Definition:FPS/Force/Poundal

Definition

The poundal is an FPS unit of force.

It is defined as being:

The amount of force required to accelerate a mass of one pound at a rate of one foot per second squared.

This arises from Newton's Second Law of Motion, which states that such an acceleration exists under the influence of such a force.

Conversion Factors

\(\ds \)

\(\)

\(\ds 1\)

poundal

\(\ds \)

\(\approx\)

\(\ds 0 \cdotp 13825 \, 5\)

newtons

Symbol

$\mathrm {pdl}$

The symbol for the poundal is $\mathrm {pdl}$.

The $\LaTeX$ code for \(\mathrm {pdl}\) is \mathrm {pdl} .

Sources

• 1969: J.C. Anderson, D.M. Hum, B.G. Neal and J.H. Whitelaw: Data and Formulae for Engineering Students (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): $1.$ Units and Abbreviations: $1.3$ British and other units
• 1998: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): poundal
• 2008: David Nelson: The Penguin Dictionary of Mathematics (4th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): poundal