Buoyancy and Archimedes Principle

(Pre Lab Assignment Included)

Archimedes, the mathematician, physicist and engineer was born around 287 BC in Syracuse,
the son of Phidias, an astronomer. Archimedes studied in Alexandria, before returning to his
native Sicily. The picture shown here, usually thought to be Archimedes, isn't even him though
it is used in coins and stamps. His experiments yielded "Archimedes' Principle" that a body
immersed in fluid loses as much weight as the weight of the liquid it displaces. Using water
displacement in this way, Archimedes demonstrated that the king's crown was not made of solid
gold. Realising his discovery's validity but forgetting to dress before leaving the pool where he
was experimenting, he ran down the streets, naked, shouting the now famous phrase "Eureka!"
("I've found it."). Archimedes is also credited with many other notable achievements in physics
and mathematics such as the principle of the lever, the discovery of etc. He also probably
believed the Earth to be round, a theory expressed in medieval Arab-Norman Sicily, in China and
elsewhere. Archimedes was killed during the siege of Syracuse in 212 BC.

h1
h2

Ftop
mg
Fbottom

Figure 1: Free body diagram of a rectangular object immersed in a fluid. A is the area of the top and bottom.
When we jump into the swimming pool we all feel lighter; this is due to the buoyant force. It is not a new force, but
is a consequence of the fact that our body is taking up the space that was formerly water. When an object is
completely submerged in a fluid (liquids and gases), all parts of the object experience fluid pressure. The fluid
pressure increases with the depth of the fluid. The top surface of the object shown supports all the liquid above it
and thus Ftop= (fluid g h1)A, where fluid is the density of the fluid, g is the acceleration due to gravity, h1 is the depth
in the fluid of the top surface and A is the area of the top surface. The pressure is greater at the bottom of the object
and is fluid g h2 . The total force acting on the bottom surface is Fbottom= (fluid g h2)A. (In the absence of the object,
this volume would be filled with the fluid and the pressure along the line marking the bottom surface of the object
would be upwards, supporting the fluid above it). Given that h2>h1, the upward force acting on the bottom surface is
larger. The net upward force from the fluid acting on the object is: Fnet=Fbottom Ftop= fluid g {( h2 - h1)A}= fluid g V,
where V=( h2 - h1)A, is the volume of the fluid taken up (displaced) by the object. The net force is called the
Buoyant Force (FB) (Consequently, the object experiences a net upward force called a buoyant force.
Archimedes Principle states that the buoyant force, FB equals the weight of the fluid displaced by the object,
FB =Fnet=Vg

(1)

Note that Vg is the weight of the fluid displaced by the object. This equality between the buoyant force and the
weight of the displaced fluid is called the Archimedes Principle and it applies to all types of fluids, both liquids
and gases. Note that it also applies to floating objects, where Ftop=0. In todays lab you will be studying how
Archimedes Principle applies to objects completely submerged or floating in water.

Todays lab is divided into three parts. In part I you will use Archimedes Principle to measure the density of three
metal cylinders, each made of a different metal. You will be asked to identify the type of metal based upon the
measured density. The densities of several metals will be provided for comparison. In part II you will verify that the
buoyant force is proportional to the volume of the displaced water, as indicated in eqn (1) above. You will measure
the buoyant force on several cylinders made with the same metal, but having different volumes. The volume in each
case will be calculated from measurements with calipers. In part III you will study how Archimedes Principle is
applied to an object floating in water. Using a wood block, you will directly measure what percentage of the wood
is below the water level. You will compare this measured percentage to that predicted by Archimedes Principle.

Apparatus and Measurement

Figure 2: Apparatus used for measurements of buoyant force.

