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Physics

LAB: Determining Effective Weigh

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Physics Lab

Lab: Bouyancy and Effective weight

Goals: to determine the density of an object from its buoyancy.

Materials:

Procedure

  1. Using the wire or paper clip, fasten the solid to the hook of your spring scale.
  2. Weigh the solid of unknown density on the appropriate scale in the open air and record the actual weight w.
  3. Submerge the solid in water, and record the effective weight w'.

Data Handling

  1. Using the method in example 10-4, determine the density and volume of your solid. Assume that the water density is 1.00 gm/cc.

Report

  1. Describe your materials, equipment, an dprocedures in sufficient detail that your fellow students could repeat your experiment.
  2. Report your data. Be sure to indicate the amount of error in your measurements. For example, if you can only measure a mass of 25 gms within 1 grm, your error would be 25 ± 1, or 1/25 = 4%.
  3. Present your data in an organized form, preferably in a table, in such a way it is easy to compare results as you repeate trials or vary a specific contributing factor.
  4. Show a sample calculation, if you have calculated values.
  5. If you did a series of experiments, varying something by increasing or decreasing a factor, try to plot your data (y-axis) as a function of the factor (x-axis).
  6. You may use a spreadsheet to calculate your information and create your table.
  7. Summarize your results.
  8. Draw conclusions about what is happening.
  9. Suggest at least one way to improve your experiment.

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