View source for Twenty-foot equivalent unit

{{Short description|Unit of cargo capacity}}
{{redirect|Teus|the football goalkeeper|Eduardo Teus|the airport|Te Anau Airport}}
{{Multiple image
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| image1    = Container 【 22G1 】 WTPU 010097(1)---No,1 【 Pictures taken in Japan 】.jpg
| width1    = 260
| caption1  = A {{convert|20|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} [[intermodal container|ISO container]] equals 1 TEU.
| image2    = ISO-Container 20ft 40ft 600px 9123.jpg
| width2    = 200
| caption2  = Two {{convert|40|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} containers stacked on top of two twenty-foot containers. These four containers represent 6 TEU.
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The '''twenty-foot equivalent unit''' (abbreviated '''TEU''' or '''teu''') is a general unit of [[Tonnage|cargo capacity]], often used for [[container ship]]s and [[container port]]s.<ref name=Rowlett>Rowlett, 2004.</ref> It is based on the volume of a {{convert|20|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} [[intermodal container]], a standard-sized metal box that can be easily transferred between different modes of transportation, such as [[ships]], [[trains]], and [[trucks]].<ref name=Rowlett/>

== Detailed dimensions: 20-foot and 40-foot containers ==
[[File:Container_sizes.jpeg|thumb|right|Stacked top to bottom: {{convert|53|ft|m|2}}, {{convert|48|ft|m|2}}, {{convert|45|ft|m|2}}, {{convert|40|ft|m|2}}, and two end-to-end, {{convert|20|ft|m|2}} containers]]
[[Image:Emma Maersk 2006.jpg|thumb|right|The {{MV|Emma Mærsk}} can carry 11,000 TEU of 14 tons gross apiece{{refn|group=n|Maersk claims 14,780 TEU worth of space and a loading plan of 15,212 TEU.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://media.maersk.com/en/PressReleases/2006/namegiving+L203.htm |title=Namegiving of newbuilding L 203 |date=2006-12-08 |publisher=Odense Steel Shipyard|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070713100229/http://media.maersk.com/en/pressreleases/2006/namegiving+l203.htm|archive-date=July 13, 2007}}</ref><ref name="pop-sci-dec-2006-p24">{{Cite journal |surname=Koepf | given=Pam |title=Overachievers We Love |journal=[[Popular Science]] |volume=269 |issue=6 |year=2006 |page=24 }}</ref>}}]]
The standard [[intermodal container]] is {{convert|19|ft|10.5|in|3}} long and {{convert|8|ft|m|2|spell=in}} wide.<ref name=Rowlett/> The height of such containers is most commonly {{convert|8|ft|6|in|m}} but ranges from {{convert|4|ft|3|in}} to {{convert|9|ft|6|in|m}}.

Another standard container is slightly more than twice as long: {{convert|40|ft|m|2|adj=on}}, dubbed a '''forty-foot equivalent unit''' (often '''FEU''' or '''feu''').

The reason the smaller container is {{convert|1.5|in|cm}} short of 20 feet is to allow it to be stacked efficiently with 40-foot containers. The [[twistlock]]s on a ship are set so that two standard 20-foot containers have a gap of {{convert|3|in|cm}}, allowing a single 40-foot container to fit precisely on top.

The 40-foot containers have found wider acceptance, as they can be pulled by [[semi-trailer truck]]s. The length of such a combination is within the limits of national road regulations in many countries, requiring no special permission. As some road regulations allow longer trucks, there are also variations of the standard 40-foot container; in Europe and most other places a container of {{convert|45|ft|m|2}} may be pulled as a trailer. Containers with a length of {{convert|48|ft|m|2}} or {{convert|53|ft|m|2}} are restricted to road and rail transport in North America. Although longer than 40 feet, these variants are put in the same class of forty-foot equivalent units.

==Equivalence==
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin-left:1em; font-size:95%;"
|+ TEU capacities for common container sizes
|-
! data-sort-type="number" | Length
! data-sort-type="number" | Width
! data-sort-type="number" | Height
! data-sort-type="number" | Internal volume
! data-sort-type="number" | Internal floor area
! data-sort-type="number" | TEU
! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
|{{convert|20|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1172|cuft|m3|1|abbr=on}}
|{{Convert|160|ft2|m2|1|abbr=on}}
|1<ref name=dsv>{{cite web|url=http://www.dsv.com/sea-freight/sea-container-description/dry-container|title=Dry containers 20' and 40' for general purposes – DSV|website=dsv.com}}</ref>
|
|-
|{{convert|40|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|2389|cuft|m3|1|abbr=on}}
|{{Convert|320|ft2|m2|1|abbr=on}}
|2<ref name=dsv/>
|
|-
|{{convert|48|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3264|cuft|m3|1|abbr=on}}
|{{Convert|384|ft2|m2|1|abbr=on}}
|2.4
|
|-
|{{convert|53|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|3604|cuft|m3|1|abbr=on}}
|{{Convert|424|ft2|m2|1|abbr=on}}
|2.65
|
|-
|{{convert|20|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|9|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|1520|cuft|m3|0|abbr=on}}
|{{Convert|160|ft2|m2|1|abbr=on}}
|1
| ''High cube''
|-
|{{convert|20|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|8|ft|m|2|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|4|ft|3|in|m|abbr=on}}
|{{convert|680|cuft|m3|1|abbr=on}}
|{{Convert|160|ft2|m2|1|abbr=on}}
|1
| ''Half-height''
|}

