Poundal to Centinewton Converter

A poundal (pdl) is a unit of force in the foot-pound-second (FPS) system, defined as the force required to accelerate a mass of one pound at a rate of one foot per second squared. It equals approximately 0.138 newtons.

The poundal was introduced in 1879 as part of the foot-pound-second system to provide a force unit based on fundamental physical principles rather than gravitational force. It was designed to be the imperial equivalent of the newton but never achieved widespread adoption.

Poundals are rarely used in modern applications, appearing mainly in historical engineering literature and some specialized physics contexts. They've been largely replaced by pound-force in practical applications and newtons in scientific work.

A centinewton (cN) is a unit of force equal to one hundredth of a newton (0.01 N). It represents very small forces typically encountered in precision measurements, microelectronics, and delicate mechanical systems.

The centinewton emerged with the need for precise force measurements in advanced manufacturing and scientific research. It became important for measuring forces in microelectronics, precision instruments, and applications where millinewtons would be too large.

Centinewtons are used in microelectronics, precision manufacturing, delicate instrument calibration, and research applications. They're standard for measuring forces in MEMS devices, precision assembly operations, and sensitive measurement instruments.