If a really strong but very light material were available to contain a vacuum, would it float away?
2007-10-08 11:05:04 · 7 answers · asked by Never say Never 5 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
Yes. If a rigid container was less massive that the air that was pumped, it would float away. Anybody care to calculate what such a material's compression strength to mass ratio would have to be if it were a spherical shell, ignoring the buckling instability?
2007-10-08 12:58:03 · answer #1 · answered by Dr. R 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hydrogen is lighter than air, but imagine a vacuum in an atmosphere of hydrogen - it would be lighter.
The problem is that air and hydrogen are both gases and exert the same pressure against each other, so only need separating for the hydrogen to rise in the air.
Because there is nothing in a vacuum, a rigid container would be needed, able to resist the pressure of the surrounding gas. Whatever it was made from, it would probably be heavier than the same enclosed volume of hydrogen in a light balloon.
2007-10-08 11:27:17 · answer #2 · answered by Borogrove 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
In theory, YES , but in real life you would not get a light material the thickness of a balloon skin to be able to handle a vacuum.
2007-10-09 21:57:37 · answer #3 · answered by matrix 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only if the container were lighter than the surrounding material / gas. Hydrogen has a weight, nothing has no weight.
2007-10-08 11:08:22 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes because a vacuum is literally nothing
2007-10-08 11:17:58 · answer #5 · answered by Quizard 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yep!! Hydrogen's light, but it's there!! Take it away....and you've got less. And less weighs less!!
2007-10-08 11:08:17 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
yes. nothing is always going to be lighter that something
2007-10-08 11:08:32 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