Convert Poundal to Teranewtons

Convert Poundal (pdl) to Teranewtons (TN) instantly and accurately.

Conversion Formula

TN = pdl × 1.382549544e-13

About Poundal

The poundal (pdl) is the force unit of the foot-pound-second absolute system - the force to accelerate 1 pound at 1 ft/s² - approximately 0.1383 N. Introduced in 1877 by Thomson and Tait as the FPS analogue of the CGS dyne (1 dyn = 1 g·cm/s²; 1 pdl = 1 lb·ft/s²). The poundal is distinct from pound-force: since standard gravity = 32.174 ft/s², 1 lbf = 32.174 pdl. It survives in older British engineering texts and early 20th-century thermodynamics literature, but is otherwise obsolete. 1 pdl = 0.138254954376 N = 1/32.174 lbf.

About Teranewtons

One teranewton (TN) is 10¹² N - the force scale of plate tectonics and planetary dynamics. Mantle convection drags tectonic plates with 10¹³-10¹⁵ N per plate, putting the plate-driving slab-pull force (~10¹³ N) firmly in the TN range. Mid-ocean ridge lithosphere sustains several TN per km of spreading length in tension. The tidal force differential across Earth's diameter from the Sun is ~4 × 10¹⁷ N = 4 × 10⁵ TN. Proposed megastructures (space elevators, orbital rings) would also require teranewton-scale structural capacity. 1 TN = 1,000 GN = 10¹² N ≈ 10¹¹ kgf.

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