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In On Floating Bodies, Archimedes suggested that (c. 246 BC): Any object, totally or partially immersed in a fluid or liquid, is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object. Archimedes' principle allows the buoyancy of any floating object partially or fully immersed in a fluid to be calculated.
Buoyancy (/ ˈ b ɔɪ ən s i, ˈ b uː j ən s i /), [1] [2] or upthrust is a net upward force exerted by a fluid that opposes the weight of a partially or fully immersed object. In a column of fluid, pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid.
The effect is observed in small objects which are supported by the surface of a liquid. There are two types of such objects: objects which are sufficiently buoyant that they will always float on the surface (for example, Cheerios in milk), and objects which are heavy enough to sink when immersed, but not so heavy as to overcome the surface tension of the liquid (for example, steel pins on water).
The purpose of On Floating Bodies I-II was to determine the positions that various solids will assume when floating in a fluid, according to their form and the variation in their specific gravities. The work is known for containing the first statement of what is now known as Archimedes' principle .
Nonetheless, the role of flexibility and its impact on an object's load-bearing potential is one that did receive attention until the mid-2000s and onward. In an initial study, Vella [3] studied the load supported by a raft composed of thin, rigid strips. Specifically, he compared the case of floating individual strips to floating an ...
There are two primary mechanisms in play. One is an inward force on the surface molecules causing the liquid to contract. [2] [3] Second is a tangential force parallel to the surface of the liquid. [3] This tangential force is generally referred to as the surface tension. The net effect is the liquid behaves as if its surface were covered with ...
In aerodynamic levitation, the levitation is achieved by floating the object on a stream of gas, either produced by the object or acting on the object. For example, a ping pong ball can be levitated with the stream of air from a vacuum cleaner set on "blow" - exploiting the Coandă effect which keeps it stable in the airstream. With enough ...
Neutral buoyancy occurs when an object's average density is equal to the density of the fluid in which it is immersed, resulting in the buoyant force balancing the force of gravity that would otherwise cause the object to sink (if the body's density is greater than the density of the fluid in which it is immersed) or rise (if it is less).