Convert dynamic (absolute) viscosity between pascal-seconds, poise, centipoise and imperial units.
Fluids • 7 units
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Dynamic (absolute) viscosity measures a fluid's internal friction — its resistance to flow. The CGS unit, the poise (P), honours French physician-physicist Jean Léonard Marie Poiseuille, who studied blood flow in the 1840s; the SI unit is the pascal-second (Pa·s). Because most everyday fluids are "thin", the centipoise (cP) is the workhorse unit — and conveniently, water at 20 °C is almost exactly 1 cP.
Viscosity values guide the formulation of motor oils, paints, inks, food, cosmetics and lubricants, and the design of pumps and pipelines. Lab and industry data appear in Pa·s, mPa·s, poise and centipoise interchangeably, so converting between them is a daily task in chemical and mechanical engineering.
Quick reference — 1 Pascal-second (Pa·s) is equal to:
| Millipascal-second | mPa·s | 1,000 |
| Poise | P | 10 |
| Centipoise | cP | 1,000 |
| Newton-second/m² | N·s/m² | 1 |
| Pound/(foot·second) | lb/(ft·s) | 0.67196895 |
| Pound-force·s/ft² | lbf·s/ft² | 0.0208854338 |