Samuel 9D

An experiment of Density
Aim: To find out why some objects float in water and why some sink? Safety Precautions: Beware of spilling water Objects to be handled with care Hypothesis: If an object has a higher density compared to that of water, which is 1 g/cm3, then the object would sink in water, whereas an object of lower density would float on water, because with higher density, the downward gravitational force would be much stronger than the waters upward buoyancy force, thus sinking the object, whereas an object less dense would have less gravitational force, thus causing the object to float on the water. Variables: Independent Variable: Type of object Dependent Variable: Density/Buoyancy Controlled Variable: Volume measurement technique, temperature of water (for testing), tools for measuring volume and mass Apparatus: 2 objects Beaker Measuring cylinder String Electronic balance Vernier callipers Calculator (not necessary)

Procedure:

Samuel 9D

1. Find the mass of the first object using the electronic balance in grams. 2. If the object is regular, measure its volume by finding its dimensions with a vernier callipers and use a formula. 3. If the object is irregular, use the beaker/measuring cylinder filled with water and insert the object in it. Record the difference between the new and initial height of the water as the volume in cubic centimeters. 4. Find the objects density by dividing the mass by volume in g/cm3. 5. Once the density has been measured, place it in a beaker of water to prove that its density is less or more than of waters. 6. Repeat steps 1-5 with the 2nd object. Diagram:

Table of Results:

Samuel 9D

Plastacine Wooden cylinder Graph:

Avg. Mass 7.06 g 12.63 g

Avg. Vol. 6 cm3 3.14*1*10.25= 32.3 cm3

Density 1.18 g/cm3 0.39 g/cm3

Floats? No Yes

Discussion of Results: The results showed up as planned, and there were no problems within the expected results. Although the real density of plasticine was 1.85 g/cm3, and the density of wood varying a bit higher, the main aim has been achieved. Conclusion: The objects followed the hypothesis above; that objects of densities greater than 1 sink, and those of densities lesser than 1 float. After measuring the wood to have less density than 1, the wood was shown to have

Samuel 9D

floated on water and the plastacine sank. It is safe to say that the hypothesis is correct and true. Evaluation: Some errors were made during the experiment due to the minute detail of the measurements. Parallax errors were observed while finding the plastacines volume, and so we used an average. The mass was quite accurate with the electronic balance showing no problem. The dimensions of the wooden cylinder were not as detailed as the vernier callipers least count was not quite small compared to the others. Overall, the results could have been more accurate had we a more accurate VC.