The gallon (gal) is a unit of measurement for measuring the capacity of the liquid. It is used in both US and UK imperial measurement systems. Today there are three different gallon sizes. The imperial gallon is 4.54 liters and common in the states of the Commonwealth and in some Caribbean nations. The American gallon is about 3,785 liters and common in the United States and Latin America. The American dry gallon is 4,405 Liters or 1/8 US bushels.
The imperial gallon
The imperial or British gallon is a unit of measurement exactly 4.54609 liters or 277.42 cubic inches. It is common in Commonwealth countries and some Caribbean states. The imperial gallon was initially based on 10 kilos which translate into 4.54kg of water at 17 ° C. The imperial fluid ounce weighs 1/160 of the imperial gallon. An imperial gallon is divided into four liters, each quarter consists of two pints and each pint is composed of ounces of imperial fluid 20.
American liquid gallon
An American gallon is defined as 3.7854 liters or 231 cubic inches. At 62 ° F (17 ° C), an American liquid gallon of water is equal to 3.78 kg or 8.34 pounds. It is 16.6 lighter than the imperial gallon. However, just like the imperial gallon, an American gallon is divided into four liters, each liter is divided into two pints, and each liter contains liquid US ounces 16. Therefore, it takes 128 US liquid ounces to fill an American liquid gallon. It is common to specify the temperature at which the material will weigh or occupy a particular volume. This is done to overcome the change in volume or mass that results from the change in temperature. In the United States, the weight of alcohol and petroleum products is defined as 60 ° F (16 ° C).
US Dry Gallon
The American dry gallon is equal to an eight of the Winchester bushel, to cubic inches 268.8025 or liters 4.4.5.
1 Gallon [Fluid, US] = Liters 3.7854118
1 Gallon [Dry, US] = Liters 4.4048838
1 Gallon [UK] = Liters 4.54609
Global use of gallons
The imperial gallon was used in the United Kingdom until 1994. Fuel economy, in particular, worked in gallons in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. The EU directive 80/181 / EEC made on December 31, 1994, has prohibited the continued use of the gallon for trade and the official purpose in favor of the liter. However, the chevron could still be used as a secondary unit of measurement. In September 30, 1995, the United Kingdom changed its legislation and adopted the liter. Several states in the Caribbean and South America are still using the chevron. In 2010, the United Arab Emirates adopted the use of liter and began selling petroleum products in liters. In 2015, the states of Antigua and Barbuda also went to liter.
