward way to do unit conversions. But first, you need to be careful to be precise in what you are asking. Are you really wanting to convert from Megagrams/m to nanograms/um? Or did you mean to write milligrams/nm to miccrograms/um. Megagrams is not a unit that is used very much.


In either case, the trick is to multiply the quantity you want to convert units on by "1". But you make it a very special "1".

To convert 5m/s to km/s, you multiply by 1 = 1km/1000m

5m/s * 1 = 5m/s * 1km/1000m = 0.005km/s

To convert 2km/s to m/s, you multiply by 1 = 1000m/1km

2km/s * 1 = 2km/s * 1000m/1km = 2000m/s

You carry the units along in the equation, and cancel like units that show up in the numerator and the denominator. So when you are figuring out the form of the "1" fraction that you want to multiply by, put the units you want to end up with in the numerator, and the ones you want to cancel out in the denominator.

Makes sense?


EDIT -- Also, when you want to convert units in the denominator, you follow the analogous procedure. Just keep multiplying by an appropriate "1" fraction to be able to cancel out the old units and be left with the new units in the position you want them in the fraction.