Buoyant Force

The upward force exerted by the fluid is known as buoyancy. It is because of this that objects float on water. Any item immersed in a liquid or gas experiences an upward force known as the buoyant force. A lump of iron may sink in water, but a massive ship built of iron will float. !

Pressure differences acting on opposite sides of an item immersed in a static fluid generate buoyancy.

The force exerted by pressure on the top of the can of beans will be smaller than the force exerted by pressure on the bottom of the can as you descend deeper into the fluid. In the following article, we’ll look at some instances to help us in understanding the principle of buoyant force.

Buoyant Force

The buoyant force is an upward force exerted by a liquid that limits the weight of an object submerged in it. As we all know, the weight of a liquid segment increases as it becomes deeper. As a result, the weight at the bottom of an item submerged in liquid is more significant than the weight at the top. The difference in weight causes a net upward pull on the object, which we refer to as buoyancy.

For example, the plastic bottle floats on water because the buoyant force exerted by the water is more than the weight of the plastic bottle, which is nothing more than the earth’s gravitational pull. To balance the plastic bottle, we must add an external downward force equivalent to the gravitational force.

Demonstration of Buoyant Force

When we submerge an object in a fluid, the object experiences an upward push. This force is called buoyant force because it is applied by the fluid to the item, causing it to rise. The magnitude of this force is exactly equal to the weight of the displaced liquid.

The Centre of Buoyancy is the point where the buoyant force is applied or the location on the item where the force acts.

Buoyant Force Formula 

F=mg=ρVg 

Here, F is the buoyant force, m is the mass of liquid, g is the gravitational Field Strength, is for density if liquid and V is for the volume of liquid displaced.

The buoyant force is determined by two factors:

• the density of the fluid in which it is put and 
• the volume of the body.

Archimedes’ Principle

Archimedes’ Principle is a fundamental law of fluid buoyancy developed by Archimedes, a Greek scientist. According to Archimedes’ principle states that: 

The upward force experienced by a body when fully or partially submerged in a fluid is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by it when it is immersed in the fluid.

The quantity of buoyant force exerted by the liquid and experienced by the item is equal to the fluid displaced in weight when a body is immersed entirely or partially in water or any other liquid. From designing ships and submarines to estimating the density of a liquid, the Archimedes principle has a wide range of uses.

Density and Relative Density

A material’s density is defined as its mass per unit volume. It’s a metric for how densely matter is packed together.

In numerical terms,

Density = MassVolume = MV

The SI unit of Density is kilogram per cubic metre kg/m3.

The relative density or specific gravity of a substance is defined as the ratio of a substance’s density to the density of water.

The relative density is measured as follows:

Relative Density =Density of a substanceDensity of water

Applications of Buoyant Force

There are several applications of buoyancy. The following are some of the applications of Buoyant force:

1.  Submarines have a massive ballast tank that fills up when the submarine submerges in the water, increasing its weight above the buoyant force, and then releases its water when the submarine wants to get out of the water, making it lighter than the buoyant force.
2. Fish have air sacks that they fill to raise their weight and allow them to swim deeper into the water. When they need to get closer to the surface, they empty the air sacks, which reduces their weight and allows the buoyant force to propel them higher.

Conclusion

The buoyant force is an upward force exerted by a liquid that limits the weight of an object submerged in it. As we all know, the weight of a liquid segment increases as it becomes deeper. As a result, the weight at the bottom of an item submerged in liquid is more significant than the weight at the top. 

Archimedes’ Principle is a fundamental law of fluid buoyancy developed by Archimedes, a Greek scientist. According to Archimedes’ principle states that: 

The upward force experienced by a body when fully or partially submerged in a fluid is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by it when it is immersed in the fluid.