The carrying capacity of a ship is usually measured by mass (the [[deadweight tonnage]]) or by volume (the [[net register tonnage]]). Deadweight tonnage is generally measured now in metric tons (''[[tonne]]s''). Register tons are measured in cu. ft, with one register ton equivalent to {{convert|100|cuft|m3|2}}.{{Update inline|date=May 2023}}

As the TEU is an inexact unit, it cannot be converted precisely into other units. The related unit ''forty-foot equivalent unit'', however, is defined as two TEU.  

It is common to designate a {{convert|45|ft|m|1|adj=on}} container as 2 TEU, rather than 2.25 TEU.

The most common twenty-foot container occupies a space {{convert|20|ft|m}} long, {{convert|8|ft|m|2}} wide, and {{convert|8|ft|6|in|m}} high, with an allowance externally for the [[corner casting]]s; the internal volume is {{convert|1172|cuft|m3}}. However, both {{convert|9|ft|6|in|m|adj=mid|-tall}} ''High cube'' and {{convert|4|ft|3|in|m|adj=on}} ''half height'' containers are also reckoned as 1 TEU.  This gives a volume range of {{convert|680|to|1520|cuft|m3}} for one TEU.

While the TEU is not itself a measure of mass, some conclusions can be drawn about the maximum mass that a TEU can represent. The maximum gross mass for a {{convert|20|ft|m|adj=on}} dry cargo container is {{convert|24000|kg|lb}}.<ref name="emase">{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090420143514/http://emase.co.uk/data/cont.html|archive-date=April 20, 2009|url=http://www.emase.co.uk/data/cont.html |title=Shipping containers |publisher=Emase |access-date=2007-02-10}}</ref> Subtracting the [[tare weight|tare mass]] of the container itself, the maximum amount of cargo per TEU is reduced to about {{convert|21600|kg|lb}}.<ref name="emase" />

Similarly, the maximum gross mass for a {{convert|40|ft|m|1|adj=on}} dry cargo container (including the {{convert|9|ft|6|in|m|adj=mid|}} ''High cube'' container) is {{convert|30480|kg|lb}}.<ref name="emase"/>  After correcting for tare weight, this gives a cargo capacity of {{convert|26500|kg|lb}}.<ref name="emase"/>

Twenty-foot "heavy tested" containers are available for heavy goods such as heavy machinery. These containers allow a maximum weight of {{convert|67200|lb|kg}}, an empty weight of {{convert|5290|lb|kg}}, and a net load of {{convert|61910|lb|kg}}.{{Citation needed|date=April 2013}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Transport}}
<!-- Please keep entries in alphabetical order & add a short description [[WP:SEEALSO]] -->
* [[Containerization]]
* [[Panama Canal#Tolls|Panama Canal toll system]]
* [[Shipping ton]]
* [[List of busiest container ports]]
<!-- please keep entries in alphabetical order -->

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|group=n}}

==Citations==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*{{cite web |url=http://www.maerskline.com/globalfile/?path=/pdf/containerDimensions |title=Maersk Container Brochure |access-date=2008-10-25 |author=Maersk Shipping |date=2010 |publisher=Maersk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081115054256/http://www.maerskline.com/globalfile/?path=%2Fpdf%2FcontainerDimensions |url-status=dead |archive-date=2008-11-15 }}
*{{cite web |url=http://circa.europa.eu/irc/dsis/bmethods/info/data/new/coded/en/gl000976.htm |title=Glossary: TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) |access-date=2008-03-20 |author=CIRCA |date=2008 |publisher=The [[European Commission]] |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080414090251/http://circa.europa.eu/irc/dsis/bmethods/info/data/new/coded/en/gl000976.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 2008-04-14}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/dictT.html |title=How Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurement |access-date=2008-03-20 |last=Rowlett |first=Russ |author2=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |author2-link=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |date=2000 |publisher=University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill}}
*{{cite journal |url=http://www.iso.org/iso/livelinkgetfile?llNodeId=20881&llVolId=-2000 |title=ISO's container standards are nothing but good news |access-date=2008-03-20 |last=Bohlman |first=Michael |date=September 2001 |format=PDF |journal=ISO Bulletin |publisher=International Organization for Standardization |pages=15 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141016084011/http://www.iso.org/iso/livelinkgetfile?llNodeId=20881&llVolId=-2000 |archive-date=2014-10-16 }}
*{{cite web |url=http://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=4313 |title=Twenty Foot Equivalent Unit (TEU) |access-date=2008-03-20 |author=Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development |date=2002-06-19 |work=Glossary of Statistical Terms |publisher=Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development}}

{{Intermodal containers}}
{{Ship measurements}}
{{Imperial units}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit}}
[[Category:Imperial units]]
[[Category:Nautical terminology]]
[[Category:Intermodal containers]]
[[Category:Port infrastructure]]
[[Category:Ship measurements]]
[[Category:Equivalent units]]