Patel 1

Measuring Density

Anika R. Patel

October 18th 2021

Honors Physics - 3 (Period 4)

Peter Tian
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Abstract

In this lab experiment, we calculated the density of three different objects: a cylinder,

sphere, and rectangular prism. We measured the mass and the volume of each object twice in

order to have a more accurate reading and to find the average density of the individual object.

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The density of each object was calculated to be 0.128, 0.376, 0.26 (g/𝑐𝑚 ).
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Introduction

Definition

Density of a substance is defined as the mass per unit volume. It is the ratio between

volume and mass (or mass per unit volume). Density basically measures how tightly matter is

packed together. Defined by the greek letter ρ (the lowercase greek letter rho), density is an

extremely important property of matter.

History and Discovery

The principle of density was first discovered by Archimedes. Supposedly, the King of

Syracuse asked Archimedes to find out whether his crown was made up of pure gold. At the

time, it seemed impossible to be able to identify the percentage of gold that made the crown.

When Archimedes was enjoying himself to a bath one day, he discovered that the further he

submerged himself in water, the higher the water levels rose and the lesser he weighed. He came

to the conclusion that he could find out the ratio of the crown’s mass and the volume of water

displaced by the crown, and compare it to the value measured from a sample of pure gold. This

was how Archimedes discovered density and the properties behind it.

Calculation

Mathematically, Scientists measure density by dividing the mass of something by its

volume (ρ = m/v). Mass measures the amount of matter an object has, and it is usually measured

in grams (g) or kilograms (kg). Volume measures the amount of space an object takes up. There

are many different units for volume (liters (l), meters cubed (m3), gallons (gal), etc.) The SI unit
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of density is kilogram per cubic meter (𝑘𝑔/𝑚 ), but it is also commonly shown in cgs units

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(𝑔/ 𝑚𝐿 or 𝑔/𝑐𝑚 ).

Objective & Significance of Experiment

In this Lab Experiment, you obtain a set of objects that vary in size and material. The

objective of the experimentis to calculate the density of the three objects by measuring the mass

and volume of your samples. Once you complete the experiment and obtain enough data, you

can compare the results of your experiment, and find out the relationship between the three

objects.

Method

Materials

To perform this experiment, the tools used were a ruler, a calculator, a balance (to

measure the mass), a graduated cylinder filled with a sufficient amount of water (to measure the

volume), a string, and a writing utensil and paper to record your measurements.

Participants and Description of Lab Setup

I worked with Coco Zhang to execute our experiment. First, we acquired three objects (a

cylinder, a sphere and a rectangular prism) of various materials, colors, and sizes. We gathered

our necessary materials and began our experiment.

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Figure 1: Diagram of three objects (sphere-left, rectangular prism-middle, and cylinder-right) used in this experiment

Procedure

Part 1: Measuring Mass - To begin the experiment, you first must calculate the mass of

each individual object. In order to have a more accurate result, we measured the mass of our

object 2 times and used each value to calculate the average density. To measure the mass, we

placed each object on the electronic balance and recorded the mass shown.

Part 2: Measuring Volume - There are multiple ways to measure the volume of an object.

In this experiment, we came to the conclusion that using two different methods of measuring

volume would be easiest for each individual object. For the sphere and the cylinder, we began by

filling a graduated cylinder with water. We made sure

to take note of the 𝑉𝑖 (the initial volume of the water)

so that we could properly calculate the volume of the

object we were measuring. We tied a string around the

object that we were measuring so that we could

remove the object easily and also so that the object

wouldnt drop. Then, you slowly lower the object into the the water, making sure that it is fully

submerged, but not too deep into the water. We then recorded 𝑉𝑓(the final volume of the water

with the object inside of it. Similar to the mass, we measure the volume of the object twice to

make Figure 2: Model of how to measure an object’s

sure that our result was accurate. volume using a graduated cylinder
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To measure the volume of the rectangular prism, we used a ruler to measure the dimensions of

the object (length, width, and height), which we would later use to calculate the volume.

Part 3: Calculating Density- With the data we found, we were able to use that information

to calculate the density of each object. The calculation process and the final data is discussed in

the section below.

Results

Equations Used

In order to calculate the density of each object, you must first know which formulas you

are going to be using and what you are using them for. The three formulas that we used are as

follows:

To Calculate Density: ρ= 𝑚/𝑉 (a)

To Calculate Volume from Water: 𝑉𝑜 = 𝑉𝑓 − 𝑉𝑖 (b)

To Calculate Volume of Rectangular Prism: 𝑉=𝐿·𝑊·𝐻 (c)

ρ = density of an object L = length of the object

m = mass of the object W = width of the object

V = volume of the object H = hight of the object

𝑉𝑜 = volume of the object 𝑉𝑓 = volume of water after placing object in

𝑉𝑖 = initial volume of water; volume of water before placing object in

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Note: There were other minor formulas that we used throughout the calculation process. For example, we used the formula

𝑥 = Σ 𝑥/𝑁( Σ𝑥 being the sum of x and N representing the number of data points) to calculate the average of two numbers.

