How would you get the volume of an irregular solid that floats on water?

Answer 1

use something of known volume to hold it down.

Answer 2

Partly fill a graduated container with enough water so that the object can be submerged without overflowing the container. Before putting the object in, take an initial reading. Now submerge the object with your hand so that it just goes under the surface, and your hand is not in the water (to a significant degree). Take a final reading, subtract the initial reading, and you have the volume.

Second method: Fill a container to the top with water, and place it in another container which will catch the water that overflows. Immerse the object as in method 1, so that the water in the first container overflows into the second one. Remove the object and the first container, and pour out the water that overflowed into the second container into a graduated container, so you can measure the amount. That will be the object's volume.

Answer 3

Very easy. You dump your object into a pan of water that's filled to the brim, and collect the water your object dispaces. Then, if you are Archimedes, you shout "Eureka" and run naked about the streets of your home town. If not, you weigh the water you've collected and assume that a kilogram of water equals a liter of volume. So now you know the volume of your object. Note that this is only exact at STP and for pure water.

Answer 4

Both prior answers are correct if taken together. If you use a heavy weight and a string which will hold the object underwater and you know the volume of the weight and string (or if you "zero" the amount of water in your beaker with the weight and string in it) then the amount of water displaced equals the volume. good luck

Answer 5

by the amount of water it displaces.