14 Buoyant Force WB.

ds Bouyancy

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Buoyant Force

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Student Information
Enter the appropriate information in the boxes below.

Date: Your Name: Group:

12/1/11

Meagan Dillard Sarah Maggert Shantini Ramakrishnan

Period:

Lab 14

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Introduction
Anyone who has tried to push a beach ball under the water has felt how the water pushes back with a strong upward force. This upward force is called the bouyant force and all fluids apply such a force to objects that are immersed in them. The bouyant force exists because fluid pressure is larger at greater depths. Use the Force Sensor to measure the change in force on an object as it is lowered into water. Plot force versus submerged depth to obtain the density of the

The buoyant force in the Dead Sea is greater because the salt water has a higher density than fresh water.

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Learning Outcomes
You will be able to: Measure the buoyant force acting on a submerged object. Determine the slope of a force versus depth plot. Apply Archimedes' Principle to determine the fluid density from the slope of the graph. Compare a calculated value for density with an accepted value.

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Hypothesis
How does buoyant force change with depth? In which would you feel a stronger buoyant force: a swimming pool filled with oil or with syrup? In a column of fluid pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus a column of fluid or an object submerged in the fluid experiences greater pressure at the bottom of the column than at the top. Syrup is more dense than oil resulting in a stronger buoyant force. Buoyant force is equal to the volume and density of the fluid that is displaced, and mass of the object is constant.

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Background
Archimedes' Principle states that the buoyant upward force on an object entirely or partially submerged in a fluid is equal to the weight of the fluid, mg, displaced by the object. The formula for Archimedes' Principle is shown in Equation 14.1 where rho is the density of the fluid, V is the submerged volume of the object, and g is the acceleration due to gravity. The submerged volume is equal to the cross-sectional area, A, multiplied by the submerged height, h. So the buoyant force can be written as shown in Equation 14.2. If the object is lowered into the fluid while the buoyant force is measured, the slope of the graph of F versus h is proportional to the density of the fluid. For more information see Cutnell & Johnson, Physics, 6th ed., Volume One, Chapter 11, Section 11.6.
Equation 14.1: Archimedes' Principle

Equation 14.2: Buoyant Force

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Materials
USB Link PASPORT Force Sensor Right Angle Clamp Base 2 Rods Metric Ruler (not shown) Laboratory Jack, Medium Density Set Stainless Steel Calipers 1000 mL Beaker String

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Setup

Equipment Setup

Safety Reminder: Follow the directions for using the equipment.

Mount the Force Sensor on a horizontal rod with the hook end down. Using the calipers, measure the diameter of the metal cylinder. From the diameter, calculate the radius and the cross-section area. Record the cross-section in the text box provided. Note: It is important your value for "A" be in square meters to simplify your calculations. Hang the metal cylinder from the Force Sensor hook with a string. Put about 800 mL of water into the beaker and place the beaker on the lab jack below the hanging cylinder. The bottom of the cylinder should be touching the water but not submerged. Position the metric ruler next to the edge of the lab jack.
A (cross-section):

0.000346361

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Setup

Equipment Setup

A picture of the setup is below. Note the the initial height of the top of the lab jack. Note: Be sure to Zero the Force Sensor before beginning to take data.

Note the initial height of the top of the lab jack.

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Process

Record Force and Depth Data

Click Start. (The Start button changes to Keep.) The Force will appear in the first cell in the Table display. Click the Keep button to record the first value (the force at zero depth). Immerse the cylinder 5 millimeters (5mm or 0.005 m) by raising the beaker of water 5 mm with the lab jack. Use the metric ruler to measure the distance that you raised the lab jack. Click Keep to record the force at 5 mm. Increase the depth of submersion by increments of 0.005 m. After each increase in the submersion, wait for the force reading to stabilize, then click Keep. Click the Stop button when you have recorded the final value of 0.060 m. Your data will be graphed on the next page.

@ Force vs Depth
No Data Depth (m) Force (N)

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Process

Find the Slope of Force versus Depth

0.35

Determine the slope of the graph. Click Scale to Fit to rescale the graph if needed. Click the Fit button. Select Linear Fit from the menu. Record the Slope (m) in the text box provided.
@

E Force vs Depth Run #1

0.30

0.25

@ @
(N)

0.20

@ @ @ @ @ @
Linear Fit m ( Slope ) 4.18 0.21 b ( Y Intercept ) 0.0280 0.0069 r 0.987 Mean Squared Error 1.34E-4 Root MSE 0.0116

0.15

0.10

0.05

@
0.020 0.040 Depth( m ) 0.060 0.080

Slope:

4.18

-0.05

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Observations
Why was the Force Sensor zeroed after the cylinder was attached to the hook?

To ensure that the first recorded value is the force at zero depth.

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Analyze

Variables

What was the independent variable in this activity (the one that you changed)? What was the dependent variable (the one that responded to the change)? How did the dependent variable respond?

The independent variable in this activity was the depth of submersion. The dependent variable in this activity was the buoyant force. There was a positive relationship.

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Analyze

Calculations

Calculate the density of water by setting the slope equal to (rho)Ag and solving for

Slope (Force/Depth): A (cross-section): Acceleration due to gravity (g): Density of water (rho):

4.18 0.000346361

9.80 m/s^2
1231.46

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Analyze

Comparison

The value you found for the density of water is:

Density of water (rho):

1231.46

The accepted value for the density of water is: Density of water (rho):

1000 kg/m^3

How does your experimental value compared to the accepted value for the density of water? Why?

Our experimental value was greater than the accepted value for the density of water. Experimental conditions allows for possibility of error.

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Synthesize

Verification

Compute the percent difference.

Density of water measured (rho): Density of water theoretical (rho):

1231.46

1000 kg/m^3 23.15

% difference:

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Synthesize

Error Analysis and Conclusion

How does the buoyant force in water relate to the depth? What were the sources of error in this experiment? How does your hypothesis compare to your results? Hypothesis:

Buoyant force is exerted by a fluid that opposes an object's mass. In a column of fluid pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus a column of fluid or an object submerged in the fluid experiences greater pressure at the bottom of the column than at the top. Sources of error include miscalibration of the sensor and equipment malfunction. Our hypothesis was supported by this

In a column of fluid pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus a column of fluid or an object submerged in the fluid experiences greater pressure at the bottom of the column than at the top. Syrup is more dense than oil resulting in a stronger buoyant force. Buoyant force is equal to the volume and density of the fluid that is displaced, and mass of the object is constant.

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Synthesize

Application and Extension Problem

Why are ships weighing as much as 45,000 tons able to float? (examples: aircraft carrier, cruise ships)

The average density of the boat- the combination of steel and air- is much less than that of water, so very little of the boat must be submerged before its weight is displaced.

In Cutnell & Johnson, Physics, 6th ed., Volume One, Chapter 11, problem 44, page 332. What is the smallest number of whole logs (rho = 725 kg/m^3, radius = 0.0800 m, length = 3.00 m) that can be used to build a raft that will carry four people, each of whom has a mass of 80.0 kg?
19.32= 20 logs

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