However, the three formulas listed above are the most used and most relevant equations to this particular experiment.

Calculations

In order to find our data, we first had to make some calculations. For example, we had to

us the formula 𝑉 = 𝐿 · 𝑊 · 𝐻 (c) to determine the volume of our rectangular prism. From

there, we also had to use the formula 𝑉𝑜 = 𝑉𝑓 − 𝑉𝑖 (b) to calculate the volumes of the cylinder

and the sphere. The last step that needed to be taken was to use the formula ρ= 𝑚/𝑣 (a) to

calculate the density of each object. The data calculated is shown in the charts below.

Data & Data Analysis

Mass (g):

Object First Measurement Second Measurement

Cylinder 8 8

Sphere 26 26

Rectangular Prism 17 17

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Volume (𝑐𝑚 ):

Object First Measurement Second Measurement

Cylinder 62.5 62.45

Sphere 69 69.3
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Rectangular Prism 65.416 65.4

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Density (g/𝑐𝑚 ):

Object First Measurement Second Measurement

Cylinder 0.128 0.128

Sphere 0.377 0.375

Rectangular Prism 0.26 0.26

Final Result:

Object Density

Cylinder 0.128

Sphere 0.376

Rectangular Prism 0.26

Data Explanation & Analysis

Looking back at our data, there are quite a few observations you can make. While the

volumes were all pretty close in number, the data for the masses of the objects has a pretty wide

range. If you look closely at the data for each object, you can make some observations about

each individual object. Starting with the cylinder, you can see that this object contains noticeably

less mass than the other two objects. That results is the final density being low compared to the
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other objects. The sphere had the highest mass and volume out of the three objects, which led to

it being the densest compared to the rest. The rectangular prism has more mass than the cylinder,

but not as much as the sphere, so that (along with its volume) gives the rectangular prism a place

in the middle of our data. I believe that, overall, the mass had a bigger impact on the final

outcome of the density because of the fact that the volume measurements were so close in range.

The mass, however, had a pretty wide range, which creates the differences in density.

Conclusion

Error Estimation

There are a few elements of this experiment that could have caused errors. The first

example of a possible error is the measuring process of the dimensions for the rectangular prism.

When using a ruler to measure the length, width, and height of the rectangular prism, there may

be some unavoidable measuring errors. More examples of possible errors can be found in the

process of measuring the volume of the cylinder and the sphere. In order to submerge the object

in water, you must attach a string to that object, allowing you to slowly lower it into the water.

As convenient as this may be, the string can also make the final volume of the water go up,

which could affect the results. Another thing to consider is that when working with water,

chances are that not all the water will stay in the graduated cylinder. When you remove the

object, more water will come out along with it, which can also affect the results of the

experiment.

Ideas for Improvement

There are a couple of ways to improve an experiment like this. For starters, you could try

using a different measuring tool to measure the dimensions of the rectangular prism. Something
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like an electronic caliper or a ruler with smaller divisions can help reduce the amount of

inaccuracy there is. When measuring the volume of the cylinder and sphere, you could also try

using a thinner string, to once again reduce the amount of error in the measurement.

Summary

To calculate the density of the three objects, we chose three methods to obtain the data

needed. The first method used was to use an electronic balance to measure the mass of each

object. From there, there were two ways used to calculate the volume. The first way was to find

the dimensions of the shape and use a formula to find the volume of the shape. The second way

was to use water to measure the volume by finding the difference in the volume before and after

the object was added. Once we got our mass and volume, we used the formula ρ= 𝑚/𝑣 (a) to

calculate the average density of each object. We used this data to compare each shape to the

other shapes by looking at the differences in mass, volume, and density. Density appears

constantly in our everyday lives, it it is valuable knowledge to know and to understand how

density works, and how to apply that to the world around us.
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References

Density: Accuracy and Precision - Welcome to Web.gccaz.edu.

web.gccaz.edu/~rob2108739/Safety%20Density/Density_Bkgd.pdf

“Lab 1 - Measuring Density - NASA GISS: NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies” NASA Goddard

Institute for Space Studies, www.giss.nasa.gov/edu/nycri/units/pmarchase/2a-density.doc

Ross, Rachel. “Eureka! the Archimedes Principle.” LiveScience, Purch, 26 Apr. 2017,

www.livescience.com/58839-archimedes-principle.html