Room for ChanceWhat it measures and where it is used
Volume flow describes how much volume passes a point per unit time. It is used for taps, pumps and ventilation. The SI unit is m³/s, while L/min is practical for smaller flows. A volume flow cannot become a mass flow without knowing fluid density.
- Classification
- SI derived quantity
- SI unit
- m³/s
- Dimension
- L³ T⁻¹
L: length; M: mass; T: time; Θ: temperature; N: amount of substance. The dimension symbol N is not the unit symbol for newton.
How it works
The calculation first converts to a common reference unit, then to the destination unit. Factors in the table show the reference value for one unit.
Example
60 L/min (litres per minute) ≈ 1 L/s (litres per second)
Available units
Reference unit: L/s (litres per second)
| Available units | Reference factor |
|---|---|
| L/s (litres per second) | 1 × x |
| L/min (litres per minute) | 0.0166666666667 × x |
| m³/s (cubic metres per second) | 1,000 × x |
| m³/h (cubic metres per hour) | 0.277777777778 × x |
| gal (US)/min (US gallons per minute) | 0.0630901964 × x |
| ft³/min (cubic feet per minute) | 0.4719474432 × x |
Units, history and conventions
The International System of Units (SI) received its name in 1960. Since the 2019 revision, its definitions use fixed values of seven defining constants. SI base and derived quantities should not be confused with the different units used to express them.