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What Is Buoyancy?: Archimedes' Principle

This document explains the principle of buoyancy, which describes why objects float or sink in water. Buoyancy is the upward force exerted by displaced water on an object. If an object's density is less than that of water (1 g/cm3), the buoyant force will be greater than the object's weight and it will float. If an object's density exceeds 1 g/cm3, its weight will be greater than the buoyant force and it will sink. Neutral buoyancy occurs when buoyant force and weight are equal and density equals 1 g/cm3, meaning the object neither sinks nor floats. The document relates buoyancy to building a robotic sea perch that can submerge without sinking.

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Yelchuri Kumar Phanindra
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57 views

What Is Buoyancy?: Archimedes' Principle

This document explains the principle of buoyancy, which describes why objects float or sink in water. Buoyancy is the upward force exerted by displaced water on an object. If an object's density is less than that of water (1 g/cm3), the buoyant force will be greater than the object's weight and it will float. If an object's density exceeds 1 g/cm3, its weight will be greater than the buoyant force and it will sink. Neutral buoyancy occurs when buoyant force and weight are equal and density equals 1 g/cm3, meaning the object neither sinks nor floats. The document relates buoyancy to building a robotic sea perch that can submerge without sinking.

Uploaded by

Yelchuri Kumar Phanindra
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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What is Buoyancy?

 
Have you ever wondered why massive boats and ships weighing hundreds of tons float while small 
objects like rocks sink?  Have you ever wondered why when you inhale in a pool you float and when 
you exhale you sink to the bottom even though you weigh the same?  This phenomenon can be 
explained by the scientific principle called buoyancy. 
 
Buoyancy is the upward force that an object feels from the water and when compared to the weight 
of the object, it is what makes an object float, sink, or remain neutrally buoyant in the water. 
 
When an object floats, the upward buoyant force exerted by the water is greater than the downward 
force of the weight of the object. You can also understand this concept with numbers.  If an object’s 
density is less than water’s density (1 g/cm³), it will float.

When an object sinks, the weight of the object is greater than the upward buoyant force exerted by 
the water and its density is greater than 1 g/cm³. When an object is neutrally buoyant, meaning it 
neither sinks nor floats, then the weight of the object is equal to the upward buoyant force exerted 
by the water. 
 
When neutrally buoyant in water, the object also has the same density as water.  Neutral buoyancy is 
a very important principle in the sea perch competition. Just like a real submarine, you will want your 
sea perch to be able to submerge below the surface of the water without just sinking to the floor. 

Density of Object>1 g/cm³ Density of Object = 1 0 g/cm³ <Density of Object<1 g/cm³


g/cm³
 
 
When you start to build your sea perch, you will want to consider this principle. We can calculate just 
how much buoyancy your sea perch will need in order to be neutrally buoyant if we understand 
Archimedes’ Principle. 

Archimedes’ said that the upward buoyant force is equal to the weight of the displaced volume of 
liquid.  So, if you were to fill a bucket of water to the top, put an object in there (like your perch!), 
and collect all of the water that spilled over the side and weigh it, you would be measuring the 
buoyant force exerted by water on your perch!

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