Units
The SI unit of work is the joule (J), which is defined as the work done by a force of one newton acting over a distance of one metre.
The dimensionally equivalent newton-meter (N·m) is sometimes used for work, but this can be confused with the units newton-metre of torque. This usage is discouraged by the SI authority, since it can lead to confusion as to whether the quantity expressed in newton metres is a torque or a quantity of energy.
Non-SI units of work include the erg, the foot-pound, the foot-poundal, the kilowatt hour, the litre-atmosphere, and the horsepower-hour. Since work has the same physical dimension as heat it is sometimes also measured using units originally used for heat or energy content such as the therm, the BTU and Calorie.
Read more about this topic: Work (physics)
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