Converting between different parts-per expressions is essential in chemistry, environmental science, and many other fields. This converter helps you easily transform concentrations from one unit to another.
What are the Formulas?
The key to converting between parts-per expressions is to first convert the input to a decimal (pure ratio) form. From there, we can calculate other units:
Decimal = 1
Percent (%) = Decimal × 100
Per Mille (‰) = Decimal × 1,000
Parts per Ten Thousand (‱) = Decimal × 10,000
Parts per Hundred Thousand (pcm) = Decimal × 100,000
Parts per Million (ppm) = Decimal × 1,000,000
Parts per Billion (ppb) = Decimal × 1,000,000,000
What are the conversion steps?
Convert the input value to a decimal (pure ratio) form
Multiply the decimal by the appropriate factor for each unit
Round the results to an appropriate number of significant figures
Example Conversion
Let's convert 500 ppm to other units:
Step 1: Convert to decimal
500 ppm = 500 / 1,000,000 = 0.0005 (decimal)
Step 2: Calculate other units
Percent = 0.0005 × 100 = 0.05%
Per Mille = 0.0005 × 1,000 = 0.5‰
Parts per Ten Thousand = 0.0005 × 10,000 = 5‱
Parts per Hundred Thousand = 0.0005 × 100,000 = 50 pcm
Parts per Million = 0.0005 × 1,000,000 = 500 ppm
Parts per Billion = 0.0005 × 1,000,000,000 = 500,000 ppb
Diagram of Concentration
The following diagram illustrates a 500 ppm concentration:
This diagram represents a 500 ppm concentration. The green sliver represents 500 parts of solute, while the blue area represents 999,500 parts of solvent, totaling 1 million parts.