Buoyancy Lab
By Saturday, August 31, please complete this lab by performing the described buoyancy experiment and completing the lab report. Please see the attached Lab_Report-1.doc template to help you create the lab report.
You should be submitting your data table, analysis, and answers to the concluding questions.
In this experiment, you will measure the mass of ice by noting how much water it displaces.
Materials:
- a clear, round, drinking glass with straight vertical sides (in other words, cylindrical)
- ice
- water
- a felt tip marker or masking tape
- a metric ruler
Procedure:
In this experiment, you will measure the mass of a handful of ice by observing how much water it displaces. This will be done by measuring how much the water level rises when the ice is placed in a glass of water.
- Using the ruler, measure the diameter of your glass and record in a data table.
- Find the radius of your glass by dividing the diameter by 2 and record in a data table.
- Fill the glass halfway with water and mark the level of the water using a marker or masking tape.
- Place a handful of ice in the water.
- Mark the new water level using a marker or masking tape.
- Using the ruler, measure the increase in water level by measuring the distance between your two marks on the glass. Record in a data table. Repeat your measurement to make sure you have accurate data.
Data Table:
- diameter of glass (cm): D=?
- radius of glass (radius = diameter/2) (cm): r=?
- increase in water level (cm): h=?
Analysis:
- Find the volume of water displaced. The volume is given by:
Where V is the volume, π is 3.14, r is the radius, and h is the increase in water level. - Find the mass of the ice.
To do this, note that you just found the volume of the water displaced. The mass of this volume of water is equal to the mass of the ice. This mass can be found by:
Where m is mass, ρ is the density of water (1 gm/cm3), and V is the volume of water displaced.
Concluding Questions:
- How does the amount of water displaced depend upon the mass of the ice?
- Most ice has some air bubbles in it. What effect does this have on the mass of the ice? What effect does this have on the amount of water displaced? Is this a concern, or will your measured mass still be correct if air bubbles are present?
- What are some errors in this experiment?