Question

What are the laws of flotation? Give some illustrations.

Answer 1

Laws of flotation:

1. The law of flotation refers to when a body floats with its volume partially above the liquid surface, the volume of the liquid displaced by the body equals the volume of the submerged component of the body.
2. Because the body is in balance, the buoyancy force acting on it must be equal to its weight.
3. The law of floating states that if the density of the body is greater than the density of the fluid, the body sinks.
4. The body floats if its density is less than the density of the fluid.
5. If the body's density equals the fluid's density, the force exerted on the body fully immersed in the liquid is zero.

Some illustrations of state law of flotation:

1. An iron nail sinks in water whereas a ship floats because an iron nail sinks when placed on the water's surface. Because iron has a higher density than water, the weight of the nail is greater than the upthrust of water against it.
2. Iron is also used in ships; however, they do not sink. This is because the ship is hollow, and the empty space within it includes air, resulting in a huge volume and lower average density than water.
3. As a result, even if a small piece of the ship is submerged in water, Because the weight of the water displaced by the ship's submerged part equals the total weight of the ship, it floats.