Figure 2 is photograph of the apparatus used to measure buoyant force. The metal cylinder is placed in a nylon net
which is suspended from a hanging scale. This entire assembly can be raised or lowered in or out of the water
contained in the plastic container. The hanging scale is calibrated in grams for mass measurements, or Newtons for
weight measurements. The buoyant force is simply the difference in weight of the cylinder out of the water, Wo, and
the weight when the cylinder is completely submerged in the water, Wi , or
FB = Wo Wi

(2)

From the measured value of FB , we can easily calculate the volume, V, using Archimedes Principle, = 1.0 g/cm3
for water, and g = 9.8 m/s2. This assumes that the mass of the net and the buoyant force acting on it can be neglected
in comparison with those of the cylinder. In this case, the volume of the displaced water is equal to the volume of
the metal cylinder. Knowing the mass and volume of the metal cylinder, its density can easily be calculated.

Procedure Part I [3.0]

1.

In this part of the lab you will use the black metal cylinders. Place one of the metal cylinders in the nylon
net and weigh the cylinder using the hanging scale. The weight of the net is negligible. Using the scale
calibrated in Newtons, record the weight in your notebook. At this point, just let the net containing the
cylinder hang from the scale.

2.

Fill the plastic container with tap water up to the mark on the side of the container. Then place the
container underneath the net.

3.

Lower the hanging scale until the cylinder (inside the net) is completely submerged in the water. Do not
allow the cylinder to touch the bottom of the container. Tap gently to remove air bubbles from the cylinder.
Record the weight in Newtons.

4.

Calculate the buoyant force, FB, using eqn (2) above.

5.

Use eqn (1) to calculate the volume, V, of the displaced water.

6.

From the weight in step 1, calculate the mass of the cylinder. Then calculate its density using the volume
from step 5 above.

7.

The table below shows the density of several metals:

Metal

Density (g/cm3)

Lead
Aluminum
Steel
Tin
Copper
Tungsten

11.3
2.7
8.0
5.8
8.9
19.3

Referring to the above table, what type of metal is the cylinder made of?
8.

Repeat steps 1 through 7 for the other two black cylinders.

Procedure Part II [2.0]

1.

In this part of the lab, you will use the four aluminum cylinders, each having a different volume. Using
calipers, make the appropriate measurements and calculate the volume of each cylinder in m3. Record the
results in a table having the following columns:
V (m3)

Wo(N)

Wi(N)

FB(N)

2.

For each cylinder measure Wo and Wi using the same method as in part I. In each case, calculate the
buoyant force using eqn (2) above, recording your results in the above table.

3.

Use Data Studio to plot FB vs V. Make a copy of the table and graph for you notebook. Is the graph linear?
Perform a Linear Fit to the data and find the slope.

4.

Calculate the predicted value of the slope, by referring to eqn (1) above.

5.

Calculate the percent error between the predicted and measured slope.

Procedure Part III [1.5]

1.

In this part of the lab, you will be using the wooden block. Using calipers, measure the dimensions of the
block and calculate its volume. Record the result in your notebook.

2.

Using the electronic scale, measure and record the mass of the block.

3.

Calculate and record the density of the block .

4.

Carefully place the block in the container of water. Using the scale on the side of the block, determine how
much of the block is submerged. Express your result as a percentage.

5.

Use the formula derived in the prelab assignment to predict how much of the block should be submerged.
Calculate the percent error between the measured and predicted values.

Part IV - Answer the questions below: [0.5]

1. How does a boat or ship carrying hundreds of pounds worth of material float while that same stuff would
sink to the bottom of the ocean if dumped overboard?

2. Will the buoyancy felt by your body in a pool be more if you stretch your body out flat or if you curl up into
a ball ?

Additional points will be awarded for your statement of Purpose [0.5], your written Conclusions [0.5], and for the
Quiz and/or Overall neatness and organization of your report [1.0].

PRE LAB ASSIGNMENT [1.0 point]

In part 3 of this lab you will float a wood block in a container filled with water. Derive a formula predicting the
percentage of the block submerged. (Hint: This is a problem in fluid statics. The weight of the block must be
balanced by the buoyant force). The formula should be expressed as a ratio in terms of the volume of the block,
Vblock, and the volume of displaced water, Vwater. The result should be given in terms of the density of the block,
block, and the density of water, water.