why do some object float in water and others sink waht diffefences does it make in different liquids?

Question

What difference wouod it make if a golf ball was sunk in sugar solution and why?

Answer 1

Items float in water because they have a lower density than the water.
Waters density is around 1g/cm^3
Density is found by mass divided by volume - in other words it relates to how much matter is in a given area of the object.
Denser items are heavy for their size, such as metals.

A sugar solution is denser than water because of all the extra matter (caused by sugar) in the same given area. Therefore a golf ball which cannot float in water, is more likely to be able to float in sugar solution.
this alos explains why almost everyone can float in the Dead Sea which has a far higher salt content than other bodies of water.

Hope this was helpful :)

Answer 2

Gravity is pulling everything down, both the liquid and the object placed on the liquid. As gravity pulls the object down, the level of the liquid rises against the pull of gravity, as the object begins to displace the liquid At the point at which the weight of the displaced liquid is equal to the weight of the object, the object will not fall any lower in the liquid. The weight of the object is balanced against the weight of the liquid, just like a pair of scales.

Also the heavier the liquid the less of it will need to be displaced to balance the object dropped into it. If water is lighter than sugar solution, then a golf ball might float in the sugar solution but sink in water.

Generally, things will float when their size is big compared with their weight. A big object which is light, will displace a lot of liquid, which is heavy. If you've ever tried filling a bucket with water and then tried to lift it you'll know what I mean. The empty bucket is light, but is the same size as the water you filled it with, which is much heavier. This is why an empty bucket will float very easily on water, and will continue to float even if you start to make the bucket heavier by putting sand in it, for as long as the weight of the sand is less than the weight of the bucket filled with water.

This by the way is not Archimedes principle: that is to do with his measuring the volume of irregular solids by measuring the amount of water they displace. Having measured the volume, and the weight of the King's crown, he could then say whether it had the density of real gold, or was just a gold plated cheat.

Answer 3

Solids, when placed in liquids, naturally place themselves in 'density order' with the liquid concerned. If the solid object has a lower density (less mass per unit volume) than the liquid, the force of gravity upon the solid will be insufficient to displace enough liquid to bring the solid below the surface. In other words, the solid will float. If the solid is more dense than the liquid, it will sink.

It is worth noting that a floating object displaces an amount of liquid equal to its own mass, whereas a sunken object displaces its own volume. If a golf ball was to be immersed (sunk) in sugar solution, for whatever reason that might be, the level of the surface of the solution in the container would rise by the same amount as if the containerhad received the addition of solution equal in volume to that of the golf ball.

Answer 4

This is Archimedes' principle. That an object immersed in a fluid will experience an upward force equivalent to the weight of fluid it displaces. So, the density of the fluid is a factor. The more dense the fluid, the more upward force since the for the same volume more mass.

If the object displaces more than its weight it will float. The proportion of the object submerged being the amount required to generate a displacement with an upward force equal to the weight of the object.

If a golf ball was sunk in sugar solution, as opposed to pure water, it will displace the same volume of liquid, but the liquid will weigh more since the sugar solution is denser. If the weight of liquid displaced is equal to the golf ball, it will float.

Notice here that we refer to "weight" of liquid and not "mass". It is important because we are talking about forces and not quantities of matter.

Answer 5

I think it has to do with density - if what you're trying to float has a lower density than what you're trying to float it in, then it will float. Oxygen would have a lower density than water - that's why so many air-filled pool toys float.
As for a golf ball in sugar solution... I don't see what you're trying to compare it to, so I don't know.

Answer 6

if the liquid/objects density is more than that of water it will sink or go under....
hollow objets(balls) float....its the air inside them that make them afloat.....

Answer 7

It's all to do with buoyancy and the shape of the object.

Answer 8

density