D E N S I T Y PA RT 1

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
• To explain what is meant by density
• To describe how to measure the density of solids, liquids and gases.
• Describe how the density of a substance relates to its mass in a defined volume.
W H I C H I S H E AV I E R , 1 K G O F I R O N O R 1 3

K G O F F E AT H E R S ?
W H I C H O B J E C T W I L L TA K E U P M O R E 4

S PA C E ? I R O N O R F E AT H E R ?
W H Y D O 1 KG O F S T E E L A N D F E AT H E R S
DO NOT OCCUPY THE SAME VOLUME?

Why do 1 kg of iron and

feathers do not occupy the
same volume?
WHICH ONE HAS HIGHER DENSITY?
 W H AT I S D E N S I T Y ?

Density is defined as mass per

unit volume.

To find out the density of any

material, we need to measure the
volume and mass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE8I_M2pyg8 7
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Volume is
the
amount of
space
occupies
by matter.
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HOW TO MEASURE THE DENSITY?
MEASURING THE
VOLUME OF A
REGULAR SOLID

V=wxlxh
V = π x r2 x h
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30,000 cm3

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 Task : Check your understanding
A fish-tank has a length of 45 centimeters, a width of 25
centimeter and a depth of 10 centimeter. Find the volume of the
fish-tank.
10250 cm3
11250 cm3
11250 ft3
10250 ft3

64 cm3
410 cm3 12 cm3
420 cm3 48 cm3
402 cm3 32 cm3
401 cm3
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 Task : Check your understanding
A fish-tank has a length of 45 centimeters, a width of 25
centimeter and a depth of 10 centimeter. Find the volume of the
fish-tank.
10250 cm3
11250 cm3
11250 ft3
10250 ft3

64 cm3
410 cm3 12 cm3
420 cm3 48 cm3
402 cm3 32 cm3
401 cm3
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How will you determine the
density of a stone or rock?
Explain it in words.

Is the stone having a regular

shape? What shape is it?
How will you find a stone’s
volume?

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MEASURING THE VOLUME OF AN
IRREGULAR SOLID
Smaller solid Larger solid
Measure the change in level Measure the volume of water
of the water in a measuring displaced. The string is
cylinder assumed to have no volume.
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To find the volume of an irregular
object: Take water in the measuring
cylinder and note down the initial
volume of water. Then tie a string to
the irregular object and drop it in
the measuring cylinder slowly. When
the water stays still, note down the
final volume of water. When you
subtract the initial volume from the
final volume, you get the volume of
the irregular object.

Click here to watch the video

Volume of the irregular object = Final volume – Initial volume.
This method of using water displacement is called water displacement
method.

Task (class work) : Answer the questions from page 165 of the Physics text
book.

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VOLUME UNITS
1 cubic metre (1 m3)
= 1m x 1m x 1m
= 100cm x 100cm x 100cm
= 1000 000cm3

1 m3 = 1000 000 cm3

NOTE: 1 cubic centimetre (cm3 OR ‘cc’) is also the

same as 1 millilitre (ml)
 Task : Check your understanding
Calculate the volume of an irregular object.
Which lab tool might you use to measure
Initial volume of water = 32 ml
the volume of a liquid?
Final volume of water = 54 ml electric scale
bunsen burner
test tube
graduated cylinder
What do you call the "dip" in the water of the
graduated cylinder that we use to measure the
volume of an irregular object? If you start with a water level at 150 ml in a
a measurement dip graduated cylinder & you drop in a stone and the
menicus level raises to 157 ml, what is the volume of the stone?
eclipsis 6 ml
7 ml
157 ml

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 Task : Check your understanding
Calculate the volume of an irregular object. Which lab tool might you use to measure
Initial volume of water = 32 ml the volume of a liquid?
electric scale
Final volume of water = 54 ml
bunsen burner
Volume of the object = 54-32 =22ml = test tube
22cm3 graduated cylinder

If you start with a water level at 150 ml in a

What do you call the "dip" in the water of the graduated cylinder & you drop in a stone and the
graduated cylinder that we use to measure the level raises to 157 ml, what is the volume of the stone?
volume of an irregular object? 6 ml
a measurement dip 7 ml
menicus 157 ml
eclipsis

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DENSITY (Ρ)
density = mass
volume

ρ=m/V

mass, m is measured in kilograms (kg)

volume, V is measured in cubic metres (m3)
density, ρ is measured
in kilograms per cubic metres (kg/m3)
also:
mass = density x volume
m
and:
ρ V
volume = density
volume
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A golden-colored cube is handed to you.
The person wants you to buy it for
$1000, saying that is a gold nugget. You
pull out your old geology text and look Group
Work
up gold in the mineral table, and read
that its density is 19.3 g/cm3. You
measure the cube and find that it is
2 cm on each side, and weighs 40 g.
What is its density? Is it gold? Should you
buy it?

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volume = length x width x height.

Volume = 2cm x 2cm x 2cm = 8cm . 3 Thus the cube is NOT gold, since
the density (5.0 g/cm3) is not
the same as gold (19.3g/cm3).

You might even notice that the

density of pyrite (a.k.a. fool's
gold) is 5.0 g/cm3. Luckily you
know about density!

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DETERMINE THE DENSITY OF
SOLID AND LIQUID
• https://learning.cambridgeinternational.org/classroom/course/view.php?id=2980
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How to determine the density of a liquid?

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45
 There are more
particles in 1
cm3 of solid than
in 1 cm3 gases.

The mass of 1
cm3 of a solid is
bigger than the
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nV mass of the
rsgESZh-Y same volume of
Watch this a gas
video
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THE END