Dimensional Analysis (also called Unit Analysis)

Method 1: Multiplying by 1

This is the most common method taught in schools.

Dimensional analysis is all about converting units from one system to another. We
have years. We want seconds. So we start with one year and try to re-express the
quantity in seconds. We get there by repeatedly multiplying by units of one and
canceling the leftover units, as in

1 year = 1 year X

The fraction is equal to 1 , because 1 year is 365 days. Cancel the“year,” and you
get 1 year = 365 days. That’s obvious. Then do the same to days, converting to
hours (1 day = 24 hours), and you get

1 year = 365 days X

The days cancel and you get 1 year = 8760 hours.

Examples

1) The mass of an object is 3.5 kg. What is the mass of the object in grams (g)?

1000 g
3.5 kg x =3,500 g
1 kg

2) A road is 2640 yards long. How long is the road in miles?

3 ft 1 mi
2640 yd x x =1.5 mi
1 yd 5280 ft
3) How many liters of gasoline are in 500 ml?

1l
500 ml x =0.5 l
1000 ml
4) The escape velocity from earth’s surface is approximately 7.0 mi/sec. What is
the escape velocity in mi/hr?

7.0 mi 3600 sec mi

x =25,200
( 1 sec 1 hr hr )

or

7. 0 mi 60 sec 60 min mi
x x =25,200
( 1 sec 1 min 1 hr hr )

5) A car is traveling at 70 miles per hour on an interstate highway. a. How many

feet per second is the car traveling? b. If a football field is 300 feet long, how many
football field lengths does the car travel in one second?

70 mi 5280 ft 1 hr ft
x x =102.6
a. 1 hr 1 mi 3600 sec sec

102.6 ft 1 football field length football field lengths

x =0.342
b. 1 sec 300 ft sec

Method 2: Direct Substitution

In direct substitution you replace the unit with its equivalent value and new unit.

Example:

To convert 2 km to miles we first note that 1 km = 0.62 miles

Replace the km with 0.62 miles and multiply

2 km = 2 (x 0.62 miles) = 1.24 miles

Lets covert the above examples using direct substitution

1) The mass of an object is 3.5 kg. What is the mass of the object in grams (g)?

1 kg = 1000g

3.5 kg = 3.5 (x 1000g) = 3 500g

2) A road is 2640 yards long. How long is the road in miles?

1 yd = 3 ft and 1mile = 5280 ft or 1 foot = 0.00019 miles

2640 yards = 2640 (x 3 ft) =7920 ft = 7920 (x 0.00019 miles) = 1.5 mi

3) How many liters of gasoline are in 500 ml?

1 litre = 1000 ml or 1 ml = 0.001 litres

500 ml = 500 (x 0.001 litres) = 0.5 litres

4) The escape velocity from earth’s surface is approximately 7.0 mi/sec. What is
the escape velocity in mi/hr?

7.0 mi 3600 sec mi

x =25,200
( 1 sec 1 hr hr )

or

7. 0 mi 60 sec 60 min mi
x x =25,200
( 1 sec 1 min 1 hr hr )
5) A car is traveling at 70 miles per hour on an interstate highway. a. How many
feet per second is the car traveling? b. How many meters per second is the car
travelling.

a. 1 mile = 5280 ft and 1 hour = 3600 seconds

miles 5280 ft 369600 ft ft

70 =70× = 102. 6́
hour 3600 s 3600 s sec

b. 1 km = 0.62 miles; 1000m = 1 mile or and 1 hour = 3600 seconds

miles 1000 m 112 km 112×1000 m 112000 m m

70 =70× = = = =32 . 1́
hour 3600 s 3600 s 3600 s 3600 s sec