Rankine Scale
Rankine is a thermodynamic (absolute) temperature scale named after the Glasgow University engineer and physicist William John Macquorn Rankine, who proposed it in 1859. (The Kelvin scale was first proposed in 1848.)
The symbol for degrees Rankine is °R (or °Ra if necessary to distinguish it from the Rømer and Réaumur scales). Zero on both the Kelvin and Rankine scales is absolute zero, but the Rankine degree is defined as equal to one degree Fahrenheit, rather than the one degree Celsius used by the Kelvin scale. A temperature of −459.67 °F is exactly equal to 0 °R.
Some engineering fields in the U.S. measure thermodynamic temperature use the Rankine scale. However, throughout the entire scientific world thermodynamic temperature is measured using the Kelvin scale. The US National Institute of Standards and Technology does not recommend using degrees Rankine in NIST publications.
Some key temperatures relating the Rankine scale to other temperature scales are shown in the table below.
| Kelvin | Celsius | Fahrenheit | Rankine | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute zero (by definition) |
0 K | −273.15 °C | −459.670 °F | 0 °R |
| Freezing point of brine (by definition) |
255.37 K | −17.78 °C | 0 °F | 459.670 °R |
| Freezing point of water | 273.15 K | 0 °C | 32 °F | 491.67 °R |
| Triple point of water (by definition) |
273.16 K | 0.01 °C | 32.018 °F | 491.688 °R |
| Boiling point of water | 373.1339 K | 99.9839 °C | 211.97102 °F | 671.64102 °R |
Read more about Rankine Scale: Conversion Table Between The Different Temperature Units
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