Thermal Conductivity Conversion – Online Calculator

What is Thermal Conductivity?

Thermal conductivity is a measure of a material’s ability to conduct heat. It tells how well a substance conducts heat through a medium. In other words, it indicates how quickly heat energy can move through a material when there is a temperature difference across it.

Thermal conductivity is typically denoted by the symbol \(k\) (kappa) and is measured in units of watts per meter per Kelvin \(\frac{W}{m.K}\). This means it measures the amount of heat (in watts) that can move through a material of a given thickness (in meters) per unit of temperature difference (in Kelvin).

There are other units which are mostly used in this context are:

1. In British Imperial units, thermal conductivity can be measured in British thermal units per hour per foot per degree Fahrenheit (𝐵𝑡𝑢/(ℎ𝑟⋅𝑓𝑡⋅°𝐹)).
2. In the CGS (centimeter-gram-second) system, it’s measured in calories per second per centimeter per degree Celsius (𝑐𝑎𝑙/(𝑠⋅𝑐𝑚⋅°𝐶)).
3. In the SI system, the primary unit is watts per meter per Kelvin (𝑊/(𝑚⋅𝐾)).

Related: Heat Transfer through Conduction Calculator

Thermal Conductivity Unit Conversion Calculator

This Thermal Conductivity Unit Converter is capable of solving units from different measurement systems, the International System of Units (SI), the Centimeter-Gram-Second (CGS) system, and the British Imperial system.

Related: Heat Transfer Calculators for Chemical Engineering

Related: Fluid Mechanics Calculators for Chemical Engineering

How to Convert Thermal Conductivity Units

To convert the thermal conductivity unit, it is required to select the suitable input unit from the tables given below and then multiplying it with the given conversion factor.

\[ 1 \, \frac{\text{W}}{\text{m} \cdot \text{K}} = 0.002388 \, \frac{\text{calorie (IT)}}{\text{second} \cdot \text{cm} \cdot ^\circ \text{C}} \]

\[ 1 \, \frac{\text{calorie (IT)}}{\text{second} \cdot \text{cm} \cdot ^\circ \text{C}} = 418.6800 \, \frac{\text{W}}{\text{m} \cdot \text{K}} \]

Example Conversion:

To convert \(15 \, \frac{\text{W}}{\text{m} \cdot \text{K}}\) to \(\frac{\text{calorie (IT)}}{\text{second} \cdot \text{cm} \cdot ^\circ \text{C}}\):

\( 15 \, \frac{\text{W}}{\text{m} \cdot \text{K}} = 15 \times 0.002388 \, \frac{\text{calorie (IT)}}{\text{second} \cdot \text{cm} \cdot ^\circ \text{C}} \)

\( = 0.035827 \, \frac{\text{calorie (IT)}}{\text{second} \cdot \text{cm} \cdot ^\circ \text{C}} \)

Thus, \( 15 \, \frac{\text{W}}{\text{m} \cdot \text{K}} = 0.035827 \, \frac{\text{calorie (IT)}}{\text{second} \cdot \text{cm} \cdot ^\circ \text{C}} \)

Thermal Conductivity Conversions

We have provided the table for Thermal Conductivity Conversion for unit conversion. User can solve various units such as Watt/meter/Kelvin (W/(mK)), Watt/centimeter/°C (W/(cm°C)), Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin (kW/(mK)), Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C (cal/(scm°C)), Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C (kcal/(hm°C)), Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F (Btu/(insft°F)), Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F (Btu/(fthft°F)), and Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F (Btu/(inhft°F)).

Conversion from W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	1.000000
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	0.010000
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.000100
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	0.002388
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	0.859845
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	0.001926
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	0.577789
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	6.933472

Conversion from W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	100.000000
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	1.000000
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.010000
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	0.238846
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	85.984523
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	0.192596
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	57.778932
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	693.347180

Conversion from kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	1000.000000
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	10.000000
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	1.000000
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	2.388459
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	859.845228
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	1.925964
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	577.789317
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	6933.471799

Conversion from cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	418.679994
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	4.186800
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.041868
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	1.000000
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	359.999995
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	0.806363
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	241.908828
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	2902.905932

Conversion from kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	1.163000
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	0.011630
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.000116
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	0.002778
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	1.000000
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	0.002240
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	0.671969
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	8.063628

Conversion from Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	519.220505
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	5.192205
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.051922
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	1.240137
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	446.449273
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	1.000000
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	300.000061
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	3600.000726

Conversion from Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	1.730735
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	0.017307
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.000173
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	0.004134
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	1.488164
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	0.003333
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	1.000000
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	12.000000

Conversion from Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)

To Unit	Conversion Factor
W/(m*K) (Watt/meter/Kelvin)	0.144228
W/(cm*°C) (Watt/centimeter/°C)	0.001442
kW/(m*K) (Kilowatt/meter/Kelvin)	0.000014
cal/(scm°C) (Calorie (IT)/second/centimeter/°C)	0.000344
kcal/(hm°C) (Kilocalorie (IT)/hour/meter/°C)	0.124014
Btu/(insft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/second/square foot/°F)	0.000278
Btu/(fthft*°F) (Btu (IT)/foot/hour/square foot/°F)	0.083333
Btu/(inhft*°F) (Btu (IT)/inch/hour/square foot/°F)	1.000000

Resources

• “Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer” by Frank P. Incropera and David P. DeWitt
• “Heat Transfer” by J.P. Holman

Disclaimer: The Solver provided here is for educational purposes. While efforts ensure accuracy, results may not always reflect real-world scenarios. Verify results with other sources and consult professionals for critical applications. Contact us for any suggestions or corrections.