De La Salle University Dasmarias

College of Engineering, Architecture, and Technology

FLUID MECHANICS LAB

MEET324Lk

GROUP RESEARCH # 3

BUOYANCY

Figueroa, Queen Elaine D.

Santiago, Jake Polo L.

Ulgado, Aldwin David E.

MEE32

April 1, 2017

ENGR TOTIE PERERAS

INSTRUCTOR
 INTRODUCTION

Buoyancy is a force exerted by a liquid or gas that opposes an object's weight. Buoyancy
can also be stated as the weight of displaced fluid. Pressure in a fluid increases with depth as a
result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus, an object submerged in a fluid, experiences greater
pressure at the bottom of the fluid than at the top. This difference in pressure results in a net force
that tends to accelerate an object upwards. The magnitude of that force is proportional to the
difference in the pressure between the top and the bottom of the column, and is also equivalent to
the weight of the fluid that would otherwise occupy the column, i.e. the displaced fluid. It is for
that reason that an object whose density is greater than that of the fluid that it is submerged in will
sink. Archimedes' principle allows for the experimental determination of density by providing an
easy and accurate method for determining the volume of an irregularly shaped object.

Figure 1

Archimedes principle, physical law of buoyancy, discovered by the ancient Greek

mathematician and inventor Archimedes, stating that any body completely or partially submerged
in a fluid (gas or liquid) at rest is acted upon by an upward, or buoyant, force the magnitude of
which is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the body. The volume of displaced fluid is
equivalent to the volume of an object fully immersed in a fluid or to that fraction of the volume
below the surface for an object partially submerged in a liquid. The weight of the displaced portion
of the fluid is equivalent to the magnitude of the buoyant force. The buoyant force on a body
floating in a liquid or gas is also equivalent in magnitude to the weight of the floating object and
is opposite in direction; the object neither rises nor sinks.
 I. Buoyancy by Weight Difference

The buoyant force on a submerged object is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced. This
principle is useful for determining the volume and therefore the density of an irregularly shaped
object by measuring its mass in air and its effective mass when submerged in water. This
effective mass under water will be its actual mass minus the mass of the fluid displaced. The
difference between the real and effective mass therefore gives the mass of water displaced and
allows the calculation of the volume of the irregularly shaped object.

Figure 1

Figure 2

II. Buoyancy by Volume Displacement

The volume of displaced fluid is equivalent to the volume of an object fully immersed in a
fluid or to that fraction of the volume below the surface for an object partially submerged in a
liquid.
In fluid mechanics, displacement occurs when an object is immersed in a fluid, pushing
out of the way and taking its place. The volume of the fluid displaced can then be measured,
and the volume of the immersed object can be deduced (the volume of the immersed object
will be exactly equal to the volume of the fluid displaced).
An object that sinks displaces an amount of fluid equal to the object's volume.
 Figure 3

III. Buoyant Forces (Derivation)

The behavior of an object submerged in a fluid is governed by Archimedes' Principle.

Archimedes (a greek mathematician) determined that a body which is completely or partially
submerged in a fluid experiences an upward force called the Buoyant Force, B , which is equal
in magnitude to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object. This principle can be used to
explain why ships, loaded with millions of kilograms of cargo, are able to float.

To prove Archimedes' Principle, consider an object immersed in a fluid, as shown in the

Fig.4

Figure 4

The buoyant force is due to the difference between the pressure at the bottom of the
object pushing up on it, and the pressure at the top pushing down. Thus:

B = (PB - PT)A (14)

where we assume that the top and bottom of the object have the same area A .
 Previously, we showed that the pressure at the bottom of the cube is greater than that at the

top by gh , where is the density of the fluid and h is the height of the object.
Substituting this into the above equation gives:

B= ghA = Vg = mfg = wf

where V = hA is the volume of the displaced fluid and wf = mfg = Vg is the weight of
the displaced fluid. This proves Archimedes' principle:

B = wf

This result holds true for an object of any size, density or shape which is totally
submerged.

Note:

If an object is totally submerged, then Vf = Vo , where Vo is the total volume of the object.
The net upward force on a completely submerged object is therefore:

B - wo = ( - )Vog

where we have used the fact that the weight of the object wo = gVo . Thus, whether a
submerged object sinks or rises to the surface is determined by the relative magnitude

of and . If > , the object rises, if < , then the object sinks.

If an object is floating on the surface (neither sinking nor rising further) then the volume
that is below the surface can be determined by requiring the net force on the object to be
zero:

B - wo = gVf - wo = 0

where Vf is the volume of the object that is submerged (which equals the volume of
displaced fluid) and wo is the total weight of the object. If the object has volume Vo and
uniform density , then the fraction of the volume below the surface is:

= .
 METHODOLOGY

Materials:

1. Weighing scale
2. 50mm3 wooden block
3. Strings
4. Container (Graduated cylinder)
5. Fluid (Water)

Procedures:

Determining Buoyancy by Weight Difference

1. Use a weighing scale to calculate the mass of the object in air.

2. Calculate the weight using w = mg
3. Use again a weighing scale to determine the weight of the object in water
4. Find the difference between the weight of the object in air and the weight in water.
5. This value is known as the Buoyant Force. Call this value BF1.

Determining Buoyancy by Volume Displacement while submerged in fluid.

1. Determine the volume of the object in cm3 and take note the initial volume of water in the
container (e.g. graduated cylinder).
2. Place the object inside the container with water; take note the volume rise.
3. Subtract the new volume with the initial volume. This is the volume of the object.
4. Find the mass using the formula density, =m/v
5. Calculate the weight using w = mg
6. This value is the theoretical buoyant force determined directly from Archimedes Principle.
Call this value BF2.
7. You can calculate for the % difference between the experimental and theoretical values for
the buoyant force using % difference equation stated below.

|1 2 |
% = 100%
1
(1 + 2 )
2

REFERENCES:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buoyancy
http://physics.info/buoyancy/summary.shtml
https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/WindTunnel/Activities/buoy_Archimedes.html
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/physics/fluids/buoyant-force-and-archimedes-
principle/a/buoyant-force-and-archimedes-principle-article
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/pbuoy.html