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What is the density of matter?

We explain what density is and what types of density exist. Examples of the absolute density of different substances.

  1. What is the density of matter?

Density is a scalar magnitude , often used in physics and chemistry , which refers to the amount of mass present in a given body or substance . It is usually represented by the symbol ρ.

Two bodies of the same exact size and proportions can have different densities, and this is measured through the average densitye: the relationship between the mass of a body and the volume it occupies, according to the following formula:

ρ = m / V, where m is the mass and V the volume, so the unit of measurement of densitye in the International System will be the kilogram per cubic meter (kg / m 3 ) or similar measures. Variations in temperature and pressure affect the measurement of the density of a substance.

The densitye of matterss is often associated with the story of the Greek philosopher Archimedes , who was supposedly tasked to determine if the king’s crown had been forged using pure gold or if it had been diluted with other metals .

During an immersion bath, Archimedes realized that he could calculate the volume of the crown by immersing it in water and measuring the displacement of the liquid , without having to melt or break it; and that knowing the density of gold, which is a constant, could then weigh the crown and determine, using the formula detailed above, whether it was pure gold or an alloy , since the density of gold would have varied by mixing it with others. metals

  1. Density Types

There are several types of densitye of matters:

  • Absolute density . In general, we speak of absolute density when we use the term densitye , and it is an intensive quantity calculated, as we said above, from volume and mass, and measured in the SI in kg / m 3 .
  • Relative density . This other type, however, arises from the comparison between the densitye of the substance in question and some other that serves as a reference, so it is a dimensionless magnitude (without units). For liquids and solids , the densitye of water is used as a reference (at 1atm and 4 ° C), while for gases the air densitye is used (at 1atm and 0 ° C).
  • Apparent density . It is applied to heterogeneous materials, as well as porous materials, whose mixture affects densitye (being less than if each element is compacted separately). Hence, this type of density does not depend on the nature of the matters, but on the way in which it is arranged.
  1. Density Examples

Some examples of the absolute densitye of different elements and substances (expressed in their appropriate units) can be:

  • Magnesium (Mg) : 1,738 gr.cm -3
  • Calcium (Ca) : 1,54 gr.cm -3
  • Iron (Fe) : 7,874 gr.cm -3
  • Molybdenum (Mo) : 10.22 gr.cm -3
  • Silver (Ag) : 10.5 gr.cm -3
  • Gold (Au) : 19.3 gr.cm -3
  • Iridium (Ir) : 22,562 gr.cm -3
  • Dubnium (Db) : 29.3 gr.cm -3
  • Bohrio (Bh) : 37.1 gr.cm -3
  • Water (H 2 O) : 1 g / cm 3
  • Oil : 0.92 g / cm 3
  • Air : 1,225 kg / m 3

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